The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-11-19
SPIRIT or rzn PRESS.
Editorial Opinions Of the Lending Journals
Upon Current TOpics-OOmpiIed Every
Day for the Evening Telegraph.
THE DRAWBACK FRAUDS.
From the N. y. World.


disproportioned to the intrinsic public i'm
portance of such developments. There has
been an attempt to throw a sensational flavor
over the recent discoveries by elaborate de-
scriptions of the formalties necessary to OBJ
tain money from the Government, as allow
ance or drawback on articles on which an in
ternal tax has been paid, when the articles are
subsequently exported to foreign country,
and not consumed within the limits of the
United States The whole subject is clearly
treated in the section of the Internal Reve-
nue. law of July 1, 1862, which permits pay
ment of money out of the Treasury Depart
ment for such purposes To one who reads
or has read this law, there is no need of any
application. II is in these words-
"And be it further enacted That from and after
the date which this act takes effect there shall be
an allowance or drawback on all articles on which
any internal duty or tax shall have been paid
equal in amount to the duty tax paid thereon,
and no more, when exported; the evidence that any
such duty or tax has been paid to be furnished to
the satisfaction of the Commissioner of Internal
Revenue by such person or persons as shall claim
the allowance or drawback, and the amount to be
ascertaned under such regulations as shall from
time to time be prescribed by the Commissioner Of
Internal Revenue, under the direction Of the Secre
tary of the Treasury, and the same shall be paid by
the warrant of the Secretary OF the Treasury on the
Treasurer of the United States, out OF any money
arising from internal duties not otherwise appro-
priated."
1t will be seen that the Commissioner of
Internal Revenue is made by the law the re-
sponsible officer in the execution of this sec
ton. On his decision the Secretary of the
Treasury is required to draw the warrant.
When, many months ago, the character of the
frauds was discovered by information given,
as was said, to the District Attorney of the
United States in Brooklyn, and prosecutions
against the parties implicated were thereupon
commenced, the public was fully informed as
to the regulations prescribed by Commits
sioner Rollins, under the direction of the
Saarafaru Of "a and o1cO fha
Cb5neTy by which money was illegally OBJ
tanned 1t was thoroughly understood then
that, In order to obtain money as and for
dra 4backs, the Government must be satisfied
first, that on specific merchandise certain
amount of money had been paid to
the Internal Revenue official as a tax;
secondly, that the identical merchan-
disc, in the condition in which it was when
the tax was paid, had been exported to
aforeign country and actually landed therein.
Upon proof on these two points, Congress had
authorized the Executive to return the money
to the person paying the tax. 1t was then
understood by the public, and we assume by
Government officials also, that inasmuch as
the merchandise, if regularly exported must
have gone through a custom-house of the
United States and been made to appear in
the manifest of the ship or vessel transporting
the same, the collector of the port of expor-
tation would be the proper person to prove
the fact of expectation, as the Treasury regu-
lation said he should be. When, therefore,
many months ago, District Attorney Tracy
examined into these frauds, he must have come
to a perception of the fact that, if a custom
house officer had certified to the Commissioner
of Internal Revenue that on the proper mani
tests it appeared that certain merchandise had
been exported on certain date and by
tain vessel, and the truth was that the mani
fest of the vessel referred to contained no
,o1, hat fhara axrocT M r,oon ~,
file of any such vessel, then there must be
something wrong about the Custom House
official who had made such certificate. 1t ap-
pears now, by the evidence before Commits
sioner Osborn, that the initials of Chief Clerk
Blatchford, then chief clerk in the Custom
House and promoted by Collector Grinnell to
be deputy collector, were on all or a great
part of the fraudulent certificates; that the
deputy collector gave his signature to the GER
tificate as a matter of course, relying upon the
fidelity of his chief clerk, who represented
that he had made the needed examination and
found the facts as he stated them to be.
Now, if this be so, did the officers of the
Government, including Mr.. Tracy, stop at
this point which implicated Mr.. Blatchford !?
Did they make inquiry as to whether his
initials were forged? Did any person at that
time require him to report how it happened
that he had given his initials to statements in
regard to the contents of manifests which he
said were on the file of the Custom House,
which, upon examination, turned out to be
utterly false? If this was not done while the
matters were under examination by Govern
ment officials, many months ago, it is i'm
portant for the public to be informed of
the reason. We do nat fail to remember that
District Attorney Pierrepont, who, so far as
it appears, up to that time had sno personal
or official knowledge of these drawback trans
actions, was told by Korn, person
already implicated, of the alleged completely
of Mr.. Blatchford That is all well enough,
so far as concerns District Attorney Pierre
pont and the public have reason to COM
mend that officer for the fidelity with which
he seems to have followed up the matter
after it came to his attention, although we dc
not quite understand why it took the Trea-
sury Department sig q1eeks after Korn gave
the information to satisfy itself whether
Deputy Collector Blatchford was or was not
conspirator with the parties already impli-
Gated by District Attorney Tracy
In a word the only aeD development in
these drawback frauds, beyond what was dis
closed many months ago to the public by tn,
District Court in Brooklyn, seems to be thu
imputed guilt of Mr. Blatchford. Here agaiI
there is something quite inexplicable in tn
conduct of Secretary Boutwell,, who permit
Mr.. Blatchford, so far as the public is aware
to still retain the commission of deputy col
lector of the customs revenue 1t is useles
for the Treasury Department to pretend tina
there can be any such mystery as requires s.
long time to ascertain whether or not Nj
Blatchford is guilty. Six weeks have elapse
since their attention was brought to that off
Ger by Korn. If Blatchford is not guilty