Evening star., 1935-11-05
FIRE Loss GRANT
SETS PRECEDENT
Voting of $11,000,000 for
Claim Already Settled Held
Political Weakness.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

BY DAVID LAWRENCE.
This is story of $1l 100000 of tax
payers money. 1t touches the weak
nesses In our political system at many
vulnerable places. and because it
points its own moral, the facts speak
more eloquently than any interpreta-
ton could as to what has happened.
First, read an announcement which
appeared this week in a magazine
called Broadcasting, the trade journal
Of the broadcasting industry. A radio
station located at Duluth, MINI, very
properly Is addressing itself to possible
purchasers of its space. says:
Passage by Congress of the Mime
sofa fire sufferers claims bill. and its
approval by the President means that
into the lap OF Northern Minnesota
sll 100000 will be poured. And it will
start to come almost Immediately.
Eleven million dollars is quite a
chunk of buying power, especially
when it's velvet. And 1t will be spent
with all the willingness with which
easy money is spent
May Reach S2O,UOO,OUU.
The history of that $1,000. 900 au-
thorization, which may. it Is believed,
reach as high as $40, 900 900, may COM
mend itself to people who think that
the New Deal is any different from
the old deal when it comes to salts
fying claims out of the general treas
urv or to those who think Government
ownership of railroads, for instance.
is good thing.
For the Government became in
volved because it happened in October,
1918, to be in control of the railroads
of the country during the war. A
spark from locomotive ignited some
grass and there was a forest fire.
There were other forest fires. Anyway.
a territory OF 1900 square miles was
devastated, 5000 families were af-
fected and a huge property loss was
| incurred
Railroad Held Liable.
Nobody could prove conclusively
that the railroad locomotive or gangs
Of men burning ties had anything to
do with the big fire, but the Minnesota
State courts agreed that the railroad
was liable. Rather than carry the
cases on indefinitely. the United States
Railroad Administration started to
compromise the claims and exacted
from everybody on agreement to &C
cept the amounts given as full
settlement of the case. From 40 per
cent to so per cent of the amounts
claimed were paid, in all about sl3,-
100000.
But two years later, claimants
urged on by politicians and lawyers,
placed the matter before Congress
and urged that the remaining so per
cent be paid out of the Federal Treas
ury. 1t was conceded that there was
no further legal claim or liability.
but merely a moral or equity argu-
ment. 1t was urged that the claim
ants had to agree to the so per cent
settlement or go through perennial
law suits and not get any immediate
money.
Anyway, the bill has been urged
before Congress year after year for
nearly IS years and finally, on Au-
gust 81 last, in the closing days of
hectic session, it was passed and
Mr.. Roosevelt signed 1t.
Precedent Established.
This legislation is probably the first
on record in which a big set Of
claims already compromised and set
tied was reopened. 1t establishes a
precedent for future claims which the
Government under one administration
might settle only to have them brought
administration.
If 1t had been a railroad under
! private ownership, the claims would
have been fought through the courts
or the compromise would never have
been reopened. This may sound like
injustice to the claimants who may
consider themselves lucky that they
were dealing with the Federal Gov
ernment, but it gives an inkling Of
what is going to happen some day
| if the Government takes control Of
any important business operation like
the railroads and the public uses the
political route to get satisfaction for
claims
There are all sorts of rumors about
big lawyer fees and lobbies and what
not connected with the Minnesota fire
bill. Representative Cox of Georgia,
Democrat, warned his colleagues on
the floor of the House in June, 1884.
that the whole thing was tainted with
peculiar political activity which would
some day make political scandal.
Both Parties Supported Bill.
Both Republicans and Democrats
from Minnesota have supported the
legislation. In fact, 1t would be sur
prising if a Representative from a
given district didn't support his con-
stituents' plea. That's why the Presi-
| dent of the United States, represent
ing the national interest, or other
members Of Congress representing the
public treasury. might possibly have
| intervened in the interest of preserv-
ing a precedent Of major importance
1t is frequently said around Washing
ton that had the late Representative
Truax of Ohio or Representative Blan-
ton of Texas-both watchdogs of the
treasury-been present on the floor
the bill never would have passed.
There are reports, too, that Presi-
dent Roosevelt, having heard various
rumors about the measure, held up
the passage Of the bill. but later re-
versed himself The only thing on
record from the White House is a
letter from the President to Senator
Bailey of North Carolina in which
Mr.. Roosevelt formally concurred in
an opinion furnished him by Attorney
General Cummings. In that opinion
Mr.. Cummings said:
While there does not appear to be
any legal liability in the matter on
the part of the United States, never
theless there Is much force in the
contention that a moral and equitable
obligation on the part Of the Federal
Government exists in favor of these
| claimants Accordipplv in NV min