Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1890-11-07
STOLE FROM TIE NEEDY
SCANDAL IN REGARD TO rHr
JoHNS1 OWN FUNDS.

'S%NOAL in REGARD TO THE
JoHNS1 OWN FUNDS.
new Sor'' Paper Claims that of til,
FIVE htl"n "l ars ka;sed to Help III.
s"h"refs rom the Great sloutl in Ill.
S""ema"sh Valley. a bird o! 1t Wa.
nAisapprOpria,
lNo York di,patch.
Under a johnstown, "a, date the
!ertt.0 prints o five-column expose of
ne manner in which the charity fund
100000 for the relief of the flood suf
r9rs was placed at the mercy of con-
FACTORS and supervisors, clerks and EN-.
oloyes. Following are the leading para
5raphs in tue HerUtds expose:
The great flood at Johnstawn. Pa. &C.
cured May 81, 1889. 1t involved the loss of
upward Of 1900 human lives and the de-
structlon of $9,O00,00O in value of indiyid-
ual property. Itleft $4,000 survivors home-
less and temporarily destitute, many of
them crippled or Frustrated by exposure
and suffering.
The sympathy Of the civilized world wa,
aroused by this frightful calamity, and
within few days nearly $4,000, 600 was
contributed in money for the ralief of these
0nfortunates. besides other millions in pro.
visions, clothing. and general supplies.
Three million six hundred and sixty-four
thousand six hundred and twenty-seyen
oolAars ana seventy-seven cents Of this
magnificent contribution was given as n
general fund. to be distributed without
limitation or restriction for the Immediate
relief OF the sufferers.
OF this vast sum the afflicted people were
permitted to receive but s.. 225. 1857 in money.
The remaining sum of S1,43S,75O was
variously alienated in passing from tho
Sl50.0O0 OF 1t was appropriated by the State
Government. Two hundred and fifty thou
sand dollars was appropriated without au-
thority, to relieve distress in other parts of
the State. Seventy-fve thousand dollars
was appropriated to build elegant per-
manent bridges year and a half after the
disaster to replace temporary ones previous
ly provided from this charity fund.
Forty thousand dollars went to pur-
chase new steam fire engines for
the municipality Thirty thousand doll
lars Was expended during the present year
in exhuming the buried victims Of the flood,
gathering them from tho several burial
places in the valley and reburying them in
q grand cemetery; and other thousands are
to be paid for monument already ordered.
Forty thousand dollars was set apart 10
establish permanent hospital after all the
injured by tho flood had been discharged
from medical or surgical care. An undo
termined or unannOunced sum is appropri-
ated to defray the cost of writing and pub
fishing history Of the great calamity,
upon which a professor in the, University
CT Pennsylvania is now engaged.
Other thousands were squandered among
contractors, superintendent, overseers and
clerks.
The record is one replete with evidences
of maladministration, political corruption,
robbery and jobbery we'll calculated to heap
disgrace upon the State of Pennsylvania
and discourage similar demonstration of
public generosity should an occasion for its
display ever again unfortunately occur.
The Herald then proceeds to show that
the fund of $1,000, 627 was increased to
S4,211, O69 by contributions from rail.
roads, churches, secret societies, ETC., to
say nothing of food, clothing, lumber,
medicine and other nccessaries. The
article continues:
Following are the contributions Of few
of the great cities: New York contributed
$623,976;, Philadelphia, S4S6, COG; Pittsburg
contributed S255,569; Boston contributed
$780, 63: chicago contributed $3.50, 573.
And now as to the disposition OF the money.
No nttGmpt will be made to show the dis
bursemdnt OF what may be called the pri-
vate funds-those contributed through The
churches, the fraternal societies, the rail-
road companies, and the Cambria Iron Com
pany, and other similar agencies but will
deal only with what may be termed the
public funds-those contributed for gens
eral relief. These, as already shown.
amounted to S3,664,627. That money was
contributed from the four quarters of the
globe for the relief of human suffering and
distress Not one penny Of it was given to
the great State OF Pennsylvania to aid it in
discharging an unusually onerous duty.
Nor was any part of it given to aid in
building bridges, to equip a fire department,
or to improve its public parks. None of it
was intended by its donors to build monu-
ments or to endow hospitals for the benefit
of sufferers by possible future calamities.
Twelve days after the horrible tragedy
and when it became manifest that an inn
mense sum Of money would be contributed
for the relief of the sufferers Gov. Beaver
created commission to acquire control of
this fund and manage its disbursements 1t
had no representation from the New York
committee and none from the Conemaugh
Valley, where the distress existed. This
fund of $3,269, 167 passed under the Commits
sioners' control. The books show that but
$2,225,877 ever reached the hands of the
sufferers of the Conemaugh Valley for
whose relief alone it was given. This as
founding statement, taken directly from
official sources, shows an apparent aliena-
tion of 81, O43,31O of the money.
The next material item going to make up
this great shortage is money expended for
supplies The Commissary General of
Pennsylvania, who personally superintend-
ed the distribution of food supplies after the
State took charge, in his official report esti-
mated the money value Of the provisions
and the clothing donated at S1,250,000, and
yet with such showing Mr.. Kremer reports
the disbursements of the commission for
supplies as s61, 500. sc. And added to this
Mr. Kremer reports a further expenditure
of H43,931, which he says was for labor in
handling supplies and the hire of teams in
transporting them. In addition to this the
local Finance Committee charges $5,515 ex-
pended from its funds for supplies, making
q total of s110,9S0 charged to this account.
The next item of disbursement the COM
mission reports is for "buildings, rent, and
labbr on buildings, S1T9,033." This opens up
ondof the greatest scandals of the adminis-
traton of this trust, regarding which the
correspondent has ample data to establish
the most fragrant jobbery and robbery.
Hid for the burial Of the dead and for
the.removal of the dead to "Grand View,"
including the purchase of the plot and
thehppropriation made for improving the
groAnd, and for purchasing headstones,
S3O|ts5.
This item the Herald criticises as
wrkngful, because the victims were all