The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1857-10-12
OsvelOpsmenss I'm the Financial
Department OF the Corporasson.

Astounding Ovvel0psmenss In the Financial
Department OF the Corporasson.
Some time ago one Of the boards of our City
Councils appointed committee, by way of an
experiment to look into the records Of the finaa-
cial department of this blessed Corporation. 10
order thereby to ascertain, if possible, how the
peoples money has been going for the last few
years In pursuance of their duty, the commit
tee have been inspecting the books, papers, &C.,
touching our city expenditures for The last five or
elk years or more, and their discoveries have been
perfectly overwhelming 1t seems, from these
astounding disclosures, that within this period Of
five or Elk years, sums Of money, amounting to the
stupeados aggregate of eight or ten millions Of dol
lars, hare disappeared from city treasury nobody
haows hop, when, achere, or aehat for. The money
has been expended, but there are no vouchers. or
specifications, or indications as to the purposes
for which it was paid away.
This is equal to series of defalcations, en-
bezzlements, or robberies or what you will,
amounting to eight or ten millions; and the dis
closures in the premises which will be
brought to light within few days
will be very apt to startle our taxpayers
from their lethargy. Here we have the clue to
the otherwise inexplicable increase Of our city
taxes from two or three to seven, and even to
eight millions of dollars per annum, within the
last half dozen years. We doubt not that this
increase has kept pace pari passu with these I'M
recorded expenditures of thousands tens Of
thousands, hundreds of thousands and millions.
1t Is another instructive chapter of that dreadful
Generalization Of our spoilsmen, spectators and
stockholders of all sorts-that pervading spirit
Of recklessness, corruption and shameless roguery
which has precipitated upon the country this ter
rible financial revulsion.
We have heard of railway jobbers, fnanciers
and favorites, who, in year or two. from nothing
have become millionaires; and we are told of
Corporation favorites and spoilesmeu who, upon
salaries comparatively triaing, within two or
three years have contrived to obtain money and
credit sufficient to enable them to build brown
stone fronts, drive fast horses, and support fast
women in the latest fashions Foolish banks and
swindled railway stock and bondholders can
these railroad land sharks, and tell us all about
it, with the bursting of the bubbles that have led
banks, stock and bondholders into the quick
sands of bankruptcy. So, too, with the examina-
ton of our Corporation records of receipts and
expenditures, we are getting at the secret of our
excessive taxations And from railroad 6aan-
cers to our Corporation spoilsmen, the solution is
the same-the most astounding and enormous
plots and combinations of Peter Funks, Jeremy
Diddlers, rogues and scoundrels to plumber the
community. And SO. every day, from day to
day. for some time yet to come, we shall know
more and more of the agencies and the agents
and the ms and outs that have brought upon the
country this unparalleled and ruinous financial
earthquake.