The National tribune., 1882-05-20
IMPORTANT TO PENSION CLAIMANTS

The following decision, rendered by Attor-
ncy-General Brewster, will prove OF special H.
tercst to pension claimants whose arrears have
been cut off on account Of their having fled
only an informal declaration prior to july !,
1850. 1t viii be observed, however, thai the
decision only applies to a certain class OF m
formal claTations-namely, those executed
before an officer duly authorized to administer
oaths for general purposes, such as notarlcs:
justices of the peace &c.-and not to letters
and uneXecuted applications. The Attorney
General says:
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE,
WASHINGTON, d. c., Hay 10, 1882.
Hon. II. N. TELLER,
Secretary Of the Interior,
SIR: By letter received from Acting Sccrc-
tary Bell, of your Department, dated the 18th
of january last, directing my attention to
sections 400 and All Revised Statutes,
and also to section 2 OF the act of March },
1879, chap. 187, it is inquired whether the
prGviso to section A714. which authorizes the
acceptance of declaration made before an
officer duly authorized to administer oaths for
general purposes to exempt a pension CLAIM
from the limitation as TO date OF filing, pre-
scribed by section 400, section which has
been repealed, has any force or effect to exempt
pension claim from the~limitation as to date
of filing prescribed by the 2d section of the act
of March s. 1879; and if not whether, when q
declaration taken before some officer duly au'
thorized to administer oaths for general pur
poses, not an officer of court OF record was
filed prior to July !, 1880, there is otherwise
sufficient authority of law to accept the same
as valid declaration to save the arrears o.
pension in case n declaration taken before ar
officer Of court of record, as required by section
Ala of the Revised Statutes should DC filed atte
July l, 1880"
To this inquiry I submit the following IL
reply:
| Section of the act of 1879 is a re-enact
ment of the provisions Of section 400 Revised
| Statutes, with some notifications thereof
! Among the notifications is the introduction
a new limitation for filing applications for pen
! sion, which affects the commencement OF tn
| pension, and which takes the place of the llml
tatiOn prescribed in the latter section. Ih
former section may well be regarded rs intend
ed by Congress to be a substitute for the latter
dllu SuCh III uiltIphpUSAliy I'D liz lNS'eA N3ASS
| Thus regarded, fair implication arises tha
provisions of a remedial character, contained Il
other sections Of the Revised Statutes, whic
previously applied to section 1909 and were LEI
unchanged by the now legislation, were con
tcmplated by Congress to be applicable to sec
ton of the act of 1879, so far as consstcn
Herewith. Agrecably to this view, the proriS
in section 4714, to which reference is abov
made, and which is remedial i'll character, mus
be construed to apply to the new limitation IL
| troduccd by the act of 1879, which, as L hay
already remarked, takes the place of the limitf
ton prescribed in section 1909. Unless so COZ
strued that pr0uiso would seem to be withor
any operation or effect whatever, a result whic
should be avoided where (as in the preseI
case) an Interpretation leading to diferer
result is admissible.
am accordingly of the opinion that the pr
UiS0 in question authorizes declaration mad
in accordance Herewith to be accepted to e.
empt a claim from the limitation as to date
filing prescribed in section 2 of the act of 1S1
/ am, sir, very respectfully,
BENJAMIN HARRIS BREWSTER,
Attorney General.