The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1884-12-23

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he void NJ beliess I'm un6sr aath- He h.d
vuanaasEEed ssssi1ny szEiust Senator Izgais
in TIE mvesGi4afim Il That geutlemxns election
70 The 6snaae ssvss.l ys.zs ago. which "psuved
. lie fru0 bsginning IN end"
Ex-G0Ser1or Crawford, Of Knnsns, and Other
citizens Of Ksunna, and residents at Washington,
sesti1sd unnniususiy shns Nxshsrs seputnsiUu
WIS wholly bad. NT Crawford said that In hin
own 6tAte II wss that Of constituencies liar and
thief, who sad been aided and ceunseaHnced BY
honest people 70. the mkc o. hin kmiiy.
THE FRAUDULENT RL0RIDA CLAIM
Mr.. Linton. chief of enc Of the divisions in
the First Comparollers ONCE, wss called 70 testify
ia regard To the fraudulent claim of the State Of
Florida against the United states for 916,5
referred TO by Judge Lawrence m his testimony
yesterday. Mr. Linton said thai only he or
BARKER could have made out the claim He
himself was cut of the city at the time the claim
was filed. He believed that Barker made II out
from the similarity OF Bankers handwriting and
that which appeAred On the documents. de
said that when he first saW il he thought that it
was Translucent, and referred it to Judge Law
renee rs soon o that gentleman returned from
Ohio. Barker was called into Judge Lawrence's
Office, and denied having any know ledge of the
claim The next day he tendered his reslgna-
ton. Late yesterday afternoon, after the sub
committee had adjourned J. J. Barker went 10
Judge LAwrnce and told him that II he brought
out any testimony derogxtory 10 his BARKER 81
character he would do 30 At his personal peril
This associated press dispatch which
has been going the rounds calls for COM
ment, which we will make below the fol-
lowing extract from Comptroller Law
rence's testimony rs reported in the
Washington Star:
Judge Lawrence opened his testimsny by re-
ferring to the alleged attempt to improperly pass
the accounts with relation to the Florida land
claims, of which some SIG eco was allowed, but
offset BY debt owed to the United States by the
State, amounting to $a740oe The claims, ow-
ing to this Offset, coula not be settled, for the law
required that ia such cases the allowance should
not be paid IN money, but credited towards the
liquidation of the debts Mr. Barker and Mr.
Linton were in chaIg e Of such cases. The papers
were in the handwriting OF Mr.. Barker. In Oc-
tober 1884
\ FORGED DRAFT
for the amount of $16oO0 to be paid to the
agents OF the State OF Florida was discovered
An investigation was ordered. On the morning
after the investigation was commenced, Mr.
Barker, witness said, came to his door and said
1.-THE statement being taken down by witness
stenographerl that he would explain that mat
ter. But ne did not explain. and on the mex
day resigned.
In the first place it is necessary to re
mark that the words 'Fraudulent Florida
Claim" might suggest to some the ide:
that Florida had put IN a ''claim'' which
proved fraudulent but Florida official.
had no concern whatever in the matter
We would explain that the ''claim" o
each State for account of the FIVE PEE
cent. on the net proceeds of the sales o
| L S lands in its limits allowed by [.
law is made out in the [. ;. Genera
Land Office from the returns of sales Il
said office: a draft is drawn on tn
Treasury and warrant is issued for thu
amount, payable to an official or agen
of the State in question, IN satisfaction o
its ''claim," under law, as figured by {
S. functionaries from the returns. In tn
case of Florida, however, the amounts O
her annual "claims" have not been pal,
over to the State, the Government having
decided that as Florida was indebted t
tire United States said amount should b
credited against her Indebtedness. s.
the fraud involved in this matter wa
the act OF the official, or clerk Barker
probably who caused the draft to issu
in favor of the State instead of reportln!
the amount for entry as a credit agains
the States alleged Indebtedness.
As TO this Indebtedness of Florida on
readers will remember the explanation
Of State Treasurer L'Engle, recent,
republished In the FLoRIDIAN, to the effec
that the amount of Florida's debt to tn
nited States is more than offset bv he
claim against the Federal Government
for Indian War expenditures, which claim
has been audited by the War DE
partment and its settlement recommend
ed by Military Committee Notwith
standing this position Of the tinancia
question between the State and the Uni
ted States the Republican administration
continues to ''torce collections" by hold
ing the pitiful sums accrulng from thu
FIVE per cent. on land sales specifically al
lowed the States :. for educational p,rpos
Ga ''fatheriy government" that takes
the children's money