The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1877-08-12
CAPITOL GOSSIP.
ONE IN A THOUSAND WHO Is NOT AN
OFFICE GRABBER.
A short Chapter on Defaulting Tax Col
iect0rs--stand from Under.

A short chapter on Detaulting Tax Col
| iectors- stand from Under.
| IT, was discovered Mt the ate House yester-
aav. and tho Governors attention was called to
| The fact that there was one resident OF the par
;sh Of st. John the Baptist who did not desire the
position OF parish judge. Although quite
strange, the information did not startle the Gov
ernor to any alarming extent, and he will recover
| from the shock as soon as he discovers 3
A FEW MORE or THE SAME SORT.
The Auditorial arrangements to bring the
Rad cal ex-tax collectors who are defsulters, to
| a sense OF their duties, are now nearly COM
pleted, and the Auditor s nearly ready TO supply
| the various district attorneys with instructions
and data to begin civil and criminal prosecutions
| Since this fact became known through the COLI
umns OF the DEMOCRAT several of the defaulters
have made overtures
LOOKING TO COMPROMISE
wherein they would be enabled TO work off q lot
of old State warrants issued under acts Of the
Radical Legislature in years past, but they meet
stumbling block In positive "No /" from the
Auditor when such propositions are made.
One instance is cited where an ex-tsx collector,
who owes the State over si4 900, and who is not
distantly related to one of the Returning Board
members, wanted to settle with old warrants, and
hummed and hawed around until he vas told
plainly that The only settlement he could make
was with the
CASH He RECEIVED
from the taxpayers Of his parish, or with the
warrants recev d for taxes, and he was told, too,
that In turning the latter in he would
BIO compelled to swear that each one presented
was Received in payment OF taxes. This did not
suit his speculative ideas much, and realisations
OF handsome profit on batch OF old Kellogg
regime warrants faded when he found the An Ii
tor determined TO have the greenbacks or their
equivalent. The ex-o collector has not settled yet
and will be given sufficient time to get together
the money he received but If it is not forthcoming
In proper time, he too will have to answer to the
law for his shortage"
Another case is cited where an ex.oollector
writes from the parish that he is afraid the dis
trict attorney will
| MAKE TROUBLE ron HIM,
| and fearing arrest wanted to come here, provided
the Auditor would not have him arrested, and
| have q consultation. The Auditor agreed that he
should not be arrested: the ex-colleotor came.
| bat it WAS tine same old story. He had lot OF
old warrants that he wanted to run In on q COM
promise settlement, but II YVES no uso.
The Auditor had heard that story before, and
| he modestly told the gentleman that as it would
take him but three days to get home he would
give him five days, and after that 3 reasonable
| time to hear from him. and If no did not hear
from him he might expect tho District Attorney
to ''make trouble for him. cure enough.
It is matter of some surprise that these ex-
tax collectors all have the anne story to tell
about old warrants, and singular coin
| cidenoe is that Herwig stated not many months
| ago that he had
AN ARMoIR FULL, OF WARRANTS,
but of course he would not attempt to work them
| into the treasury through these Compromise
| settlements that were made time and again With
| the defauters by johnson and Clinton.
| Just here another coincidence is noted in the
| fact that Herwig has made repeated visits to the
Auditors Office in the interest of the alleged de-
| faulter Fulton, who arrived here yesterday from
California, and who ii is claimed, owes the State
| t56 600, and has made propositions to compro-
mise the Fulton matter for s21 900. he proposing,
of course, to settle for that amount If "quietus
| was promised Fulton.
| No such promise was made, however, nor was
| the prop sllon accepted, the Aud tor thinking
| that the State could do better by prosecution.
| and that course has been decided upon by both
| the Auditor and Attorney General, not only in
| the case clted put
| IN ALL OTHERS
| where there is no disposition TO settle and where
| the evidence is conclusive. It was thought by
some that the evidence would bs entirely obliter-
| ated by the abs nee of the Auditoriai records,
| aud not little surprise Was manifested in Rad.
| icsl ci, Giles when, some weeks ago. the DEMOCRAT
stated that documentary evidence would be
Forthcoming in time to show the exact status of
| each tax collector and school treasurer.
| 1t is stated now upon official authority that the
system inaugurGted to secure this official data
has already r suited in the completion OF de-
| tailed and cf1icia, statement, Covering the ac-
/ counts of the x-Radical collectors ia nine par
snes and in less than two mo,ths. or perhaps
| by the time the fall term of the courts begin,
there will be
COMPLETE DATA
made from official records to chow every dollar
or cent that is due or hat has not been returned
since 1868.
| The testimony taken by the Auditoral Iuves-
/ tigating Committee has aided materially in the
development of the system referred to, and now
that the work to be done is only clerical it is tx-
pected that before long detail statement will
| be published OF the exact accounts Of all OF the
defaulting tax collectors, as well as OF those who
have gone through the s-'hough not
| legay-ofa compromise settlements.
! There is direct evidence that some of these
| settlements have been made upon what johnson
termed the advice Of the law officers Of the State,
when there is preot, that he left undisturbed, to
| show that he could have secured the full amount
| of the defalcations.
The present administration proposes to sifi
these matters thoroughly, and at the least calcu
ton upwards Of
| MILLION OF DOLLARS
| now in the hands Of the defauters and theii
| speculative" friends will fad its way into the
Treasury, and at the same time some Of the de-
| faulters may make an eff)rt TO break into
the Penitentiary at Baton Rouge.
coin PIzEN.