Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1883-09-13
Aancaster fntrIligrnrcr.
THURSDAY EVENING. SEPT. ID. 1888
The Treasury Ring Must Go.


The constitution of Pennsylvania,
which every state officer swears to sup.
port, defend and obey, declares in Sec
Is, Art ix., that "the moneys of the
state, over and above the necessary re-
serve, shall be used in the payment of
the debt of the state either directly or
through the sinking fund, and the
moneys Of the sinking fund shall never
be invested in or loaned upon the security
OF anything except the bonds of the
United States or of this state.' In Sec
Is, Of the same article, it is prescribed
that Z" the moneys held as necessary
reserve shall be limited by law to the
amount required for current expenses
and shall be secured and kept as may be
provided by law. Monthly statements
shall be published, showing the amount
OF such moneys, where the same are de
posted and how secured" Another
article of the same section makes
it misdemeanor for any state
officer to make profit out of the public
moneys, or to use them for any purpose
not authorized by law. The principal
of the public debt must be reduced
$3.50, 900 year and except in case of
war, invasion or insurrection, no part of
the sinking fund shall be used or ap-
piled otherwise than in the extinquish-
ment Of the public debt. At present and
for some years to come no portion of the
state debt falls due, while the money
which is directed into the sinking fund
is very much in excess OF the amount
required to meet all the interest on the
state debt and the s250,OO0 reduction of
the principal called for by the constitu
tion. Besides, the law directs that when
the quarterly balance in the general
fund exceeds S5OO,OO0 the surplus shall
be carried into the sinking fund for the
exclusive uses to which that fund is to
be applied.
Notwithstanding these plain and
unmistakable directions of the statute
and fundamental laws for long time
the state treasury has been run in viola
tion of them. There have been carried
and half in the sinking fund and u
million and half in the general fund,
and while the latter has not been re-
duced to $500, 900, as the law directs, the
former has not been applied to the
extingushment of the state debt nor
invested in government securities. On
the contrary, both have been steadily
maintained in defiance and violation Of
the laws letter and its spirit for the
single purpose of keeping the money in
the banks which have it. These four
million dollars-the interest of which
In bonds of the lowest value would
b, $4,000 per anpum-have been
at the service of the banks. They have
neither been applied to "the payment
OF the debt of the state" as the cOnsti-
tuition directs, nor held as necessary |
nor invested in the bonds of |
the United States or this state" They
have been loaned to state and national
banks, most of them friends OF the
treasury ring. Secured By no means
The state has no security for them. The
treasurer gives $500, 900 bail the banks
give none to him or the state When
the money is called for they cannot
furnish it. 1t IS not deposited with
them, 1t is loaned to them. The Repub
licans propose to continue this regime by
electing Livesy, now cashier of the
treasury. The Democrats propose to put
a stop to it by electing Powell. Turn
the rascals out. The treasury ring must
go.