This is a suit brought on the official bond of Clement Hugh Hill, as clerk of the district court of the United States for the district of Massachusetts, for 'not properly accounting for all moneys coming into his hands, as required by law, according to the condition of said bond.' The bond was in the penal sum of $20,000, and in the original writ the damages were laid at $2,000. The bill of exceptions shows that the controversy in the suit was as to the liability of the clerk to account to the United States for moneys received by him in naturalization business. The questions involved are in many respects the same as in U.S. v. Hill, 120 U.S. 169, 7 Sup. Ct. Rep. 510, though in some important particulars the two cases differ. Under the instructions of the court, the jury found a verdict for the defendants on the twenty-sixth of July, 1887. On the third of August, and before judgment, the writ was amended, with leave of the court, by increasing the ad damnum from $2,000 to $20,000. Then, on the twenty-fourth of August, a judgment was entered in due form on the verdict, 'that the plaintiff take nothing by the writ.' To reverse that judgment, this writ of error was brought, which the defendants now move to dismiss, because the value of the matter in dispute does not exceed $5,000. The motion is based upon the following statement which appears as part of the bill of exceptions: 'This is an action upon the official bond of the defendants, given by the defendant Hill as clerk of the district court for this district. The pleadings are made a part of this bill of exceptions, and may be referred to. The only breach of the bond relied upon was that set out in the declaration of the failure of Hill to account for all moneys received; and, under this assignment of breach, no claim was made that the said Hill had neglected to account for any other sums or moneys than those received by him in naturalization cases. It appeared as a fact that the total amount of naturalization fees received by the defendant Hill since the date of former suit, viz., December 4, 1884, and not accounted for, was as follows:
"July to Dec., 1884,........... $2,720
"Jan. to June, 1887,.............. 838
'It also appeared that in 1884, adding the naturalization fees to the other fees, the two together exceeded the clerk's maximum allowance by the amount of $517.07, but since then, adding the two together, the clerk has not received the maximum allowed him by law.' As early as U.S. v. McDowell, 4 Cranch, 316, it was decided that, in an action on an official bond given for the faithful performance of the duties of an office, our jurisdiction would depend on the amount due for the breach of the condition, and not on the penal sum. This is not denied in the argument of the attorney general submitted in opposition to this motion, but he insists (1) that it does not appear legitimately on the face of this record that the amount due is less than the penalty of the bond; and, (2) that this is a suit brought for the enforcement of a 'revenue law' of the United States, and therefore this court has jurisdiction for the review of the judgment, under section 699, Rev. St., 'without regard to the sum or value in dispute.'