The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1866-06-08
OPINION OF THE ATTORNEY
GENERAL.
Rights of Pensioners in States lately
in Rebellion.
ATTORNEY GENERALS OFFICE, !
March II, 1866.

mdICu II, 1OOO.
Hon. James Harlan, Secretary Of the Int
rior
SIR In your letter of the Both of De
cember, 1865, the receipt of which
| have the honor to acknowledge, (and
which l have not been able to answer
because of my engagements in court,
you state that Hiram Saul was, previ-
Gus to the rebellion, a pensioner of the
Government, and that he received his
pension up to the 4th of March 1861
but since the Presidents proclamation
of the 10th of August, 1861, his name,
together with the names of all other
pensioners residing within the States
declared to be in rebellion, has been
| regarded as stricken from the pension
rolls by operation of the act of the 4th
of February.
You further state that Saul has es.
tablished the fact of his loyalty during
the rebellion to the satisfaction of the
Department, and otherwise complied
with its rules and regulations, and that
his name has been recently restored to
the rolls.
You ask me whether, under the state
of facts, the Department should now
pay to Saul his pension from the 4th of
March, 1861, the date of the last pay
men to him.
When q state of war existed between
the people of the States who were pro-
claimed to be in rebellion and the
National Government, under and by
the laws of war, as well as by the act OF
the 18th July, 1861, all commercial in
tercourse betwixt the people so in re-
bellion and the rest of the people of the
United States was interdioted and be-
came unlawful That there were many
true and loyal people who resided and
remained within the territory declared
to be in rebellion is undoubtedly true :
but by the laws of war, and the act OF
Congress, they were made and declaT-
ed TO be public enemies, and inter
course with them was unlawful One
of the worst hardships and evils grow
ing out of state Of war is that the in
nooent are involved with the guilty.
To be a public enemy is not to be
criminal, and yet the public enemy who
is void of crime may, as an enemy, suf-
fer more than the public enemy who is
also a traitor. Such may be the for
tunes of war as to individuals. The
wit of man has not thus far been able
to divide and prescribe rule by which
such consequences Of war can be
avoided.
By the laws of war, then, as also by
the provisions of the act of the 18th of
IL 1901 oDJ Al ,,rocla v,,o tio,, fiji
President made in pursuance thereof,
the Department of the Interior was for
bidden from paying any pensioners of
the Government, whether loyal or dis
loyal, who resided and remained with
in the territory which was under the
dominion of the rebels, so long as the
war.continued, and all commercial in
tercourse was interdicted.
The provisions of the act of Congress,
entitled Gan act authorizing the Secre-
tary Of the Interior to strike from the
pension rolls the names of such per-
sons as have taken up arms against the
Government, or who may have in any
manner encouraged the rebels ap-
proved 4th of February, 1862, (Stst p,
339,) relieve me from the necessity of
expressing an opinionsupon the ques
tion whether taking up arms against
the Government, encouraging rebels,
or manifesting an interest in their
cause would of itself, and without any
legislation upon the subject forfeit q
pension.
That act makes it the duty of the
Secretary of the Interior to strike
out from the pension rolls the names of
all such persons who have taken, or may
hereafter take up arms against the Gov
eminent of the United States, or who
have, in any manner, encouraged
the rebels, or manifested a sympa-
thy with their cause" Ordering
that the names Of all such persons
shall be stricken from the pension rolls
is equivalent 10 an order that they
shall not be paid and on the other
hand, it is an order 20 the Secretary
not to strike from the pension rolls the
names of persons who have not taken
or may not take up arms against the
Government or in any manner encour-
age the rebels, or manifest sympathy
with their cause, and is tantamount TO
an order that their names shall remain
on the pension rolls, and that they
shall be paid.
By this act Congress has sought 70 be
Just 10 all the pensioners of the Gov
ernment who shall remain faithful and |
true, and without any fault OF theirs |
they must be regarded as public enc