Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1880-04-07

A Sort OF supplement- To- the heporU 10 IAe
Governor-Bank Securities Inadquate fol
the Deposits Mayor Dawson's Cutting
Remarlx-The Usual Batch of Road Pc
titiOns.
The county commissioners held their April
meeting yesterday.
The usual number of petitions for roads an6
road repairs in the county were presented.
KNOX REDIvIvUs.
The followinglscreed was read from Exam
liner Knox:
STATE OF MINNESOTA,
OFFICE OF PUBLIC EXAMINER,
ST. PAUL, MIMI, Feb. IL, 1880.
Hon. VIVA Dawson, Chairman Board of Com.
missioners Ramsey County:
DEAR SIR: Allow me through you respect.
fully to call the attention of the board to few
points, the better guarding of which will pro-
mote the public interests you have in charge.
l. The first is the manlfestly unsafe oundi
ton of the books. records and other documents
in the financial offices of the county. As you
are aware those in the office of the Auditor are
so scattered as to be beyond his immediate and
constant surveillance or that of his deputies,
and it is quite possible that documents OF
records of great value may be abstracted and
in the Treasurer's Office and especially those in
the Auditors office, can hold but a portion of
the current account books, while the tax dupli-
Gates of the current and all former years, the
tax Judgment books, and other records of i'm
mense value which can never be replaced. are
constantly subject to the imminent
risks of destruction by fire. The mat
ter cannot of course be new one to you, but
feel it to be my duty again to bring it to your
10 ho hat in he
absence of immediate arrangements for pro-
viding more commodious and convenient
places of business for these officers, which are
much needed. Fire proof vaults for the
protection of the property of the county are of
prime necessity, and delay in providing them
can only be INDUCED in from motives of false
economy.
II. It is perhaps on account of this want
that it has come to be the custom of your board
to destroy all orders and warrants paid by the
Treasurer when brought before you for final
examination, thus three times ayear destroy
ing all original vouchers having the highest
authority as evidence. The attention of your
Board has been called to this. as it seems to nae,
indefensible practice in my circular No. 3,
page II, issued on May l, 1879. 1t was there
recommended "that all evidences of the pay
ment of claims be preserved for the term of five
years at least" but doubtless the period for the
outIawry of other claims would be better and
should be substituted.
III. Bonds of banks designated as depos-
itories under the act of 1873. have looked over
with care the advertisement of the Board of
Auditors, dated Jan. 6, 1876, the proposals of
the various banks, the approval of
the bonds by the Board of Commits
sioners, as appearing upon your records
and the bonds themselves. find that all your
minutes are signed by the auditor as clerk of
the board, alone, and without his SEAL and
that all the official bonds, with two exceptions,
and all the depository bonds, are approved
alone by the auditor, without SEAL 1t certainly
seems to me that all these proceedings and doc
uments should be signed by the chairman of
the board, and attested by the auditor, with
his seal, thus making them legal evidence
(secs. los, 1906 page 1877, G.. S. without further
proceeding. Many changes have taken place
since these latter bonds were given, and it is
my duty to call your attention to them that
you may take proper steps to protect the in
terests of the county. The act (sec. $50, p.
146, G. S. requires that the bonds shall be
''signed by not less than five freeholders of said
coanty as sureties." The deaths of Messrs. Nc
Quillan and Thompson, sureties for the First
National bank, and of Messrs. Irvine and Culver
sureties for the Farmers g. Mechanics bank
have reduced the sureties upon these two bonds
below the statutory number Changes have
also occurred affecting the financial response
bility of some of the sureties, and l make note
of some of These which ought to have your careful
consideration, and In this consideration is also
to be regarded the fact as to the proprlety OF
stockholders of banks being accepted as sureties
upon their bonds unless it is beyond all cues.
ton that their individual responsibility would
not be affected by the failure of the bank
With both these thoughts in mind, the respon.
sibility of the sureties on the following bonds
is submitted to you for Judgment, viz: See
also the P. 8.
Bond of GermGn-Ansericar Bank for $50, COO
with Ferd. Willius, Gustav Willius
Aug. Holterhoff, P. r. L. Har
denburg and Uri L. Lamprey, as sureties
each having justified to the sum of S25,00(
above the debts and liabilities and exclusive OF
his property exempt By law.
Bond of DaaUSon d Go. for 100000, with
Albert Armstrong, Chas. T. Miller, O. S. Uline
Thos Grace, and l. f. a. Studdart as sureties
justifying to go. 900 each.
Bond of Farmers Dc Mechanics Bank fol
$50, 600, with Geo. Culver, John harrington
Alfred Wharton, John R. Irvine, and Ohas A.
Morton as sureties, justifying to $lO,OOO each
Bond of Saint Paul SGUingS Bdnk for S2O,-
600. with VIM r. Marshall, Jno. s. Prince
r. W. johnson, 81. Il. Brill and Fl. Sahlgaard 81
sureties, justifying to 81, GOO each.
Under the proviso of par. 2. sec. 15O of the
act "That the amount deposited in any bank
or banking house shall not exceed the assessed
capital stock of said bank or banking house, 81
shall appear on the duplicate tax list" the
Board of audit seems to have transcribed it,
legal powers in fixing the penal sum of the
bond of Dawson & Co., at 100000 ('doublt
the amount of funds to be deposited") and II
requiring the treasurer to deposit to the
limit of $4,000, therein. The amount as
sessed to that firm on the duplicate of 1875 al
abated by the tax committee was S3O,OUU, and
it has not for any subsequent year reached the
sum of $34, 600.
". In regard to tie official bonds
that of the Clerk of the Court
is approved in pencil, which would hardly
seem to be the proper thing for a document OF
that importance. The penal sum named IN
the bond of the treasurer / note has beer
raised from $4,000 for the past term to thai
of $1,000 for the term about to commence
Upon what principle your board has fixed thii
amount of penalty it is impossible to deter.
mine. The bond being given as protection tC
the State and county, it would seem to be oh
vious that it should protect all the funds il
the treasury and not part of them. The at
torney general of the State in an official opin
ion given this office on the subject of officis
bonds under date of June 26, 1878 says
''Sureties cannot be held in an amount exceed
ing the penalty expressed in the bond executed
by them. Care should be taken, therefore
and especially in the case of county treasurers
to fix the penalty high enough to cover the
| highest amount likely to come into their hands
officially during the term for which such bono
is given" The bonds given by banks as de
positories afford no protection for the funds ex
cept in case of their failure, every cent SO de
nosited is subject TO the check of the treasurer