The Portland daily press., 1874-02-18
The SanbOrn Contracts,

We are now promised the fullest revela-
tions in few days respecting the Sanbcrn
contracts which have occasloned so general
comment the past few weeks and which Gen.
B. F. Butler for once seems so solcltous
about. 1t is said that dozen or so of Con-
gressmen and sundry other excellent people
will be made uncomfortable by the showing
of the whole case. We suppose it is general.
ly understood that there is large number o.
our fellow citizens who have not that degree OF
practical patriotism which will lead them to
pay their internal revenue taxes. II it got to
be generally known that large numbers of
people did not pay their taxes or avoided the
law, in time. the rule would be not to pay the
taxes imposed, so the Treasury Department
felt that extraordinary efforts should be made
to avoid evasion and that it would be justified
in making such efforts.
The law providing for these Sanborn con.
tracts was the work of Senator Sawyer of
South Carolina, now Assistant Secretary of
the Treasury, and as put into the general
appropriation bill of 1872. This amendment
authorized the Secretary OF the Treasury:
''To employ not more than three persons to
assist the proper officers OF the government in
discovering and collecting any money belong
ing to the United States, whenever the same
shall be withheld py any person CT corporation,
upon such terms and conditions as he shall
deem best for the interests of the United States.
But no compensation shall be paid to such per.
sons, except out of the money and property so
secured, and no person shall be employed under
the provisions of this clause who shall not
have fully set forth in written statement, un-
der oath, addressed to the Secretary of the
Treasury, the character of the claim out Of
which he proposes to recov sr or assist in recov-
ering, moneys for the United States, the laws
by the violation of which the same have been
withheld. and the name of the person, firm OF
corporation having thus withheld moneys"
It was at first stricken out, but under the
management of Butler it got back into the
bill and passed. Another law, enacted at the
same session, abolished the moiety system
under which informers had been operating
aad placed the sum Of $3.50 900 at the dispos-
al Of the Secretary of the Treasury, to be
used in ferreting out violations and evasions
Of the Internal Revenue laws. A large num-
Der of detectives who had operated under the
former system were thrown out of work, and
these detectives made arrangements with the
new contractors, three in number namely
VIM. 81. Kelsey, a former member of Con-
gress, Malcomb Campbell of Philadelphia,
and John D. Sanborn of Boston. The first
contract was made by Secretary Boutwell,,
On the part of the Government, and the other
two by Mr.. Richardson. The contract with
Kelsey was for the recovery of 100000
claimed to be due for internal revenue taxes.
The agreement was to pay Kelsey fifty per
cent. of the gross sum collected, the balance
to 60 to the treasury. Kelsey threw up the
contract when il was renewed with Campbell.
The first contract with Sanborn was for the
collection of half a million dollars claimed by
him to be due upon sprituous and fermented
liquors. He was to receive one-half of the
gross sum collected and all costs and expen-
ses of collection. A rich harvest was reaped
BY Sanborn on the contracts, said to be
$650,OO0. of which he got about one-half.
This makes it interesting 10 know who Mr..
Sanborn is, and here is sketch of him and
his connection with some of his transactions
as given in the Boston Advertiser:
he was the managing partner in the store of
G: c. Poole & Co., maintained at the junction
of the Aibeosnr3es sz3 Chcsa pcako cana7 -wfCn
Albemarle Sound when Butler was in COM
mand OF the Department of Virginia and
North Carolina, one of a number of trading
stations near the enemy's lines managed by
Buffers confidential friends, and suspected of
answering the double purpose of ministering to |
the necessities OF the enemy and tho avarice of |
the commanding officer. Whoever would re
fresh his memory touching these matters is re-
ferred to the report of the committee on the
conduct OF the war, or to speech delivered at
Salem by General George H. Gordon, printed |
iD the Daily Advertiser, October II, 1868. Of |
most thoroughly loyal man to master that ev-
,r tool was to a tyrant. Was any man suspect
ed of disloyalty to Butler within his depart
meut, the detective, Sanborn, was put upon his
track. Was any man to be libeled and black
ened and DETAINED to crafty Butler, Sanborn
collected the fou. afidavIts. Sometimes calling
himself the Provort Marshal of Buffers de-
? artment, to which Office he was assigned in
general orders by Butler, though without any
sometimes calling himself an
agent of Adams Express, and using the print
ed letter heads of that company, the better to
cover mp bis purpose, this active member of the
Butler Hildreth ring lent himself with untir-
ing energy to the qualification of Buffers Gu
pidity or his revenge"
Mr.. Sanborn and his friends went along
until some crooked operations of
his in Brooklyn attracted the attention of
the United States Attorney in that city aud
1t is very probable that his affair will undergo
a pretty thorough overhauling. That some
means of locking after these who would
swindle the Treasury, is necessary, no one
will deny, but it is deplorable that the De-
partment has been led to make contracts
with such disreputable spectators as some of
those above mentioned