The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1877-12-12

OlACES ACKNOWLEDGEMENT auOGuEI UO0h W
be kept Ia that office. :
How lar that advice was followed [ know
not, but II the books required blythe fund.-
| ing act were kent be would. have found in
them ample means to detect the fraud. In
the Treasury office the inquiry must Of neces-
| tsity be much more tedious. and can hardly
be unsatisfactory. .l:t' &as2t4 + Z. So ~
The Treasurer is required to cancel the
old bonds and keep q record OF the new
which are issued The register is kept !;
the old bonds are cancelled and put in
wooden presses, the only. receptacle for
them. A reference to these old bonds is
made on the book where the issue Of the
new bond is entered. But the, reference to
the bond is tedious, for the old bonds are
not presented In the regular sequence OF
number, but as the transfer happens to be
Wanted-that is to say, the old bonds-the
heto bonds are issued in sequence. The
work Of referring to these bonds for the
purpose of seeing il they were cancelled
was necessarily made by examining these
presses, which would have been work OF
too much labor to have been consistent with
the rapid funding OF the bonds. It is true
that the fact OF cancellation might have been
noted on the book, and that work is now
heing done. But it is yet incomplete, and
heretofore an examination of the presses
was necessary to ascertain the fact Of cam
collation.. This would have delayed the
work OF funding to long. <, @... .si@:
But it Is hoped that the work will soon
be complete, so that an investigation may
be made speedily; but the occasions are
rare when such an Investigation ought to be
necessary. The order for transfer from the
Second Auditor has been heretofore deemed
a sufficient warrant for the Treasurer to
issue the new bond, and so, it seems, to
me-, the law declares. page $3.50, Acts
F1870-T.) The funding act declares !:
After such endorsement and registration
the Second Auditor shall deliver the bond,
certificate of stock, and intaSest-certifcate
to the Treasurer, who shall thereupon de-
liver to him bond, or bonds, and certiti.
Gates of character named in the second or
third sections Of this act, which calculation
shall be endorsed, dated, and signed by him
on. the back OF such bond, certificate OF
stock" &c. ...r...... ~. ..,....... i.
Such is the theory on, which we have
acted in the Treasury, nor have hitherto
doubted its correctness. Indeed, 1t must
be so in regard to funding The order for
funding includes interest and principal,
and interest can only be known in the office
where the interest-account is kept-that is,
in the Second Auditors office.
You ask what is the probable amount of
bonds that have been twice funded, and
which are now out. II the books have been
kept required, as I believe, of the Second
Auditor by the funding bill, this will be q
matter easy to determine. But II left to the
means OF ascertaining in the Treasurer's
office, the work will be laborious and tedious
with the present force in that department.
The old bonds have all been cancelled by
punching, and also the coupons attached to
them. If the latter work has been done as
completely as believe bas been done with
the bonds, I think there is little danger Of
loss by the double use Of the old securities
in the future. The mode Of cancellation,'
originally pursued by stamps, could readi-
ly be removed by chemicals, and the "clean
bond," of which General Rogers speaks,
might thus be presented for second fund
ing; but there are no means OF filling up
the holes made by the punch, and therefore
they could not be obliterated.
The mode Of cancellation by punching
holes in the bonds was introduced by Col
onel Mayo about month, as I am informed
by the clerks, before was elected Treasu-
rer, he having found the plan Of cancella-
ton by stamps in red ink insufficient and
altogether useless, so far as the coupons
were concerned, which, / am told, were not
cancelled at all. The cancellation by punch
ing was continued after came into office,
and pursued ever since. Ga>f ~ ,.
The whole n,ass,of old bonds, as Mr..
Newman, the CLERK who for the most part
did the work, testifes; were punched about
two months after was in Office. No bond
stolen after that time could. be again fund
ed without discovery OF these marks, and
any bond presented for second funding
must have been stolen before that time
when they had been perforated. The bonds
alleged to have been refunded during my
administration must have been stolen be-
fore that time. This must have been so, il
they were presented "smooth and clean !"
upon their face, as General Rogers states.
After the 1st Of July, according to the rece-
lection Of the clerk, the bonds and the cou-
Don en- the old bonds in his Office had all
been perforated. II an old bond, "clean
and smooth" upon its face, had been pre-
septed here with the order of the Second
Auditor for transfer or refunding, the legal
warrant for issuing the new bond was, as
we believe, complete, and the new bond
was issued. ..., .s,.,.>-,....
| The authority of the holder Of the old
bond to demand new one was supposed
to have been examined and acknowledged
lin the Second Auditors Office, who was
legally empowered to decide those matters.
a second presentation OF the old securities
is hardly to be apprehended now that the
bonds are perforated. But to- secure this
completely the coupons ought not only. to
be cancelled, but the fact should be, record,
ed. For this purpose book should be
kept. ! - =. 2. - =.
In the Treasurer's Office Mr.. Newman is
keeping record of the number Of "cou.
pons cut off" and date; first coupon issued
on each new bond in the Second Office OF
Fin the Treasury office. Such book should
| be kept of alfthe paid-up coupons. Sucha
| provision, together with the book required
| by law to be kept, as think, will give sectl.
rity for the future.
| There is no object to steal the old bonds
cancelled by punching, for there can be no
1ise for them. But in the Treasury Office,
where the cancelled bonds are required to
be kept, there are no means OF custody eX-
cent in the wooden presses stan ding in the
passage, and these may be SO easily opened
that such custody can hardly be called safe.
Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
-. peT r. NJ. T. HUNTER, Treasurer.
P.S. Upon an examination fear the en-
closed is not sufficiently responsive to your
letter. My information in regard to the
probable object Of General Rogers's inqui-
ries was received from General Rogers q
few days before the meeting Of the General
Assembly Regarding this ns . matter OF
peculiar concern to the Second Auditors
office, / did not take much further trouble
about it. I supposed bic would make the
necessary report, and did not call your at
tention to 1t. I had no idea that he would
hold the Treasury department responsible
| Tor acting according to his orders, or seek
| to make it accountable for, mistakes in
..1iah l,oi had lad Il II 10 true that Mr,