The Medina sentinel. [volume] (Medina, Ohio) 1888-1961, 1921-11-10
CLAIMS COURT
NEEDS RELIEF
WORK OF THIS FEDERAL TRiHU-
NAL HAS BEEN INCREASED
GREATLY BY WORLD WAR.
BILL NOW BEFORE CONGRESS
Would Authorize the Appointment os
Examiners, Thus Expediting the
Courts Business and Saving Con-
siderable Money and Time. l5
BY EDWARD B. CLARK.

5Nt8l'Y HtgftN eff e,3i it} 4f5s t4tt .I0J
! BY EDWARD B. CLARK.
| Washington. The great war has
brought an added amount Of business
to many Of the United States courts.
but the tribunal which fairly must
stagger under the weight Of accumu-
lating work is the United States
court Of claims which sits in the city
Of Washington. .
/ Comparatively little ever is written
about the court Of claims, and vet
under Its Jurisdiction come many. Of
the most interesting suits at law
which the courts Of the country know.
\ It is understood that even today the
court of claims has cases before 1t
which have grown out of the Revolu-
tionary war and Of the early Indian
wars In which the United States was
engaged.
| 1t was only recently that under a
blanket act OF congress the last French
spoliation claims we're settled. These
4 grew out sof losses to American .mer-
chants engaged in sea trade during
the time of the troubles, with France
in the closing days Of the Eighteenth
century.
| The great war is responsible for
the accumulation Of many cases be-
fore the United States court -of
claims. Any citizen Of the United
States who thinks that he suffered q
loss for which the government was
responsible is at liberty to enter a
suit in this court, even If the amount
of loss was trivial. The court, In
fact can take up cases in which the
loss runs anywhere from one cent to
a billion dollars, although it is not
presumable that what might be called
nickel or 50-cent cases ever will trou-
BILE the jurists. @
Today there is one case before the
court in which evidence is being taken
which involves claim for damages
amounting to $125OO0OOO. This case
has to do with certain losses supposed
to have been sustained by reason Of
some trouble in which submarines and
i torpedoes played a part ,ss
j Plan. to Expedite Its Cases.
1 Today before congress there is a
bill in the form of an amendment to
the law governing the operation Of
4 the court Of claims, which is intend
ed to expedite the business Of the
tribunal. The jurists desire that they
shall be given authority to appoint
examiners who may 60 into the merits
of a good many Of the cases In ad-
vance Of the court proceedings. To
day this is the right Of all the federal
courts except this particular one, and
yet this court, 1t is said, needs the
Eauthority more than any other. The
Pbill has passed the senate, but It IA
now hung up in the committee on ju.
dietary of the house ,.of representa-.
tives. Lawyers say that It's passage
will save the people, money and the
court much time. Court Of claims
cases under present conditions are APT
4 TO- drag through long periods Of time
4 When a United States citizen Sc
cures verdict in his favor from the
Il court of claims for damages against
the United States government his
| troubles are not ended. The court
cannot order government official to
levy on the government for the dam.
ages which 1t has awarded. The man
n who has verdict in his favor must
n 60 to congress and secure the passage
1 OF an appropriation bill to meet the
amount which the court has decided
as his due. N
How One Man Collected.
Once in while man who has suf-
fered In connection with the loss OF
money goes direct to congress for re.
lief. Here is case In point. A
good many years ago there was q
young army officer stationed in the
Philippines who had charge Of some
government work. He was author
lied under the regulations to pay
money to certain laborers for over
time pay, but instead OF cabling Il
the Philippines the news Of the revoca
ton Of the order, 1t transmitted the
information by mail, although the or
der went into effect the day that 4
was issued In Washington.
For three weeks the young Officer
| Id the Philippines did not know that
the order had been revoked. In per
feet good faith and Ii obedience to tht
existing order he had paid $12.5t
4 overtime money to acouple a Of govern
ment employees. The United States
government was wholly to blame Il
this matter, but It absolutely refused
to reimburse the lieutenant for thl
l money that he had spent In obedience
TO the regulations governing the case
sI This young officer; who was a cav
alryman named Conrad, had the fight
ing spirit In him. He took the cas-
to congress and fought At for FIVE d
six years. Finally the reluctant law
makers passed on appropriation Bill "
funding to the officer the $3.50 whicl
he had paid out for Uncle Sam year
before. IN
There's i ConscIencc.
ii Old Lady--I hope Won don't VI
papers On Sunday. 4. III sisl