Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1864-03-08

caught 10 the act of vioISSing the law.
Reoel printing Offices have been gutted
cut, sscession houses have been burned
arms and ,munitioos Of var have been seiE
ed, vessels have been uSed, seized or can
tured by our forces, railroads have been
taken for military use, their rolling stool
has been worn out, tracks have been de,
strOyed, bridges burnt or blown up
and every form OF de1 1estation and de.
structiou has been inflictsd on the enemy's
property by our, armies:
From all these iujurisS the inevitable
result of WRrltke 'opetatt6ns, claims arise
against the Government fs5m sons personS
claiming to beiloyAl; even though residing
10 the districts At tRArJwilhus. Whenever
the armies move they scatter broadcast the
prolific seed which wilIfipen into claims
against the, Government.
As to the character ofsfhese claims. so
far as known to rme ) sonie of them have
out q slI ght foundation I'M fact, many are
purely Fictitious, and q lArge proportion
OF mem have 6eeqSs exor ilAnt and unrea-
sonablet $3.50 50 ~, .,ssN,s-
Sometimes the amount OF annual rent. de-
manded for piece of real estate is equal
to half or the whole of lts value. The
valuation placed upon many articles has
been more than than ten times their real
worth, and as general statement these
claims are Of SO gross aud outrageous a
Character as to stamp themias fraudulent.
Although some claims Of this class are
fairly stated, yet 1t would seem as though
1t were thought fair game by some claim.
ants to rob the Treasury to tny practical
extent.
In answer to theinquiTy as to the amount
OF these claims which have been or will he
brought against the Government, can
only say that it is impossible to ascertain
toe aggregate. bsIieveithat hundreds of
millions of dollars will be required 10 sat
isty these demands.
1t 1t were now understood that they
were allowed and promptly settled in the
War Department and paid by ths Treasury,
l do not believe that we coulI carry on
the war three mouths, for want of money
or credit.
Hook upon the army of claimants as
really quite as formidable to thu Govern
meut as the army of rebels; ard if this
great and impending danger is not looked
IN the lace, and promptly and decisively
met by Congress, shall feel a diminished
confidence in the ultimate preservation OF
our national honor.
The above letter is rather astounding in
its developments aud we'll calculated to
make the bOldest advocates OF claim allow
nnces draw back considerably iu their eff
forts to get the claim system fairly inaug.
uFated. Tax payets may fseliugIy usk
themselves "where would the thing have
an end7" Congress delays, its taxes
quibbles and Lallies with the whisky spec
ulatoFs. and yet incliues to pitch ,hsadlong
ioto sea of,Rxpenditures that wosld i'm.
peril, if nOt-anuihila,e, tse tinaneebl b the
nation.
That there are hundreds of just claims
owing to loyal people by the Government
can not be doubted. But see the small
proportion they bear to the swiudles at.
tempted to be perpetrated. Mr. Whaley
stated in his remarks that claims were
"piIed up by the cord in the Third Audi.
tors office"
We Can readily believe it. 1t is hard to
tell what would be the result. Aud yet
it is said that valid claims should be sus.
pended and indefinitely postponed, as they
are probably bound to be, We think.
Gen. Scheuck, OF Ohio, made some very
sensible remarks, as it seems to US. We
quote:
"But as TO that wide extent of claims
which will be heaped up mountain high
against this Government for ground simply
LrOdden over, for ground encamped upon,
for timber incidentally destroyed, tor horses
let loose, for fences burned, if YOU ouen
The door 10 cases Of that kind, you will
bankrupt the Treasury before you get
through the war. Aud say plniuly and
distinctly that, although admit the jus.
lice OF many OF these claims, but to much
smaller amCunt aud degree than applied
FOR, we ought to postpone the cousidera-
lion Of the whole oil them, and use all our
means first to put down the rebellion, and
pay that part OF the cost OF it hereutter.-
Believing that to be the case, propose to
limit the inquiry TO matters Of contract,
where property has been actually taken.
used, and enjoyed by the Government, and
adjourn inquiry into these other questions
until after tue rebellion is tut down"
The following quotation from the Globe
comprises the remarks made by Messrs.
Blair and Whaley:
H.
Speaker, ! have risen to Say that there is
no bill which can ue offered TO this Com
gress in which my constituents are more
deeply and vitality interested than the one
now peuding There seems to be- two OF.
jectiOus 10 the amendment offered by the
gentleman from Maryland, tMr. Thomas.)
ODe is that the Government is uot able 10
pay these claims-that now is not the time
to settle and adjust them One gentleman
from New York the other day iutlmatcd in
his speech, If he did not ray iu SO many
terms, that this Government would repI.
diate its debts. had no idea there would
be members of the House who would get
up and say that the Government was
neither able nor willing To pay its debts.
Mr.. Boutwell,. To what gentleman does
tue gentleman refer as having said that
the Government proposed to repudiate its
IlphtS