The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-05-27
Allow standard of nroral,,u

The standard of morality among business
men holding public aud private positions OF
responsibility is either becoming lower or
else there has been an epidemic of crooked
transactions among them during the last
year or two. For many months the news
papers have been printing accounts of the
defalcations Of bank officers and state
treasurers, and the staid old city of Phila-
! delphia is just now greatly disturbed by the
failure of two Of her national banks and the
shortage of her treasurer, who also coll
lected in the city the state taxes. The de-
falcations and crooked transactions of these
officials deprive thousands of people of
their savings, and cause loss Of nearly
100000 to the city and nearly s1,O0O,OOO to
the state.
The treasurer Is under arrest at his home
and the president of one of the banks is a
fugitive from justice. The treasurer de =
posted very large sums in the banks which
are now wrecks, and there is no reason to
think that enough will be realized from
their assets to pay a tenth part of their liza
bilities.
When the treasurer of Mississippi was
found guilty of enbezzling the states funds
and the treasurer of Missouri was arrested
for similar offense some Of the northern
papers compared the morality of officials at
the north with that of officials at the south,
and concluded that at the north there was a
much higher standard of morality among
public officials than at the south. But these
northern papers will now admit, probably,
that immortality in business is not confined
to any particular section of the country.
The Philadelphia treasurer seems to have
been mixed up in some way with the officials
Of the two wrecked banks. If he had de-
posited in those banks without knowing
how shaky their condition was there would
have been some excuse for losing the money
of the city and state, but he appears to have
had all the information necessary to
enable him to take care of the public
funds.
What, then, was his motive for leaving the
public money in tbems The only explana-
ton seems to be that they paid him pretty
high rate Of interest, and in consequence of
that bride he took risks that he knew he
ought not TO take.
He wanted to get rich quickly. When he
was SIcdSuToT no llN6Q pain IlbUo
house that would not rent for more than
$50 month, but now he lives in grand
mansion in the most aristocratic suburb of
the city. And it is always the haste to be
rich which leads officials who have charge
OF great financial interests TO speculate with
the money entrusted to them
1t has only been few months since bank
officials in New York came very near
wrecking three banks in that city. and 1t is
source of satisfaction that several of them
are now in the pententiary. And it is
probable that some of those connected with
the wrecking Of the Philadelphia banks,
together with the treasurer of that city, will
have chance to try prison life awhile.
There is too much leniency shown those
who prove recreant to the trust reposed in
them. Too often there is disposition to
excuse them after the feeling of Indignation
which their crimes have aroused has passed
And the hope that they will be excused if
caught encourages many in wrong doing.
If the law were enforced vigorously and
promptly in all cases of misrepresentation of
public and private money there would be
fewer defalcatlons, and a wrecked bank
would be a curiosity.