The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1873-02-27
THE PRESIDENTS v EroEs.

The following pertinent remarks are
the more weighty and worthy of all due
considerations as they come from a source
which was one of the strongest oppo-
nents of the reelection of our president
| and is still the severest critic of anything
that it may find to blame in any action
of eur Administration the Chicago Tri-
| bune says:
The President has, on three or four
occasions, vetoed bills making appropria
tons to pay for private damages sustain
ed in the Rebel States during the war
The claims thus vetoed by the President
are small in themselves, and, if they
stood alone, there would be no serious
objection TO their payment. Bat these
small cases are the more dangerous be-
cause they are designed to serve as pre-
cedents. Once passed, a hundred thou
| sand ike claims, ranging from a thousand
to million dollars each. will be present
| ed These small bills are merely pushed
| forward for the purpose of having the
| bulwarks of the Treasury and the estab-
hshed principles of law broken down,
that the others may be presented. For
several years the battle was fought over
bill for the relief of a maiden lady in
Alabama, named Sue Murphy. 1t was
claimed that she was non-combatant
was minor at the time, and was loyal
hence she should be paid for injuries to
Ter estate suffered during the war
That bill passed one or the other House
of Congress, but failed. 1t would have
established precedent for the allowance
Of claims amounting to perhaps a thou.
sand million dollars. The strength of
these claims has been in the ignorance
cf those members of Congress who erected
loyalty as substitute for law In
their blind zeal for loyalty they assumed
that every loyal man was entitled to COM
pensation for ali damages sustained, for
getting that loyalty was thing that
might be proven by testimony, and that
testimony was as easily manufactured a.
the South as elsewhere.
The rule of law is, that no man has
any lawful demand upon tie United
States that cannot be settled by the off
GERS of the Treasury, under general laws
The fact that none of these demands are
BOW payable at the Treasury is p1inld ia
cae evidence that they are but claims up
on the bounty, liberality. and equity of
Congress- They have, therefore, no lie
gal character 7; they are not lawful de-
mands, and, until recognized by Congress
in the form of law, are mere petitions
for charity. The law of this country,
and of every civilized country, is, that all
persons residing in an enemy's territory
in time of war are public enemies, and
that they have no claim for compensation
tCr losses sustained in the prosecution of
the war that might not be presented by
the Government then in iorce and carry
ing on the war. Every person, there
fore. residing in the Rebel States. or in
the territory subject to the Confederate
forces, was. in contemplation of law, a
public enemy, and not entitled to any
compensation of losses sustained by the
War. This rule is applicable even to
citizens of foreign countries resident in
the enemy's country. There are claims
either before Congress, or held in abey-
ance waiting for a precedent, which
cover the losses sustained by every resi-
dent in the Rebel States To pay any
| of them would not only be favoritisn,
but would open the door to enormous
| frauds The President has, so far, resis-
| ted all appeals to open the door and ad-
| nit these claims. He has interposed his
veto promptly and vigorously, and it is
| TO be hoped that he will continue to do
| -. The approval of these bills would
| call into existence at Washington an inn
mense lobby, not merely OF Southern
| people, but of Northern spectators.
Already we have lobby to appropriate
seventy millions of dollars TO the Sou
thern States for the return of the cotton
tax we have also strong lobby of Nor
thern brokers ard bankers, urging that
the United States shall assume the debts
of all the Southern States. and it is due
to the vote of the President that we have
not now triumphant lobby. pressing an
appropriation of millions of dollars to pay
| private losses sustained in the Rebel
States during the rebellion.