The New York herald., 1869-01-15

!, ,opeo it would not be adopted BY tho govern

ment. "o1A NV oo suop'0" y As eo'ei
l6 srEwARr rep.) Of Nevada, felt entirely salts
io' al people OF the South must be done as matte
y favor, not as matter OF right The argument o
unanswerable Whenever In other countries friendl
OF the government had been compensated In like Cir
cumstances 1t had always been as reward Tor soms
Southern Senators were strenuous In urging the ob
CATION OF Congress TO do something Tor the ioya
people OF the South Admitting for argument sake
the obligation, he would remind those Senators Of
what the government had already done for them.
Refugees feed the starving Unionsts OF the South
Had not the people OF the nation taxed them
selves, publicly and privately, for the same pur.
that the government failed to distinguish between
loyal and disloyal at the South? Had not the most
marked distinction been made all along by the legs-
aton OF Congress between the persons of the loyal
and disloyals He thought the government and the
people OF the North had already done much for the
loyaists OF the South and ought not to be expected
to do more than would be reasonable or possible.
Mr.. THAyER, trepJ OF New, regretted that this bill
for the relief OF Miss Murphy seemed TO be regarded
by Senator'S test case, and he would vote for Its
recommttal because he had some doubt about the
merits OF the clalm but when the general questions
were presented for his conslderation-what is the
duty and what should be the attitude OF the govern
ment OF the United States towards these people OF the
South who faithful TO during the war; he did
not require the aid OF Puendor or Grotius in order 10
determine it: and, however sound in law might be
the proposition OF the Senator from Massachusetts
(Sumner) and the other opponents OF this bill. that
those people were public enemies his heart and udg
revolted against it. He held that every man at
the South who was faithful to the government Of his
country throughout the war stood in the rela-
tIon TO the government with loyal citizen OF New
York or oregon; and for the government to stigma
TIE such man as public enemy would be, IN hs
opinion, refinement OF cruelty. During the war he
had the Unionsts of the South come out at the
approach OF the United States forces from the gorges
OF the mountains and the caves OF the EARTH where
they had lain hidden and famIshng for weeks
or months rather than be false TO their coun-
nd n q
country were TO stigmatze them as public
enemies would 1t not be false them and false to its
own solemn and repeated pedgesS IL that prOpo-
sltion were laid down by the government, In OF
another rebellion who could blame the people OF the
South II every man, woman and child should JOIN
the rebelsS The government had expressly promised
BY It's army officers to pay the oyaiiss OF the South
for their property taken for the OF the army He
had himself often taken such property, but his
quartermaster had always given q voucher to the
owner OF the property that he should be paid for
upon establishing his loyalty and so far as he knew
this had been the universal practice OF The army IL
Of these claims that the loyal people at
during the rebellion must be regarded as public
enemies because they chose But had that Senator
forgotten that President Lincoln had held out special
inducements to them to remain at home saying II
there were only ten thousand loyal men in rebel
State they were the State and should be so recog-
nizedf Another argument was these people were
public enemies because the rebels were beigerents
He had always understood that the recognition OF
them az beliigerents was made with the object Of
into their hands, and that the recognition went no
further than was necessary TO secure that end and
did not the government treat with them for
terms OF peacef Why demand an unconditional
.h Nener upon R NJ sns nor any other ground
and ght'thousand negroes and the forty thousand
white men who had joined the armies and fought In
been public enemies. The Senator from Kentucky
mr. Davisl In his argument for this bull, had asked
se s Of the public enemy doctrine whether
was . public enemy because he was .
would not take that case - to Illustrate his
view, because, whatever the position OF the
President a.a. might & be during the war, he had
Tennessee-Mr. Horace Maynard-driven nom
Jor his loyalty to the Union. That gentleman had
made no claim for compensation; but would any
one say tnat ne was , public enemy OF the govern.
his friendiness to 1T
Mr.. MORTON said that the doctrine entertained by
far as claims for compensation for property taken
by the government for military purposes were con.
considered and treated as public enemies. This doc
trine the gentleman has endeavored to meet by the
proposition that whenever Q man In the north was
by the government for military purposes,
. loyal man In the south was entitled
military purposes under the circumstances, and he
conended that the ad0ptan OF any other rule would
mot only be unjust but In bad faith. He wished to
call the attention OF the Senate TO the fact that the
public faith Is involved In this controversy. From
the beginning OF the war the government has en-
ing them protection for life and property. so far a.
lay In its power. What kind Of projections Mani
festy the same kind OF protection for life and prop
erty that II gave TO all men In the North II the
promise did not mean that 1t meant nothing. How,
then, could the government refuse payment to q
circumstance in which Northern man would would be bs
paid without violating this solemn national pledge-
pledge which had been repeated IN another
form by the generals OF our armies by giving 10
those whose property they took vouchers that should
be paid for upon proof OF the loyalty OF the claimant
should be done by the democratic party, who had
never professed 10 be friendly TO the Southern
Unonists, and never by the republican party, which
had made such professions ana had besought their
aid IN the war. In reply to the proposition OF Mr..
Williams yesterday, that property could not have
been taken under the same circumstances In Ala
bama as in New York during the war, because the
constitution and laws were In force In New York,
while they were suspended BY military law
property OF loyal men In Alabama had been
always under the protection Of the con.
contrary to the whole theory and practice Of Con-
Rress-the work OF reconstruction; and IN reply 10
the argument that loyal southern men were by In
ternarional law public enemies, he said the nation
was estopped from setting up that plan by Its own
express promise.
Mr. wiLsoS, trep) OF Mass. said that two years
the legal position OF the loyal people OF the South,
Congress would deal with them justly. The Military
Committee recommend the appointment Of a com
mission to examine and report upon the claims oil
loyalists IN the states lately IN rebellion. Nc
action had been taken upon that recommends
tOn, but 20,176 such claims. amounting tc
$40, ,020 900, had been ned In the Quartermaster's
department. portion OF them had been passed
upon and claims TO the amount OF $685. sl3 had been
allowed with reduction upon those allowed OF
$4,000. one thousand i've hundred and seventy
four claims, amounting TO s2,e5A000, had been re
jected and claims TO the amount OF 90, 00v
still pending. In the Commissary Department there
had Deen made 6,3s6 claims amounting TO f2y1s, 600
of which s45, amounting tot24e coo had been allowed
and 545 claims, amounting TO 81 ass 900, dsallowcd
SO that the proportion OF the claims allowed was
very small and he had been told by the officers that
great number were fraudulent and had TO be care
fully examined In order 70 be detected. From these
figures which he thought included nearly all the
claims that could be made by the people OF the South
they we're satisfied that the amount OF claims thai
would be made. including claims like Miss Murphy
had been greatly over estimated, aud probably would
mot exceed $4,000. 900 or s12, ,000. 900 In all.
l Mr.. STEWART asked him whether the claims filed
IN the Quartermaster and the Commissary Depart
snens were not merely those for which vouchers had
been given by army offlcersS
Ne Wtra od Mo-. hat hoax