The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1889-12-18
SILCOTTS GREAT STEAL.
CATCHING MANY REPRESENTATIVES.
Speaker Reed and Mr.. Carlisle Among Those
Whose Documents Are Overdrawn-
Queer Developments Made IN
the Investigation.

house, that the committee endeavor TO as
certain the effect of the defalcation, was
read, and the committee Immediately be-
gan an examination of the laws bearing
upon the subject. There was free ex-
preston of individual opinion, the main
result of which was to more
strongly array the difficulties in the
way of a satisfactory determine
ton of the status of the sergeant-at-arms'
of the house. One of the members of the
committee said that it was decided that he
is disbursing officer. Then a serious
question at once arises as to how the in
diyidual deposits and accumulated salaries
of members are to be regarded; while, If
it should be held that the sergeant-at-arms
Is not disbursing officer, then the extent
of his agency and othervexatious questions
remain to be settled. The special commit
tee will meet again Monday, and will prob
ably have to take further testimony, as
some facts have come to light which cast
suspicion of forgery or other fraud upon
certain transactions had by SilcOtt with the
National Metropolitan bank last May.
The Evening Star has the following:
The developments in the case OF the short
age in the sergeant-of-arms' Office of the
house, while they do not fix dishonesty
upon anybody but Silcott, show an as
founding iooseness in the financial trans
actions throughout that office. There
seems TO have been very little regard for
the fine points Of propriety. As the
testimony appears to members OF
the committee making the investiga-
ton, Mr.. Leedom simply neglected the
financial affairs of his Office, leaving every
thing TO Silcott. 1t appears that some
members were in the habit OF discounting
their notes on their salaries before they
were due, and that some members had
overdrawn their accounts. As far as Mr..
Leedom himself is concerned the evidence
before the committee indicates that he
neglected to count his cash and attend to
the financial affairs OF the office.
Members OF the house criticise him for
this and for the alleged fact that he dis
counted members notes out of the public
money The thing that they most con-
denim him for is that, as they cay. he was
perfectly aware OF the bad hab.. of Silcott,
and vet trusted him in the face of
this knowledge MIR. Leedom and Mr..
Silcott were both fond OF attending
the races and betting. therefore Leedom
knew of this habit of his cashier. and it is
alleged that he knew that Silcott was lead
ing fast life in other respects. This was
known, of course, to a number OF mem
bers. also. and the habit of discounting
notes appears to have grown out OF the
rapid pace at which certain members of
congress were going to some extent, 1t is
thought, in company with Mr.. Silcott.
The moral atmosphere within certain
circles intimate association with the SER
geant-at-arms Office. does not appear to
have been clear. While the thirty-five
notes referred to in the Star some days ago
are alleged to have been forgeries, there
are lot of notes in the safe Of the ser
geant-at-arms which are genuine, and this
loose discount business appears to have
been going on for years. While men,
bers have perfect right to give out their
notes against a sum to fall due them
in the future, there is question as TO the
propriety of their conducting their bust
ness with the disbursing officer of the
house, when it might be fair assumption
that the money advanced came from the
public funds. The committee is under
the impression, as indicated in this report
and by some OF its members IN discussion
of this matter, that these advances were
made from the public funds. and that if
Mr.. Leedom was not aware of this fact, it
was because he knew nothing about the
state of his own or the public finances in
the hands of SillcOtt.
- On this subject Mr.. Leedom states that
the discounting during the session of con-
gress was done with his OVID money, or
with private moneys deposited with him.
not out of the public funds, and that when
congress was not in session the discounts
were negotiated with the banks As to
the presence OF a check of 81. 600 of his
there against deposit OF less than $500,
which the report refers TO, he
saws that he kept an account
there, and that il was an overdaaft, such as
might occur in a bank He explained
that Silcott had in his part of the safe
sum of money belonging to him (Leedom),
and that he deposited his salary with the
paying teller and checked against it. When
he was notified oy the paying teller that
he had overdrawn, he simply got the
money out of his own fund in
Silcott's part OF the safe and
made the necessary deposit In the
case of the One-thousand-dollar check he
saws that when he found he had over
drawn he found at the same time that Sill
colt had taken away the envelope contain
ing his (Leedom'sl private funds, amount
ing in notes and money to about $4,000.
He at once raised the money to deposit
against the note. and still held it in re-
serve for that purpose. In other words,
be says that he actually had more than the
81 coo in the safe when he drew the check,
but that it was in Silcott's possession and
not in the paying-teller's fund.
1t appears from the books of the SER
eeant-at-arms that Mr. Adams, who is the
chairman of the investigating committee.
has overdrawn his account 10 the amount
of SO; that ex-Speaker Carlisle has over
drawn his account to the amount of SIG;
that Mr.. Reed has overdrawn his account
to the amount of 81 ,934 Other overdrafts
are: Cheatham, 500; Cochrane, 81; For
man, S4l6; Clifford, s.; Heard, S346: Houk,
S343; Lee, 81, and SpInola, SAG. In the
cases of Carlisle, Reed. Forman and Houk,
the vouchers have been filed.
reporter made an investigation of the
Gaze of Speaker Reed and discovered that
il was not, in fact, an overdraft, at least
not so far as Mr. Reed himself knows. MIR.
Reed placed his certificate in the sergeant
alarms Office on the 4th of December
when the money was due, for his addi-
tiOnaI salary as speaker, and authorized the
procurance of draft for the amount on
New York A day or two afterward he
got the draft. His certificate should have
been taken to the treasury, the money
drawn and the draft procured. 1t appears,