The Hillsdale standard. [volume] (Hillsdale, Mich.) 1851-1909, 1878-07-16
WHAT WILLIS DID.
How "a Michigan Member Rout-
ed the COnfederates.
AND SAVED TaE TREASURY VA
nv BILLIONS.
a Rare Opportunity weIIImproved.

Fsom the Evening News, June 10Th.
WAsHEGToS, June 27.-Among the
few good acts performed and good re-
suits achieved 10y members of congress
during the recent long session Of that
i body, I.dOubt there is one that viii
/ compare favorably. IN point Of real
\ practical benefit To- the country, with
/ { at OF Judge Willis when II defeated
/ The confederate raid ou the treasury in
the matter of paying southern mail
/ contractors. The true history Of that
matter has never been fully published
IA any newspaper. and 1t Is due to
worthy and courageous member Of
| congress. ss Mr.. Willis has proved
himself to be, that il should be done.
On the 3lst OF May, 1861. the United
| States government was owing To
SOUTHERN MAIL CONTRACTORS
the SUN Of $4,000, Of which sum
$4,000 was afterwards paid To con-
! tractors living in the north aud TO "A
/ few Tennessee loyalists on the recon-
mendation of Andrew Johnson. leav-
ing $500, 900 unpaid and owing TO
/ those who went into the rebellion at
and these men went in body over 10
the enemy, the government refused, Of
course, To recognize their claims, and,
in fact, little or no effort was mace TO
collect the amount due. After the
close of the war. and particularly dur
ing the last five years, constant efforts
have been made TO collect this money.
| No progress, however, was made in
that direction until the democrats se-
cured control of the House of Repre-
sentatives, and even then no decisive
step was taken until Mr.. Atkins, the
present chairman Of the committee of
ways and means, during the last hours
/ of the 44th congress, got an amend
ment tackled on 10 the sundry civil APP
preparation bill appropriating 1915, 600
for that purpose. To this amendment
| two provisions we're added, one TO the
effect that the contractors should only
be paid mp to the time when their sew
eral States went into rebellion, and an
other that none should be paid who
| had been paid for the same service by
the confederate government. In this
shape the bill became law, and large
number of TIE contractors immediate
I
auditor Of the treasury. But, much
to their disgust.
SECRETARY SHERMAN REFUSED
| to pay n cent, for the ostensible reason
! that as the aggregate claims amounted
TO $500, 600, it would not be proper for
| him tO pay any until all the claims
were filed, and then only pro rata
| The result was that inasmuch as there
we're some small contractors who were
/ dead, and their claims forgotten. no
one could get cent Of the appropria-
tioD. Upon the assembling of the
/ present congress one OF the first resO-
/ lutions introduced was one by Reagan,
Of Texas, instrucling Sherman 10 pay
/ the claims forthwith zap 10 the 3lst OF
May, 1861, and authorizing the use OF
/ the appropriation of 1877 for that pur-
pose. The resolution was referred 90
! tho committee on postoftices and post
roads, IF which Waddell, OF North
| Carolina, was chairman. That gentle
/ aAAn promptly reported fayorablc, and
orc morning hour introduced the sub
/ i,ct and asked that it bs put ON its
/ passage, alleging that his only purpose
was 70 utilize an appropriation al'"ldv
made, and that the Secretary OF the
/ Treasury had 0IbIrarlly refused -
! obey the act Of congress. But
THE EvEB wArcHTUL coYGER
objected" aud Insisted that it should
lie considered in committee on the
whole. When it came upin committee
of the whole Reagan made a speech,
aud 10 reply 10 questions stated that
the resolution was identical with the
law Of II, except that it omitted the
proviso that none should be paid who
had been paid by the confederate gov
ernment. This, he alleged, had been
left of for the reason that none had
been paid by that government and none
assumed 10y 1t. 4 comparison of the
resolution with the law, however.
showed that not only this proyiso -had
been omitted, but also the one provid-
ing that they should only be paid up
TO the time when their respective states
went into rebellion. Instead Of this
the time fixed in the resolution, up to
which they would all be paid. was the
3lst of May, 1861. This made "A large
difference in favor Of the contractors,
aud would have given some OF them
pay for some length OF service after
they were in actual rebellion. But III
the meantime
MR. WILLIS HAD NOT BEEN IDLE.
Like Sir Boyle Roche. he smelled n
rat; be saw il floating in the air, and
was determined 10 nip IL IL the bud.
He immediately began a search in the
public library. he ransacked IT
through and through without discover.
ing anything, until at last he stumbled
on copy Of the confederal statutes,
which even the librarian did not know
was there. In that he discovered a law
authorizing the payment Of these very
claims. Having now got fairly on the
scent he went for the confederate arch
ives. It would be tedious 20 give the
details Of the search, but suffice 10 %
say that he found that Mr.. Reagan, the
confederate postmaster general. had
recommended the payment of these
claims in a carefully prepared argu-
ment to the confederate congress; that
that congress had passed the law as
recommended; that his estimate Of the
amount thus due was $500, 600. thus
agreeing exactly with the estimate OF
our government; that lac had charged
.h:mself with the full amount on his
books; that he had audited S773, 900 OF
the claims, and had paid up to May,
1863 the sum Of SGGl, 900. The record
of the rest Of the payments could not he
found, but tho presumption IL that the
whole amount had been paid. With
these documents in his hands, Mr.
Willis went down TO the House oi
Representatives, and when the resolu.
tion came up he fired a speech that
created the most intense excitement OF
any that has been made in that house
for years. He arrayed his facts and
figures in a mastery manner, and, al
though he had but 10 minutes to dc
il In.
HE ROUTED THE ooSTEDErArE..
horse, foot aud dragoon, and drov,
every advocate OF the steal in confu
sion from the floor.
OF course the measure failed, and
|. never will be heard Of again but to th'
confusion Of its advocates. 10 saved
$500, 600 10 the treasury directly, ant
indirectly many million. 10 has calleC
the attention OF the country to the in
: fanny Of most Of these southern claims
: and since that day not one has passed
, either houses Of Congress. IL is seldom
that a new member las the opportuni
" 10 distinguish himself so early Al
? Mr.. Willis has. or that one has ihl
courage % seize the opportunity vhe'