THE ADAMS ACT. 63 



Upon receipt of this opinion at the Department of Agriculture an 

 argument was presented to the Secretary of the Treasury as a basis 

 for reconsideration of the Comptroller's ruling, and evidence was 

 presented to indicate the intention of Congress in passing the act. 

 To this the Comptroller replied as follows : 



Treasury Department, 

 Office of the Comptroller of the Treasury, 



Washington, April 28, 1906. 

 The Honorable Secretary of the Treasury. 



Sir : I am in receipt, by the hand of your private secretary, this day, of the 

 communication of the Acting Secretary of Agriculture to you, dated the 17th 

 instant, in which he requests that I be directed to reconsider my decision of the 

 7th instant, as regards my holding that the appropriation made in the act of 

 March 16, 1906, entitled "An act to provide for an increased annual appropria- 

 tion for agricultural experiment stations and regulating the expenditures 

 thereof," did not become operative until the beginning of the next fiscal year. 



On the 23d instant the Secretary of Agriculture submitted the following 

 request for a decision : 



By the terms of the act of Congress approved March 16, 1906, entitled "An 

 act to provide for an increased annual appropriation for agricultural experiment 

 stations and regulating the expenditures thereof," is a specific annual appro- 

 priation made from the Treasury for the full amounts to be paid each State and 

 Territory under the terms of the act? 



In the consideration of the latter request I had occasion to review my decision 

 of the 7tb instant, being the one which I am now requested to reconsider. On 

 such review I arrived at the same conclusion set forth in the decision of the 7th 

 instant as to the availability of the appropriation in question for the present 

 fiscal year. I inclose you a copy of said latter decision. 



If the contention of the Secretary of Agriculture is correct as to the intent of 

 Congress to make an appropriation of $5,000 for each agricultural experiment 

 f.tation for the present fiscal year 1906. that intent could easily have been evi- 

 denced by some appropriate and intelligible language, and then for future years 

 provide, as the bill does provide, that the sums therein appropriated, which 

 include the $5,000 appropriation, shall be paid quarterly, as therein provided. 



I must in construing acts of Congress take the language used, and all the 

 language of a bill, and not the individual intent of some person, or give undue 

 importance to any particular word or phrase. Applying the ordinary and usual 

 rules of interpretation to the act in question, I am still of opinion that my con- 

 struction thereof in the decision of the 7th instant is correct. 

 Respectfully, 



(Signed) R. J. Tracewell, Comptroller. 



In view of these opinions of the Comptroller that the act did not 

 carry an appropriation for the fiscal year 1906, the Secretary of 

 Agriculture addressed the following letter to Senator Proctor, chair- 

 man of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, a duplicate of which 

 was also sent to Hon. H. C. Adams, the author of the bill, together 

 with an amendment which it was proposed to add to the agricultural 

 appropriation bill, interpreting the act and making it applicable to 

 the fiscal year 1906 : 



May 1, 1906. 



Dear Senator Proctor : I am sending you herewith copies of decisions of the 

 Comptroller of the Treasury dated April 7, 1906, and April 28, 1906. You will 



