National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1874-05-21
p, 1874 - ~ -

how We know that A. / can get the eertih-
cates and show them In here.
, By M. Bsss: Q. Also July IS another check
ls drawn, s16, 903l A. Certificates 2124, 2125,
2127; I win bring you all those certificates.
9. Now, the point p thls; you were drawing
days you drew out about $50 900 in cash, and
yet you say you were accustomed 10 take
vouchers for all these paymehtsi A. Every
q. Ala charged yourself up, With nose
A. Certainly.
Q.-Why is 1t, then, that It does not appear
here IN your account under the proper dates
that you did draw 80 much cash and pay II
outf AZ Il does appear In here.
O.. How do we know It doesa A. know II
does; can show It TO you.
@. That Is Ehat asked. A. Very weil;' II
YOU can give me these numbers can do II.
o. I only took these items at random. Here
Is another check book, February z, 1873, where
there is no certificate paid, but /. s. FDbert
was paid $4,000. Where do You find that in
your account A. That Is for 9 lot Of certif-
Of know, but the check BOOK does not
show Il. A. No; but the vouchers here show
O. Well, let us see If they do. (The wit
ness here examined the books.) Now, this
Is dated February 4, 1878; II you are paying
out such items as $50, 900, your voucher would
probably be entered somewhere near the date
of your payment You have now run down to
March. You will find also at about that same
date, so that you can look for the two together,
February Is, that you drew another check for
$65, 900. A. have here check dated Febru-
airy 10, 1873, for Sos 900, which purports to be
drawn to the Freedman's Savings Bank.
Q. Within o week there were sll5,000 of
checksi A. Yes, sir; to take up whole lot Of
these certificates Of different people that they
held. That Is what II was drawn for. ! can
not tell what they are. They arc all here,
Indicating the book The simple thing Is
I have received have charged here.
Q. ! understood you TO say, few moments
ago, II you drew q check, and drew so much
cash out of the bank on given day, that you
charged yourself with It on the books of your
boardl A. o, no; I did not charge myself
with the money; Of course not; the money is
already charged. am not going to charge
myself with IL twice, because the money is
already charged; but then l credit myself with
whatever pay with that money, and it is all
credited ip here.
@. That is what you sayi A. Well, can
find for you all these vouchers that are named
here without any trouble.
BY the Chairman: Q. Well, those that are
not named; how will you get at them2 A. The
account shows that-my account. II shows
that paid that much money out for certia-
Gates.
By Mr.. Bass: Q. Where does it show iti A.
Right In the account.
Q. Put your fngeron the spot that shows it?
A. cannot put my finger on the spot that
shows exactly the amount.
Q. How can we tell them A. You can ask
for these vouchers, all Of them.
The Chairman. Yes; but there are two cases
where no specific vouchers can be asked for.
A. No, there amt; the charges are all In this
book, OF money thai have received. Now, |
have credited myself with payments. The
payments balance the charges Now, the
question is, have / got the vouchers to show
for these papers; that Is the point, and the
only point, in the whole case.
BY Mr.. Bass: Q Not at all. Here are lot
of loose check-books, which you are accus-
toned to keep, indicating that on given days
you drew out Of the bank large or given snms
of money, and that you disbursed that money.
Now, ought not your cash account that you
kept in your office indicats the day that you
paid out the money, the purpose for which you
paid It, and the party 10 whom it was paidE
A. There IL the cash account right there.
@. Very well. Then l say it appears by
your check-book that you paid February z,
1873; $50, OO0l A. Yes, sir.
Q. That you drew q check. and that you
went to the bank, and that money was in all
human probability paid-to whom did you pay
that So, 0O0i A. To that bank for the certif-
Gates that they held. 1t is marked SOTO the
Freedman's Bank.
@. That check runs TO L. s. Fiiberti A.
Yes; that was paid him for certificates that be
held.
Q. Very well; lwhere Is the corresponding
entry on your book TO indicate that 1t was paid
to L. s. Filbertl A. have the certificates
down ct the office, and can bring them up here.
If you will give me that memorandum, ] will
bring you all these certificates.
@. These are only sample items. There are a
great many such; but Of course we cannot 60
through all these books to see II you have the
vouchers. A. No; but you can go through
those that you have Indicated.
O. The committee supposed that the books
would have been kept In such way that It
would have been proper for you TO have
charged on tina: day tina: item. A. Very often
when had large amounts Of money went
straight ahead, without charging q voucher,
and put the vouchers IN the safe; Cancelled
them and put them right In the safe.
Q. Take your account there In the month Of
July, 1873. On July ls you drew check Of
sec, $500 IN favor Of George r. Baker,
cashier. Now, IF you will turn to your July
account, you will ind that you have not
entered up after that date in the aggregate
any such sum of money. A. No; bu. viii
bring you those vouchers.
By Mr.. Stewart: Q. How 90 you say you
didi In the frat place you Issued certificates
for indebtednessi "A. Yes, sir; they were is
sued and out; somebody held them.
O. Then You drew money at the bank either
in favor of the bank or in favor Of the party
holding the certiacstesl A. Yes, sir.
O. And paid It out and took these certif-
ca.esl A. gave the check 70 the party who
held the certificates. r.. ~ -..lt
: Q. Took the certificates and put them In your
safe, and then charged them up subsequently,
A. Yes, sir. 10
Q. Is that the mode of doing III A. That is
the mode, Of doing It exactly. ~ ..
By Mr.. bass: @. Now, are these figures I'm
dicsting certiAcatesl made With the same Ink
and made at the same time with the other part
of the entryi A. No; because when he sent
me the certificates put in George T. Baker,
cashier.
o. You afterward put those ini A. Yes, sir;
put in the number Of the certificates. n
@. Did you know the number Of the checki
A. Yes, sir; be wrote me that he held so many
certificates and that he would send them as
soon as he got the check. think those GER
tihcates are probably Endorsed as paid at a GER
tain time.
Q. Were you accustomed to draw out sums
of money yourself to large amount and dis
burse Il and then render an annual or semi
annual voucher for III A.. No, sir.
O.. saw down there upon one accession, when
Judge Wilson and were at your Office, one
voucher Of some eighty-odd thousand dollars,
II rscollect right, running through period OF
six months, Of money disbursed by you'll A.
Oh, yes; that was for pay-rolis. / paid them.
did not get my credit until got the Certificates
for that from the auditor. Those pay-rolls
have been audited. - D..
BY Mr.. Hubbefl: Q. Are those pay-ro!ls fled
10 keep as vouchersi A.Yes, sir; they are
kept as vouchers up In the auditors Office. It
Is his voucher for issuing that Certificate
By the Chairman: Q. Do you know every
night how much monsY you have in banki A.
No, sir, not every night.
Q. Did you not know every day how much
money was'in the treasury of tho Board Of
Public Works. A. No; knew about. l kept
an idea Of Il. ~ 7--7- --e-
By Mr.. Bass: @. I ind by these check-books
that on December 81 you drew one check to
yourseiffor t10, LET 80; on December so smother
one for 5000: January Il, another for o., 200,
making t20, 900. Those were drawn 70 your
self, and you drew the, money to disburse in
this wsyi A. Yes, sir; to pay OF laboters,
clerks, &c.
BY Mr.. Wilson: @. Mr Bass and myself
have looked at these check books with some
particularly In connection with your report,
aud we find there are very rare instances In
which the check books corresuond With the