The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-02-25
A RBLIQ.
The Draft.book Of Confederate secre-
tary.

From, the San Francisco Bulletin, Jan. %.
A gentleman has handed us for inspection the
"etub" of q draft book used by the secretary OF
the Confederacy, aud which shows, in brief, the
larger part of the original transactions during
the existence OF the Rebel power. 1t was found
after the fall of Richmond, and is preserved as
a curious relic OF the past.
The first entry Is dated 29th OF May, 1861, and
is for the modest sum OF $4,000 on the Canal
Bank OF New Orleans. The next is dated June
Z, 1861, and is a draft for $50 600 on the Louis
lana State Bank, payable to the order Oh a; ..
CARROT, Assistant Treasurer. BY this time the
financial system has been fully brought into
operation. These drafts extend over period
from the date above mentioned, to August, 1864;
the last regular draft having been drawn on the
third of that month. There is memorandum
of draft drawn as late as October 3, 1864. This
draft is drawn payable to the order OF M. j.
Hall, Dep, at Marshall, Texas. 1t is addressed
to +. g. ElmoTe, Jr., Richmond, Va, and Is
supposed to have been drawn tor post Off
purposes. A note in the same handwriting reads
as tollows;-"Authority endorsed on the draft
TO pay r. A. Matthews to effect the transfer
under contract of Matthews and Ewell with the
Treasury Department. but at the risk and ex-
pense of the Post Office Department"
Without footing up all the marginal sums, we
should judge that two hundred millions were
represented in this book. Many OF the drafts
are as large as one million, and some even reach
the amount of ten millions. There are many
small drafts for coin, but these rarely exceed
$40 900, and most of them were under $1,000.
AS a specimen Of Confederate bookkeeping, we
should not raak this account book very high.
The original entries are frequently detaced aud
written over WSth new endorsement go that
it is not easy to make out the exact character OF
the original transaction. In some places there
are memoranda showing either that the draft
had been sold for gold, or that 1t had been
drawn, payable in that way. Such drafts are
usually drawn on depositaries in localities
where there was Rebel custom house, and
where blockade-runners had paid duties in
gold. Nearly all the specie mentioned in these
drafts appears to have been derived from these
sources. The right arm of the Coniederacy was
the block ade-runners.
In the later days OF the Contederacy, Frazer,
Trenholm Co. figure as bankers and deposi-
taries at Liverpool. Most of the late drafts on
this house are for small amounts payable IN
gold, and appear to have been used to pay diplo-
matte salaries. The latest of these we're drawn
| in August, 1864, when 1t was all up with the
| Confederacy. 1t is not little significant that
| when 1t was evident that the cause was lost
there was a desperate raid upon this draft bauk.
drawn for Sc, 000, 900 on W. Y. Leach, Assistant
| Treasurer of Columbia, s. c., payable to the
| order of e. @. Elmore, Confederate Treasurer,
although there is nothing to indicate where
| that official might be found at that particular
| time.
On draft No. 23t, drawn by the Confederate
| Treasurer for $l09, 600 on John Boston, Deputy
| at Savan ah, Ga is the indorsement:-"Paya.
! BILE in bonds secured on sequestration account"
| This sort OF paper no doubt commanded pre-
MUM. The security was the Condscated pro-
perty of Northern men who, refusing to be
Rebels, were forced TO leave the country.
Frazer, Trenholm Co., Liverpool, figure in
| the drait-book as early as December 20, 1861.
! In one place they are designated rs Hon. Dep
If those inanciers didn't make any money out
| of the Rebel concern, let them not forget the
honor of having figured so largely in this con
nection. They did their best, no doubt; and il
they are stuck with pile OF Confederate notes
and bonds, the paper mills OF England can
readily convert them into tolerable paper stock
again.
Some OF the sums expressed in these drafts
were no doubt used to pay for the Confederate
cruiser Alabama. Laird does not figure by
name in this book, all the financial transaction:
abroad being covered by the name OF Frazer
Trenholm & Co.. who, first and last. paid ou
several millions. One draft payable to the
order of this firm, dated September IL, 1852, i;
for $50, 900 francs; another, December 16, of the
same year and payable to the same order, was
to pay French account against the Confede
racy, probably for supplies, or for an outfit o
one or more Rebel cruisers.
The book from which we have drawn the
foregoing data is O curiosity In It's way, and leu
in a gleam of light here AMI there, upen tht
| history of those eyentful times