Clarksville chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 186?-1872, 1870-06-04
ASTOUNDING DEVELOPMENTS,

ASTOUNDING DEVELOPMENTS
kepers sf the school Fund Fraud
Committee.
Radical Rule in Tennessee and Cor
ruption synonymous Terms.
MIR. SPEAKER: The Special Com
mittee, raised by Senate Joint Reso.
luton No. Z, adopted Nov. II, 1869,
and subsequently authorized by an
act passed Feb. %, 1870, to prosecute,
during the recess of the General AS
|sembly, the alleged frauds connected
with the School Fund of the State of
Tennessee, having done to the best of
their ability all the duties imposed
upon them, the said Committee de-
sire to submit this their report to the
General Assembly. The Committee
were under the impression that to
systematically prosecute the investi-
cation of the sO-called School Fund
IL would be necessary to follow the
Bank of Tennessee from the time it
left the State In 1868 until the same
was returned in 1865, as this bank
was the custodian Of the fund gener-
ally known as the School Fund, and
which was said to constitute or make
up the specie assets of the bank. II
was the custom of the bank to render
from time to time statements of the
condition Of the affairs of the bank
and its branches. From one of these
statements, the last that was render
ed, and published at Chattanooga in
1868, we find that the specie assets Of
the bank consisted of 1888, 752.65, gold
and silver. This was regarded as the
School Fund and was put up in kegs
and boxes, and sealed. From the
disposition of II. L. Claibourne, who
was for a number of years principal
book-keeper of the Bank of Tennes-
see, we learn that there were no sour
ces of diminution, except the salaries
Of the officers of the bank from the
time of the statement referred to
above, until the bank was turned over
to Gen. Upton and brought to Nash
vile. Pursuing the investigation,
the committee learn further from the
deposition of the said Claibourne,
that when the assets of the bank
were deposited in the vault of the
different banks i'm the city of Angus
Ia, Ga, one keg containing about
$50, 600 was not deposited along with
the other boxes and kegs, from the
fact that the vaults would not admit
of IL, and was under the direction OF
Mr.. Fisher, the Cashier of the Bank
of Tennessee, carried to the counting
room of a firm doing business in Au.
gusta, Ga. Some time after this, the
witness Claibourne says he saw Mr.
Fisher removing some bags of gold
from the counting.room of the firm
referred to, and that he supposed the
bags to contain gold taken from the
keg spoken of, and were being re-
moved to q place of greater safety
and that he heard nothing more from
this keg or bags taken from 1t, as he
supposed. From the deposition Ol
of Mr.. l.. G.. Stewart, we learn that
he occupied room with Maj. JOSEPH,
Vaulx and John A. Fisher, at Au.
gusta, Ga, and that part Of the
assets were deposited I'm this room,
among which was one keg, marked
$50, 900, and contained gold; and he
was informed by Messrs. Fisher and
Claibourne that $50, 900 was what the
keg contained. In 1855, March OF
April, Mr.. Stewart left Augusta, and
upon returning, the keg marked as
above was gone, where he does not
know, but gave the committee infer
ences and Impressions that go mate
rally to substantiate the testimony
of Richard Mccain, who informs the
committee that he was in Augusta,
Ga, Just before the surrender OF Gen.
Lees army i'm 1855, and stopped in
the same room with Mr.. Fisher a
short time before the assets were seiz-
ed by the United States authorities.
Mr.. McCann slept with Mr.. Fisher,
the Cashier, and In conversation with
him he said that "the thing" was
about gone up, (referring to the rebel
lion,) and for fear of there being a
capture Of the bank and its officers,
he would provide against any such
contingency, and would remove n
certain keg of gold, said to contain
$50, 900, in order to have something
to go on, IA he said. The witness
heard Mr.. Fisher tell one Riva, an
Italian, to take the keg out to his
house, q short distance from the city
of Augusta. The keg was according
ly moved that night, and the witness
knows nothing further with reference
to its final destination, and Mr.. Fish
er made no inquiry as to the where
abouts of the keg next morning. Mr..
McCann further states that he is con-
fident that this keg was not turned
over to Gen. Upton or any OF the
! United States authorities. This Riva
referred to is, according to the best
information, now in Italy, having
Immediately after the surrender, gone
to New York and from thence to It.
ally, as il supposed. From impress
ions derived from various sources and
the inferences and circumstantial ev-
idence afforded the committee by the
various witnesses, they cannot exon
crate Mr.. Fisher from any criminal
connection with the actual appropri-
alton of any of this money referred
to, though his after life from the time
of the surrender, was one character
lied by poverty rather than riches ;
but the committee cannot come to
any other conclusion than that
through Riva and said Fisher, the
State has ultimately become loser to
the amount of $4,000 in gold
Whether any action should be taken
in this case Is for the Legislature OF
the State to say; but the committee
are of the opinion that, considering
all things, il would he wisest to allow
this to go into that general account
Of losses and degradation that has SO
long burdened the State. The Com
mittce were led, from the voluntary
statement of witnesses, to prosecute
an incidental issue with reference IL
some wagons and mules belonging ia
tho DnnE Of frannnaann nnn hrnnUht