The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1875-07-21
~. ,'TheSparkaI Case,


case made out by the State against ex-
Treasurer Niles q. Parker, we clip from
the Phoenar report of the trial:
The following is substantially the case
as made out by the State against Niles G..
Parker, defendant: During the time e..
H. Kimpton was Financial Agent of the
Stste, it was his duty, among other
things, to effect loans for the State, pay
the interest due on bonds then outstand-
ing, and to meet loans thus made as they
became due and payable. In order to
effect these loans, he was forced to by
pothecate the bonds of the State as Sc
curity to the lenders. These bonds thus
hypothecated, had attached to them cou-
pons, which indicated the interest due
on the bonds, aed these bonds had never
before passed out of the hands of the
State by sale, and, consequently, as the
own property, the Financial Agent was
not called upon to pay these coupons.
These are called dead coupons. These
bonds had been hypothecated as pledge
| it is true; but, until the pledge became
forfeited, the property or ownership of
them remain in the State. The loans
thus effected were met by the Financial
Agents when they became due, and the
bonds were returned to the Financial
Agent before forfeiture. The coupons
due OF these bonds before they were sold
were detached and sent by Kimpton to
Miles G. Parker, then State Treasurer,
to be Cancelled according to law. 1t was
the duty Of Kimpton to pay in gold tile
interest on the bonds which had been
sold by the State, but not hypothecated, /,
or if, hypothecated, lhad been forfeited,
to detach the coupons then due, as vou-
chers of payment, and return them to
Parker as Treasurer, to be cancelled also
Kimpton sent Parker the coupons actu-
ally due and paid, and the dead coupons
which had become due and were dead
before the State parted with the bonds to
which they belonged, and Parker re-
ceipted to Kimpton for them all. There
were S490,000 of these dead coupons
and these, with the coupons actually due
and paid, should have been Cancelled by
Parker as soon as they came into. the
treasury for, if by any means they
should again pass out of the treasury be-
fore they were Cancelled, the State would
become liable for them to innocent hol-
ders as it would be impossible for the
public to know whether these coupons
had become due before or after the State
had sold the bonds to which they were
attached. These dead coupons however
show upon their face to what bonds they
belong, as indeed, do all coupons, and the
treasury books show when every bond
was sold, consequently the treasury Off
cials can detect them, although outside
parties cannot. Now the State claims
that the defendant, Parker, cancelled
these $3.50, 900, dead coupons and placed
them in the stead of S4S0,000 coupons
which Kimpton had paid in gold,
which latter coupons he abstracted
from the treasury upon or before his re-
tirement therefrom, withouthaving can
celed them. The State has proved that
there are S4SO,0O dead coupons Cancelled
in the treasury, and it has proved that
Parker, in May 1873, was in the posses
sion Of certain coupons which he said he
had got from Kimpton in the final settle
ment of the State with her Financial
Agent. It has proved that $3.50, 900 of
coupons which, according to Parker's re-
ceipt to Kimpton, should have been in
the vaults of the treasury, were missing
and unaccounted for when the present
incumbent. Mr.. CardoZo wentinto office.
1t has further proved that Mr.. Y. j. P.
Owens, Senator from Laurens County,
as "agent," funded over S400, 900 of cou-
pons; and according to the testimony of
Mr.. w. B. Gulicll and Capt. ]. O. Ladd,
Parker admitted to them that he had
employed Mr.. Y. J. p. Owens to fund
his coupons for him. That he had cou
pons and wanted to have them funded is
also proved by Parker's letter to Ladd,
while the latter was in Charleston Mr..
Y. J. P. Owens was supened as a wit
ness for the State, but failed to appear,
and this Is considered strong circum-
stance in favor of theory and proof Of
the plaintiffs canse.