Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1889-11-22
TREASURY WORK.
now MONEY Is DISBURSED BY
THE UNITED STATES
The Method OF Making Payments
out of Uncle Sans Big Cash
EoN Observation-Disclosures
ana Postal Moneys.

When Congress has authorized n pay
, hiciit for amy purpose tie Sccre,ar
promptly advises the Register thereof
ana directs him to make an entry OF tn
amount on his books undcra proper head
ihg. that 1T may be drawn against Il
needed. This done, the Treasury j
ready to pay anv claimant The sum du
him out of H. appropriation, and if til,
Comptroller has received from the Audi
tor, approved and in proper form, :
c'aiih iiade thereon, l!c will, if he see.
no objection to paying ii, ask the Sccrc
tary TO issue his warrant upon The Treas
nrer in favor Of the claimant for til,
nmount stated. \ warrant will consc
qncntly issue. but it will first 90 to the
Comptroller, that Inc may minute il on tn,
account, then TO the Register, who vii
charge the amount ia Inc claimant and [,
Inc proper appropriation, enter il in til.
general account of expenditure under the
proper classification, then scnd it to the
Treasurer, who will pay the claimant rs
directed, obtaining his receipt thereto,
on the warrant, or on Il check issued in
his favor, and then send warrant and re-
rcipt 10 the Auditor Us Il credit voucher
Tor moneys paid out. Thus this pay
warrant, like the covering warrant, be-
comes the authority for the needed eli
tries OF the amount, and ends its course,
as did the covering warrant, by becom-
ing credit voucher in an account of
moneys paid.
lie number of warrants issued annu-
lilly is aoouL $4,000, and to prepare.
sign, and properly examine and enter
them involves no little clerical labor.
But to pay every public cre<iitor in this
way would require millions OF warrants in
stead of thousands, and to avoid such labor
nd consequent delay moneys are dra s;n
III bulk upon warrant i'll favor of some
discussing officer, and placed in his hands
to distribute among the claimants upon
their receipt therefor. As guarantee.
however, the disburscr is required to
give bond, with surctics, to the Comp
lr@.lcr, for the proper disposition of the
money. Although in this way the claim
ant gets his money without delay, the
Treasury rclaXes no vigilance in lis scru-
Tiny Of the payment, and if voucher
rendered is found insufficient in any w::>-.
lis amount is disailowcd, and the officer.
or his bondsmcn. must make good any
loss the Government has sustained throu~;,
the unfortunate TRANSACTIONS.
OF what payments tie Officers can
properly make, tie Auditor is advised
by law, regulations or by other sources
independent OF the ,;isljnrsing officer.
and there is no escape from his vigilance
II payments have bcen made to the army,
the Auditor has been furnished with the
lniis;cr-rol!s; il to pensioners, with Il list
VI pension certificates issued; il TO IL con
tractor for constructing II building C Il
war vessel, VITA Il copy OF all contracts
and agreements pertaining 10 The matter
md IL the discussing officer does not
keep himself equally rs we'll informed rs
to the Law and regulations governing the
disbursement as does the Auditor. he will
quite likely some day ply, dearly for his
Ignorance. Every year 5000, 900 of
these vouchers are received ut tie Treas
ury, and in case OF ray-rolls, hundreds
ol names are sometimes upon one vouch-
rr. Every item is, however, subjected
10 Il searching Inquiry rs to its correct
ness III every respect, and to avoid posi-
bic chances OF wrong, the Comptroller rs
well rs the Auditor examines the voucl-
ers, thus duplicating the work; We: every
Item Is passed on, the circwlatious neccs-
Yary are verified, and the work completed
in due time bya section of the clerks per-
tanning to the Treasury.
Then fo"r times every year the fifty
thousand holders IF Tie public deb, want
The interest due them. The Register has
record of these bondholdcrs, where they
live and how much each one holds. He
therefore, by the direction of the Secre-
larry, sends u schedule of them, near the
close of each quarter, to the Treasurer,
who, by same direction, draws IL check in
favor o; eacl holder for the amount due.
payable at the New York or other Sub
Treasury Office. Then puts the fifty
thousand checks into the same number of
envelopes and sends them by mail to
their respective owners. When paid,
these checks are returned 10 the Treas
urcr, Cancelled, and lie wants credit for
their amount. So he sends them proncr
ly listed for that purpose to the Auditor,
10 whom the Register has already furn-
Ishcd Il duplicate schedule of the. i. Sue.
and with this schedule every check must
be verified before the credit asked is
given. Many of the checks, perhaps ten
thousand, are paid upon powers Of attor-
ncy 70 persons not named in the schedule
or checks but the Auditor has every such
power OH file, and he carefully examines
it to see that no amount has been wrong.
fully paid. One quarters work is hardly
done before another comes, and the cease
less routine is repeated.
Then there are $4,000 Postmasters,
each one of whom collects aud disburses
more or less revenue, and 5000 of them
issue and pay money and postal orders.
The Postoiiicc revenues are collected by
the sale of stamps. The Postolsicc De
partmcnt issues these stamps to the sever
I'll PostmastcTs, notifying the Auditor Of
the Treasury OF the amount sent to every
Office, and this Office must sec that OF
every stamp sold the Government gets
the proceeds. The moneys received arc
not turned into the Treasury like other
MONEYS. but are Immediately noi1 out