New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1876-04-18
THE ALABAMA AWARD.

The proper disposition of the balance of the
Geneva award remaining in the Treasury niter
the payment of the awards decreed by the
Court Of Alabama Claims is discussed il The
rcport of the majority of the House Judiciary
Committee in spirit which savors moro OF
the ingenuity of an attorney than of the wisdom
and high sense of honor which ought to pre-
vail in the national Legislature. The act of
1874 creating the Court provided that no
claims should be paid except those arising out
of the depredations of tho three vessels for
which the Tribunal at Geneva held Great
Britain responsible, namely, the Alabama, the
florida. and the Shenandoah after her de-
parture from Melbourne in February, 1865;
that no claims should be paid for which the
party injured had already received compensa-
ton from insurance companies and that IN
surance companies should not be paid unless
they could show that the sum of their losses
in respect to war risks during the rebellion
exceeded the sum of their premiums OF other
gains. The Court proceeded to distribute the
money ACCORDING to these directions, and now
that its labOrs are concluded the Government
finds that it has still about half the original
award on hand, amounting, with premium and
interest,", 10 SlO,OOOJOOO. w Htbb Sh''iA no No'N
with It'll
The proper answer to this question ought to
be governed by the circumstances under
which the award was made. We are at loss
to comprehend how there should be any
question that we are bound IN honor to apply
the money to the purposes for which it was
paid. Nothing can be clearer than that the
United States in stating its case at Geneva
acted as the agent of its injured citizens. Its
own national claims, for the damage caused by
the prolongation of the war and the transfer
of American commerce to foreign flags, were
expressly ruled out by the albitratOrs The
claims arising from the depredations of all the
rebel cruisers, except the three we have men
toned, were also ruled ont. The United States
assented to these rulings and asked judg-
ment, and got it, the other
claims. and now to take the money
and divert it to another destination would
Justly discredt us in the eyes of the whole
world. The fact that the Tribunal, instead OF
appointing Board of Assessors to pass upon
each claim in detail, adopted the more digni-
fed and expeditions method Of awarding a
gross sum, only shows that it trusted to our
honesty to distribute it in the proper way.
The gross sum was ascertained by a consider
alton of the separate claims. The original de-
mand of the United States was an itemized
bill for 500, 900, 900. From this total the Ar
bitrators struck out the items for increased IN
surance, for the depredations of the Sumter,
Georgia, Tallahassee. &C., and so reduced
the claim to $14,OO0,000. The committee
of the Board of Trade employed by the
British Government fixed upon total OF
$7,3OO,OOO. Mr.. Staempdi, one of the Arbi-
traitors. was requested by his colleagues to
make a calculation, and he came to the con-
clusion that the award ought to be $4,000
900, and this estimate, made from a consid-
Grafton of the individual detailed claims, was
finally adopted, s3,5Oo,OOO being added for
interest. "Hers Ia the fact that stares you