New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1874-03-28

II N.H
ment 70 make colectons and to deprive tho regular
| officers appointed by law from doing IT. A. 1 do.
O That Is your construction Of that law res sir
will state this In general terms In reference 10 ~; "
was in making those contracts 70 impose
the greatest burdens upon contractors that We "eh
could do under law and provided In the contract
10 that effect in every possible way providing that all
the expenses should borne by the parties contracting
as the act oontemplates and inasnch as In my opinion
this act by it's language makes these nen officers OF tho
Government -lrE.. .t.
O. How does IL make thom officers OF tho Govern
ment-what language docs that A. shall have power
to employ than three persons to assist the
proper officers Of the Government In discoverng &e'
and. no person shall be employed under tho pro-
visions of this act &o." there Is language implying
employment. ......| .
O You construe that as making tbem officers Of the
Government A. 1 think that In certain sense they
O. Explain In what they arei A. Why, TO carry
out their contract that they might make with tho Score
tary OF the Treasury.
O. Did you olaiu any right to make contracts except
in accordance with this lawi A. No. Sir
@. Do you think your contract made 10 accord
anee with the lswa A. l do. .ls .r.
go. Aud do you think that In this case where Apo
names were given by Mr. Sanborn with merely the gen
eral statement that those owed the Government
general sum. that the law complied with A.
think it was. .... ..I.I..
O. Your construction is that he had right to bring I'D
drag OF 1900 1000 people, and you would give
him general contract for them all-such a. ne couio
catcht A. Well. having once established tho general
principle Of these contracts at all as we did Id mr he
seys case, held thoro no reason for except
ing these cases. .......
O. Had you any reason to believe when Mr.. Sanborn
got these contracts from you that he knew OF the
owing by each OF the named In the list
that he had then made any examination as to the
txxtaxwx 49, IoI No. raaf
deal OF information In regard to those claims; now
minute that information did not know; every per
son applying contract claimed that he had nforma-
ton and that he had already been 70 great expense In
obtaining 1t.
TIE INTERNAL REVENUE BUREAU NOT CONSULTED
r IN TIKI CONTRACT CASES.
O. Were fhere any means taken by the Secretary OF
the Treasury or the Assistant Secretary or yourself 10
ascertain from the Collectors the regular Internal
officers Of the Government what the scts were
In these cases. or the attention of those officers called
to the matter in any way before you made this con-
tracti A. Not that am aware Of
O. Nobody connected with the Internal Revenue Bu-
reau was consulted that you know off A Not that am
aware Of ..t
O. Isit not the fact that all suits have to be brought
under an order from the Commissioner OF Internal Reve-
ma and with his sanction before the take cog
nizsnce OF themi A. think there Is provision OF
that sort, and yet
O. Ana yet in these matters lie was consulted
A. Not that know OF.
Q. Nor any OF the officers acting under bimi a. Not
that knowof. ..
understand you to say also sthat you are not very
familiar with Internal Revenue matters A. Ihave said
so.
O see you have given letters both to Mr.. Bliss and
Mr. McMchael, In New-York and Philadelphia, in which
you tell them "t proper that notice should be given
to the Collectors not to receive payment in cases en-
braced Mr. SanbOrn's contract being understood
that his contract relates to claims that not of record
in any Of the Collectors Offices" Tell us by what
authority law you directed the Ds'rctAttorneys to
give notice to the Collectors not TO payment in
those cases A. do not know that there Is any pro-
yison OF law that relates 10 tho case specifically
way or the other.
WHY COLLECTORS WERE NOT ALLOWED TO RECEIVE
PAYMENTS.
@ What induced you to assume that authority A.
There reason for it, and simply one, and that
was that the Department might be saved the trouble
and annoyance contests in reference to what matters
Mr. sanborn light have been instrumental in collecting,
and what not deemed advisable that whatever Mr.
sanborn or any other collected should come to
the Department under his own hand and through his
own agency that there should be question before the
Department to whether he had collected 1t or
whether else had collected it; now,
will say further that point that, according
TO my opinion, IL any debt that Mr. SanborD or
any other Collector has collected had been matter
record any OF the internal Revenue Offices it was
the duty OF the Collectors to have collected it, and
assume that they would have collected it through the
regular channels o would have notified the Commits
sioner that such matters OF record there
that when cropping in the dark, endeavorng TO
get the best mode o: administering this contract law
did not contemplate that IL the regular Internal
Revenue officers OF the Government did their duty there
could the least difficulty in the matter. We assumed
tho ~ HAY MI of
collect them or would notify to the Department.
O. II that your assumption why did you mover
send the this man. presented to you
Collectors and Assessors Of counties where he
proposed to collect TO whether the debts were due
or not instead Of keeping from themi Was not
that the way to do 1t, and why didn't You do hati A.
supposed that these matters wonld be collected
through the Attorneys. and for that these
requests were made.
O. Don't you know that the District Attorney is not
collector OF this Government A. consider that he Is
collector Of this Government when he is asked to col
debt under 1his contract or In any other way Tor
the Government.
Q. Have you any authority to take the collections
away from the regular officers appointed by law and
put them In his handsi A. That is Just exactly where
we differ I do not consider that those regular
collections under the law. they had been there would
have been contract.
O. In that order to the District Attorneys you saw al"
being understood that his contract relates to claims
which record in any Of the Collectors oees
How did you come to understand that A Because in
our conversations It was so understood.
O. Conversations with whom A. With all the parties
undertaking to take these contracts.
O. Butyou never took pains TO ascertain from the Col
lectors whether that true not A. supposed II
would come around In the Of business and there
would be no difficulty.
O. Did not you orders for the Collectors not to
receive paymentss A. II the whole thing had been
communicated by Mr.. Bliss and Mr.. McMchael 10 tho
coectors az presume 1t was there would have been