East Saginaw courier. (East Saginaw, Mich.) 1859-18??, 1860-02-23


corrected it.; aud in the second place, II
personal application TO the Land Oihee
was necessary, the State had two Senators
and four Representatives in Washington,
either of whom, as was his duty, would
have willingly made that application ON
behalf of the State, But no personal
application was necessary, and the eXpen-
dture by Messrs. BINGHAM and TREAD
WELL was on the score of their own
pleasure travel.
But these were not the only members
of the administration who invented absurd
pretexts for making the State pay the
expenses of their pleasure excursions,
we having already exposed some of those
of the State Treasurer Here Is still
another case Of the same sort, for which
see report of Auditors for 1859, page o
Whitney Jones, expenes to Bostc9alnd
New York on business of State a. 's,F', % =
to swamp hHid sales e ----------Soo "
Comment is unnecessary.
Elsewhere is the same report (page 81
we find that when Mr.. TGGADwELL went
to Washington to obtdn swamp land
patent Mr.. HOLMES accompanied him
for another pretendch purpose
S. NJ. Holmes expenses going to
Washington to pay Pontiac Railroad
bonds. held by United States 1892 90
These binds were, by their terms,
PAYABLE il New York, where the United
States 6ere bound to present them. But
al td>. same time that Mr.. HOLMES charged
tho State S92 80 for "expenses to Wash
I ng to pay Pontiac Railroad bonds" he
charged it as follows, as appears by the
report, same page:
5. NJ. Holmes, expenses to New York
to pay bonds, 500 w
That's the way the money goes. That
is one of the ways in which the treasury
has been plundered. To be sure, the
stealing in these cases does not rise much
above the dignity Of petty larceny, but
! it discoses that when the State officers
have not been able to make large grabs
they have contented themselves with
small ones. Altogether, they have COM
plctcly cleaned the treasury out. 1t is
bankrupt. 1t cannot pay the counties
the amount due TO them; it cannot pay
the appropriations by the last Legislature
to the asylums; it will have to shin to
meet the State Indebtedness due in July.
1t is hard ground. Contrast this con-
dtion with the condition of it when the
democrats surrendered power in 1855, as
described by Gov. BINGHAM in his inaugu-
raj address
"The State is perfectly free from en-
barrassment in linarcial condition, and II
is believed that, by the practice Of a
proper system of economy, no resort to
direct taxation will be required to meet
the ordinary expenses of the government.
And by State Treasurer HOLMES in
his first annual report;
"With the means arising from the in
terest on the public funds, from the spe
cifc taxes upon railroads, mining anc
manufacturing companies, from the pro
cceds Of the primary school, swamp anc
other lands, the State may safely rely
upon fund sufficient to meet promptly
the interest and the principal of the STATE
debt at maturity, and at the same time
find herself possessed with ample mean
to carry out the liberal plans already laiC
for promoting and fostering popular
education, and completing and putting II
successful operation our several Stat
institutions"
And by Auditor General JONES in hi
first annual report;
"rhe large surplus in the treasury
with the increase from specific taxes anc
the sales of State lands, it is believed
will be found sufficient to dclray the ordi
nary expenses of the government, am
promptly pay the interest Of the publ
debt, and so much of the principal a
natures previous to 1860"
The reader is familiar with the subsc
quent fact: Taxation has been immensel
increased; two hundred and sixteen thou
sand dollars of the State bonds have bee
renewed loan of fifty thousand dollar
has been contracted for ordinary eXpen
, ditures the indebtedness to the trus
funds has been increased more than hal
a million; the bonds due on the 1st q
t January of this year have not all bee
c paid.
If the people are satisfied with tn
course of things they will continue th
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