Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1863-01-31

by His ExceIIencv, nor had IL been paid when
tie call for the report vas made. aud was not
paid until the 2Ist Of January. AZ the Treas
urer's report. filed N the AUDITOR oikce. viii
show.
The manuscript report 6iel by the Governors
dated the LIT day vf January. 1863. ~ il the re
port had been prepared at that time. and the date
OF refunding the money, January 3 a shown by
the Printers report In the manuscript. i a with
a drawn through the center. 30 rs TO make u J.,
10 correspond with the date Of thereport.
4 That this may be fully appreciated. it must be
4 remembered that the Governors message return
ing the report i dated the Doth inst. the day be
fore the money was actually paid into the State
Treasury.
The Governor ia his message accompanying
his detailed statement, states that on June 1861
in answer 10 a resolution Of the Senate iuquirng
what disbursements he had made from the Mill
tary Contingent Fund. reported he bad examined
and passed vouchers TO the amount Of 1888. III 7s
from which il would appear that the Fund was
exhausted That this report was made from his
own. and not from the Auditors. books. and that
he was some time after informed by the Auditor
that this was a mistake, that said cum had been
by the Auditor charged TO the Military and other
proper funds, and was not therefore proper
charge to the Contingent Fund
To appreciate this remarkable error few
facts must be remembered: On May 6, 1861. the
Legislature appropriated one hundred thousand
ILL ~ n
May 81 one million dollars was appropriated for
military purposes. and an Auditing Committee
appointed to examine and audit all claims against
the Military Fund.- and the payment of any claim
is expressly prohibited until it has been approved
by the Auditing Committee.
The Governor. June 1 1861. had drawn
from the treasury over 1888, 900 He supposed it
had been paid from the Contingent Fund. for
that was the only Fund he could draw upon at
pleasure, and he very naturally concluded it was
exhausted, because he had drawn $33l7 70
more than Appropriated for that purpose. and
he had taken that sum from the treasury without
any authority whatever.
He is. however, one pleasant day informed 10y
Mr.. LANCE that he is entirely mistaken; that
instead of drawing this sum from the Contingent
Fund il had been drawn from the Military Fund.
and that il had by the Auditor been charged the
Military Fund S'raightway the Governor opens
his eyes with astonishment and Ends himself
hundred thousand dollars better of than he sup
posed.
Amable Mr.. LANCE. innocent and unsophist-
Gated Governor The Military Fund was not
appropriated until the 3lst of May, 1861. and the
Governor reports on the LIST day of June
1861, that he has drawn Sl33I77 10, and yet
Mr. LANCE had been all this time paying the
Governors warrants out of and charging up the
loss to fund that did not exist. and for which no
appropriation had been made; and all this the
Governor does not discover until a short time
after the military appropriation had been made.
The Governor draws upon the only fund at his
disposal. over draws and exhausrs it, The Legis
lature then creates Military Fund. to be drawn
upon under the supervision of committee, when
with presto and gentle twist of the wrist, it is
all charged up to the Military Fund, without pass
Governor still has the whole of the Contingent
Fund ut his absolute disposal.
The oh ect of this is manifest: it to place
at the absolute. uncontrolled disposal of the Gov
ernor S233,l77 7S, instead of the 800 900 APP
propriated by the Legislature. A food of light
is let in upon the transaction by the fact that the
State officers refused to permit the Auditing
Committee to perform its duties, shut the doors Of
their Offices in their faces. and only yielded to
the peremptory mandate of the Courts.
All this may be honest. but to plain people it
has not an honest. straightforward look.
We suggest these facts for the consideration of
the people and their representatives Let the
whted sepuchre surrounding the State admins
trfon be thrown open that its internal rottenness
may be discovered.
Governor Sew ma our and GEN. Wool.