New-York tribune., 1874-03-09

| than ahundred years as q part of their COM
mon law, that private papers shall not DO
searched to obtain evidence against their
owner they were met with this same answer
that without such process Government could
not discover and prevent crime. The same
reason was given in excuse for the writs
| of assistance which reused the American col
onsts to the defense Of their liberties and it
is tho argument of all dcspotic governments
which exercise the power of invading private
homes and violating the secrets of the post
Office, that espionage and seizure are essential
to the preservation of order and the enforce
ment of the laws. But no free people in tho
world submits to such proceedings OF listens
| 10 such reasons-except the people OF the
| United States.
| In the first place. therefore, the law author
| izing the seizure of books and papers must be
totally abolished; not modified, but ex-
plunged. 1t is a disgrace to our statute books,
| and not fragment of it ought to remain. so
| long as it stands, in any form, it will be easy
| for INSCRIPTIONS officials to wiring fines from
the innocent. To seize the private papers and
| account books of a suspected merchant ID to
| punish the accused before he has been tried.
The seizure itself is penalty of the severest
kind. 1t is not merely an Inconvenience; it
involves obstruction to business, damage to
credit, and incalculable pccunary loss; and
the fact is undenable that many an importer,
who might have gone into court with
clear conscience and acquitted himself
of any purpose to defraud the Govern
ment, has been compelled, in order to
get back his books and resume business, TO
compromise with the infOrmer, not because he
feared the result of atrial, but because delay
meant bankruptcy. No possible advantage to
the public revenue through the operation OF
such system will compensate for Its radical
injustice. 1t is better to lose million through
dishonest undervaluations than to make
million by the oppression of tho innocent.
No amendment that can be devised viii re-
move from this mOnstrOus law Its tyrannical
and hateful character. No pruning and trim
ming will alter its essential unconstitutiOn-
ality.
Whether moieties must be abolished en-
tirely is perhaps an open question: but that
they must be placed on new basis, if they
are retained at all, admits of no doubt. AS
the law stands to-day, the revenue service,
the detective service, and the officers OF the
courts are virtually in conspiracy to en-
courage 0ffenses in order to make money by
them. The CustOm-hOuse clerks and inspect
ors are paid handsome bonus for first con-
niying at undervaluatiOns and then denOunc-
ing them. The Special Agents are paid to
brbe employees of the importers to commit
irregularities in their transactions with the
Custom house. in order that they may share
in the consequent penalties. The District
Attorney is paid to prevent the accused
merchant from getting justice in the United
States Court and to frighten him into COM
promise. The Collector is paid to use his IN
huence with the Secretary of the Treasury to
prevent remission; and if the unfortunate
importer goes to Washington he finds in the
most powerful of the Republican members o.
Congress the epaid counsel of the Special
Agent Mr. Jackson S. Schultz, in his re-
markablo address before the Committee on
Saturday, gave an explanation of some Of the
worst features of this rapacious organization,
and we think he must have made it evident
that no reform would be worth much till the
conspiracy was destroyed. Secretary McCu!-
loch declared in his official report for 1869
" The experience 1 have had in the Treasury
" Department has convinced mo that the evils
" attending the system are greater than the
" benefits derived from it y and he added that
the practice of "alowing persons to pur-
" sue fraudulent course until re-
" suit was reached which would inure
" to the benefit of the officers and nformers, |
4" "instead of checking criminal practices at the |
" outset,n had become "quite general Sec |
rotary Boutwell,, in his report for 1871, urged |
upon Congress "the Importance of abolishing |
" the system Of shares and mOeties as far as
d" tho benefits inure to revenue officers and |
" other persons officially connected with the |
" Government" Secretary Richardson, who |
long ago declared the uncOnstitutiOnality OF |
laws for tho seizure of books aud papers, has |
receotly recommended "the abolition of all |
" mOieties except in the case of smuggling |
(Which would be in accordance with the En- |
lsh plan). The Senate Committee on Re- |
trenehment submitted two forcible reports to |
the same effect in 1872. 1t is the duty Of Off |
GERS of the customs. said the majority report, |
to prevent cheating in the quantities or values |
of merchandise that passes their inspection. |
The Government should not bribe them to |
-" bo defrauded by holding up to them great for
" tunes for detecting the fraud. The husband |
" man who pays his harvester meager salary
" for gathering grain, but offers him one-half !
" for cleaning all that his rake passes over
" should not be surprised to learn that his
" servant rakes slovenly"