The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1879-07-31
Continued from Last Week. J

(Continued from Last Fcck.)
At the San Francisco Mint there was
deficiency of S235, 600 in the Meter and
Rehner's Office in 1864 great discre-
pancy between the Treasurer's and the
coiners accounts in 1866, and large losses
in 1870. The Superintendent was dis
missed foreorrupt practices in 1877. Loss
es were also discovered in 1870 at the
Denver Mint and the New York Assay
Office. The New York accounts were
passed by the Auditors and Comptrol-
ier's Offices of the Treasury without prop
er examination of the vouchers, which
were paid by the New York Assistant
Treasurer without the approval of the
officers who should have received the
supplies.
Up to 1870 the Director seemed never
to have examined the New York Assay
Office, and the mint regulations were hard
to find there. The report of the Director
of the Mint for 1877 says lin tables pre-
pared by Martin V. Davis of Philadel-
phia) that the gold coinage under Director
Lindeman, 1S74-7 inclusive, was $685.
100000, and greater than that of any
previous four years. This was untrue.
The coinage of 1S74-7 was !Sl66, 600, 900
$4,000, 900 more) !, and that for 1S51-4in-
elusive was Sl90,O00 900, or S24, 600, 900
more. The Director also fell into this
error of S1O,0O00O0, and understated by
this sum the total gold coinage of the
mints. He also understated the gold
coinage 1854 by S1,600,000. He Sta
ted the total 1928 inclusive at $685.
OOO,OOO;, but his subordinate, Mr.. Davis,
stated itin the same report, for the Phil
adelphia and San Francisco mints alone,
at S247, 100000, over $lS,000,OO0 more.
Thus according to official figures two of
the mints coined Sl3,000,0 900 more than
the whole FIVE! The San Francisco mel
ter and refner's returns of bullion above
the amounts charged as delivered to him
in the same report, thus making the mint
$4,000, 1S54-77 is credited to that mint
twice in the same report, thus making the
mint expenses appear $4,000 less than
the truth.
The New York Assay Office smelter
and refiner, Mr.. Andrew Mason, by
great care and skill saved and turned in
to the Treasury in 1865 $4,000 more
than the bullion delivered him for treat
ment was charged at. These returns
were suppressed from the Directors re-
ports, being Jumped with earnings, and
MIR. Mason was instructed to return
them as such, the motive announced
in the instructions being to shield the
mints from annoying inquiries as to why
they, instead of returning a surplus like
Mr.. Mason, they charged the Govern
ment with waste. Thus Mr.. Mason
was denied the credit he richly deserved
and was in one report made to appear as
wasting $4,000, in order to hide the mis-
management of others. The letter order
ing luis suppression was signed as Acting
Director of the Mint by Robt. E. Preston,
who figures unpleasantly elsewhere in
connection with cotton accounts. In 1876
Congress cut down the appropriations
asked by the Director over $500, 900, but
Lindeman contrived to smuggle in a
provision allowing the earnings from sep
arating gold from silver, and from re6n-
ing both, to be used in melting expenses
without going into the Treasury. The
result is that, every year since, the earn
ings have been spent in addition to the
sums allowed by Congress, and $500, 900
yearly have been expended without Con-
gress suspecting it.
The New York Assay Office receipts
from the sale of blue vitriol and sulphu-
ric liquor in 1873 were stated by the Di.
rector there. at S11, ,360.9l. -Four years
later the annual report stated them as
$5,S02.5. Both proved to be wrong; the
amount was $40, ,S6O.91.
The Directors annual reports for
1S73-4E5 state the receipts aggregating
S2,046,000. The report for 1877 shows
the same expenditures to be 81, ,409, 900,
or over S360,000 more than was acknowl-
edged at the time. The expenditures
are shown by the yearly reports for
1886 inclusive as S5,062,000. The re-
port for 1877 shows them to be S., ,635, 900
or over $570, 900 more; 100000 of this
suppression was in 1876, the presidential
election year. gilmore than half this
$4,000 suppression there is not the
shadow of an explanation. In 1876 the
items Of expenditure were suppressed
from the annual report.
In the spring of 1869, 81, 400 bars of
silver and gold bullion, whose value was
unknown, were deposited in the New
York Assay Office and moneys were
loaned thereon to Bailing & Sarder and
others by Assistant Treasurer Van Dyck.
This was very dangerous, for gilded bars
of lead or iron could thus be used to bor-
row on without interest or security. At
least one lot of boxes said to contain
bullion were deposited and borrowed on
in 1869, and taken away on return of the
loan without any inspection or test.
This practice was broken up in 1869 by
George W. Edelman, Deputy Treasurer
of the Assay Office; bat it was revived
the year after Mr.. Edelman resigned by
Director Lindeman, concerning british
bars and sovereigns," whose genuineness
had not been tested; and it continued
till the Glover Investigation began, when
Lindeman stopped it..
From 1866 to 1870 the New York AS
say Office made 33S such loans, and in
many cases the borrowers returned the
coin and took bars, leaving the Govern
ment to pay for coming the bullion de-
posted to obtain the bars.
In 1878 the Superintendent of the San
Francisco mint sent l.. Won Hoffman &
Co. checks for 81, ,023, 600 under instruc-
tions from Lindeman, when but $4,000
worth OF their silver had been assayed.
Superintendent Acton of the New
York Assay Office has been in the habit
of signing checks in blank and leaving
them thus in the Paying Clerks posses
sion. Last year eighty.two blank checks
were found in the Office with Acton's
signature. This is virtual desertion of
his duty by Acton, for he cannot know
his clerks action nor supervise his pay
ments. A rogue in the paying clerks
place, or thief getting into the office,
could fill up check for million, and it
might be collected and the parties disap-
pear before detection. If necessary the
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