Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1879-04-16

self was serving in the confederate army,
while he was member of the confederate
legislature, then becoming Republican
judge without ever having graduated from
law office. Laughter). am not astonlshed
that the rules adopted by the Southern
claims commission should meet favor with
that gentleman. Gaughter).
agree with the gentleman from Ohio,
Garfield, that the substitute offered by the
gentleman from Tennessee, Young, ought
not to be adopted. Every one of these
claimants was an enemy. They had no
legal claim against the government, and
when we commenced opening the doors of
the treasury department. to them We did 1t
as matter of gratuity, and yet you ask all
of these men, (meaning the Southern mem
bers of the House,, who lost their all in the
cause, to vote to tax themselves to pay the
men who we're disloyal to them as we'll as
dsloyal to us. to the men who were good
Lord and good devil, depending upon which
flag foated in front of the place where they
lived during the war. Laughter9 You ask
them to do that. You ask that the burdens
of this already overburdened people shall be
increased, in violation of international law.
Mr.. Garfield-The general doctrine of bel
ligerents is, of course, accepted by everybody
to cover as enemies technically all inhabitants
of belligerent territory. That general doc
trine is recognized by all lawyers everywhere,
but nobody has ever denied. except the gem
tleman from Wisconsin, that during the late
war and since the supreme court has repeat
eddy determined that in cases before it the
question of loyalty cannot be raised where a
party has been granted pardon. 1t was
stated in the last Congress that 80 per cent.
of all the people of the seeded States were
what we would call disloyal, and that every
man in these States that amounted to any,
thing belonged to that category. desire to
traverse that proposition by some facts. Do
you gentlemen know, that leaving out all the
border States, there were fifty regiments
and seven companies of white men in ou1
army fighting for the Union from States that
went into the rebellion. Do they know that
from the single State of Kentucky more
Union soldiers fought under our flag than
Napoleon took into the battle of Waterloo
moro than Wellington took with the allied
armies against Napoleon? Do they remem-
Der that 10000 colored men fought under
our flag against the rebellion and for the
Union, and that of that number 10000 were
from States which went into the rebellioni
To say that they were enemies, that they ha6
no rights, and that when we came out of the
war we should not pay them and their fam
lilies for all proper losses that they suffered
in aid of our government, is what I hoped
no man on either side the House would say
I am glad to know that gentlemen who
fought against us do not say it, not ont
| of them. 1t remained for one of our own
soldiers to say that nothing ought to be pait
to any man, however loyal, if he came from
the South. In my Judgment, that is in the
highest degree inequitable and unjust. LIE
tbs Southern commission 60 on until it has
acted on the cases before it and then let i
DO mustered out. Let us not enlarge that
business but let us complete it. Most of all
let us not turn it over to court where tn
distinction between loyalty or disloyalty l!
not retained.
Mr.. Taylor represent constituent.
which was as true to the union and as tru'
to the flag as the constituency represented
by the gentleman from Wisconsin, Bragg
If he means to intimate that the people o
East Tennessee were not loyal to the has
and that they were enemies to the govern
ment, then, in the name of 10000 soldier
from East Tennessee who fought under tn
union flag, and in the name of the peopl
whom / represent, I hurl it back in hi
teeth. Laughter and applause].
Mr.. Warner called in question the correct
ness of Garfeld's statement as to 5000
men in the Southern States fighting unde
the union flag. He knew that there wer
some enlistments of men from the South
but they were stragglers and deserters from
the rebel army. Such men had been mus
tered into companies, and the government
had supported them, but he did not believ
they had ever fired shot or helped to pu
down the rebellion.
Mr.. Springer moved to amend MI
Young's substitute by adding proviso tina
the cases thus transferred to the court o
claims shall be subject to the defense b.
the government that could have been mad
if the cases were pending before the com
mission.
Mr.. Springer's amendment was rejected
onJ thirty-fve members voting in th
affirmative. Mr.. Young's amendment in tn
nature of substitute for Mr. Bragg 8 amend
ment, was rejected, yeas so, nays 107.
The question then REQUIRED on Mr.. Bragg
amendment, and it was rejected, yeas g.
nays 112.
Mr.. Springer offered an amendment abol
ishing the Southern claims commission an
providing that any person who may have
claim aguinst the United States in which til
court of claims would not now have jurisdi
ton, but founded on equity and justice an
!. not barred by limitation, may file his plea i
the court of claims. It further provides thu
the court shall report it's finding to Congre
and Congress snail not allow or authorize tt
Q payment of private claim not payable u,
4 der law until the claims have been invest
v gated by the court of claims.
r Without disposing of the pending amend
q ments, the committee rose and the Hou
4 directed that all debate on the amendmen
4 shall close in ten minutes after the Hou
f again goes into committee. Adjourned.