New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-10-16

Secretary Window, and that it resulted
IN no discovery to warrant the recent
slanderous attacks upon Senator Sher-
man. Senators Ingalls, and Garland will this
week continue the preparation of bill embody-
ing National Bankrupt Law. The practice of
periodically changing the stations of signal OBJ
servers will be discontinued by General Hazen
TRIBUNE correspondent makes an interesting
! statement respecting the sums Of money saved
to the Government through the ignorance or
| carelessness of individuals.
UNCLAIMED SUMS OF MONEY.
HOW THE GOVERNMENT HAS GAINED BY THE loss
AND DESTRUCTION OF FRACTIONAL CURRENCY
AND BY TIE FAILURE OF PERSONS TO MAKE
THEIR CLAIMS.
Try TELEGRAPH TO TIE TRIBCSE.l
WAsHNGToS, Oct. 15.-It wond be interesting to
know what amount the Government actually saves
each year. through the loss and dcs ruction of its
notes, bonds and other obligations held by ndi-
viduals who never claim indemnity, who under
the circumstances barred from collecting such
claims. Ia June, 1850, there was still outstanding
over $lj coo 900 of frac iunal currency, although
Congress had provided in 1876 for the redemption
and destruction Of all such currency. Secretary
Sherman thoroughly convinced that a large
proportion of this currency would never be pre-
scutcl for redemption that, in the public debt state
mcnt for june 1850 he by stroke Of his pen wiped
ont over SsOOO,00O Of tho indebtedness of the
Government on thi, account lie left as the amount
outstanding. and which would probably be pre-
sentcd for redemption, the SUM of $I21i,95L
From that date 20 October l. 1881, only $1lG39J
WAS presented for redemption. This at the rate
of about SOB 900 year and n that rate the last Of
the 81 2l4gjl will not be redeemed until the year
1853
There is another still more interesting fact of
similar nature. The money order system Of the
Post Office Department was established seventeen
years ago. During the last few years the business
has been very heavy, and yet, notwithstanding all
the guards thrown about it, and in spite Of the mi
nutrncss and particularly of the instructions to
sendcrs and receivers Of such orders there has al
really accumulated in the United states Snb-TrcaS
ury at Ncwiork about H20OO,OOO, being. 1t is
understood the amount of unclaimed orders at the
Ncw-Yurk city Post Office alone. II Is said that
much of this money has been unclaimed for years,
and it is believed that at least onc-half of it never
Will be claimed. IL IL quite probable that If the
facts wer' asccTtaincd II would be found that sim
liar accumulltious Of unclaimed funds would he
found -, the post offices Of all the larger cities IN
the United states What shall bc done with this
money Is question winch Congress may think it
worth while to decide at ITS next session.
SENATOR SHEGlIAN's SLANDERERS.
THEIR PERSISTENCE rs CIRCULATING UNFoUNDED
sIoEiF--rHc REAL FACTS CONNECTED WITH
1IE INVESTIGATION ORDERED BY SECRETARY
WlyD1u-NorHiNG TO THE DIsCGEOT OF THE
Tor,uR SECRETARY.
.rY rLLEsHNrt TO TUc TRtHrNE.l
W.mv4!1S. Oct. 15.-rcuator ShcrInan's slam
dr-i arc an Ingenious class of people and very per-
,i-t.nL Tor months they have been circulating
rcportsth so-cled commltice o! lrcaSur"
clerks had investigated certain matters in the
Treasury Department and had found evidences of
- =.
administrations Of which fraud and corruption the
Sccrctiiy was roglIEut. aud of which h was, in
part NJ least the beneficiary. When after time it
became known that the s'-cJllcd committee had
ceased to investigate and had made It's report to
Secretary Window IL was said that Senator Sher-
man had himself male successful effort to have
the investigation stopped; and, as Secretary Win
lom did not give out the report for publication. the
story was started that senator Sherman had cXcrted
his influence to have it suppressed.
Now that Mr. Sherman has taken the preliminary
steps to have the whole thing made a public as
possible, it is reported that the committees state
mcnt is whitcwashng affair, designed to quiet the
public mind and to conceal the real facts. Senator
Edmunds exercising The caution which has been his
distinguishing characteristic during the whole of
his publc life, having made an objection 10 the i'm
mediate passage of senator Shermans resolution,
the senator from Ohio and that there was an un-
lcrstanding in advance between the two that an
objection should be offered. Why Secretary Win
dom did not give out the Treasury clerks report
for publication he may perhaps sometime explain.
Possibly it because tho inquiry was undertaken
for the purpose Of gaining an insight into the
workings of one branch of his Department. with n
view 10 its better management, and was, therefore,
not q matter with which outsiders had anything
to do.
Rumor has connected the names of other promi-
ucut officials ia the Treasury Department with the
transactions which the committee discovered, and
Of these have taken pains In their own interest
10 ascertain the truth of the matter. They have |
learned that the report contains nothing which i'm
plicatcs them or Senator Sherman in affairs which
are discrcdtHbe or meNplanable II is we'll |
known fact that Secretary Window. as he is au- |
thorzcd to do by statute selected certain clerks in
his Department to investigate the business methods
of the Office 4 Custodian of tho Treasury ana did
not empower them 10 go beyond that While tins |
Investigation in progress 1t was discovered tat
there was no warrant of law for the existence OF
the Office Of Custodian of tho Treasury Department,
and the simplest solution Of the series of questions
at issue became apparent namely, the discontinue |
ancc Of the Office. To have kept a standing COM |
mittec of Treasury clerks at work without any |
definite purpose except to listen to the stories OF
poucnts OF his Predecessor would have been an |
outrage; more especially as a committee so formed |
would have power 10 send for persons ana pa
pers, or 10 compel the attendance OF Witnesses ~
would have been onc-sidcd affair and might have |
been made the instrument of doing gross injustice.
When the report and accompanying papers arc
made public, as they doubtless will be upon |
the passage Of Senat tor Shermans resolution, Con
gress can if there is anything left unexplained,
order an investigation Of matters which Secretary |
Window has not undertaken To go into Up to this |
time, however, nothing has been discovered to war
rant the attacks which are made upon Senator |
Sherman.