Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1876-05-20
Report Of the Congressional Committee
Appointed to Investigate and Re-
port Upon 1t.
Actual Proof OF Improper Conduct by
the Officers and Agents Of the
BaRk-The District
Thieves.
The Poor Freedmen SWlndIed While
CantiBg HypOcrites go Unwhipped
OF Justlee-HOW 1t was
Done.

WASHINGTON, Msy I9.-The Gem,
Jnittee investigating the affairs Of the
Freedman's bank in their report SET
forth the evil doir gJ of those connected
with the robbery of ths bank, and re.
commend that they be indicted and
punished TO the fullest extent Of the
law. They say the institution degenerated
into monstrous sWindle, and was. al
most from the start, q scheme of selfish
ness, under the guise Of philanthropy,
and to its cor fidiDg victims an in.
corporate body Of false pretenses. In ad-
ditiOn to the speculation rings, the Dis
tTict OF Columbis government came in
to hasten and profit by the work OF
spoilation. It's treasury was wholly uD-
equal to the task OF sustaining the mag
nifcent expenditures OF the board OF
public works, presided over by II. D.
Cooke, and controlled by A. r Shep.
herd. Some eXchequer must be found
to advance the deprecated bonds and
worthless auditors certificates of the
District or the contracts must fail, and
the speculstions Of the pool and of
Shepherd and his friends in out-Otthe-
way and unimproved town lots came to
grief. The actual proof of improper
conduct on the part OF the officers and
agents of the banks is shown in the tes-
timony of the Washington cabal, con-
sisting Of the president Of the bank, d.
L. Eaton; the actusry, 81. D. Cooke; !;
chairman Of the finance committee, w.
s. Huntington, henchman Of Cooke,
Spd of the same commissioners, o o.
Howard, honorary trustee, an office and
position unknown to the charter; Lewis
CleppaD, of the finsnce com mittee, and
few more, enough to constitute a
quorum Of nine. A majority of that, five,
held high carnival over the freedmen's
hard-earned and sweat-stained earnings,
which in en- evil hour they had been
csjoled into trusting them with fer safe
keeping and profitable investment. The
freedmen were sWindled out of their
money for the benefit of strangers,
while csnting hypocrites, who had de-
ceiyed them under spurious professions
Of regard for their race, and who have,
undoubtedly, directly or indirectly,
shared in the plunder, go unwhipped of
Justice. Proof Of actual fraud and dis
honesty is not wanting In the following
instances: Jesse w. Vandenburg was
pet of the District government; as a
sort of pIotege and favOrite. The con-
tract for grand public Improvements
was planned and put into execution by
the board of public works. The report
says the securities on which Vanden-
burg borrowed money from the bank
were not worth tour cents bushel as
saIable securities or as evidence Of
debt. The actusry Of the bank himself,
then D. l.. Eaton, was persuaded
to accept as grstuity from Van
denburg a half interest in q one
hundred thousand 2Aar contract for
sawez-pipes. Eaton put in no money OF
his own, incurred no risks or response
bilities, and had no trouble about it, ex-
cept to sign the receipts for his share Of
the profits, but he used the influence of
his position to pass Vandenburg's psper
at the bank counter, and the money thus
obtained was used to carry out the con.
tract in which he was interested as
beneficiary. This may not be q steal,
but as Vandenbur still owes the bank,
according to the exhibit made by the
books of that concern one hundred and
forty-four thousand one hundred and
sixty-four dollars, which, however, he
disputes on the ground that some forty
or hftv Thousand dollars of his securities
have been disposed of and no credit
given him, the rest being hardly worth
"
have the consolation OF knowing that
they have bseD fissced by an irregulari-
ty, to use q polite and eXculpatOry
phrase employed by the present COM
missioners when compelled to allude to
the rascalities OF their predecessors in
the management and control of the af-
fairs Of the bank. But the commission
ers say that the Vandepburg-Eaton ir-
regularities are small in actual crimi-
nality when compared with the Seneca
sandstone sWindle. This bubble was
fancy stock gamble, gotten up by II. D.
Cooke, J. e. KidWeIl and 81. II. Dodge,
by which sixty-tWO thousand dollars Of
the freedmen's money were drawn
out on worthless securities. Every
one of the survivors in this gross fraud
and conspiracy, namely, II. D. Cooke,
Lewis ClephaLe Hallet Kilbourne and
]. o. Evans should be indicted, tried
and punished to the extent of the law,
while those who are responsible should
be sued for the recovery Of the money
or good securities, consisting in part Of
twenty thousand dollars on first mort
gage bonds of the Maryland Freestone,
mining and manufacturing company,
OF which the bsnk was robbed by the
coDspiratoIs. George w. Stickney, the
assistant actusry, and after Eaton, ac-
tuary of the bank, is shown to have
been not only privy to the crooked
transactions, but the principal actor in
others, OF which fraudulent CONVEX
sion OF funds TO his own private use
is one, aud for which he merits,
and should receive punishment. Add
to the steal perpetrsted on the bank by
the officers and others, through the con-
niyance ofits officers, the act Of forgery,
as in the case of Barton, teller Of the
Washington branch, and the way the
freedman's money went, is not difficult
of comprehension.
The report was signed by Douglas,
chairman; Stenger, Riddle, Hooker and
Rainey. Mr.. Frost agreed on all the
main points, but dissented from some Of
the arguments.