Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1884-1886, 1886-05-13
THE CONSCIENCE FUND
INSTANCES OF RESTITUTION BY PEN
TENT GOVERNMENT ROBBERS

INSTANCES OF RESTITUTION BY PEN
TENT GOVERNMENT ROBBERS
a Fund which Has Been Steadily In
eressing for Sixty Years. Until It Nov
Amounts to Nearly Quarter Of .
Million Dollars
In the vaults Of the United States treasury
at Washington thsre Is the sum Of gro,
20 which is entered upon the books Of the
treasurer a. Miscellaneous receipts from
persons unknown" and which sums consti
tutes what b known as tho HConsciencs
Fund, as it is supposed to come from peo-
pie who have at some time defrauded the
government and who wish to make restitu-
ton by rcfunding the amounts Of their
peculationA
This conscience fund" aid treasury
Official, ''has been steadily increasing for
axty years, until now it reaches the enor-
nous sum Of nearly t25O,0M The first
money Of the kind received ct the treasury
was $3.50, received In 1897, from an un-
known person who explained in his lstter
that he was refunding for some customs
that he had once defrauded the government
Of Since that time remittances of all
amounts ranging from 8 cents to
ESQ have been coming in. They come
from al over the country, and even from
foreign lands A letter was received not
long ago from q fellow out In the Sandwich
islands enclosing $s7.5O. which, he explained,
was the proceeds Of the sale Of some old
brass he had stolen from an American man.
of-war several years previous at the Marc
Island navy yard The recollection Of his
crime worried him until be had to refund
to ease his conscience
"A great deal Of this money Is received
from priests and ministers, who write that
some sinner in their parish requested them
to send it in During the smallpox cpl
demic in Canada a Catholic priest in Gus
bee sent US . draft for go which dying
Canadian had given him, confessing to have
stolen that amount from the United States
government, but not giving the detaiA
Frequently nothing accompanies the remit
tance 70 indicate what it Is for, but gener-
ally line or two Of explanation is given
CASE OF TRUE coNsCIENTIoUsSEsS
Not long since We received Q letter en-
closing an old and creased SO bill with
note as follows:
"GRIDLKY, Georgy, Febusry L
3'Mister treasury pleas take this ten dolers
it is all have got and have bad it long
time but don't want it no more for my old
man said as how be had stole mule from
the yankees just after the surrender and a.
how he reckin it mite be stealing for the
war was done over with and be did not
have any rite to take nothin from the
yankees no more and 80 l don't want no
stealth in my family and I reckin the mule
warnt with moro than ten dolers for 1t war
a spawned old criter anyway and amt
got no more money your umble servint
".ANN GRAY HIGGS
asp S-My old man died last week
There was a case OF true conscientious
ness. Another time we received letter
containing four 2cent stamps, but not Q
line Of explanation This. believe, is the
smallest contribution ever sent in. Another
letter postmarked at kansas City, was re-
ceived enclosing ten IS bills, with note
saying, This money belongs to the govern
ment' A fellow out in Missouri sent in 81,
with the explanation that he had broken
into a postofice in New York state soma
years previous and stolen that amount, but
having since Joined the Methodist church
he felt that he could not be forgiven for his
sin until he refunded the money.
Two letters were received from men who
said they had been quartermasters in the
United States army during the war and bad
defrauded the government One Of them
RENTED the amount of his peculation, with
interest at per cent for twenty years.
A book-keeper in some Wholesale house in
New York wrote that in making out q bill
for some supplies furnished the government
be had by mistake overcharged go, and
not wishing to acknowledge his error for
fear Of beng discharged, he wanted to pay
back the money.
SOME OTHER CONSCIENCE ITEMS.
ain January we received an official
envelope postmarked at New York, and con-
tanning &, COO in bills, one Of 81 900, two Of
$500, and five Of $780, They were all cut
in two, with a small piece cut from the
center, and the word cancelled written
across the face. A note enclosed ran thus:
@'Here arc 1880 in United States bills,
mutilated % Is to insure the governments
getting the money. Whatsoever q man
sows that shall he reap have sown the
wind and am reaping the whirlwind This
is next to the final payment dua God grant
me speedy release'
I'VE had received $500 from New York
shortly before, and circumstances connected
with the two remittances indicated that
they were both from the same party.
There Is q tale connected with con-
science item Of $500 we once received
A gentleman down in New Orleans wrote,
enclosing Q check for 600, with the
following explanation: He said that
up to . few weeks previous there
had lived an old man at tho mouth
Of Calcasieu pass in Mississippi who was re-
ported to be q smuggler. He lived in q
miserable hut near the beach, and was o.
tensibly fisherman This gentleman who
sent the money, and whom We will call
Smith, was out ducking ono day, and, . Re
were storm coming up, he sought refuge in
the old fisherman's hut He found the old
man very dck-in fact, dying. Smith stayed |
with him all that night, and about daylight |
the old man died, having made Smith swear |
that he would send $500 in bills, which be |
would find secreted behind Q board In the |
wall, 20 the United States treasury. The
man said that year before, while going out |
to his nets one morning, be found q drowned
mans body washed up on Calcasieu bar,
and in . leather wallet on tho mans person
were these bills Some papers showed the
man to have been an officer in the United
States navy. Tho old man buried the body
and appropriated the money, but would |
never use it Smith kept his word and sent
the money in
"One man sent In 800 bill with most |
contrite letter brimful OF remorse and re-
pentance. The bill was found to he q
New York Sun.
A Curious Scientific Fact.