The Rodney telegraph. (Rodney, Miss.) 1838-1840, 1840-01-28
GOVERNORS MESSAGE
To the Legislature Of tie State Of
Mississippi.
AGRICULTURAL BANK.
The following Message ,cas transmitted to
The Legislature on Tuesday last.


The Legislature on Tuesday last.
Gentlsnsen ofthe Senate and
House IF Representatives.:
The eleventh section Of the charter Of the
Agricultural Bank provides "that the Legis-
lature of this State shall be furnished with
general statement of the transactions Of the
Bank, Az often as they may require the
same, which shall be signed by the cashier
anc countersigned by the president; and it
shall be the duty Of the Governor of this
State, to appoint annually, a competent per-
son to inspect such general accounts of the
books of said bank, rs he shall deem neccs-
sary, and It shall be his duty faithfully to re-
port every violation Of the fundamental
rules Of said corporation, to be laid by the
Governor before the Legislatnr&at their
next succeeding session; Provided Said in
spector shall not have the right Of inspect
ing the private account of any individual or
individuals, orof any body corporate with
said hank"
In discharge of the duty imposed upon
the Executive, appointed James Hagan,
Special Commissioner to make the annual
examination required by the charter. II will
not be denied, that the commissioner was
fully competent to perform the duties of the
Office. His duties were ministerial-not
judicial. ! am not aware that his av0cation
as an editor, OF his having expressed an O.
pinion on certain points, produced such a
"disqualfying bias as to preclude him
from faithful discharge of the duties he
was sworn to perform.
The District Attorney of the Southern
District of this State, in pursuance of au-
thority vested in him by the General Gov
ernment, examined the Agricultural Bank
not long since. 1t appears that ssfor sever
al years past, his opinions have been d.
Tectly opposed to the management Of the
bank, and fofthe same period, his feelings
towards its managers have not been the most
friendly" 1.-THE District Attorney could,
under those circumstances, be . livery inn
porSant Commissioners" Of the General Gov
ernment. he surely is stopped from object
ing to the commissioner l appointed. sit is
not my business 10 discuss the merits of(my)
appointment" The comm5 sioner is fully
able 70 defend himself. =
The report Of the Special Commissioner,
on the Agricultural Bank Is herewith trans-
mittod. II will be seen, that every possible
obstacle was thrown in his way, and that
the whole truth could not be wrung from
the officers of the bank-the uunwilling witt
nesses he examined. While the commis-
sioner was tracing the late nefarious post
note transactions of the bank, .sDr Stephen
Duncan, an intermediate agent between the
bank" snd commission house in New Or
leans, entrusted with the sale Of the post
notes, "removed the correspondence from
the bank, . relative thereto. 1t appears that
the bank has several agents at present, en-
gagged in the purchase of cotton with her
own post notes.
The commissioner endeavored to ascer-
tain the amount of specie deposited by the
Government in the Pontotoc Branch, du-
ring the year 1886; the amount of bills |
purchased-the discount at which they |
were purchased, and the amount of specie
certificates sold during that period He
called for the weekly returns from the Pom
totoc Branch during that period, .sbut Mr..
Merrill the Cashier, could not lay his hands
on the returns of 1886 and ST." and ssthe
mother bank seemed 10 know nothing Of the
subject.n The history of the transaction is
this: BY the provisions Of the Chicka-
saw treaty, all the land in that country not
reserved, was to be sold on account Of the
Indians, and the nett proceeds invested in
State Stocks for their benefit. The Agri-
cultural Bank, for the purpose of clutching
the deposites, established branch at Pont-
ntoc. The greater portion of the land was
Dold in the fall Of 1885, after the issuance
of the specie circular, and the sales amoun-
ed during that year, to 2,7OO, 600. The
Government agreed 10 take at those sales
about $500, 600 in paper Of the State Bank
# Alabama, which by agreement was to be
invested in Alabama state stock, for the ben
fit Of the Chickasaw Indians. The returns
f the land sales at Pontotoc, ia ,36, showed
bout SO ,2OO, 600 received in coin during {
hat time, when in fact only about $780, Il
700 in gold and silver were deposited in the
bank. This result was brought about by 1 I
ross fraud on the part Of the bank, perpe- /
ruted for the double purpose Of swelling {
heir profits, and aiding their favored spec q
lators in the exercising Of a controlling in t
uence at the land sales, md thus monopo- ?
ziDg 4 great portion of the best land sold, .
, the great injury of thousands of emigrants i
rho were able and anxious to purchase t
ONES for their families. The bank at these o
ales received bank paper and certificates c
f deposife in the branch at Pontotoc- dis Eli
ounfcd bills freely for mammoth land conn., '
anies, and greedy spectators present at Y
,e sales, and gave them certificates of hay- 8
II deposited specie, to the aggregate al
,o.,nt Of 81 500 900, when nol aicaynne ;
, hard money had been depo6 The o
sceiver Of public money could = check Il
80 r,alnabIe fraud HIS 81 Wxe inae-l !,