Omaha daily bee., 1903-01-17
REFUSES IOWA WAR CLAIM
Hsuss Throws Out Bill to Pay Ksokuk
Firm Eight Thousand DollarL
LINCOLN SUPPRESSED COMMITTEE REPORT
mand, but wsr President Held IL
Contrary TO Public Interest
to Print Findings. wSa

WASHINGTON. Jan. 1s-The house de-
~otee the day to private war claims. pass
fng about twenty. The claim Of B. F..
Moody q Co. Of Keokuk, Ia, OF amounts
deducted from their contract for furnish
ing equipment 70 the Third Iowa cavalry
was defeated.
HIT Opposes Bill.
The bill led to a lively controversy be-
tween the two Iowa members, Messrs.
Smith and Hedge. Mr.. Hit Ill). chair
man Of the foreign AFFAIRS committee. was
the stenographer Of the commission and
was ablc personally to corroborate Mr..
Hedge in his opposition TO the bill.
The bill authorized an appropriation of
IS, 446 10 pay the claim.
Mr.. Smith (Ia) was in charge OF the bill.
The original claim exceeded $4,000, but
was scaled down by the committee. Mr..
Smith, conteudea that the claim was Just.
the contract having been executed under
the order OF General John c. Fremont,
through his agent. Cyrus Bussey.
Mr.. Hedge Ga), Mr.. Smiths colleague,
denounced the claim with a vigor which
attracted the attention Of the entire house.
He impeached IT first on the ground that
Il had been allowed to slumber for thirty
years without being presented to congress,
and then proceeded to point out that IL
had its origin in the action Of the famous
commission consisting Of David Davis, Hugh
Campbell and Joseph Holt, which unearthed
the alleged 10 frauds in General Fremont
department Of St. Louis in 1852. He de-
clared that the commission had scaled
millions upon millions of army contracts
one OF which was that Of Moody & Co., then
under review. and that General Fremont
had been superseded because Of the intol-
cradle conditions that were found TO exist
The report OF that committee" said he,
twas never printed. because Lincoln be.
lieved that its revelations would make the
people despair" .5
II have that record here.'' interjected
Mr.. Smith. raising aloft q package Of
papers, musty and yellow with age.
But IT was never printed insisted Mr..
Hedge. at would not have been advisable
TO print it." rFtf -at
Commission stenosrapher Speaks.
Then he called on Mr.. Hit, chairman OF
the committee on foreign affairs, explain
ing that he had been the stenographer Of
the st. Louis commission. The latter cor
roborated Mr.. Hedge. saying that the re-
port which Mr.. Smith displayed had beer
written by his own hand. He told Of the
elBantc IfaudB uneartled, In tnat luYeStl'
cation and Of the unwillingness OF the au.
thorities to allow the story to become pub.
lie. owing to the disheartening effect II
might produce on the people
Mr.. Smith, in reply. while admitting thai
the contract might have been technically
without authority, insisted that the claim
was not fraudulent in law or in fact. Tht
house, however. voted the bill down by 81
to TO- -t--- -
Among the bills passed was one to pay
$3.50 to Mrs. Flora A. Darling for damages
growing out OF her arrest by the military
authorities OF New Orleans in 1864 Will,
she was on q flag Of truce boat under safe
conduct.
Mr.. Payne IN. ~, the floor leader Of tho
majority. led a strong fight against an ON
nibus resolution to refer to the court o.
claims ninety separate claims sggregatinI
$400. 900. He contended the resolution
would remove the statute of Limitation
which already barred many old claims. tn
claims were for stores and supplies tskeI
by the union army during the civil war.
On a roll call a Quorum failed. the votI
standing 81 to %. and the house at 5 p. m
adjourned.