Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1875-03-31
1'iiE MONEY QEs7YONATHAR
pISHITH(,


ThE MONEY QES7YONATHlR n
RfSBURG
The allegation that tho State Treas
nry il unable TO meet tho usual np
preparations for charitable purposes
without divcrling from the Sinkins
Fund ilyo hundred thousand dollars, 4
the mcrcst prctcnsc and sham 'rhi
Treasury l. rs able 70 meet thcin thi
year MS lass, and no one knows thi
ihct better than Mr.. Mackcy. 'rh,
following minority report of the Sen
ate Finance Committee, comes at NJ
opportnnc moment, and upsets th,
theory of the Treasury ring, as I,
the want Of money to meet appropria
tlons. We repeat, what We have saiC
elsewhere, thai the action Of the llous,
Of Representatives, in refusing to diver
money from the Sinking Fund, meets
the appreciation Of the Taxpayers
The minority of the committee dissenti
from the report of the majority for tht
following reasons
lst The burden Of complaint in th,
report Is that the House Of Reprcscn
tatives failed TO pass a bill proposed By
the Treasurer Of the State BY whicl
sufficient funds would have been di
vcrted from the Sinking Fund TO III,
general fund topay the appropriations
Waving question entirely whcth
cr such diversion was necessary ioi
the alleged purpose, the undcrsIgncc
think that n question involving the in
tcgrity of the sinking fund shoult
have been submitted in the first IN
stance to tho finance committee Of th,
Senate before they should have beer
called upon TO take action upon so i'm
portant question ~ 20 deny to al
the charities tho aid OF the State. II
was not revenue measure which nee
cssarily required to be submitted tc
the House Of Representatives, II was q
proposition which the finance commit.
tee Of ihc Senate had full power tc
consider and determine. A majority
of that committee, and Of the Senate
were in political sympathy with the
State Treasurer and IL there was SC
grave a necessity for the passage Of The
bill, II is to be presumed that the treas
ucr would have first submitted hi.
necessities 70 the consideration OF The
party in sympathy with his admins
tration.
But such course was not taken; on
the contrary the responsibility wai
cast upon tic House of Representa-
tiycs to Interfere with the fund which
the people of the State regard u,
sacredly devoted TO the specific pur
poses Of its creation and whose integ
rity was guaranteed by the most solemn
constitutional provisions. IL is moi
pretended that such interference in The
particular manner proposed was for
bidden by the Constitution, but it /,
insisted upon that the responsibility Of
such measure should have been takcr
by those who hold political control o.
the administration Of the treasury.
Besides the current history Of Nh,
treasury ofthc State concusivcly proves
that the apprehcnsions Of the majority
Of the committee are without founda
tion or else that the treasurer is pos
sesscd Of resources Of which the ma
jority are ignorant. All similar ap
preparations made last year have beer
promptly paid by the treasurer without
complaint of an insuilicicncy Of funds
II this were done by trenching upon
the money Of the sinking fund it Is tc
be regretted, but it is too much to ask
Of a House Of Representatives just as
suming power and not in political
sympathy with the treasurer to take
the responsibility Of chronic misman.
cement of the iloasury which has been
confirmed for several years, and en-
dorsc the previous unlawful use of the
money of the sinking fund by the legal
ization of such policy in the future.
No other remedy was proposed, nc
other means suggested and the respon.
sibitity of its rejection must be taken
by those who sought TO shift il from
their own shoulders.
1t cannot be said that the provisions
Of the new constitution rendered the
passage of the proposed act imperative
The new constitution was the law OF
the land on January |, 1874, and the
provisions Of the act of May 0, 1874
are almost a literal transcript of the
constitution, both in its restrictions
and penalties, so far as the sinking
fund is concerned, and il is certain that
the new Constitution and the act OF
1874 did not prevent the payment OF
last years appropriations.
AS to the necessity for the bill, the
report deals in figures which your com
mittee have no opportunity to rectify,
and therefore cannot dispute, but be-
love that the estimates mado of rev.
enus for the current year will fall far
short of what will be tho actual re-
ceipts, and tho, undersigned can see no
justification Of the action of the ma
jority of the committee if tho treasury
OF the State is in the same condition as
in previous years, unless some sudden
and unexpected change has been de
termined npon in its management, OF
the necessities of which, from ignor-
ance of its causes, the undersigned can
express no opinion.
On the eve of an investigation INTO
the condition OF the treasury orderi
by the House and not concurred in by
the Senate it can be well imagined why
the House refused, pending such an in
quiry, TO commit itself TO an inconsist-
cncy by initiating by law change so
radical in the management OF the rev.
cnues OF the State, until the inyestiga-
tion had established the necessity for
such action. There is a grave sus-
picion.in the minds of the people of the
State, irrespective of party, that there
is something radically wrong in the
management of the funds Of the State,
and when they asked through their
representatives in the House TO bc per-
mittcd TO take look at their own
funds, alleged to be in the treasury
and were absolutely denied by Re
publican Senate that right, the uneasi-
ness was still further increased. I'm
der all the circumstances the House OF
Representatives dare not do otherwise
thnn thcv did and tho reanonsihilitv or
defeating these humane and necessary
appropriations must fall where il Justly
belongs, upon the Republican Senate.
Allof which isrcspectiully submitted
W. II. PLAYPoRr,
A. ii. Dill,
'.ial THOMAS CnALrANT.
mon TIDE or CORRUPTION,
Certain events have happened in
Washington in the last few days which,
~ hflo apparouflx, a auoonins. ,,o,o,al oh