The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1876-09-04
AN $SOO,OOO DISCREPANCY.
SOMETHING CROOKED ~ THE TRE EAS-
URf'S COTTON BURE1U.
Confused and UnintcliiRibio Accounts-A Dis
crepancy Of $500, 900 from vicksburg Cot
ton Alone i udae Oasey,s Testilnopy.

letters. and testimony relative to captured and
abandoned property, before the Committee on
Expenditures In the Treasury Department, have
Just been printed. The investigation will be
resumed at the next session OF Congress. It
appears from tho document that the actual
moneys credited to the Treasury were t2& ,c5l 28o
The total OF amounts expended from proceeds
Of abandoned and captured property. for the
purchase Of products OF the States declared In
insurrection, under the act OF July ., 1894. was
t2,%85,SS3 The following rscapitulation Is given;
Amount returned BY agents...,..,... 1910 $40 1s
Deduct amount nrst sdysnccd and then
tfoosoS oe
The balance n the pront on cotton sold. sS444 7i5 a
Amount covered IN ~ shown by the books
OF Treasury Department incluoing pre- ... -.
Deduci smount returned by agents, which
mCudos prOnts.. bplO0fb III
Balance covered .ssO9o7fSs %
Among tho most Important testimony before
the committee Is that OF Judge Casey, who was
nrst appointed Judge OF the Court OF Claims
In May 1851. Under the reorganization OF the
court In March, 1863, he was appointed Chief
Justice Of the court, and held that position un-
I'll the first OF December, 1870, when he resigned.
Since his resignation he has been professionally
engaged In the prosecution OF cotton claims.
Having been asked from what source he pro-
cured hts information as to the net proceeds In
by calls at the cotton bureau Of the Treasury
Department lie mad frequent ocCasiOn. while
he was Chief Justice OF the court, to make per-
while Mr.. Kaufman aud Mr.. Parker were
| there. and In all those Instances he recognized
| them aud received the Information no desired
| through them. He knew Mr.. Noerr. the pres-
ent chief OF the O captured and abandoned prop
ertv division, very well. lie called Tor infor-
nation 10 some MY or sixty cases, beginning
| M m An pf GIaima. IA
cotton tnAt had been received by the Treasury
agent at vickspure, shipped thence and sold,
and for the amount OF procee DIS paid INTO The
| Treasury. A return. after grea deal Of delay,
was sent in the latter part Of 1877, or the begin
| ming OF 1S73 a COPY OF which he thought might
| be ootained from the Court OF Claims, In wnich
the matters returned In the first place were so
| cOmmineled ana confused - TO be utterly unn-
| telligue, and In the second place were untrue
and incorrect, "a tue events proved In their
The return from that burcsu and from the
| Treasury Department showed that there were
naS Lne ~ , tto e o' o'V
| to not over tLlo,UDO or SlSl,UD Being uissatis-
ned WITH the statement he asked Tor further
| proceedings from the court to obtain correct IN
| formation, at one time making application for
Subpoena duces tecum: After considering the
meters me court on June H. lT3' referred the
matter Of the Mississippi cotton with other cot
ton OF that region, and especially Nlcksturg
| cotton, to a comniissioner Mr.. Eveleth. To re-
| port upon the amount of cotton rec-iv d, to
wust points shipped. TO whom sold. how mucn
| proceeds resulted. and whether these proceeds
were IN the treasury. After some two years
delay and examinations, Mr. Eyeleth made IA re-
port on the vicksbur. cotton, from which It
appeared thst there were In the height borhood
| OF G.UO bales received there ana shipped
yos to say that the sspSrsa , and
slI hundred bales a. tne suount thst rsuAined
% %o"can You You see sSer. tue procecd. Of how many
NJ Evsleth reports ss ren,.nins 1 the Tre..ory
ccn sSs
*. ;S,sss5 @ @ Sss I4ss;.sa
| the C number lhe atnOuLt OF Proceeds IL gwen
spprOImstel, eorree! here an lae saoaameni 70 tue
Q.-N b5w muc65 k-Xt soes, ,ees o4-some $500.
