Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1883-08-30
ABOUT DEFALCATIONS.

Defalcations are not epidemic Gs the
| exposure of so many succeeding each
other would imply. Disasters i'm the
stock markets bring them TO light, and
the disordered condition of the mark
cts which strikes one man who has
been using other people'sInoney strikes
Others guilty of like illegal practices Mt
the same time, and exposures growing
out of the same cause, startle people
because the number Of defalcations
are grouped in point of time, and many
come TO believe that crimes are cpl
demic.
Can crimes Of this charac cter be pre-
vented? 1t is question which many
efforts have been made TO solve. Laws
have been enacted 10 punish then.-
But the total inadequacy OF those laws
is discovered every time there is n bad
break in the speculative markets To
what extent employers are responsible,
by reason of negligence and over-con-
fidence, for defalcations OF their en-
ployes has been frequently discussed
and always with the same divergence
of opinions. No two can agree upon
il. Without confidence the business OF
tile world would couie TO stand still.
Tie farmer who sends his wheat TO A
lar-away market must cohfde it TO the
custody OF one or many. SO it is with
transported. Temporarily they go out
of tie hands OF their owners, into
those of others VINO must in the nature
Of things be trusted with their custody.
Just so it IS With money deposited in
Lauks, in private s-fe, or in the c5~h
drawers Cf stores. ir H. impossible, cV-
cept by doing business IN the itrroN-
'st and most primitive Of ways, that il
shall remain always and only in the
hands Of it's owners. Clerks, cashiers
and relatives rfust have access to X,
nave he handling of il or have the
custody of il. And when lie inton.
ceiyaby great values which are ,hrs
coi flGcd are consd, rec, it is really
wcnGsrful tlat breaches Of trust NJ,
20 few and insignificant in proportion
10 the whole.
The defaulters we hear of. they arc
one in 80, 000 or more; but Of the so,
ron f,;tI,f,,I ,yn ham pot biu,, onI fool
ish people take the one faithless as al
indication of criminal degeneracy OF
the age and cry out against it. This il
nonscnsical. The values in the hands
of persons other than their owners was
never so great as now. In fact they
are many times greater than they were
| 80 years ago. and yet it is doubtful il
the number of defaulters yearly is any
greater than it was half century
back
Defalcations now may be and Prob
ably are greater in amount, but that
= arises from the increase in the number
of great bulk sums, and in opportuni
ties for losing money in speculations
) There is no doubt, however, of this
, that defalcations now arc more hurtfu
; to public morals and 10 the commerce
? Of the country than they were fifty
Z years ago. The knowledge of defal
cation was limited to narrow circle
now every one of them is made know
to every part Of the country.
And our greatest modern defalca
tions come upon us at time of none
tary arrangement, shaking confidenc,
at moment when confidence is mos
needed
For public security some means wis
er and more effective than any now il
use should be devised to check the ma
Hia for speculoting on other people
money. Can persons entrusted wit
the custody of money be prohiOite
rom speculating i'm stocks and bond
from speculating on any Of the c'
changesl II such prohibition can b
ut upon them a fruitful source {
shortness in cash accounts will be drie
M -Detroit Post and Tribune