National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1874-05-01
the Ian oF1zYs. 1s7s.
THE OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES

Ah6 oAN BUM G0NTRACTS.
fothe Bdftor Of TIE EafsozaI Rspu5ffeaa. fs4-
| sm; Relying upon your aispositiou q do ,ustis
70 AL, request you to publish In your yaluabi
Journal the following: We have heard much with
IN the last few weeks about the Ssnborn frsuds
as they are called, and the dsmands Of tina nras
for the repeal Of the law and the snnuIlinr 81 IN
contracts have been 90 extensive that many rood
people believe Mr.. Sanborn and many Govern
msnt oficials have been guilty Of something
ensured, II not Imprisoned. Little has been al;
on the other side. The disposition 10 learn tn
real fscts and TO make them known has not BY -,
IL win appear plainly that the law 10 . good one
and that Mr. Sauborn and all those who have 90
operated with him, including the 0cvernmen
oihcials here and elsewhere, instead Of dessryinI
censure and abuse merit the appreciation Of IN
What are the fscts. Certain good men discov
the large capitalists, eststes and corporations
were defraudlng the Government BY eonceallnl
their real condition and falling 70 pay the tsxe
who were able to pay frsudulentiy evaded pay
rnent TIL the sum amounted 70 many millions o.
dollars. and the money 70 support the Govern
had to be collected and was collected principally
from the laboring classes, the poor, the indus
trious and the honest.
frauds was procured, 50 as to show the parties
limitation might have, IN their eases, banned
PEELED 70 pay their debts to the Government By
civil SUITS, such suits beng never banned.
The- therefore, at their own expense, and with
but owing to the defects Of the Internal revenue
laws, OF which We shall hereafter speak, they
isoored IN vain 70 get the cases properly looked
they wished was for the parties owing the money
to pay directly into the treasury what was due,
that they might receive, q. reward for time and
In the year 1s72, however, Congress repealed
all laws allowing moieties In such case and the
prospect was these rich men, capitalists and cor
porations would forever 60 free OF paying these
Just claims the Government had against them,
unless the men who had possession Of the evil
dence made present Of Il TO the Government,
were not disposed to do.
On the sth Of May, 1sf2, after the moieties were
abolished, Congress authorised the Secretary OF
the Treasury 20 contract with not more than three
persons to collect claims OF this description or to
aid the officers Of the Government In so doing, by
furnishing them with the Information and EVIL
denee which they did not possess.
Tho law provided that the claims should all be
specified and sworn to.
to pay the parties thus eontracted with any por.
ton he deemed proper Of the amount collected
without cost to the United States. The passage
spent their time and money In Investigating and
proving up these claims, but they did not hstter
themselves that they were sufficiently acquainted
the three who would DO contracted with.
When Mr.. Sanborn was about to obtain his con-
tract these men, having some knowledge Of him,
with him in relation thereto, and the claims were
put into his contract. ~ ht
The claims were not assessed, nor were they
ternsi revenue. The claims ali com binsd amount
to very large sum, and they are due from those
who are able TO pay and should be made to dose.
over 600, 900, and had not the law and the CON
tract been so Violently attacked as much as a 0oe
900 might have been collected by this time, and
than Il Is now When the @ to u rURs.
stand this matter, as they surely Will, they will
naturally inquire why the law should be re-
ESQ 900 or $50 900 900 could BE- added
TO the Treasury which otherwise would be lost.
1t Is scarcely to be supposed that the opposition
that the money Is to be collected from the rich
only. who have wishheld Il from the Government
In the days OF her greatest need.
1t cannot be charged that Mr.. Sanborn has col
lected money from any who did not owe It; that
ne has not paid into the Treasury every dollar
which he did collect; that vast amounts are yet
does not need the money. II Congress repeais
the law and annuls the contract this money will
never be collected. The question comes to this:
be relieved from paying these just debts, and the
good their dehcieneiesf
DisBui1o ~ - We may Lnls u the question, anu
the people win see Il and appreciate IT. But 1t
will be said We are not opposed to the collection
Of these claims, but We wish them collected In
revenue, under he orders Of the commissioner.
Our answer to this is that the claims on the list
Of Mr.. Sanborn are from two to ten years old.
The internal revenue officers have had IN abun-
dance Of time, but they have not collected them
or any OF them, nor have they made any efforts In
that direction. This Is the past history Of these
claims. Repeal the law and annul the contracts,
And tlelr hfaf0rg W a
that Of necessity. The present internal revenue
collectors are generally honest and capable. but
Incapaoity OF the assessors and collectors Of the
past these claims would not exist, and. 50 far rs
as they are concerned, there would have been no
born contracts. The most Of these Claims arose
under the Administration Of President johnson,
and the present internal revenue officers are not
for them.
We assign the following reasons why the col
lcct6rs Of Internal revenue now and for some time
in office have not collected, and cannot collect
these claims:
l. The present Commissioner of Internal Reve-
nue. and the present collectors know nothing
about them, except what they have learned from
stated, not on the books Of any collector nor arc
they upon those Of the Commissioner of Internal
They are not In possession Of the evil
fence to establish these claims.
They cannot and could not collect them without
his.
2 The internal revenue laws do not make 1t
ne onty Oh coiiectors OF internal revenue 70 look
rauds Of their predecessors. They can do 1t only
,y neglecting their daily duties as Government
ulcers. The business to which they are assigned
md for which they are paid, is 70 collect the
monthly and yearly taxes as they become due,
md to see that no mistakes or frauds are commit
cd by them or their subordinates while they are
n office. They have no time to devote to anything
Use, and are not paid for so doing.
Q. The proving up of frauds of long standing are
aborious aud expensive operations. The Govern
nent furnishes collectors Of internal revenue no
money to devote TO such work. They cannot le-
rally spend a dollar Of Government money for
'wn risk Of becoming defaulters: They are COM