The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1872-07-29
The Way the Money Goes

| The afhdaVlC OF Mr. lEedsuloi oAnoA ~
the accompanying statement OF receipts anu
payments, submitted to Judge Willard IN the
Gibson case, throw considerable light upon
the operations OF the Treasury Department
since the first day Of last November. Mr..
Parker is unable for the reasons which he
eives, to furnish detailed account OF the
various expenditures, but the monthly re-
norris made to the Comptroller General,
which are now under examination, will clear
up many points upon which information is
desired. Turning, first Of all, to the state
,nent of receipts, as printed elsewhere, it is
seen that the total amount is Sl,ll5, GIG.
This huge sum was paid into the Treasury
in about eight months, and, OF the whole
amount ss5O,6l3 came from the taxes OF
1871, and s34, 1872 from the License tax.
The State tax for 1871 was at the rate OF Z
mills on the dollar, and was payable between
November, 1871, and January Is, 1872. A
previous tax, that OF 1870, had been collect
ed only few months earlier. Taking the
assessed value OF oil the taxable property in
the State at $50, O,OOO, 900, the State tax for
| 1871 should have produced sl,O5O,OOO. The
Treasurer reports the receipt OF $3.50, 6l3;
an that fully nine.tenths Of the tax was
promptly paid. This is sufficient answer
TO the charge that the State credit is ruined
by the failure Of the people to pay the taxes.
The amount received from the License taxis
surprisingly small, but the Land Commission
is credited with s3785, and the South Caro-
lima Phosphate and Mining Company has
paid $780, What has been done with the
money? The creditors OF the State are
clamoring for the payment OF their claims
Where are the million Of dollars which were
paid into the Treasury between November l,
1871, and July, 1872?
A striking feature in the exhibit OF d's'
bursements is the absence OF any large
charge for the payment OF interest on the
State debt. Only S3S54 were paid for inter-
est. The bloated bondholders have not ab.
sorbed q million dollars in eight months;
although they were doubtless able and anx-
ious to do So The Free Schools are charged
with sll7,671; an item to which no one
would object if there were any assurance
that the money was properly and proftably
spent. A loan for the payment OF interest
on the public debt cost S1082; about one
third as much as the amount OF interest paid.
Most OF the remaining items are fair enough,
but they do not account for the missing mil
lion. 1t is not seen where that went to, until
the charges for salaries, for the armed force,
and fer legislative expenses, are examined.
Mr.. Parker reports that sl03,5 was paid
for salaries, and S82, 1923 for the armed force.
What is this force? Where is I? Who drew
the money? Why did they draw it? This
is one of the disbursements which will bear
critical examination; although we say here
that we do not charge Mr.. Parker with any
official misconduct in connection with
these accounts Assuming that the pay
ments were authorized by law, he had nothing
to do but to keep on paying as long as any
money remained in the Treasury. The
amount paid out in the eight months for
legislative expenses is $780, 1868. Before the
war the cost of legislative session was
about $4,000. Here is q charge OF ten
times the amount, without counting in the
public printing. Nor is that all. Mr.. Par
ker says that by authority OF Joint Reso-
luton of the General Assembly, he has
issued notes for money borrowed TO pay the
pay certificates OF the members Of the Legis-
lature, and these notes amount to S399, ,3l2.
Here we have in the neighborhood OF one mil
lion dollars-the entire tax collection OF one
year-swallowed up in the pay OF members
aud attaches of the General Assembly and in
incidental expenses. Nor does this take
into account what orders on the County
Treasurers, issued by Mr.. Parker, may be in
their possession. No figuring OF which we
are capable will account for these enormous
debts. During the session OF l87l-72 there
were appropriated for legislative expenses
(including the deficiency appropriation for
the session OF ls7O-7I) only $3.50, 900.
Whence comes then The authority for an
expenditure of at least million? 1t must
be found if found anywhere, in the Joint
Resolution of March H. 1872. Again and
again has it been charged that Speaker
Moses has flooded the State with pay certif
Gates, using them as bribery fund to secure
his nomination for Governor. Judging by
what he says and what he does, there is no
limit to the number of pay certificates which |
may be issued.
These are only the most salient points of
the statements printed to-day. There is no
guess-work about it. The State Treasurer
is authority for the figures; they are the
official admissions OF a high officer Of the
government. 1t needs not to go farther
The record Of extravaganza and proagacy
exposed in the short reports Of Mr. Parker Is
enough to condemn the Radical party to
everlasting shame. Yetitis not to be doubted
that nearly every member Of the Legislature,
the body which authorized these monstrous
expenditures and is responsible for them,
will have the effrontery to come before his
constituents and ask for reelection.