The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1859-02-25
BALTIMORE.
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY Is, 1859.

SHAKESPEARE somewhere tells us that the oppol
tunity to do ill deeds, makes ill deeds DONE an
the great fraud, which has recently been discoy
cred as having been perpetrated on the Illnoi
State Treasury is a striking Illustration of tn
truth of the remark. From the report of the Com
mittee of the State Senate, who were appointed +
investigate the matter, we gather, that Sin tn
'year 1888 the proper officers of the Illinois AM
michigan Canal, to meet their pecuniary necessi
'ties-and pursuant to power by law con
''ferred-issued S265, 237 of what were calIe
'nlnety-day checks, dated May LIST, 1889
land due ninety days after date and the
"also issued 1928, 3l7 of similar checks dated Au
'gust lst 1889. These checks were by them pu
Sin circulation, for a temporary purpose from tn
canal office at Lockport, Illinois, and were in par
redeemed at the branch of the State Bank of Hi
''nois, at Chicago, and part received for due
'to the canal, or otherwise redeemed at tie cana
'office. While preparing the amount SO issued
'the officerswho prepared and signed these checks
''not knowing howmany they might need partial
ely executed, and filled up for future use, large
amount of other checks similar in their character
but which were untrimmed, unregistered and had
an amount was thus partially executed and filled
up, the committee had no means of ascertain
ing, as none but the checks put into circulation by
the State were registered. By the year 1910 all
the checks that were legtimately issued had been
redeemed, with interest, with the exception of
some eight hundred dollars. The checks thus can
celed were, in the fall of the same year, packed by
the officers of the Canal Board in large box
which was sealed and deposited for safe keeping in
the Branch State Bank at Chicago. There the box
remained until the year 1s4s, when it was re-
moved TO the canal office in Chicago In 1853
box, answering to the description given of it by
various witnesses, was transferred to Mr. MCRoB-
ERTs, who had been appointed by Governor MAT
TEsoN to act as Trustee of the Canal on behalf of
the State, and to receive the assets of the canal
office. There was also passed over to MCRoBERTs,
at the same time, ''another box, with a loose lid
''or cover, containing packages of canal indebted
mess, which had been cancelled with a cancelng
hammer Many of the packages were broken,
and the contents did not correspond with the
amounts marked on the wrappers. Other pack
ages OF canal Indebtedness reikewise found in the
office, some of which were broken and parts of the
contents missing. These were all packed, by the
Trustee, in a trunk and an old shoe box,
which were passed over by him to the care of
Governor MATTEsoN, who assumed the charge of
them in Chicago, and carried them with him to
Springfield The shoe box has never been seen
since, but the trunk was recently found in base
ment room of the Capitol at Springfield, and
bore the appearance 'of having been sealed twice,
apal nd 81
Cured, as we have already stated, in 1853,
and now comes the most mysterious part
of the story. In December, 1885, just before the
close of Governor MArTEsoNs term of office the
latter presented for payment, to the Secretary of
the Fund Commissioner, a number of the checks
which had been issued in 1899, amounting in all.
to about thirteen thousand dollars, and received,
In lieu of them, State bonds for the same sum.
During the following year, and at various times
subsequently,, he transferred other checks of the
same ISSUE and received new bonds therefor, the
gross amount of the bonds so issued being over
two hundred and twenty-three thousand dollars.
The greater part of the checks, upon which the
State bonds were obtained it has recently been
ascerained, consisted of the checks of 1899.
which had been redeemed by the State and which
formed portion of the packages that were in the
box, when it was deposited in the Bank at Chi
cago, in 1910. Besides these, there were two
packages of checks presented by Governor MATTE
son, that had never been issued by the State at
all, and which are recognized as being part of
those that were only partially executed and filled
up, but which, not being used, were put into
the same box with the checks that had been re-
deemed and cancelled. 1t was in evidence before
the Committee, that between BAT and 1856. Cen
eral HART L. STEWART advertised freely, in the
New York and Chicago papers, his desire and
readiness to buy up all kinds of Indebtedness of
the State OF Illinois, and did actually purchase
between four and five hundred thousand dollars
of such Indebtedness, but was never offered,
during the whole OF that period, but little over
one hundred dollars of the checks of 1899. 1t
was also in evidence, that no checks of 1889 were
offered, at any time, to the Secretary of the Fund
Commissioner, except those presented by Governor
MATTEsoN. Two witnesses, however, testified that
they saw Governor MATTEsoN, while boarding at
the St Nicholas Hotel, in Springfield, purchase in
February and March, 1851 of persons unknown
TO them, considerable amount of Canal scrip, at
about seventy-fve cents on the dollar, exclusive
OF the actual interest that had accrued. Such are
the leading facts concerning this singularly bare
faced fraud. The Committee present them to the
consideration of the Senate of Illinois, but sfor-
''bear from expressing any opinion with respect
ITO the guilt or innocence of any party connected
with it," They content themselves with simply
stating 'that the checks were genuine; that they
had, most of them been once in circulation:
''were once redeemed and after being out of sight
for about sixteen years, have been again passed
upon the State, and were either paid in cash, or
new and authentic evidences of Indebtedness
were issued therefor" They significantly add
that Governor MATTEsoN ''has saved the Commit
'tee the necessity of determining MANY embar-
''rassing questions arising out of the foregoing
statement of facts by offering to indemnify the
state OF Illinois from all loss liability by rea-
' son OF moneys paid him, or bonds issued to him
ION account of said Canal checks" What can
not fail to strike the most casual reader, in the
above narrative, is first, the utter careessness OBJ
servable among the State officers of Illinois, in
the preservation of valuable papers, and next the
remarkable ignorance of the Secretary of the Fund
Commissioner, with regard to the previous re-
demphon of the Canal scrip, notwithstanding the
Reports of the Canal officers to the Legislature for
the years 1910 and 1912, stated explicitly, that
at the close of the first mentioned year, the whole
of the outstanding Canal scrip did not exceed eight
hundred and twenty-five dollars, and of that sum
only three hundred and sixteen dollars remained un-
liquidated in 1929 As Governor MATrEsoN
has offered, through his counsel, to refund the
entire amount received by him on this fraudulent
ssue on condition that he is allowed five years to
pay 1t in, we presume that the case will not be
brought before the courts at all; though we should
have supposed that if he were conscious of having
come honestly by the scrip he sold over again to
The State, he would not rest satisfied until he had
himself before judicial tribunal from
all completely with so nefarous transaction. As
The case stands at present, there are many who are
disposed to look upon him as a very great rogue,
whilst he, himself, may nave good reason for be-
eving that he is nothing more than a very unfor-
tHnate gentleman.
Will not the present Council sgnalize ITSELF by
taking some steps tending towards the creation of
1 Park? short time since we pointed ont the |