Page:Federal Reporter, 1st Series, Volume 1.djvu/790

 782 FEDERAL REPORTBR. �of the section is substantially like that of section 6485 of the Eevised Statutes, as it now stands, and under which this indictment was framed, viz. : "Any agent, attorney or other person, instrumental in prosecuting any claim for pension, or reeeive or retain any greater compensation for his services or instrumentality in prosecuting a claim for a pension than as provided," etc. It will be observed that the word retain is used, thus implying that there might be money of the pen- sioner in the hands of the agent or attorney or other person, notwithstanding the act of 1870 forbade payment to such agent, attorney or person. And then the section proceeds, the language used in section 31 of the act of 1873 and in section 5485 of the Eevised Statutes being preoisely the same : "Or who shall v^rongfuUy withhold from the pensioner or the claimant the whole or any part of the pension or claim allowed and due such pensioner or claimant, he shall be deemed guilty of a high misdemeanor. " �It was an act passed after the act of 1870 in which this language is used. The clause in section 3 of the act of 1870 is preserved in section 4766 of the Eevised Statutes, which declares that "hereafter no pension shall be paid to any person other than the pensioner entitled thereto." So that hoth these parts of the Statutes of 1870 and 1873 are found in the Eevised Statutes, and the question is whether they cannot stand together ; whether, in other words, we ean reject section 6485 of the Eevised Statutes merely because it does not speak of the receipt of money by an agent, attorney or other person representing the pensioner, but merely mentions the withholding of the money from him. It seems to me that, taking ail this legislation together, while it indicates, perhaps, not quite so much care as there ought to be in legislating at different times upon the same subject, still it is the duty of the court to harmonize this varions legislation, and if practicable to reconeile one part with another. And it must be presumed, I think, the intention of congress was, by incorporating into the Eevised Statutes a part of section 31 of the act of 1873, to declare that whenever a person was ��� �
 * * * who shall directly or indirectly contract for, demand