8180 Congressional-Record-House
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8180 CONGRESSIONAL-RECORD-HOUSE. - :' JUNE 9, to me to be strange, unaccountable, unreasonable, and unjust is viaea, Th.at when such original disbursing officer's check does not exceed in amount the sum of $50 the Secretary of the Treasury may authorize that Congress should step in and by enactment cause to be the issuance of a duplicate at any time after the expiration of thit-ty stopped the -litigation and lawsuits now pending in the courts days and within three years from the date of such disbursing officer's to recover from this man Brown money that is claimed or al check." leged to be due to these Indian orphans; and that these law The SPEAKER. Is there objection? suits should be stopped and the action of Brown and Jenkins Mr. MANN. Mr. Speaker, reserving the right to object, I should be ratified, when the Commissioner of Indian Affairs would like to have the gentleman e~rplain what this bill does. and the Secretary of the Interior send an official communica · Mr. DALZELL. At this present session of Congress we passed tion, in which they point out the fact that Brown, as the agent a law amending section 3646 of the Revised Statutes, which sec~ of the Wewoka Trading Company, paid to himself or to his own tion of the Revised Statutes imposed a limitation upon the dis~ concern or his own store $72,783.24 of this money, and then cretion of the Secretary of the Treasury upon issuing lost paid to some one--I do not know on what pretense or for what checks. reason-$27,392.82 out of the $186,000 appropriated by Congress 1\Ir. 1\IANN. I thought it increased the authority. to settle these just claims--! suppose they must have been just, 1\fr. DALZELL. It increased the authority by removing the althougil some lawyer may have manipulated them, but I will limitation. Now, the Secretary of the Treasury says the words take it for granted that they were honest and just claims-! used in that amending statute were too broad; that we used say it is extraordinary to my mind and unreasonable; but I the words "check or wanant," whereas we ought to have used will stop for fear my adjectives may get too hot. [Laughter.] only the words "disbursing officers' checks," and that the pur ~ Mr. TELLER. I will not allow the Senator to assert that I pose sought to be accomplished by the amendment has been in have been interested in this claim. part defeated by reason thereof, and it is to correct that error Mr. TILLMAN. I did not saythat. I said I was not aware which he claims is in the law which passed that this bill is pre~ that tlle Senator was interested in this matter. sented. 1\fr. TELLER. I have got only the interest in it which any 1\fr. MANN. I can not quite understand· bow using words Senator who is a member of the committee would have. We too broad defeats the purpose of the amendment. Tilis is re attempted to discharge our duties properly, and we know more strictive. We have bad so much trouble heretofore about these about this case than does the Senator from South Carolina. I lost checks that I want to see the Secretary of the Treasury, as ert here that there is nothing disreputable in this case in have as broad power as possible. any shape or manner. Mr. DALZELL. So do I; and he will have as broad power Mr. TILLMAN. Why, then, not let the court settle it? as we want him to have, he claims, under the law as it is now. Mr. TELLER. We propose to let the court settle it. We proposed to amend it. have put that in ex industria that it should not prevent any Mr. MANN. How does he know what power we want him to body from going to the court. Even if the Senator is a corn have? And you are limiting his power by this legislation. field lawyer, he o-qght to know that. We could not take that Mr. DALZELL. Not at all. right away even "if we bad tried to do so. It is o:p.e_ of the Mr. MANN. That is what the gentleman stated. rights of these people. They are not Indians ; every one of Mr. DALZELL. The words necessary to be used in order to tilem L'S a citizen of the United States. The Government of the give him the power that we want to give him by the act which United States can bring as many suits as it chooses, and each we passed at this session of Congress ought to have been "dis~ individual can bring his suit. bursing officers' checks." Now, we did not use the words "dis· I will not, however, go into this question now; but the Sena bursing officers' checks," but used the words "check or war· tor from South Carolina, from what he has just stated as rant." · facts-which I do not believe are facts--must have a very un Mr. MANN. Does the Secretary of the Treasury hold that fortunate opinion of the transaction, and he must have a -very the word " check " does not include disbursing officers' checks 1 unfortunate opinion of the committee, or he must belie-ve the Mr. DALZELL. The Secretary of the Treasury holds that committee dishonest-one or the other. the law substantially has been wrong for about twenty years. Mr. TILLi\!AJ.~. The Senator from Colorado is angry, and I was the introducer of the bill, and when I introduced the bill I have too much re pect and admiration for him to in any wise I followed the language -of the Revi-sed Statutes we wanted to say or do anything to offend him or give him a reasonable amend. Now the Secretm·y says that the language ought to be excuse for any such language. "disbursing officers' checks" instead of "check or warrant." Mr. TELLER. I do not allow anybody to taunt me with dis Mr. PAYNE. What he says is now it includes warrants pass~ honesty, either directly or indirectly. ing between officers of the Government, and in order to have Mr. TILLMAN. I have not charged the Senator with dis- those renewed and have a duplicate issued, it requires the honesty. officer to give bond, as the statute is to-day. They discoveJ:ed Mr. KEAN. -Mr. President, t..m I recognized? it since we amended it, and the statute bas been that way all The VICE-PRESIDENT. The Senator from New J ersey. the time, and this is simply to relieve those warrants i ued Mr. KEAN. I move that the Senate adjourn. between Government officers and the officers having to give The motion was agreed to; and (at G o'clock and 20 minutes bond and security against duplicates. p. m.) tile Senate adjourned until Monday, June 11, 1906, at Mr. MA~"N"N. I will say to the gentleman, after his lucid 12 o'clock meridian. explanation, it is just as clear as mud; but if he insists he bas in-vestigated it and it · is extending the power, I am perfectly satisfied. · HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. Ml·. DALZELL. I am perfectly clear about it. Mr. LACEY. I know what my own purpo e was when I SATURDAY, June 9,1906. voted for the bill, and that was to allow all sorts of Govern The House met at 12 o'clock m. ment checks to be duplicated under the limitation and au~ Prayer by the Chaplain, Rev. HENRY N. CouDEN, D. D. thority. For instance, you get a draft drawn by the Treas Tile Journal of yesterday's proceedings was read and ap urer or assistant treasurer of the United States on the as~ pro-ved. sistant treasurer at New York and that is lost. Now, we do AMENDING SECTION 3646, REVISED STATUTES. not want to come to Congress to get authority to get a dupli~ 1\fr. DALZELL. · 1\Ir. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent for cate, and that bill was introduced undertaking to cover that the present consideration of the bill which I send to the Clerk's sort of a check. Now you limit it to disbur ing checks and desk. disbursing checks only and do away with the advantage of the The SPEAKER. The Clerk will report the bill. bill we pas ed-- · Tile Clerk read as follows : Mr. DALZELL. Not at all. All checks to which the g~n~ tleman refers are disbursing checks, and on all those checks, An act (S. 5 11) to amend section 3646 of the Revised Statutes of the United States, as amended by act of February 16, 1885, as amended of course, duplicates are issued upon proper indemnity being by act of March 23, 1906. given, but there must be proper indemnity. B e it enacted, etc., That section 3646, Revised Statutes of the nlted Mr. LACEY. That is, providing the amount is under $2,500. t;tates, as amended by act of February IG, 18 5, as amended by act But suppose tile amount is over that? of March 23, 1906, be amended by striking out the words " check or warrant " wherever said words appear in said amended act, and by Mr. DALZELL. We struck out the limitation upon the substituting in lieu thereof the words "disbursing officer's check," so amount in the law we passed. The indemnity clau e still tays, as to make the section read as follows : " SEC.