The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1880-09-23
, The South and the Treasury.

tbhtmS FlBbD TO DATE ONEh PiiooVi
ee0,e0e-A LETTER FROM SENATOR
BDMUNps.
The estimate made year ago of the
aggregate amount asked for by the
solid South for internal improvements
private relief bills, and war Claims
based on the refunding of the cotton
taxes etc, was 81 ,2s7, ,524, 1876. Another
session of Congress has added $l09,-
,578 to this amount so that the
grand aggregate is now S1,290, $40, 3l3.
4 Referring to this matter the New York
9ri6wne says
Appalling as these figures are, they
represent only sinell fraction of the
sum total of Confederate rapacity.
Let the principle once be recognized
that disfoyalty does net affect a claim
ants standing, and the demands of
the solid South wial be multiplied.
Senator Edmunds is not an ,alarnist,
and he says that the Democrats in
Congress will move "the distinction
in respect of claims of loyal and dis
loyal persons" by solid or nearly
solid vote ''the moment they get in
possession of all the departments of
the Govern He adds most em-
phatically that the fourth section of
the fourteenth amendment does not
\ impose amy barrier to the payment of
claims based upon the destruction of
property by the United States armies,
nor even Ito pepsioning every Rebel
soldier or soldiers widow and children
or indeed every other rebel" The
question is, Gan the North afford
it,
Upon this subject the Mason Mich
Ne,Os has the following.
In the Grand Rapid Weekly DEM
ocrot of August 18th, appeared a re-
view of the recent speech of Senator
Edmunds, of Vermont, in which the
Senator speaks strongly of the danger
of the allowance of rebel claims,
amounting to millions of dollars, i'm
case of Hancock's election The Dem
ocrus article cited the fourth section
of the fourteenth amendment to the
constitution as interposing an in
superable barrier to the payment Of
rebel claims, and claimed that Senator
Edmunds delivered the speech i'm
question well knowing that fact.
We cut out the article, and enclosed
it with short letter to Mr.. Edmuuds,
and promptly received the following
reply:
Burlington, VT, August 80, 1885,
Dear Sir:-Yours of the 18th came
just as 1 was going out of town, |
fear the editor of the Grand Rapids
Democrat is not very hungry to find
fourteenth amendment covers in point
of law.
The rebel claims referred to are not
claims of rebels for aiding the rebel
lion, but for property amounting alto
gether to hundreds and probably
thousands of millions, taken or des-
troyed by armies of the United States,
and therefore the moment the test of
loyalty of any claimant is repealed
the claim of the rebel stands exactly
like the claim of anv other citizen
against the government on account of
its action, and not on account of the ac-
ton of the rebel authorities.
The Democrats in Congress have
tried time after time to repeal the dis.
tinction in respect of claims of loyal
and disloyal persons, and they have
bills now pending in the Senate to ef-
feet that object, and they will effect it
by solid or nearly solid Democratic
vote the moment they get possession
all the departments of the govern
ment.
AS to the rebel pensions, the editor
of the Democrat, if he will reflect II
little, will, am sure. agree that
pension does not in any case fall with
in the description of "any debt or
Obligation" and if so, ii is not within
the prohibition of the fourteenth
amendments. A pension is and always
has been granted upon the ground or
bounty of gratitude, not legal Obliga-
ton, 1t is perfectly clear, therefore,
that the Constitution does not stand
in the way of Congress pensioning
every rebel soldier, or soldiers widow,
and children, or, indeed, every other
rebel, if it pleases.
will not reciprocate the epithets of
this worthy editor.
Very truly yours,
GEORGE +. EDMUNDS.
hon. George A. jerks, of Brook
vile, in town attending court this
week.