The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1888-02-10
The Weary Waiting Of Claimants.
A correspondent writes

A correspondent writes:
/ have claim against the Govern.
ment which presented two years ago.
After waiting several months ! received
notice that my claim was filed, but that
l would have to wait, as there was an
insufficient clerical force, and ] was ad-
vised not to write about it or 1 would
have to wait longer. Several months
later / was notified that my claim had
been granted, but 1 would have to
wait till Congress had passed tbs nee
essary appropriation to pay it. Since
then / heard no more about it. Why
can not the Government take portion
of its surplus to pay its honest debts,
and not keep men like me out of their
money year after year for no reason at
all
Our correspondent is impatient. The
money is probably his and he is en-
titled to its present use, but it is not
the custom of the great United States
Government with it's overHowing treas
ury to settle little bills like this prompt
ly. Whenever debt to citizen is in
such shape that it requires a special
act of Congress or at least separate
clause in an appropriation bill to get
the money the creditor must needs pos
sees his soul in patience. There are
hundreds of thousands, even millions
of dollars due to private claimants
which are not paid solely on account
OF the indifference or al least inaction
of Congress. Two years seems to our
correspondent long time to wait for
q simple debt, but scores and hundreds
of claimants have grown gray wbll'.
they waited. Two generations of
French spoliation claimants passed
away while Congress dslied, and the
grandchildren of the original claimants
are now for the first time within sight
of their money.
This condition of things is recognized
by everyone as great evil, yet tn
national conscience i not as alive to i :
wrongfulness as it should be. A go,
ernmeut which needles-ly postpoaes
honest debts dishnnors its people. A
great deal of this i'll treatment of claim
ants is due to the desire of certain
members ia one branch or the other of
Congress to make reputation for
economy, and so those items are struck
out of or fail to ct in appropriation
bills which have the least pressure b..
hind them. Still more is due to the
natural inertia of Congress and its in
ability to deal intelligently or prompt,
with host of small claims. The conri
of Claims should deal with them all,
and after q favorable Judgment is oh
tanned then Congress should pass the
necessary appropriation as matter Of
course. without further examination or
delay. Until this is done the paymeni
of small claims against the Govern
ment will depend less upon their jus
tice than on the ceasel,ss impor,unily y
and long waiting of the unfortunate
claimant.
In the war OF 1912, the National
government called on the states for
troops, and being without sufficient
funds the states, or at least New York
state, called ont its militia, and promis-
ed to reimburse those who would fur
nish their own equipments. Many
soldiers did this, and the only pa, they
got was in the shape of certificate
issued many years afterwards, showing
the amount due them from the state.
The government never paid the state.
and the state paid nothing on its GER
tificates, until few years ago, when
an appropriation of $50,O00 was made,
to be applied on certificates held by
residents of the state. Those who had
moved away never got anything oD
their certificates.