The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1902-05-22
Washington
Day by Day

the second and third days OF June there
will be delivered in Washington the clos
ing arguments in the greatest of law
suits in which the United States was
ever involved II is kind of aggrega-
ton of damage suits. amounting to $685.
00O, 900, brought by citizens Of the United
States to recover damages caused in Cuba
and other insular possessions of the
United States by insurrectionists against
the government of Spain.
This aggregation of cases, which we
| may call one action at law, has been
pending before the Spanish Claims Com
mission for several months. About the
first of May the pleadings were begun
and within eleven days twenty-five of the
ablest lawyers in this country spoke
upon the one side or the other, that is
against the United States or in favor of 1t.
Perhaps not within the history of this
country have so many great lawyers been
engaged in any case. Certainly so great
a case was never before tried In any
court within the United States, seeing
| to compel the United States to pay to GER
tain persons the aggregate sum of $685.
600, 900 for damages to property done by
insurrectionists in Cuba and elsewhere
before the United States government as
sumed jurisdiction over the former insular
possessions of Spain, which came TO the
United States through conquest in every
10 ft1n n
pine Islands, which were purchased by
the United States by agreement OF the
now famous Treaty of Paris, for $2oOOO,OOO
After the twenty-five great lawyers,
whose names 1t is not needful to here
specify, but who are leaders of the Am
erioan bar, and delivered themselves Of
their accumulated wisdom, the Spanish
Claims Comm ission. commonly called
the Court of Spanish Claims, decided to
adjourn until the second day of June, In
order that the judges might more thor
oughly familiarize themselves with the
printed briefs that had been submitted,
together with the oral arguments, OF
which there were stenopraphic reports
typewriter.
Now 1t is orderd by the Court of Span
ish Claims that the final argument as
hereinbefore set FORTH shall be had on
the second and third day of June. Upon
those days shall speak two of the greatest
Judges of law the South has produced In
our time. On the second of June, former
Secretary of the Treasury John G. Car
x,,tlH
of the plaintiffs; upon the following day
the Hon. Hannis Taylor of Alabama.
former Minister to Spain, will respond
for the United States.
Mr.. Carlisle will plead for the plaintiffs,
Mr.. Taylor will plead for the defend
ant that is, the government Of the Uni
ted States; and, In view of the fact, that
fully $4,000, 900 are involved, 1t becomes a
question of more than ordinary interest
to the American people, to those who
pay taxes. The claims preferred by var
ious persons within the United States
proper. and In the insular possessions of
the United States, are. in this one in
stance, equivalent to "a cents against
every child. woman and man in Contin-
entail America Thus one may see the
very great monetary interests involved
and may guess that one of the greatest
issues of governmental liability In the
long record of national and international
trials has got to be passed upon. When it
is remembered that the Geneva award
against Great Britain In favor of the
United States, in the matter of the de-
predations of the Confederate Cruiser
Alabama" aggregated but $15000,00O
there may be had some conception of the
issue at law now involved.
1t may be said, in passing, that the
award of the International Court at
Geneva gave the United States $150O0,00O
as damages arising from the depredations
of Admiral Semmes' Confederate cruiser
the Alabama" 1t fell short by some &c.
100000 of satisfying the legitimate claims
arising out of the cruises and the destruc-
ton of property by the Alabama"
Whilst ignorant critics of our country
living abroad, have not ceased to charge
us with having obtained at least $780,
0VO more on account of the Alabama"
than we were entitled to, 1t is matter
of fact, easily ascertained from the
treasury, that we received something In
excess of $4,000, 600 less than the sum total
requisite to satisfy the demands of those
who had claims arising out of the Ala
bamas" depredations. Especially in Eng
land, there are certain newspapers, such
as the notorious Tory sheet, the London
Globe, which allow no opportunity to pass
to reflect scandal upon us on account of
the Alabama award" The official fig
ures, which In good time will have been
submitted to the British government and
which have been printed in official docu-
ments in this country, make no impress
sion upon these sheets of SANDER in Eng
land. Still, that does not hurt u.s.
In the presentation of the case of the
claimants against the United States be-
fore the Spanish claims commission we
full argument o. the ablest logician now
living in America. 1t has been truthfully
said of Mr.. Carlisle that he can say more
in fewer words than any other man now
living in America In other words, he is
a master of logic without superior in
this generation. He Is a cold, calm, DELHI
crate advocate, who never uses a super
fiuous word. nor adds an idea not in con-
sonance with the basic truth he seeks to
impress Whatever partisans may say OF
this great man, he remains our most mas
terful master of logic as presented in