Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1876-05-18

The LATE fREEDMAN's BCREAu.-
Since the remains Of the lats. Bureau
of Refugees, Freedmen and Abandoned
Lands were transferred b the war De-
partment, order has been evolved from
chaos. and something Ike an, exact
view Of It's condition il now obtainable
from the clear, concise, and conclu-
sive reports of Gen. Vincent, who has
the direction Of this work.
The men who managed this bureau,
says the New York SIM, were also PROM
inent in the direction Of the Freeaman's
Bank. Gen. Howard, Gen. Balroch, J.
W. Alvord, and other self-styIed phi
lanthropists, who were constantly shout
ing humanity and protesting the /. ost
ardent devotion to the rights Of the
black man, we're the patriots under
whose management he was cheated out
of bis pay, bounty. and prize money in
the bureau, and robbed Of bis hard
earnings in the Bank. They grew rich.
built fine horses At Washington, lived
on the fat of the land, gave liberal do
nations to churches, and were looked
up to as model Christians. While they
were trading on this sort of capital, at
that very time they were acting in col.
lusion with the Washington Ring, and
helping Boss Shepherd, with all their
influence over the colored population,
to carry out his schemes of plumber,
and to fasten his vulger despotism on
the community. The Administration,
the two Houses ofCongress. the Courts,
and every element of political power
sided with these canting scoundrels and
thieves.
The first report of Gen. Vincent ex-
posed the methods employed by Gen.
Howard and his confederates to defeat
a thorough investigation Of their trans
actions in the bureau after the transfer
to the War Department. Everything
was purposely thrown into confusion;
the cash book showing the accounts of
Disburs;ng Officer Balloch was stolen;
other books were mutilated and des-
troyed; the records were dispersed, and
nothing was left undone by which the
truth could be concealed, perverted. or
denied. Yet, in spite ofallthese fraudu-
lent combinations, Gen. Vincent has sue
ceeded, by great labor, ingenuity, and
persistent purpose, in unmasking the
villainies prac;ised on the poor freed
men. His most recent report on this
subject is full Of instructive irforma-
ton. Under classified heads, he brings
out into strong relief the means by
which the frauds were carried on, part
" 10y collision with officials in and out
of the Treasury, and were hidden from
public view. A few extracts will give
an insight into the system:
In the preliminary investigation had
by this office in these cases, the fact
became developed that moneys, aggre-
eating large sum, which had been sent
by the chief disbursing officer Gen. G.
w. Balloch to the local discussing of.
ficeis for pavement to claimants, were
not paid to them, but returned to the
chief discussing officer as unclaimed
Notwithstanding such fact, the vouch-
ers representing payments of these
moneys TO claimants, which had been
filed with the accounting officers of the
Treasury by the chief disbursing officer
of the bureau. and upon which he OBJ
tanned credit for the amount thereof,
were not cancelled, nor does it appear
of record that he ever accounted to the
Governmentinany way for the amount"
In plain terms, the charge is, that
vouchers were forged for money never
paid to claimants; and still no action
has been taken to make Balloch dis
gorge it. Again:
There can I've no doubt as to the de-
ticits, and the inference is that the large
amounts of money were, for some four
years, used for private purposes, and
in violation of law. All gains through
that Illegal use should accrue to the
United States II is sign ifcant that
soon after the legislation doing array With
the bureau, tehich action seems to hare
stopped The improper use of deficit bal
dnces. the troubles OF the late Freedman $
SGriays and Trust Company commenced.
10 properly appreciate, we have but
to consider that if ut the end Of any
one of the several months the deficit
had been discovered. the late officer
would have been in the position of the
defaulting Paymaster Hodge. Had the
discovery been made at the end of Feb
ruary. 1870. the. deficit would have
been $500, 200. nearly double the amount
involved in the main charge against
Hodge. In other months it would
have been 500, 1882. $685.. 400 90.
S65s,S3462, aud many other lerge
amounts. respectively, in excess Of
100000"
These arc samples Of the SYSTEM
(Vta,t.,r~ l.~n-,., r. al