New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-11-03
DURHAMS STRANGE ACTION.
TRANSACTIONS OF THE
FIRST CONTROLLER OF THE TREASURY.
ORDERING THE PAYMENT THROUGH HIMSELF
OF DOUBTFUL CLAIMS BEFORE THEIR GER
LITIGATION BY THE COMMISSIONER OF
THE GENERAL LAND OFFICE. AS
REQUIRED by LAW.
IBr TELEGRAPH TO THE TRrBuSE-v

Try TELEGRAPH THE TRrBUSfv
Washington No. 2.-It was stated some months
ago I'm these dispatches TO The Tribune that there was
q controversy going between the Commissioner
of the General Land Office, Mr. stockslager, and some
Treasury officials relative to the custody OF certain
vouchers Of payments OF accounts made by the ater
officials of which important documents the Accounts
Division of the General Land Office was the customary
and only proper depository. Fletcher Johnson "
Kentucky, chief Of this division, denied the EXIST
cnce of any such controversy and The Ir1ouhe gave
place to his denial in its columns, subsequently In
sstng however, upon the accuracy OF It's nrs STATE
mcnt Of the case In view Of sworn testimony upon
the subject which had been placed In the hands OF
correspondent 1t Is proper to state that no sucn
controversy exists at the present time; II has been
settled by surrender from the archives Of the Gems
era Land Office the important vouchers referred to-
That such controversy should ever have existed,
and that having been begun IT should have terminated
in favor Of the United States Treasury, appears
somewhat extraordinary in view OF the grave and
important matters at issue and indicates, moreover
tho combination of two great executive departments,
separate and distinct from each other, under ths
Reform Administration TO hide the commission OF
crime and to protect the criminal
To explain fully the extreme gravity Of this MATER
It must be borne in mind that in August 1857, Tbs
Tribune charged that the survcyorGeneral OF CALI
fomla returned to the Commissioner OF the General
Land Office certain Treasury drafts, the owners o.
which were either dead could not be found, giving
q list of others which he had turned over to tho
payees. general, Sparks then Commissioner in
vestigated the NATTER and made the startling dis
covery that although, under the law, he audited ths
accounts of the General Land Office, and the Firss
Controller could not order payment of such accounts,
or any part Of them, until they had been certified 10
him for payment by the Land Commissioner stu
Controller Durham had ordered such payments madc'
and that the Treasury drafts referred to had been
~ hem a
in to those In whose favor they had been drawn
1t was found further that these drafts were IN
payment of surveyors accounts, or portions OF them,
which had never been certified for payment py tha
Commissioner OF tho General Land Office, some OF tho
surveys having been thrown out as fraudulent as iar
back as 1870, during the Republican Administration
of Mr. Schurz and others having been already paid,
the drafts In these latter instances being duplicate
payments. Commissioner Sparks addressed. an
official communicate the Treasurer Of the United
states upon this subject calling his attention to thesa
serious Irregularities. At later period william >
Rosecrans, Register of the Treasury, upon request,
furnished over his own official signature, certified
copies Of the illegal certifcaons made by First Con-
troIler Durham Of balances not due to claimants
and which had not been audited and certified
TO by the Commissioner of the General Land ONCE,
the law provides they should be- before the frss
Controller OF the Treasury can, in his turn, certify
to them. 1t is these certified copies Of allowances,
missioner stockslagcr has surrendered and what this
surrender means-givng back TO the United States
Treasury all official evidence of certain frauds and
illegates practised by its First Controller-wiH now
be shown.
Among these Illegal payments made by Controller
Milton J. Durham one for work alleged TO have
been performed by Deputy Surveyor ]. r. Glover,
in the State of California. The surveying OF ten
townships in that State was let to j. X. Glover,
during the Republican Administration Of Carl schurz,
under Contract No. 81 dated May 90, 1877 chageabe
to the general appropriation of the fiscal year 18Th
The work done, rather alleged to have been done,
by J. r. Glover under this contract was disaiowed
by Secretary schurz, April H. 1879, imperfect
and fraudulent. OF these townships, No. IS North,
range 10 west, Mount Diablo MERIDIAN was let to
Deputy Surveyor J. L. Mccoy under contract da'ed
November 90, 1879 Townships Nos. 10 and 90 were
let to Deputy Surveyor W. H. Myrck, under contract
dated November 20, 1879. Townships Nos. 81 and
% were let to Deputy surveyor j. l.. Mccoy, under
contract dated October 8, 1872 and Townships Nos
90, "a and 20 were let to Deputy surveyor L. u.
Gorham, under contract dated November II, 1919.
The rejected fraudulent work OF D. IL SaS
however paid for by illegal order OF Oohtroher bu
snd oes nom the deposits Of that year belonging
TO other contracts and individuals and stolen iiom
after they had been condemned and rejected, thu
amount Of this illegal payment being Ti,s.l ". .,,x
ns hs Scf Ss as sun for Sp'S now gain m
The attorneys of }. X. Glover ana demand recon
sderaon and payment OF his claim, rejected by SEE
rotary schurz. What has become Of the money drawn
in May 1856, for the payment OF bis Clam ing
official transcripts furnished TO the General Lana
Office by Register Rosecrans, and SO goodnaiuredy
surrendered by the former not only showed that
First Controller Durham had taken these old accounts
and placed upon them his certIhcate 10 the ehx.
that, In addition to the sums certified within, Their,
were also due the claimants the additional sum ot
So More than all this, in most of these cases OF
illegal payments these cetifcati0ns OF Durham
added the extraordinary promise that the drafts
should be sent the claimants In of the First
Controller OF the Treasury -
Not only does Mr.. Durham Illegally certify fraudu-
lent accounts for payment, but he directs also that
the drafts In payment be sent through himself DID
CONTROLLER Durham hold powers OF attorney from these
various claimantsl The claim referred TO, and ING
townships cited are, Il is proper TO state, seiected
at random from number of others which have been
freudulently paid, and which aggregate many thou
sands Of dollars The gravamen of these charges
against HIS administration of his great pubic ONCE,
expressly created for the purpose OF preventing ffauds
wifi be at fully apparent 10 Controller DuEhail
MANY WILL WINTER IN C4LIFORNu.
According to all reports from tho West and reeens
VAr fhirA