New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1879-04-16
LOYAL SOUTHERN CLAIMANTS.
GENERAL BRACES AMENDMENT ABoLISHING THE
CLAIMS COMMISSION DFFEATED-ATTIrUDE OF
SOUTHERN REPRESENTATIVES


GENERAL BRACES AMENDMENT ABOLISHING THE
CLAIMS COMMISSION DEFEATED-ATTIrUDE OF
SOUTHERN REPRESENTATIVES.
IBY TELEGRAPH To THE TRIBUNE1
WASHINGTON, April 15.-General Bragg's amend
ment to the Executive Appropriation bill abolish
ing the Board of Southern Claims Commissioners
was defeated in the House to-day as ii deserved to
be- This was not movement against the mis-
cellaneous horde of Southern claims that appeared
in the last Congress. the character and amount of
which alarmed the North, but raid upon a few
loyal men of the South whO placing their faith in
law of Congress, have presented their claims to the
commission incurred the expense of collecting evil
dence to sustain them. and are now waiting only
for the judgment of the tribunal To abolish that
tribunal now would be a grave injustice to these
people, and would by means dispose Of the claims.
The facts of this case are briefly these: The
Southern Claims Commission created by Con-
gress in 1871, and was given jurisdiction to exam
jne and report TO Congress upon the claims Of loyal
men Of the South for property taken or destroyed
during the war. The number of claims filed before
the commission in the last eight years has been
$4,000; of these 5000 have apparently been
abandoned as no evidence has been filed in sup
port of them; GOO0 have been passed upOn and
5000 are still pending, IN regard to which evidence
has been filed. The Investigations in regard to
these last are now about completed, and the COM
mission will report upon them all before its life
pires by limitation of law next March. The 5000
cases that have been abandoned will, Of course, be
reported adversely.
What General Bragg proposed to do was to
abolish tue commission before il could have time to
report upon the remaining cases. If this should be
done, not only would the honest claimants
have been induced by Congress to spend
their money in vain in the prosecution
of these claims, but all the work Of
the commission upon them would have been thrown
away. 1t should be remembered that no new claims
can be filed before the commission. General Bragg
took the ground that by the law of nations all per
sons who reside in an enemy's territory in time of
war are TO be reckOned as enemies, and can have
valid claim against the victorious power and that,
even if they had, the methods of investigation
adopted by the commission were not proper ones.
Inc answer 10 tins Is First, that as the Govern
mcnt by numerous acts, has recognized the justice
Of the claims of loyal people of the South and has
appropriated millions OF dollars for their payment
no good reason can be given why those of this par
ucular 8 900 who are able TO make out their cases
should now be shut out especially after they have
been encouraged 70 spend their time and money in
presenting and sustaining their claims secondly If
the method of investigation is not proper one, 1t
may yet be changed III regard to the remaining
cases although II is rather late in the day TO make
rules FOR the commission Just as 1t IS closing
up ITS last cases.
the House to-day was the eagerness Of some of the
Bourbon ex-Confederates from the Cotton States IN
their support Of General Bragg's amendment. In
the last Congress- whenever "a bin proposing to pay
the CLAIM OF a Southern institution in which the
eX-COntederates themselves were interested but
whose OnceIs or managers were not loyal, was
offered all OF these men favored II and voted for 10.
Now, when only loyal men are Interested they are
anxious 20 cut them off without dollar Ii is true
that many of the Democrats from the South voted
with the Republicans to-day against General
Braggs amendment but the majority Of these were
from Border States and have some OF the claimants
among their constituents.