The clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1883-1888, 1885-06-24
The Executive Contingent Fund Once
More.

The Executive Contingent Fund Once
More
Our esteemed contemporaries, the
Yazoo City Herald and the Lexington
seem determined not TO be
concerning the Executive Con
tingent Fund, and still insist notwith-
it is now plain that legal
vouchers are on file for every dollar Of
the Fund that has been expended, ( which
are accessible to any citizen Of the State
that Governor LOWRY has committed
an objectionable sin because he failed
TO make a report to the Legislature at
its last session. Admitting that it was
the duty of Governor Lowry, sworn
duty, if you please, to make report to
the legislature, we desire to call the
attention Of our above named contem-
polaries TO Section 2l7 Of the Code con
corning the Auditor of Public Accounts.
There they will find that the Auditor Is
required at the commencement Of every
session Of the Legislature to make a
detailed report Of the receipts and ex-
penditures of public money for the time
succeeding his las. report The Ian
guage quoted is the plainest Everybody
knows its meaning And yet, strange
. it may seem, no such report has ever
been made. In fact it was never in
tended that a detailed" report in the
ordinary sense Of the word should be
made. For instance, a. will be seen by
reference to any Of the printed reports
Of the Auditor, there will be found an
amount paid out under the head Of
Executive another under the head Of
Legislative another under the head
of Judicial" another under the head
of Appropriations and 50 on; but the
details or items going to make up the
large sums set opposite these particular
heads of account are not given, and il
was not intended that they should be
though the language of the law seems
plainly to require it.
In the Auditors report for 1885,
and 1888, made to the Legislature in
January, 1884, will be found a statement
OF the amount of the Executive Contin
gent Fund drawn by Governor Lowry
for each of those. two years. True, the
statement contains no details or items
but it is just as detailed as the statement
of the expenditure on account of any
other general head. So that the Leeis
iature was in fact apprised of the condi
ton of the Fund.
1t will doubtless be said that a report
by the Auditor is not a report by the
the Governor. But it still remains thai
the Legislature were in possession of tn,
substantial information-the condition
of the Fund-no matter how it &C
quired it. At last, then, the eharg,
against Governor LOWRY must be tina
he did not do what had been satisfac
torily done by another-not only by on,
other but by two others,-sworn official
for the Treasurer's report contained
the same information.
But why were not the vouchers exam
med? some one will ask This we can
not answer for we do not know. TIL
members of the Legislature of 1882 com
posed a body whose duty it was to ex
anime them, and if it was violation
of the law for the Governor to fail t,
formally tender the vouchers,-such
gross violation as is now charged, -thel
the duty to demand the vouchers be
come the more imperative, and al
impeachment of the Governor on thi
account is an impeachment Of the Legis
lature as we'll
In looking over the House Journal fo
the year 1884 we find that the Join
rules of the Senate and House required
the appointment of joint standing
committee on the Executive Con
tingent Fund Up. ~, and that tn,
following gentlemen were appointed
on that committee on the part of the
House: Messrs. CURRE, BRIDGES, Wal,
DRIP, HUDNALL and GUYNEs, and the
following on the part of the Senate
Messrs. EATON, DICKSON and GUYToN
From. this it will appear that the Legis
lature expected to have from these gen
tlemen report on the Executive Con
,tingent Fund; but no such report was
made. Why is it that the conduct OF
Governor LOWRY in emitting to make
a report is more criminal than the
failure of this Committee to make a re.
port? Manifestly the whole matter was
overlooked by the Governor, the Legisla-
ture, and the Committee.
On file in the Governors office in
neatly bound books are the vouchers
for every dollar of the Contingent Fund
which has been expended. These books
are not the private property of anyone,
but are part Of the records of the Exec.
utive Department. They are open for
public inspection and may be seen by
all who choose to look at them. To saw
that these vouchers are worthless and
stand for naught because they have not
been examined and approved by the
Legislature, and that they do not fur
nish the basis of proof that there has
been no mismanagement of the Fund, is
absurd. The vouchers show for them
selves. They are for money paid out on
account of the contingent expenses of
the Executive Department" in accord
ance with the law, and not for money EEK
pended for the private purposes of the
Governor, or for his individual expen-
ses," forbidden by the law.
After all, the cIatter about the Execu-
tive Contingent Fund is worth nothing
except as furnishing the ground for in
ferences prejudicial to the honesty of
l-ovarnnr nwp~ Tboeo a. I'LL