St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-01-14
SILCOTT's BIG STEAL.
Three Reports Submitted by the
Committee That Investigated.


Three Reports Submitted by the
Committee That Investigated.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 13.-The select
committee to investigate the accounts
of the Office of the Sergeant-at-arms of
the house, commonly known as the Sill
colt committee, submitted to the house
to-day three reports and two bills bear
ing on the disposition of the difficulties
that have arisen concerning the respon-
sibility for the loss of members sala-
ries caused by Silcott's defalcation. MI.
Adams. the chairman of the committee,
submitted the majority report, and Mr..
Hemphill and Mr.. Holman submitted
minority reports. Mr.. Adams report
after a short introduction says: "trhe
question is whether, according to the
rules OF plain, substantial justice, it
ought to be assumed that when this
money was passed to ,Silcott by the
treasury teller it was received by the
members themselves. Up to that in
slant the United States govern nent
owed certain sum for congressional
salaries. Did the United States gov
eminent at that instant, and by the act
of the treasury teller in paying, and the
act of Silcott in receiving the money,
discharge the obligation? We believe
that members of congress did not then
and there receive the money due them
The United States government did not
then and there
DISCHARGE ITS oBLIG ALTON
to the delegates and members of the
Fifty-frSt congress, or to any one of
them. Mr.. Adams enters into a long
discussion of the case, giving history
4.
ment of moneys to mem JerS of the
house from the first congress. He holds
that if Silcott was the private agent of
the members TO draw their salaries he
must be held to have been appointed as
the agent of each Individual member.
The report concludes as follows:
Your committee believes that delegates
and members OF congress are entitled to
receive the amount of salaries allowed
them by law for the period ending Dec.
4. 1889, and not yet received by them,
notwithstanding the fact that on the
27th and 30th of last November large
sums of money intended for the
payment of said salaries were by
the cashier of the treasury placed in
the hands of G.. E.. SilcOtt, cashier of
the late sergeant-at-arms, in his official
capacity and in the regular course of
his official business. and were bY said
Siicott illegally appropriated to his per-
sonal use. Your committee believe that
the cash lately in the vault of the Office
OF the sergeant-at-arms includes a sum
derived from the deposit of private
funds sufficient to pay in full the liabiI-
ties OF said Office oil account of such
private deposits, and that said Iiabili-
ties ought TO be so paid" Mr.. Holman,
in his minority report, states that he is
in mi,
pressed by the majority Of the commit
tee that the sergeant-at-arms OF the
mouse is a diSburSlng officer of the
United States. There is no act of con-
gress, he AYERS, that declares him to be
dlSbursing officer, or that places
around the funds that might come into
his hands the
SAFEGUARDS PROVIDED BY LAW
to protect public funds in the hands Of
diSbursing officer of the United States.
Mr.. Holman then discusses the various
legal aspects of the case, and comes to
the conclusion that the sergeant-at-arms
is simply all officer of the house of rep
resentatiyeS, charged with the disburse-
ments of certain funds. He holds that
the bonds of Sergeant-at-Arms Leedom
and Cashier Silcott expired with the
Fiftieth congress, March 4, 1889, and
that the house was without a bonded
disburSing officer when the defalcation
occurred. Mr.. Holman's report is
voluminOus and discusses every phase
of the matter at length. He states in
the course of the report that the men,
bers of the house will, of course, act in
perfect good faith towards the public
treasury. 'lf in their opinion he
adds, 1.-The sergeant-at-arms is dis
bursting officer of the United States,
then it will be held that the loss Of
the embezzled money which was under
his control must fall on the government.
1t. on the other hand, it is found that
under the law he was not disbursing
officer, but only collected from time to
time from the treasurer of the United
States for members and delegates,
money due them on account against the
treasurer duly certified, and that money
thus
COLLECTED WAS AFTERwARD EN-
BEZZLED,
1t would seem to be inevitable that the
loss must fall on the gentlemen for
whom the collections were made. No
technical rules should control in such
an inquiry, nor should irregular meth
DDS resulting from legislation be recog-
nized as having the force of law, Mr..
Hemphill, in his report, holds that the
matter is not one that can be settled by
congress on account of its complicated
state. and recommends that 1t be re-
ferred to the court of claims tor settle
ment.