Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1885-12-10
COTTON CLAIMS.

! "Some of the finest material for the nov
! elist that can be imagined is to be found in
the United States Treasury" said gentle
man who had been in that department ofthe
! Government for a quarter of a century to a
reporter. "Where is it ?" he replied in an
swer to nv question. "Why, everywhere.
There is bureau called the division of aban-
! doned lands and property that in itself is
one great romance. It's history is fuller of
| the marvellous than anything ever written.
Why, there is thirteen million dollars in
its charge belonging to the people of the
South alone. You see, during, and at the
close Of the war there was valuable proper
! ty of all sorts which fell into the hands OF
army officers and was turned into the treas
ury. Over twelve million dollars of the
money charged to that bureau is the pro
ceeds of cotton taken from plantations all
over the South and sold. The money it
brought was turned in as have told you.
The amounts finally became so great that
ion that should have especial charge of all
this sort of thing. Why, there is one in
stance in which one hundred and seventy
! five thousand dollars worth Of cotton was
taken from a far South estate, when cot
ton was worth five hundred dollars bale,
and sold. The persons to whom it be-
longed were loyalists. They haven't an
| idea of where their cotton went to. Their
names were on the bales, and it would not
! be difficult for them to make a case, if they
knew what to do. But it has been nearly
twenty-three years since the money was
deposited. l don't know whether any of
them are living or not, and it is hardly
probable that they will ever get what is
really theirs. Ali the testimony relating to
| the case is in possession Of the Government.
The agent who took the cotton and the one
who sold it are both dead, and the own
ers would not be able to make their case
without some proof which they haven't
got.
"There are other instances similar to
! this. In 1868 we received one hundred and
nine thousand dollars from government
agent for cotton taken from a foreigner,
supposed to have been blockade runner,
! in one Of the seaport towns of the far South.
Secretary Chase when he heard the circum-
stances of the case said: "This money is on
ly held in trust by the government and
some day we shall be obliged to account for
it for the United States really has no right
to keen it," But no demand was ever made
on the Treasury for it. l doubt if the own
er ever knew Just where it went.
+ "NOt knowing then when the claimants
might make demand on the Treasury for
! the proceeds of their cotton, the money was
never used, but remains untouched in a
fund by itself. But it has been so long ago,
and the testimony necessary to make case
valid being in many instances unattainable
by the owners, it is not probable that any
portion of this enormous amount Will ever
leave the Treasury. The only very large
sum that was ever paid back was in the
case of Gazaway B. Lamar, of Georgia,
which you must have heard Of EX-Attor-
ey-General Williams and General B. F.
Butler got back for him five hundred thous-
and dollars for cotton taken in the manner
| have described. General Butler said to
me at the time: "If | were younger and
wanted to make a. great fortune quickly, l
could do it more surely and easily in prose-
cutting these cotton claims than in any other
way" 1t was always a wonder to me that,
after the action Of the Government in the
Lamar case, more Southern people did not
try to recover from the Government. The
main difficulty was in proving that particu-
lar cotton was taken, sold and the money
turned into the Treasury. Then they didn't
believe that they would have any chance in
a fight with the United States, and so they
have let the matter fade out of their minds.
But wherever evidence of seizure can be
obtained upon the testimony of good wit
nesses, and sale Proved the case is good
ONE JJuHiU0tOH SUNDAY Herald.