0O more than the Officers OF the Cotton Bureau had
o-Hs. any explanation ever been mad. to you as to
how or why this discrepancy between the two state
menis oeearrelr A.-nons sGs,rysr; hsve Iiien -
reported and before his appointment that the former
M Ts .ns fn OF the sSd
Ored get Nr. sOer 10 correct 1t, but without any
o.-Did he show any disposition to cOrrecth' A
Q. In iie interview you had WITH Mr. Noerr. did ne
or did he no, clam tnaI the ..semsn, which he sd
man and hsrd eyer makes direct shd pSs!l's STATE
sfhrm o. or no, cannot say
q DO you tHow Mr William Fessenden, who Is en-.
gased In that nee A. Yes. sir IkbOv him very we'll
Z DO you know ~heIher or not ne has had snything
S .nd f 81
f1sss ns . sPGsS sson to 'as O AZ
never was SUle to get any information out Of Mr. Zee
COMMIT Al on al ali points ny e1pshssss. derived from
s Sursa Sss that np 3 e o Gs
duty TO every body that they could from getting
scied accordingly. The Judges OF the Court Of Claims.
Expressed IL, as Ioiay Without reasss upon
or iAitn IN Tue returns msae " ths bureau anu thnx
ssy are 30 regarded BY the O'1'a aud Tue oar
q In the line Of that supposed duty has It not been
the practice those gentlemen IN chafge Of that Oh
vlsion to Withhold from Anishs snn ,her e, st0Iney
information regards the net proceeds OF properly
A.-lhlt la- been so.
nGs 70 snSr sn M shy I'm . ~ sa dc sn
mari
you we're especially interrogated In regard ton2 A.
naE have nI srsssy that was lmpc.oe Tor
ore .sssscon :, al IN reieense 10 tser Claims
tins dyon except through ais made py the Court Of
sJur 80 lar ss snos regarded as totally unreliable
bash' snd nave heard The same opinion e1pTs.sed
from me bench since have been al he oar and such is
aud want % i'd That in M Judgment. iSey
There rSI:S Sys .:s SSSs
Sss fuad. S.vs been danissod or exhausted be.
Srse smount due 10 the Claimants than Wa coming 20
IheIn. In instance-the name Of toe s.se csnnot
n saeS the coS nsd entered .na
sSe .s .Ss' c for 20
wa in the Treasury because the return had not been
.S., eOnsu.9n ~ proc, .dSussd IN
o s .ns prHsesS; % S q
co. a aeoS ngy sie me rus ss
OF tscts had been returned o the Treasury the Court
|
less amount IN the prior cases
q How were these Judgments made when they were
larger than the amount Of money to the credit OF the
particular clams2 A.-Ihe Judgment was rendered,
and II was paid Of the cap ured ana abandoned
properly fund generally There Il A.. 'her fact which
deaire TO mention In connect "a WI The releases.
The return OF Mr.. kveleh mt9e IN 1874 aud also this
last which printed In the reports, show tue
parties to whom the releases OF proceeds were made
me 3aws. q hs pfs. ss0 ss,ea Sar. as 'ssS
IN every case IN which proceeds we're released prOvd.
Of the proceeds II II should turn out
tnat the parties who received them not entit ed
to thel. In many OF The cAaes which came under my
observation aud View was OF opinion that the parties
TO whom were released we're totally with
night to. and never owned the cotton and thlnk
| that Was the general opinion.
| Odd you have definite nforml lton TO that effect
A.-No definite information other than consultation
with clients and the proofs In cases ana Information
derived generally In long eIoerenee IN taking tes
mony IN some one hundred or one nundred and nf'J
| cases
| Q.-You got the impression that Secretary McCu
och released cotton 10 parties that had no clam TO II
Al only express the opinion. derived from gen
eral ana Information OF the subject that ~
very many instances the releases we're made upol
forged fraudulent, or perjured smdaVits'
The Dead Prize Fighters Funeral.