Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1838-03-10

addition 10 tNelr nu0luer. IA se'eH
lion the duties and responsibilities will be Increased ny
The hill proposed and in these alone can any luf
| Their aid be required. :, :;
For The greater security of the public Ievenne, II Is
proposed TO establish special deposItoe fiat"s
treasurer Of the u S. at The seat ut Government, 1t
obviously more proper that the public money collected
within this DislI and its neIghborhood should Or ra3'
in his custody for public use, lan that 1t should oe rs
he e,oore deposited in banks to be employed IN loans
II IL o,op,,s,d that this officer shall take charge Of ana
nav over for public purposes only all nun"y winch iiy
be collected within this District, or w"ch may o'hrf
wise come into his lands ....
A we have minis at Philadelphia and New Orleans,
with every prnvisn for the security Of the pubic mon y,
Ills pruposed tina, the cash collections the custom "us
es in these places should be transferred daily and Inc
bonds for duties weekly, TO these repositories Inc n
Ties of receiving, keeping and paying over line Punc
money are not TO the treasurers at the m:h;s lie
Treasury is authorised employ milIicn of dollars IN
facilitating the cnnage which is constantly passing
through their hands They also per!n the samr du-
ties for banks and merchants. The duties Of Ie lrea'
surers will not be changed in character hut ar receipts
and payments for Government VIII be Hlurraley IN
creased in amount.
We have now officers employed in cns.un.hnusrs
to collect the cash duties The officer at New York re-
ceyed al the custom hnuse in 1910 five millions ni dol
lars As there are be special repositories at 8"slnn,
New York and Charleston, with Increased responsible
lilies is proposed TO substitute in their plOc:s at these
ports, officers Of higher grade, to he denomnaied
PubIic Receivers; and as similar depository IS pro
~.
of the Receiver now there These officers and The rea-
snrers of the Minis will also have charge OF such SUMS
as may be transferred from other points The increased
labor and responsibility imposed the Treasurer 4" the
United States The Treasures o the MINIS and the Pub
lie Receivers may require further AID; the Secretary OF
the Treasury is therefore authorized to appoint TWO
additional clerks for Washington, two for ~ YORK, ana
one for each of the nlher four repositories. making alto
gethrr nine clerks No other increase q" officers VIII! oe
required 10 carry the proposed into full effect
This small addition is all that is proposed nr required |"
execute designed extensively 10 diminish TX
ecuve patronage, by dispensing entirely with the ugen'
cy of banks and by separating that brancl OF gu! Go
vcrnnent from all control and influence over powerful
association Of corporations with thousands oil diftclnsi
officers md stockholders If important measure is
be rejected because nine clerks are to be added 10
the number in the public service, W. should, with
equal reason stop the progress of legislation for scarce
" session passes in which Congress is not compelled
to authorize III" employment Of greater number OF off.
carry into effect the various laws required IN The
administration Of the affairs Of our rapidly growing
country.
The same mistake as 10 the responsibilities Of our
officers has produced impression that we
now, for the first time ahnut to place The puhc mo-
ney in their custody Dsfalcalions consequently
apprehe nded aud 10 avoid ihesr special dspnsiie OF
the public money in banks for safe keeping is advocated
by some who are decidedly favorable IN the separation
From 1850 The present time, the public money III lis
collection has been all placed under the conr" OF our
avn officers: most of it afterwards placed in banks
or Transferred to the credit If The Treasurer their
hnoks and finally, it cunded 10 dIsbursing officers
We have had generally very inadequate security; and,
in many instances, especially regards dshursng Of
ces notfven the ordinary security OF bonds Under such
loose regulations the wonder IS that our losses were not
greater considering the immense amount which has
used through the hands OF CIR officers. Our collectors
have had under their control gross revenue ut 9lb
COO 00U dollars aud land receivers 0T 600 600 dol
lars making U53 900 900 dollus. They not only had
the control OF this amount but they permitted
To paw without warrant from the Treasury and before
the money passed ont Of their hands, all the expenses
Of our custom hous"s and land offices, and drhentures
which alone amounted four five millions annually
and sometimes more. Notwithstanding these templa
lions 10 commit fraud and TO employ the public money
for private USE, the whole amount OF nominal aud actual
balances INST oil the collectors of the customs and
The receivers OF public lands throughout the UnIon
for forty nine years, is about two millions and ball.
being less Than one quarter Of per cent the
received BY them since 1889 But the larger proportion
even of the balances standing on the Treasury books
arises from The death of some, md the negligence oil
other public officers in not transmitting their vouchers,
ar from mere irrpeul,ry or informally. The collectors
are charged with all the bonds, whether they are PAID or
not and the receivers with the lands sold whether they
have received the money or not Sometimes lie Vouci
ers are lost destroyed and many applications have
been from time to time, made to Congress. TO enable
The Treasury to settle the accounts OF officers who,
though not indebted 10 Government, have been for
wears and are still, reported as deiaulers From the
host estimates that be made at the Treasury, not
moro than one million of these balances is actually due
10 Government from collectors and receivers OF pub
lie money leaving probable loss OF about one-lenlh OF
one per Of the amount under their charge and con-
troll We have lost nothing by the dlsbnrsing officers OF
the army proper for twenty years past and 10 other
discussing officers. have generally neglected 10 re-
quire security OF them
/ These Losses by public officers cannot however, be
urged as argument in favor OF employing banks, as
they have with little exception, all occurred while the
latter we're the agents Of The Treasury We have, more.
over at the time lost more in proportion by banks,
than BY our officers. Throwing aside the millions
lost 10y tBeir deprrcia'ed paper md commencing with
the Bank Of the United States in o7 and after The re.
sumption Of specie payments, our losses Amounted IN
seventeen years, by bank repositories Ia 81 GIooI,
and by bank notes Sl7S470, making Sl,234 ,424, Of
which there is prospect OF our ever recovering any
part Assuming that, from 1917 10 lS4 our depos!l"fiea
in all the banks amounted $3.50 ,00O the actual
loss in seventeen years would br nearly three eigs
of one per cent while the probable loss by all our Gu"
lccturs aud receivers IN forty nine years cannot he
estimated at more than about one tenth oil one per
cent We have besides, by the recent TeVulslon, a
suspended debt due from the dcpose banks OF 50 2'
$780, ard 81 900 600 TO the credit of our dsburs
ing officers. What part OF this we may lose canno
now be estimated We shall he fortunate, II we have
not occasion hereafter 10 double the amount OF The
losses before referred But have at least ascer
ained that in IL years of peace and general prosperity,
and during The existence Of National Bank, we nave
lost more BY this connection with banks than the amount
Of all our usses by collectors and receivers III ~ years.
haunh The former were entrusted with about $3.50 OO0,
900 nny, and the latter with ST. ,O53 ,OOO:0UO.
While we are thus exposed heavy losses BY empny
ING banks the renewal Of this agency would not IN the
slightest degree diminish chance of loss by public
officers Tie employment Of banks cannot remove The
necessity Of confd1g officers IN collecting
aud di.bursing the public money, unless abolish our
custom houses land offices and dIsbursing agencies and
assign all The duties of Government t. banks. Under no
practicable system avoid trusting our own OH
GERS with The public money, as have done from The
origin Of our Government Fortunately, experience
of their fidelity does moi warrant the withdrawal Of our
confidence. In collecting Than thousand millions,
probable loss does not exceed the tenth part OF one
per cent, and at the principal point Of collection it is
far less At the port of New York, there have been in
collecting The customs, since 7s9 bot Two defacali"ns,
one of which is still unadust and before Congress,