The Memphis appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1886-1890, 1886-09-08
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER
The GROWTH OF THE "CON.
SCIENCE FUND.-"
Where Most Of the Contributions
Come From-The Total Amount
Received.
IcoaRKsPoxDEvcE OF rHE APPEAL.I

ceipt by the Treasury Department o.
a contribution to the conscience
fund" These contributions nowadayt
vary from $40 to 5000 or $500. A few
years ago they were much larger
The money came from all parts Of the
country, Philadelphia aud New York
leading in the number Of contribu
tiops.
A member OF Congress visiting The
Treasury Department not long since
and referring to this fact, remark ec
that it showed conclusively that New
York and Pennsylvania were the mos
religious States in the Union. Trees
urer Jordan replied that be did moi
regard 1t in that light. In his opinion
it only showed that the people in
these two States had done the mos
stealing. Secretary Manning, in a rs-
port few months sgo, stated that
the term conscience fund" as applied
to donations received by the United
States Treasury from unknown sources,
had its origin in the popular feeling
that such donations are made by
persons who have at some time wrong
NahCh VI
the United States moneys which
were justly due, and who thus seek to
make restitution TO the government.
The cash which comes in from the
conscience stricken people is on &C.
count Of frauds on the customs, frauds
under old income tax law, or on the
revenue, and rarely from contractors
under the government. The income
tax having been repealed some years
ago, contributions on its account are
very few at present Somebody sug.
gests that the States along the Cana
dian line and the Mexican border
should be heard from, as there must
be more or less smuggling carried on
thereabouts. However, the smuggler
usually DIES before his conscience
awakes sufficiently to refund to the
government any portion Of gains
Ill gotten by evasion OF the Gus
toms dutiee. II is the fine
haired merchant in the great ssaboard
cities who steals from Uncle Sam by
under Valuations and. other devices
known to importers; and under the
influence OF Beecher and Talmage
and other divines refunds occasionally
q small portion OF the fraudulent cash
which has butt up the monument OF
his wealth. Conscience is partly APP
peased-is at least quieted- the
fund is augmented.
The first record OF money received
from repentsnt defrauders is in 1927,
by the Register OF the Treasury, and is
"for moneys received from an I'M
known, stated TO be on account OF i'm
ports and topnsge.p The total amount
from that year until the middle OF the
years 1874 was $l82,9l4, quite re-
spt ctable sum to be returned for the
millions OF dollars illegally withheld
from the government during that ex-
citing epoch. Since then no separate
account OF the! ontributions has been
kept. When Gen. Spinner was Treas.
urer he kept the account separately,
but the practice was subsequently dis
continued. The money now, as II ha,
been for the greater number of years
since 1927, when the contributions be- |
gan, is conveyed into the Treasury as
miscellaneous receipts from persons
and have been used
for the general purposes OF the
government in connection with
received from other sources,
having at no time been distinguished
rom other funds in the general treas
nry. This is undoubtedly the safer
plan. Repeated attempts have been
made by members OF Congress to Sc
cure appropriations for various pur-
poses, to be paid out OF the conscience
Iund. II the money goes into the
treasury as miscellaneous receipts il
ceases to be separate fund and can.
not be iaided upon. In one day dur
Ing the last session three members OF
CoDgrets were at the Treasury Depart
ment inquring about the fund, with q
view Of obtaining slice OF it for some
private bill or other. They were in
formed that the sum had ceased to be
but money in the Treas.
ury," and that II could not be touched.
The amounts received Immediately
after the war were as follows; 1867,
Sl3,559; 1868, $i7,1l4; 1869, $l7, 200;
1870, s9406; 1871, $S74o; 1872, $2997;
1873, $50, SOL; 1874, $S2lS. The year
1868 Yves the great year for ICON.
science" The present receipts scarcely
keep up with the low average of the
peaceful period. The new admins
tration INDUCED forlorn hope for
some months that the outgoing Re
publican officials would become, in
some instances, repentant, and return
some OF the enormous Gums supposed
10 have bsen squeezed out of Uncle
Sam In one way and another during
the past quarter Of century, but no
cash turned up, and everybody was dis
appointed. Finally very bright young
man in New York sent $40 to the
Treasury as contributed by econ
science" This was published in the
papers nearly year ago and the
young New Yorker exclaimed, "Now
just wait for the returnsv" He ex-
pected that the rich Republican
doodle men, II any there were, would
be touched by the incident and yield
up the stolen fruit, but the bait only
caught three or four small fish.
Usually, however, the publication of
one conscience letter is followed by
several Others.
The contributions as rule come
through the mails, with note stating
for what purpose the money is for
warded. Very frequently a peniten-
tial explanation Is inclcssd. Some of
these explanations are very curious
and some very serious. The ladies
used to contribute a good deal when
principally over false re.
turns made under the income tax.
That odious law caused more lying
han any other piece OF legislation in
he history Of our country. Ladies
isldom make restitution for evading
luties upon articles o. dresp. Customs
Dfiicsrs aver that ladies OF all classes
AXE naturally to smuggling in a email
way.
There was lady who visited this
ountry ia 1854 from England. While
lere she smuggled in a silk dress pat
efn. A short time agoshe wrote con-
essing the evasion OF customs duties,
nd sending Sl5 TO clear her con.
cience. She ST ted the value OF the
ress, sand requested the balance
to her il the duties did not
mount TO so much. The Customs
\ vision of the Treasury made a com
{fafion based upon the duties in