The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1881-12-08

among THESE OOstuCleS Is tllc uihitultA VI
procuring legal evidence sufficient TO
warrant conviction even in
the case Of the most notorious
offenders. Your attention is called to re-
cent opiHion of the Supreme Court of the
United States explaining sits Judgment OF
reversal in the case of Miles, who had been
convicted of bigamy in Utah. The court
refers to the fact that the secrecy attending
the celebration ofmarriages in the Territory
makes the proof of polygamY
very difficult, and the propriety
is suggested of modifying the Law ofcvi-
dence which now makes wife incompc-
tent to testify against her husband. This
suggestion, as appended, | recommend;
also the passage of an act providing that in
the Territories Of the United States the fact
that a woman has been married to person
charged with bgamy shall not dis
qualify her as witness on his
trial for that offence. further
recommend legislation by which any per-
son sOlemnizing a marriage in any Of the
Territories shall be required TO give bond,
under stringent penalties, tor neglect, or
required to file certificate of such mar
riage in the Supreme Court of the Terrific
ny, Doubtless Congress may devise other
practicable measures for obyiatng the
difficulties which have hitherto
attended the efforts to suppress this in
Equity. | assure you of my determined
purpose to cooperate with you in any law
ful and discreet measures which may be
proposed to that end.
EDUCATION.
Although our system of government
| d ies not contemplate that a
nation should provide or sup
port system Of education
of our people, no measures calculated to
| promote the general intelligence and virtue
| upon which the prosperity of our inStitu-
tions so greatlXdepends, have ever been re.
| gardcd with Indifference by Congress or the
Executive A large part of the public domain
has been from. time to time devoted to the
promotion of education. There Is now Il
| special reason why by setting apart the
! proceeds OF its sales Of public lands or by
some other course, the Government should
who now exercise the right of
suffrage are unable to read the ballot
| which they cast, who have just emerged
| from condition Of slavery, and who SUD
! denly devolved the responsibilities of citi-
zcns The country most impoverished by
the war, have been pleased to lcarn.from
! the report of the Commissioner
of Education, that there has lately
been considerable increase of in
tcrest and effort for their instruction
but all that can be done by local legislation
and private generosity should be supple
mented by such aid as can he constitutions
ally afforded by the National Government.
| | would suggest that if any fund be dcsig.
| mated to this purpose II may be wisely dis
! tributed in different States according to
! the ratio of illiteraCy, as by that means
| those localities which are more in need of
such assistance will reap the special
| benefits.
on AGRICULTURE.
The report of the Commissioner of Agri-
| culture exhibits the results of experiments
in which the Department has been engaged
| during the past year, and makes important
| suggestions in reference to the agricultural
| department of the country. The steady
increase of our population and
! the consequent addition to the number
OF those engaged in the pursuit of husband.
| ry,giying to this department a growing dig
nifty and Importance. The Commissioners
suggestions to urge its capacity for greater
usefulness deserves attention, as il
| more and more cOmmends itself TO the in
tereSts which it was created TO promote.
ON PENSIONS.
1t appears from the report OF the Com
missioner Of Pensions that since 1860,
| $4,000 original claims have been
filed; $l5O9i9 of these have been allowed
| and inscribed on the pension roll; S72, $50
| have been rejected and abandoned, being
| thirteen per cent. of the whole number of
claims settled. There are now pending
| for settlement $685. original
pension claims, 1927 ,0i0 of which were filed
prior to July LIST, 1850. These when al
| lowed, vii involve the payment Of arrears
from the date of discharge, in case of any
! valid claim, and from the date of death or
termination of prior right in all other
eases. From all the data obtainabc it
Is estimated that 10 per cent. of the number
OF claims now pending will he rejected or
abandoned This would show a probable
rejection Of 3,iOl cases and the probable ad.
mission Of about l03, 900 eases, all of which
involve the payment of arrears of pen
sion. With the present force en-
ploycd, the number OF adiudcaious
remaining the same and no new business
intervening, this number of claims Q93 Oo0)
could be acted on in Il period of six
years, and taking January /, 1881, as a
near period from which to estimate in each
case an average amount of arrears,
1t is found that every case allowed would
require Tor the first payment upon il the
sum OF $500, multiplying this amount by
The whsle number of probable admissions,
gives $4,000 as the sum required
for the first payment. This repre-
sents the sum which must
be paid npon claims which were filed before
July |, 1881, and are now pending and en-
titled to the benefits of the arrears act.
From his amount, $250,0O0,00O may be
deducted from $l0,000OOO to $4,000 $50 for
cases where the claimant dying, there is no
person who under the law, would be entitled
TO the pension, leaving say $235, 100000 as
the probable amount To no mid In, thnsn
estimates no account has been taken of the
S3S,5SO filed since June 80, 1880 and now
pending which must receive attention as
current business, but which does not in
volve the payment of any arrears beyond
the date of the filing of the same. Ofthis
number IL is estimated that eighty-six per-
sons will be allowed, rs has been stated,
with the present force of the Pension
Bureau, 675 clerks. II is es.
timated that il will take six years
to dispose of the claims now pending. II is
stated by the Commissioner of Pensions
that by an addition of $50 clerks, increasing
the adjudicating force rather than the me-
chanlcal, double the amount of work could
De accomplished, so that these cases could
be acted upon within three years. Aside
from the consideration of instice which
may be urged for speedy settlement oil
the claims on the files of the Pension Office.
II is now less important on the score of
economy, inasmuch as fully one
third of the clerical force of the
once is now wholly occupied
in giving attention to the
correspondence with thousands of claim |
ants, whose eases have been on files Tor the |
past eighteen years The fact that sum so |
enormous must be expended by the Gov |
ornment to meet the demands for the al |