The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1878-03-12
THE THIEVES CARNIVAL.
LEAF FROM THE HISTORY OF FRAUD
I'M SOUTH CAROLINA.


weedrutr's Diary-pny Certificates by the
/. InsI,el-'.A Certificate for MY Pet
How the Radical Ring Robbed the
state.
The report OF the investigating committee
appointed by the South Carolina Legislature
to investigate the corruption OF the Scott
Moses Chamberlain period In that State has
just been published, telling the whole story
Of an era Of corruption unprecedented In the
history of the world, except, perhaps, the
period of Radical rule In this State, the mys
teries Of which, we fear, will never be uneov-
cred and made public as they have been III
| South Carolina.
| OF the Republican contriyanoes for robblng
| the taxpayers Of South Carolina, no simpler
Or easier one was devised, nor could any more
effective have been devised to keep On hand
an unfailiDg supply Of funds, than the issu-.
| ing Of pay certificates by the Speaker and
President Of the Senate. Its bgldest and
most adroit manpulators, according to the
committees report, were +. D. Moses, who
issued and sold the obligations and John }.
Patterson, who purchased them. In one ses-
siun there were Issued pay certificates TO tho
of about 100000, representing the pay. Of the
legislators and the employees oil the ASSEM-
! bly,, WAS stolen.
An unlimited number Of pay. certificates
was issued on the verbal order OF the presid-
ing officers or Of chairmen Of committees, and
Clerk Woodruff sWsars that nehrly every one
who pretended to be victim OF the Ku Klnx.
or claimed to have suffered persecution be-
cause OF his politics. obtained one OF them.
The contingent fund was drawn upon for
supplies" and certificates varying In amount
| frou, $500 to $4,000 were Issued against it,
These we're qualification certificates Issued to
harmonic the friends" as the. leaders were
called. At one session the Senate issued
$3.50, 900 OF them, which were defended as only
| The issue Of q flight between the representa-
lives Of the people and the vultures OF the
bond ring"
The legislative report gives some Of the
forms In which these pay certificates were de-
1nanded
i. j. Moses, Speaker of the House, for in-
stance, writes. November 23. to Jones, Clerk
of the House, tn send by bearer, before 10
'I will not ask for more" he adds.
Again he writes, january 10. 1878:
Nv Dear Osceola-P Please send me, by bearer
M for 1920 q e. fay9r oi + E. pna M l.
$500 Ia favor Of Hardy Solomon. for ..sundriss
furnished and oblige r. j. MOSES. a,lsss gn;
And again Hurley sends memorandum as
| follows.
Frankxz These are the eusses. Make an order
Norg1Oharles Rsde. David .. Cooper, An
drew Smith. msssengers; John b. Turner. Amos
| Barms, Elias Woodrow, clerks.
| This memorandum Moses sent to Jones,
with the following comment.
Dear .tones-Please fix the within for our
friend Hurley. Sincerely. MOSES.
And here Is still another note:
Dear Oseeola-Please make me out a eertiA-
| cate for my pet. Sincerely yours. II. j. M.
The largest transaction In the pay certif-
cate line was between Senator Patterson and
T.. J. Moses. Patterson proposed to pay
Moses $4,000 for $4,000 pay certificates to be
signed in blank. Moses accepted, received
the money signed the certificates and gave
them to Patterson, who returned them filled
out in the handwriting. Of r. 8; Jacobs,
cashier OF the South Carolina Bank and
Trust Company and drew the cash. Twelve
of these Moses identified. They vary in
amount from $s43 10 to $2234 rs, and are all
payable to fictitious persons for services
never rendered. They were paid to jacobs
, and credited ON the books OF the company to
Patterson. The confession OF Moses is cor
. roborated on all points relating TO these war
rants by the then Clerk q the House Jones.
came to Columbia from n distance even other
States, and, after spending q day or two with
friendly officials, drew legislative pay certi-
ficates and left. During one session eertifi-
Gates were issued to Ats com mittee clerks, and
to more than 400 other servants oil the General
;yad IN, lo IN ond cmpInved tTha amount Df
ln.u ~ NV ,,sa ssmu T. ~ esss xuos 81 tee
issueu a., ,s snG nos ses,sy Wt. @
/ 255 Ii. Allowing $ll2,ooO US egi,LlInasg M ex-
penses (Sl0296O as the legal per nierm M hiloW-
! anee and mileage oil members, ana Sfzoao lot
employees and incidentals), IT will be seen that
during that session S9g5255 16 were taken
from Che treasury for the avowed purpose OF
Ieuf ts th '' ,,nst T., srast;nD ,ort;on of
IIup'.u W s''e ,'osy ,s,,,,iiantin' .as;as ~
the report ~ tlie puoi.esl.,un " SeloJ ", ".
exJracCS from the pTiVAbs .infy " 'pSstpn.us p.
Woodruff, who was the Clerk OF the Senate,
one Of the members OF the Republican Print
Ing ig Company, , and paymaster. general Of the