Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1883-04-19
WASHINGTON LETTER.
From our REGULAR COrrsspOHd.nt.l


lFTom our Regular CorresDoRdeHt.l
WASHINGTON, D. c., April 18th, 1883.
The work of counting the cash in the
Treasury vaults is still going on and up
TO this time the only discrepancy found
is an excess Of four cents In Uncle Sam d
favor. But the reserve fund has not yet
been touched. When that is overhauled
some people think there will be music,
not that anything is believed to be wrong
in the accounts of ex-Treasurer Gilfillan,
who is man of undoubted integrity and
has unquestionably left things as well az
he found them, but way back to wal
times and in many cases since there have
been depredations upon Treasury funds
which so far as is known have not been
replaced. The money in the Treasury is
supposed to be counted twenty-five
times by so many different persons in
every process of paying out or taking in,
thereby making fraud impossible, it is
alleged-aud so it would be but for collu-
sion. During the war the exigencies of
the public service were such that people
could dip their hands in the Treasury
AMI get out what they wanted; it never
recovered from the decentralization of
that period. The Treasury books are a
mass af erasIons and insertions, and are
totally incomprehensible, except to an
expert at accounts. The simple fact is
that the books will not balance, and the
only thing to be done is to cover up the
shortage by the cuttle-fish tactics of
darkening everything in the vicinity.
The determination to count the Treasury
funds is the surest indication that the
republicans feel the end is near. Judge
Folger is rigidly honest; his position then
may be imagined when he found himself
at the head of the department. which lie
the fountain of corruption. The Treas
ury is packed with John Sherman's fol-
lowers men whom Judge Folger dis
trusts and dislikes.
As is we'll known, nothing like the dis
sensions which are now prevailing be-
tween the Treasury officials was ever
known before. Hitherto they had Sec
retary who winked at fraud and pecula-
ton; now they have one who not only
requires that his principal subOrdinates
shall not steal, but that they shall not al
low their underlings to steal. When
Judge Folger came to know the charac.
ter of the people by whom he was sur
rounded he would unquestionably have
dismissed them if he could, but his hands
were tied. The Assistant Secretary,
Henry F. French, is an example. Not
six months passes that some attempt to
beat the government on the part of this
man does not come to light. Some time
ago it was the paying his son $40 day
for doing some sculpture for the govern.
ment when it was known the son hired
an Italian for pittance to do the work.
Then 1t was for establishing his relations
in the Treasury, not giving them places,
but shamelessly making places for them
according to the revelations of the chiefs
in whose divisions they were. Then it
was for sending bill of his expenses to
the, governnsnt, for attending Ralph
Waldo Emerson's funerat- "a bill which
Judge Folger promptly disallowed. Now
is 1t to be supposed that an officer of
Judges Felger rectitude would permit a
man of that character to remain in the
Assistant Secretaryship of the Treasury
if he could help itp But, unfortunately,
he cannot help it. He is surrounded on
all sides by them. There lie a general
complaint that Judge Folger attends too
much to detail, and both the capable and
the incapable, the honest and the dis
honest among his immediate Subordi.
mates are netteld at it, but from very
different motives. The truth is, the Sec
retary has had cause to distrust so many
persons that he can no longer trust any.
body. This counting of the money in
the Treasury is source OF much anxiety
to him and he will not leave Washington
until it is complete. If there is deficit
it will be exposed by the stern honesty
of Judge Floger if he has the power; but
very likely the same collusion that
caused it has had time to cover it up, for
the present at least. When the demo.
Gratis come in then will strange things be
discovered-but the Treasury vampires
don't care for that. "After us the
deluge," say they.
It is evident that when the national
debt is finally paid off the United states
will be found to be large gamer through
the destruction and loss of its paper
promises to pay. Every month the debt
on which interest has ceased, and for
which no one claims payment, increases,
until there is now lying in the
treasury IItdTly tlONCu AuitiAOho Va uh
claimed principle and interest. which
has accrued at various dates from 1887
and earlier down to December %, 1889.
OF the $40, 100000 of fractional paper
currency issued during and since the
war, $15, 1886, ,512 are still outstanding, and
redemptions have almost ceased. By
act of Congress passed in 1879, $S.373.'
934, which it was estimated had been
destroyed, were declared cancelled and
entered as paid on the Treasury books.
A more correct estimate Of the govern.
ment gain from this source would have
been $15, 200, 900, or more than thirty per
cent. of the amount issued. The gov
ernment gain on the $346. .OOO, GOO legal
tender notes will doubtless be very large,
though a much smaller percentage than
in the case of fractional currency, where
the wear and tear were very great.
Whether the government or the banks
will eventually receive the benefit aris-
ing from lost and destroyed bank curren.
cy is point not yet definitely deter
mined, but it seems reasonable that for
the currency lost while in the possession
of the people, the people themselves,
through the government, should receive
what benefit shall finally accrue on ac'
count of this destruction. PHoNo.
tFrom Saturdays Bee.l