The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1877-03-01
GRANTS FRIEND BADCOCK.
Believed TO be a DOfaultGr in More
Than 100000
WAsH1NoToN, February "A, 1877.

To-day there have been rumors in this
city of a large deficit in the accounts OF
an important public official. 1t is ascer-
tanned tonight that the official in ques-
ton is Gen. 0rville e. Babcock, Engineer
in charge ofPublic Buildings andGrounds
and Chief Engineer of the Washington
Aqueduct. Babcock's accounts have been
for some time suspected of crookedness.
Last year the sub Committee on the Ex-
penditures Of the War Department at
tempted to investigate Babcock, but fail
ed to. reach his figures. Accordingly
during the present session, at the request
of Mr.. Holman of Indiana, the matter
was transferred to the Committee on
Public Buildings and Grounds, of which
he is chairman. On the 9th of last March
the House passed a resolution instructing
the Chief of Engineers of the United
States Army to transmit tabular state
ments of the expenditures under each
appropriation for the improvement of
public grounds in the city of Washington
from July l, 1871, to June 80, 1875. The
accounts were put in the hands of an
honest and able expert, who has given
them his close attention for the past two
months, in cooperation with the com
mittee. 1t is said that their careful and
thorough examination of the accounts
has led to the conclusion that Babcock
fails to account for hundreds ofthousands
of dollars appropriated by Congress and
placed in his hands fer expenditure.
The expenditures for which vouchers
do appear are in many cases suspicious.
Babcock has spent marvellous sums for
"repairs." The dogs, eagles and prairie
dogs belonging to the Government and
under his care have been attended with
wonderful liberality. The dogs havs cost
the nation at least $40 month apiece,
There are new buggies and Coupes enough
to transport a small army. The flower
garden has cost fortune and yet his
accounts will moi otsquare.
It is curious fact that six years ago,
when Babcock succeeded Gen. Mickler as
Commissioner of Public Grounds and
Buildings, he accused the latter OF being
unable to settle his accounts satisfactorily.
Mickler answered the charge by produc-
ing vouchers for every dollar of his ap-
pr0priations. Babcock has not been
equally prompt with his vouchers. Not
only have "the tabular statements of the
expenditures under each appropriation
for use and improvement of public
grounds in the city of Washington during
the four fiscal years, from July ], 1871 to
,g..ly 80, 1875, and also from July to
Dec. 81, 1875" not been furnished as di-
rected, by the Resolutions of the House
of Representatives, but the accounts,
vouchers and abstracts submitted under
said resolution do not supply the means
for making such tabulation.
The vouchers and abstracts forwarded,
and the accounts rendered, and now in
possession of the committee, show that
the several amounts appropriated for
specific purposes, for each fiscal year,
were not checked against, under disburse-
ments for each appropriation, but that
the several appropriations We're appro-
priated for each fiscal year, and that dis
bursements were made at the apparent
discretion of Babcock. AS samples in il
lustration the following are given:
For the four fiscal years preceding and ending
Jan SO 1876 there is covered by vouchers furnish
ed by BabcOck the sun Of f&67250. of which sum
of Sl9S,790 04 is formaterial, repairs and other
items, and the sum Of s277 459 SO is for labor But
under which specific appropriations the labor was
performed does not appear.
For the fiscal year ending June 80 1872
there was appropriated forthe filling
care and improvement ofthe grounds
south of the Executive Mansion, the ,,oo m
sum So,UVO w
For the fiscal year. ending June 30, oooo NJ
IoVVV w
fGs IS7l Ine n'cai yeai enus " @ 10000 90
For the fiscal year, ending June SO am ~