Talk:United States v. Johnston (124 U.S. 236)

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Edition:	United States v. Johnston, , he has not accounted for to the plaintiff, but converted to his own use The defendant became such agent on the eighth of May, 1865, under a written appointment by the secretary of the treasury He was charged with the duty of receiving and collecting such cotton in the counties of Lowndes, Monroe, Oktibbeha, and Noxubee, in the state of Mississippi, as had been purchased by or was held on account of the so-called Confederate States government, and of forwarding the same to agents of the department as Memphis or Mobile, as, in his judgment, was best for the government His commission was accompanied by a letter of instructions requiring him, with as little delay as possible, to ship the cotton received or collected to William W Orme, supervising special agent at Mobile, 'sending forward with each lot an account of expenses, (which will be paid by them,) together with a full record of the cotton shipped, etc, as required by the fourth regulation concerning captured, abandoned, and confiscable personal property' He was informed that his compensation would be thereafter fixed, and would depend, in great measure, upon the result of his efforts; but that it should be reasonable and liberal for the services performed The defendant, in his answer, denied that he had omitted to account for any cotton received or collected by him as such agent For further defense, he alleged that after the times mentioned in the complaint, and on or about March 15, 1866, a just, true, and full accounting of his acts as such agent was had with the United States, upon which he surrendered all papers, documents, and vouchers in his hands relating to his agency; that upon such accounting the sum of $33,97259 was awarded to him, of which $2,18669 represented his per diem allowance, and the balance his commissions; that said per diem allowance was paid on the fifteenth of May, 1866, and said commissions on the fifteenth of January, 1868; and that he was thereupon fully released, acquitted, and discharged from liability of every kind to the government By agreement of the parties, the issues were heard and determined, in the first instance, by Hon William G Choate, as referee, who made a report of his special findings of fact and law, accompanied by an elaborate opinion, in support of the conclusion that the defendant was entitled to a judgment dismissing the complaint on the merits The case was subsequently tried by the court; the parties, by written stipulation filed, having waived a jury The court adopted the special findings of fact made by the referee as its own findings, and dismissed the complaint .
Source:	United States v. Johnston from http://bulk.resource.org/courts.gov/c/US/124
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