The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1876-09-07

things upstairs that l did not know any.
thing about, and / did not like it at the
time. 1 afterwards got the law changed in
some way so that it became the duty of the
Secretary to make the statements.
Question. And then you were not respon-
sible in any way2
Answer. Then 1 was not responsible and
knew nothing about the debt statements, and
rarely regarded them. differed with all
the secretaries in that: They hare a rule
that nothing must be divulged that takes place in
the Treasury. My idea was that q public
officer should have no secrets, that the pub
lie had a right to know everything, and
when l was asked questions, unless proven
ted, l always answered them.
All this is certainly extraordinary
but truthful testimony. 1t comes
from n of undoubted knowledge and
honesty. He tells you of secrets kept
from the people; of fraudulent debt
statements of the improper signing
of his name to untruthful statements;
and of forced balances. Is it wonder,
full that so many obstacles were thrown
in the way of investigation? Is it
wonderful that the party In power is
making SO desperate a struggle to res
main in power? When a Democratic
President is inaugurated, his new
Secretary of the Treasury will have no
motive to conceal the secrets of the
past. The clerks, who now connive at
fraud and conceal their knowledge,
will be swift to give US the whole
truth. Then, and not till then, will
the true condition of your Treasury be
known. What will then be revealed
We can only imagine. We shall then
discover the secrets to which Spinner
alludes, and unravel the mysterious
statements Of debt and work out the
forced balances.
FREEDMAN's SAVING AMI TRUST COM,
PANY swINDLE.
Another committee was charged
with the investigation of the Freed
mans Savings and Trust Company
the object Of this corporation being
"to receive on deposit the money of
former slaves and to invest in securities
of the United States" This ~collosal
institution spread itself over the entire
South. 1t had "a branches. 1t had
the odor of sanctity and Republicanism
to commend it to the poor Freedman.
No wonder he fell an easy prey. The
depositors numbered 10000 and
their deposits reached millions of dol
lars. And many of the Freedmen
were Union soldiers whose money was
the reward of their service or the COM
pensation for their wounds. As soon
! as the bank obtained possession of the
r money of these deluded people, it OBJ
!. tanned from a plant Congress power
to invest in other than government
securities. Then the swindling began.
An expensive banking house was
: built out of the Freedman's money.
: Loans were made to leading radical
politicians OF worthless securities.
. Downright stealing occurred at many
v of the branches. At Jacksonville
S10O, 900 were lost out of loans of
$4,000. At Beaufort 500, 900 out
e Of $4,000. The cashier at Memphis
lost 100000. There. was an unex.
f planned deficit of $4,000 in the
Washington branch. The immacu.
late martyr, Kilbourn, had a loan of
r $4,000 on fraudulent securities. At
Atlanta the cashier embezzled. At
5 Lexington the book-keepers swindled.
S Everywhere the same story is told.
) Scarcely an honest or a competent man
was engaged by the bank in any of its
branches. Yet it was advertised as a
r Government institution and on the
f pass books of the colored man was
8 printed a guarantee, by the general
a government itself, of the repayment Of
every dollar deposited. Not less thar
n sixty millions passed through these
G various banks. The men who con
e trolled it and Its branches the bene.
f~ciaries who received its loans /; and
the swindlers who stole the money
e were uniformly Republicans, and many
: of them high in position. 1t was toe
n sacred a fund to be handled by the
unholy Democracy! The bank soor
C came to an end when the crash of 1875
came on. Then its rottenness wal
discovered. 1t fell into the hands O
e commissioners. They soon spen'
It $4,000, and divided only 20 pei
cent. in two years. And in this con,
n dition were affairs when a Democratic
Ie House assembled. Then investigation
n began and not before. Aaron NJ
Sperry, the inspector of the bank ant
# its branches, was the first witness
called. After developing many of tn,
facts in detail, to which 1 have briefly
lie alluded, he used this remarkable Ian
'e guage 81 have been waiting tw'
If years, Mr. Chairman, to say this. I cal
t. prove to you that for taoo gears | hav'
been working to get a Congressiona
lie Investigation"
Honest men Of the Republican
to party, what do you think of tn
IT record? This is the fourth occasion