Rensselaer Republican, Volume 17, Number 52, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 3 September 1885 — THE ALABAMA CLAIMS. [ARTICLE]

THE ALABAMA CLAIMS.

A Ruling That Will Embarrass tlio Court of Commissioners for Some Time. [Washington telegram.] The First Comptroller of the Treasury to-day made a ruling that is likely to embarrass the Court of Commissioners of Alabama Claims for some time to come. It is in effect that the employment of twentyfour persons borne on the rolls of the court is entirely without warrant of law, and that no payments can legally be made from the Treasury on their account in the future. Mr. Andrew H. Allen, disbursing agent of the court, recently made requisitions on the Secretary of the Treasury for $9,000 to meet the current expenses of the court. In the usual course of business the requisitions came before the First Comptroller, and he decided to make an investigation of the affairs of the court before authorizing the issue of the necessary warrants. His conclusions are summarized in the following statement, prepared by him for publication: The Court’ of Commissioners of Alabama Claims was created in 1874, to hear proof of Claims to be paid out of the $15,000,000 awarded by the Geneva Commission, and was continued by various acts until Deo. 81, 1877. It was constituted of five Judges, with an annual salary of SG,OOO each, a clerk at $3,000, a stenographer at $2,500, and an attorney to represent the United States at SB,OOO. Provision was also made for rent of court-room, furniture, stationery, fuel, and other necessary incidental expenses, all of which was to be paid out of said fund before judgments were paid. The court was reorganized in 1882, with the same officers and salaries aS before, except that the number of Judges was reduced to three. The Comptroller, in investigating the case, found that outside of the above-named officials there were on the payrolls the names of assistant counsel for the United States, clerk to said counsel, experts, clerks to experts, messengers, watchmen, etc., whose aggregate sala.ies amounted to about s34,*m) per year. He also found in the quarterly returns that there has been paid to other assistant counsel over $-,"00 for the quarter ending December 31, 1884, and about $7,0u0 for the quarter ending March 31, 1885, besides other alleged illegal payments. He says he finds no law authorizing said payments, and after consulting with the Acting Secretary of the Treasury and with the Solicitor of the Treasury, ho has decided to §top all luture payments of the - ——: