The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1879-07-24


cotton cases are now allowed to go before
the Court.
An infamous law, procured from Con
gress by implicated parties, forbids the
owners of cotton to sue the Secretary oftht
Treasury or his agents, for taking away
their cotton, appropriations have beer
repeatedly obtained to pay special coun'
sci for using their legal skill to prevent
owners from getting back their own !!
Andrew Hosmer, Union officer set
tied in Alabama in thespriug of 1865 and
raised crop of cotton worth about $780,,
900. When it was ready for market one ol
the Treasury thieves seized it. The Cot
ton Bureau kept Hosmer out of his money
ten years, took from him one-fourth as
"commission" to the robber, another
fourth as Expenses" and returned halt
his property minus ten years interest.
There were twenty-one supervising
special property agents, and their ac-
counts were ordered to be settled by
Robert E. Preston of the First Auditors
office. In his statement Preston reports
that J. NJ. Tomeny, agent, collected Z, 1853
bales, and sent Draper 5,468; but Tom
eny swore before the Glover committee
that he collected 1850 bales and sent
to Draper II, I'LL, 5,643 more than Pres
ton credited him with in the official settle
ment. Special Agent 0. 81. Burbridge
swore that Preston demanded and re-
ceived money from him before he would
begin settling his accounts; that Pres
ton made second demand, which was
refused, and that hence Burbridge's &C.
counts remain unsettled. The Supreme
Court has decided that the proceeds of
captured cotton are trust fund in the
hands of the Treasury for the benefit of
the owners; but as has been seen, this
trust is isshamefully abused. Millions of this
trust fund were deposited by Secretary
McCulloch in Jay Cookies First Ma
tional Bank of Washington, which en-
joyed the use and profit thereof, while
the owners suffered. William E. Chan
dler, while Assistant Secretary of the
Treasury, caused full list of the cotton
claims to be made out and furnished to
him, and soon after resigned and went
into the practice Of claw" at Washing
ton. The official who made Chandler
the list swore that it was worth at least
$1,000 to its holder.
DR.. John NJ. Woodwork, Supervising
Surgeon General of Marine Hospitals,
testified that under his management the
Marine Hospital service was not self
sustaining, though he had reported to
make it appear that it was, doubled the
tax on sailors and had revenue of over
$3.50 900 a year to support the service
with; that he had obtained from Assis-
tant Secretary Conant approval of vouch-
ers for S2,lO0 extra pay and travelling
expenses for seven months, in violation
of law, while preparing a report on chol-
era, which extras, without law or author
ity, were taken from the hospital fund
collected from sailors; that the Register
of the Treasury's statements never showed
the true condition of the Marine Hospital
fund, the Registers figures being always
better than the facts, and that he was not
allowed to state the truth in his report,
because it would differ from the Regis
ter's, and that there were often many
unpaid bills.
DR.. Woodwork further testified that
there was no law regulating the number
or appointment of marine hospital off,
GERS, and that, though the service was not
self-supporting, he wished to appoint 10
more officers that there was no law for
proper examination of such officers be-
fore appointment; that he had been at
perpetual war with the appointment Of
fee of the Treasury as to who the hospit-
al officers should be; that there was no
law regulating the expenditure for build
ings. 1t turned out that Woodwork,
while protesting to investigate the chol-
era epidemic, had drawn contrary to law
Sc day and 10 cents mile travelling
expenses, in addition to his salary, for
seven months, over $4,000; that the
statements of expenses of the service in
some of his reports did not include re-
pairs, fuel, furniture, salaries of engineers
and frenen, lig hts and water, which, in
1874 and 1875, amounted to $62, COG, and
that hence these statements of expense
are incorrect and unreliable; that the
Treasury had long been in the habit of
unlawfully allowing Communication" in
stead of actual expenses to travelling Of
ficials, thus unlawfully increasing their
compensation. Woodworth's bills above
mentioned were rendered and passed by
the Auditor and Comptroller, contrary
to law, as compensation" for collecting
information. When the Glover Commit
tee caused them to be examined they
were found to be altered from "compen-
sation" to "commuLation, and the words
"for expenses" put in, both in Wood
worth's handwriting. DR.. Frank W.
Reilly, one of Woodworth's assistants,
drew his regular pay from the hospital
fund, and other pay for investigating two
subjects at the same time.
The Marine Hospital at Pittsburg was
sold on Woodworth's recommendation
for $4,000, verbal opinion being OBJ
tained from the First Comptroller that
$4,000 already received from sale of
part of the grounds could be used for
new building. Gen. Negley engineered
bill through Congress authorizing the
sale and purchase of new site. The
sale being made, site was bought from
Negley on recommendation of COM
mission of Treasury clerks, designated
by Assistant Secretary Conant, for $780,
| 600, which, according to the best lnlor-
nation obtainablc, was worth 5000 or
$4,000. Then the First Comptroller dis
covered that to apply the $4,000 for
new building would be unlawful; and
Gen. Negley having got his $4,000 Of
sailors money, the land remains unused.
Woodwork acknowledged that $4,000
had been spent in the service in three
years above the receipts. The bills for
50, 100 in seven months for preparing
report on cholera of fourteen pages, be-
sides his regular pay for services rem
dered as Surgeon General in the same
time, above referred to, were made out
and certified correct by Woodwork him
self, and paid on his order from the
Marine Hospital Fund by the Collector
of Customs at Georgetown. A letter
authorizing this unlawful compensation
was written beforehand and signed by