The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1893-12-15
OLNEY's REPORT.
The Attorney-Gener Shows What His
Department Has Been Doing the Past

The Attorney General Shows What Hi
department Has Been Doing the Pas
/ Year.
WASHINGTON. Dec. THE annual re-
port of Acknowledgement Olney was
submitted to congress to-day. 1t show.
that the volume of business of the fed
eral courts is rapidly increasing. The
number of criminal prosecutions pend.
ing in the federal circuit and distric,
courts July l last was 9, 1856, agains,
3, sos July 1, 1885. while the expenses OF
the United States courts exclusive OF
judges salaries) incurred and paid in
the fiscal year 1898 were 81, 52s, $40, as
against 50, S14, TS3 in the fiscal year 1885.
The two cases of greatest conse-
quence to the government decided by
the supreme court during the past
year, says the report, were known as
the Chinese exclusion" case, and the
hat trimmings" case. The latter in
volved no legal principle of special mo-
ment, but its decision adversely to the
government makes it liable to pc
| cuniary claims variously estimated as
amounting from $40 600, 900 to $50, OOO,-
600. The Chinese exclusion case, on
the other hand, brought into debate q
question of constitutional law second
to none in gravity and with far reach
ing results dependent upon its deter
mination.
The encouragement devotes some
attention to the cases arising under
the Bowman act, speaks of the diff
Guilty of their proper investigation ow-
ing to the fact that they grow out of
transactions of thirty years ago, and
says that these cases demand the most
careful Legislative safeguards against
successful fraud. During the past
year but forty of these cases have been
decided by the court, with the aggre-
gate allowance of s141, O6S 90, bringing
the total of allowance in these cases
up to So, 3S2, 291.96. There are pending
1863 cases, embodying claims esti-
mated by the assistant att rney-gen-
eral. who has had special charge of
these cases, at about s3T, 100000
The report of the solicitor of the
treasury shows that the whole number
of suits for penalties, fines, etc, decid-
ed or otherwise disposed of during the
year was 6.63s; the whole amount for
which judgments were obtained, ex-
elusive of DEGREES in rem, was s494. gTg.- |
40; and the entire amount collected
from all sources was 1890, 404T7.
Considerable space is devoted in the !
report to the discussion of affairs in the
Indian territory. An omission to call
attention to what may fairly be char
acter zed as NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. of JUS
tice there would, the report says. be
without excuse 1t is claimed that
treaty stipulations stand in the way for
a remedy for this state of things. If
that be true, then it is clear that no
time ought to be lost in the negotiat-
ing of new treaties.
Regarding the Union Pacific receiver
ship, the report speaks confidently that
The interests of the United States will
De secured by the appointment of addi-
,ional receivers.
Regarding the Sherman antitrust
aw the attorney-general says there
las been and probably still is wide
pread impression that the aim and eff
ect of this statute are to prohibit and
prevent those aggregations of capital
which are so common at the present
lay and which are sometimes on so
arge a scale as to practically control
III the branches of an extensive indus
~. 1t would not be useful.
ven if it were possible. to ascertain !
he precise purposes of the trainers of /
he statute. 1t is sufficient to point S
ut what small basis there is for the I
opular impression referred to. I
The aggregate judgments in favor of
ne United States in civil suits during t
ne year were $3.50 the aggregate
mes, forfeitures and penalties imposed
criminal prosecutions were s76S o21-