The Law of Claims Against Governments, Including the Mode of Adjusting Them and the Procedure Adopted in Their Investigation (Classic Reprint)

Download or read book The Law of Claims Against Governments, Including the Mode of Adjusting Them and the Procedure Adopted in Their Investigation (Classic Reprint) written by United States; Congress; House; Claims and published by . This book was released on 2015-07-02 with total page 446 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Excerpt from The Law of Claims Against Governments, Including the Mode of Adjusting Them and the Procedure Adopted in Their Investigation There were two principal objects in preparing the following pages: first, to show that the whole business of examining claims by committees of Congress should be abandoned, and appropriate tribunals created for that purpose, having judicial powers, with all the machinery now exercised by the commissioners of claims tor ascertaining the truth; and, second, to state some principles of law which seemed necessary to secure justice for honest claimants and to protect the Government against demands which find no sanction in sound precedent or public law. Some of the reasons in favor of withdrawing from Congress the consideration of claims were presented in a speech in the House of Representatives June 3, 1874, (Congressional Record, vol. 2, part 5, (vol. 6, ) p. 4511, ) and still more appear in the following pages. Since that time the writer has found a valuable discussion of the subject at the second session of the Thirtieth Congress, which is well worthy of attentive perusal. (Globe, vol. 20, pp. 38, 139, 144, 159, 163, 172, 178, 188, 198, 203, 302, 303, 307, 378, 492, 543.) A report made at the same Congress on the same subject is also very instructive. (See House Report 441, vol. 2, first session 29th Congress; House Report 498, vol. 3, first session 30th Congress; House Report 937, vol. 4, second session 27th Congress; House Report 295, vol. 1, first session 28th Congress; House Report 442, vol. 2, first session 30th Congress; House Report 10. vol. 1, first session 39th Congress.) Some of the earlier debates in Congress are equally deserving attention. (Annals of Congress, 14th Congress, second session, 1816-'17, pp. 245, 299, 382, 426, 462, 1028, 1035, 1040, 1051, 1211.) Some of the reforms which are believed to be just, salutary, and desirable are indicated in the following pages. The vast increase of population and business in the United States is such that it is believed there should be a tribunal of claims, the members of which should be selected from the best talent of the country, and have a tenure of office like that of the judges of the courts, with power to make awards to be reported to Congress for payment. Their opinions on questions of law should be subject to revision by the Supreme Court. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.