Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1858-09-07
To the Public.

In our late investigation Of the Offices Of Comp
troller and Secretary of State as joint select
mittee appointed by the Legislature, had no mos
tive to do injustice to the inoumbents or to any
Others but felt bound by the highest considerations
of duty to ascertain as nearly as possible the true
state Of facts and faithfully tOrepOrt it to the public
regardless of consequences to ourselves. We seOn
saw that the labor would be difficult and disagreed
BILE We foresaw that there would be persons deep
ly interested in dvertng public attention from the
disclosures to be made. 1t not therefore, with
much surprise that we saw the recent publications
over the signatures respectively of Messrs CROzER,
LUrrRELL, sPExcE, and the earlier of DR.. F. n.
w. BURTOE; commencing even before our report
was published. But we we're hardly prepared TO
anticipate the bitterness of attack which character
ize the two cards of Mr.. CR0zIER. He takes issue
with our conclusion, that the books Of the Comptrol
ler's Office we're not properly kept" and says the
Committee we're totally unscquainted with the bu>
suess and unfit for the investigation Of the duties
assigned thom, and therefore wholly incapable Of
Judging how books should be kept" He says We
are totally wrong to the Oyerplus of SIS 1888 08,
interest paid on State Bonds above the amount due
6y the State and taunls with the proposition to
leave the questions at issue to be decided by certain
named gentlemen. We submit if it would not have
/ been bet er for Mr.. CRozIER to wait till the
Committees report, with the testimony TAKEN is laid
before the public before attempting in such bot
haste to divert public opinion? The report is now
in the hands of the printer and will soon be publish
ed under the authority of the Governor. In the
meantime, we will content ourselves by saying in
reply to Mr. CRozI-R's cards, that We have ample
l. IL
his reports to the Legislature for the six years he
was in office invariably contained material errors
that he did not correctly report the amount of State
bonds outsandiDg-that he did not correctly reprsN
| sent the amount of interest due on bonds-that he
failed to comply with the plain acquisitions Of the
law to keep in the books of his Office an accurate
registration Of all the notes issued for circulation
to the free banks-that he omitted to keep a record
of the dates and amounts Of bonds deposited by the
Free Banks-that he failed 10 report the proper
date Of the maturity of bonds in many instances,
and that in other particulars his negligence to do
what was clearly his duty to do such to give
the Committee the greatest difficulty in arriving at
the true state of facts. We we're not disposed to
make exposures a shade more pointed than was suf-
fcent to acqut ourselves of a faithful discharge of
duty But truth to say, it was difficult to ascertain
from the ComptrOller's books whether warrants
which had been isued were paid not. In his
three several reports to the Legislature Mr. CRozER
seems to have thought that State bonds which
had been issued to the Lagrange and Memphis Rail
road, amounting to $40 $50, had been cancelled,
when in fact the bonds are still outstanding and he
has been paying interest upon them for six years
apparently without knowing it. These bonds, Nos.
., % "A, 25, 26, %, %, 90, 80 and 81, are now
in the hands of Mr.. A. v G. LINDSEY, who has been
regularly drawing interest upon them, and yet Mr.
CRozER has never reported these bonds as part
of the State debt. One other case of this sort we
will cite andpass to other matters A State bond for
$780, issued to the Gallatin Turnpike Co., was re-
turned of and parts OftWO bonds amount
ing to $500 issued to the Lagrange MemphisrOad
two new bonds were issued of $1,000 each, keeping
out the same amount of liability. Yet Mr. GRozER
has not regarded the $500 bond issued to the Gal
latin Turnpike Company and has failed repeatedly to
report the same to the Legislature For years be paid
to the individual holder the annual interest
ing on this $500, and yet did not find out that it
was still outstanding as a State liability. By such
errors he has been led to report the outstanding
debt Of the State invariably less than it is and as
to the accrung interest 1t complicated with the
further error Of counting commissions as interest
These errors have run through all his reports to the
Legislature, and ten minutes examination of his
books will plainly disclose them to any one curious
enough TO look Mr.. LUTTBELL's report is similarly
errOneous-his interest account was more So for be
calculated the interest on all the State bonds at
per cent in the face of the fact that 81 949 44O Of
them draw but per cent, and $3.50, I6G &c but
per cent, making an error of S8 2O3 4for year
By the free banking law, passed in 1852, the cir
eulation Of the free banks is required TO be counter
signed, numbered and registered by the Comptroller
in proper books to be provided and kept in his Of
fce yet the Committee find great commission Of this
duty in connection with several of the free banks