Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1876-09-29

and fixed purpose behind the DemOcratie
regular army.
But slavery Is gone forever, the Union re-
stored beyond peradTenture-what can bind
ths South together as slavery did formerly
What interest takes the place Of the billions
Of dollars that the slaves represented The
answer is complete in two words SOUTHERN
CLAIMS.
And notice has been served by the Confed-
crate Brigadiers in Congress, and by the Con-
tsderate State Government of Missouri, fair
" and plainly what we may expect, and if
the whole people of the North do not see it,
they must be credited with degree Of stu
pidity rare among men.
The war is over. Is It'll Look at the list Of
war claims. Look at the National debt,
which represents the waf-a burden
that will press upon Us for gen
erations. Touching the passage from
General TUTTLE, we are of opinion that that
gentleman has been incorrectly quoted, or
that he is inaccurate. We will endeavor to
subject him to correction and our correspond
ent to enlightenment at the same time.
The State of Missouri in 1873 created a War
Claims Commission, and in the course of
year claims to the amount of about three mill
ions were considered. This is a gigantic job By
Rebel Ring. There were claims not allowed
by the United States Government, because
unquestionably preferred by rebels, and the
start of this Missouri job was to get the State
TO assume claims that the Nation rejected.
The aggregate of those claims is now, we
learn, about eight millions.
A correspondent of ours, who had com
mission to investigate this matter for
Us and report, writing from st. Louis
IN 1874, gave the Confederate argument
in behalf Of these claims, and We reproduce it
here, as it is good reading:
"ThOss Yankees hare put IN tkeir claims and
had them paid by the millions and hold Gorern-
mont bonds besides. We C0nfederates had 10 lose
all fhat tos put into Confederate bonds and nous
are De to 90 lpiihOut payment for dollars toOrth
Of our property destroyed Let US see Demo
cratic Congress that a0iU say so. They haze forced
US to acknowledge that this is our country; uery
tCslI, then IFS Government is bound to pay all
losses By seizure or destruction Of property to ono
man as soelI as 10 another. These Yankees hare
forced Us to take their gTecEbGcks and to pay IN
terest on their bonds; Ue igill make them pay our
losses and for SlGUes, tOO before get through
Otherwise they may l1ipe out the i0hOls id debt
and begin sueR."
This was published in the COMMERCIAL,
December %, 1874, and our correspondent
added that this sort of talk could be heard all
over Missouri. The history of this scheme
was given by our st. Louis correspondent,
dating December 1s 1874, as follows, after
stating that the amount of the claims allowed
by the Commission would probably REACH
EIGHT MILLIONS:
'1t may be doubted whether even the orig
inators of the scheme imagined that the
amount claimed or allowed would be so large.
Certain it is that, while they privately whis-
pered to friends that it was "a very big thing,
with a million of money in it. they took care
to publicly represent it as a small matter.
Since the partial settlement of the State with
the United States, there have been on file
: certain claims, amounting to less than $780,
900 in all, which the United States would not
recognize, either because they were forservices
said to be rendered by troops not having proper
authority, or because the claimants could not
prove their loyalty, or establish their claims
/. according to United States rules. Under pre-
text that these claims ought to be formally
presented, bill Ito audit and adjust the war
debt of the State was introduced. 1t created
q commission for examination of claims, and
| provided that for claims allowed certificates of
Indebtedness should be issued in form as fol-
lows:
srIt Ishereby certified thar the state of Mis-
on account of =, This certiiicate is not
payable By the State until nfter the claim of
| said-- has been presented 10 the United
states Government, and the amount allowed and
) paid 10 the State, and then only tor the actual
amount received from the United States Gov
"CIty of Jefferson, Missouri. =, IS
"--, Governor of Missouri.
-, Acting Q. NJ. General of Missouri"
'SThe plea that this certificate was merely
a recognition of claim to be presented, was
used to effect the passage of the bill. But it
) is now maintained by good lawyers that the
{ holder of every such certificate of indebted
ness could recover in suit against the State,
and that they constitute, in fact, complete
assumption of debt by the State, although
no unconditional provision is made for their
payment. The bill was passed, however,
upon the plea that the amount involved
would be only S400, 900, and that it was well
t to get this little mess of unadjusted claims
out Of the way. By way of testing the sin
eerity of this pretext, it was moved in the
Senate to strike out the words italicized from
the first section of the bill, 'tO erdnliRe adjust
and audit the claims of citizens no,u on file in the
? QMdrtermGster Generals Office, or tGhich may be
! fled up to the 1st day of august, 1874
This would have confined the Commission
to the claims then on file, and was of course
voted down-syes II, nays Is. Then the Ring
D went out and smiled happily. 1t was moved
to strike out from clause providing that the
Commission should be governed by the United
States rules, the following significant proviso:
so far as they may be applicable to the settle
ment of such claims If It eUer honestly in
tended that these claims should be paid only GfteI
their GIIoicance by the United States, surely Il
must haze been plain that it svOad be absurd tC
= issue certificates upon claims aohich could not b
collected under the present United States rules
those of rebels, for example. But This 'cGs roted
J dODn-yeaS II, nGys II. Both these amend
d ments were offered by the Democratic Chair
man of the Committee Of Ways and Means
a but he was, unfortunately, a Union soldier
and could not see the point The Ring did, and
Q smiled again. Another amendment offered by q
n Republican Senator, provided against frauds
= in the proving of claims, and required an afi-
A daviJ that the claimant has not sold or dis
posed of his interest in the claim; voted
down, yeas 10, nays 49, The ring then pushed
the bill TO UOe, and 1t passed. yeas 20, nays II
8 and its friends made Jefferson City particularly
= ltUely that night The bill had already passed
the House without chance for amendment
y and was at once signed.