The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-09-09

which included the last warrant for the payment
of the awards of the Court OF Alabama Claims.
On one former occasion Mr.. Fairchild gned
about one thousand warrants. Tae warrant di-
vision OF the Treasury is now through with the
work of issuing the warrants for the Alabama
judgments, and the acting Secretary of the
Treasury has signed them all. but there is a
blockade in the Office Of the Treasurer. The
warrant division has worked its force from
o'clock A. NJ until 10 P. M. a considerable part of
the time since the appropriation became
available and, by this extra work has
accomplished what it was feared
would require some weeks. But the
Treasurer's force has not been required to work
extra hours, and as the government does not
give the clerks any extra compensation, but de-
ducts every minute from their annual leave that
they are late, there is not great inducement to
work extra hours The Treasurer's Office is fully
ten days behind the warrant division in the prep
aration for the payment of the Alabama war.
rants and the current work of the regular ap
preparation bills is pressing. Owing to the fact
that these bills were passed 30 late this year,
the warrant and accounting officers are unusual
ly busy.
The total number of warrants issued on &C.
count of the Alabama court judgments has been
$500. They have been issued By the Warrant
Division at the rate of over 300 each day since
the work began. In addition to the something
over 1000 warrants which Acting Secretary
Farchlld signed in two days he signed in the
same time 900 other official papers. He has had
an extremely IaOorlouS summer, ana Will un-
doubtedly welcome some relief on the return Of
Secretary Manning, or the arrival of his success
sor.
The fact that the acting Secretary of the
Treasury has been compelled to sign his name to
1000 warrants on two successive days has caused
some of the friends of Secretary Manning to in
Quire whether it will be possible for him to re-
turn to his desk and do the merely manual
work, in the way of attaching his signature to
all warrants for the payment of money, AS re-
quired by law. It is evident that Mr. Manning
will not have the physical strength to do this,
and the wonder is why the law which requires it
Is not modified. But Mr.. Manning can return TO
his duty and be the actual although not the
nominal head of the Treasury. and not perform
this merely perfunctory routine clerical work.
Secretary Foger in the latter part of
his administration, was compelled to re-
sort to this plan, and although in the city, and
at his office, he was constructively absent and
an assistant secretary retained his position as
acting Secretary, and signed all the warrants
and papers of that sort, while the Secretory him
self acted as the consulting head OF the depart.
ment. The law which requires the Secretary of
the Treasury to sign in person all of certain
States was as great nation as it is. and before
the Treasury Department had to transact tho
business for $4,000, 900 people. it is possible
that Congress will be asked to pass law appoint
ing an assistant TO sign warrants for the Secre-
tary, just as it became necessary some years ago
to authorize secretary for the President TO sign
land patents in his name. The theory of the
signature by the Secretary of the Treasury is
that he examines all warrants for the payments
OF money. The prictice is that he examines none
of them.