The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1892-05-12
MILLIONS OF SOUTHERN MONEY.
Pr"p*riy Belonging to Persona in tho
Confederate States.

Pr"p*r,y Belonging to Persons in tho
Confederate States.
W WASIlINOTON, ID. g., April %
"SOme of the finest material OF the
novelist that can be imagined is that
OF the United States treasury" said a
gentleman who had been in that depart.
mtnt for a quarter of century.
"W here is it?' "Why everywhere
There is bureau called the division Of
abandoned lands and property, and
ma IN itself is one great romance: Its
history is full of marvellous facts.
Why, there are $13,COOOOO In its charge
belonging to people in the South alone.
on see, during 3nd at the close of
the war there was valuable property Of
all SortS which fell into tho hands of
the army and was turned into the
treasury. Over S12,OOOOOO charged
TO that bureau IS the proceeds of cotton
taken from Plantations all over the
South aud sold. The moeny it brought
in was turned in as l have told, the
amount being 50 great that Mr.. Chase,
then secretary, created division that
should have special charge of all this
sort Of thing.
why there is one instance it is said
$l7i,OOO worth OF cotton was taken
from a tar South estate when cotton
was worth about $500 a bale and sold.
lhe persons TO whom it belonged were
not rebels but loyalists They have no
lCea where their cotton went. Their
hancS were on the bales and it would
not be difficult for them to make Vase
II they knew what 70 do. But i: has
been nearly tWentYeight years since
the money was deposited. ! do not
know whether any of them are now
living or not, but it is hardly probable
they Will eyer get what is really theirs.
All the testimony relating to the case
IS III the possession of the government.
The agent who took the cotton and the
one who sold it are both dead and the
owners Will not be able to make their
case without some proof which they
20 not possess.
There are other instances similar tc
this. In 1868 we received Sl09 900 from
Il government agent for cotton taken
III a foreigner, supposed to have been a
blockade runner in one Of the seaport
towns of the far South. Secretary
Chase, when he heard the facts said:
The money is only held in trust by the
government and some day we shall be
obllSed TO account for If, for the
government has no right to keep it.
l'ut demand was never made for it.
1t is believed that the owners never
knew JUS where it went. When the
Mon army under General Sherman
occupied the south Atlantic seabOrd
townS the Confederate used to destroy
all the cotton. if possible, before they
surrendered, and millions of dollars
We're burned to keep it from falling
into our hands. Twenty-Five thousand
bales we've destroyed in Savannah. Ga,
alone to keep General Sherman from
getting it. The owners did not know
what was burned and what was saved.
The way We knew it was this: The
books were often kept with the cotton,
showing that John Jones, tor instance,
who Was Il merchant, had so many
hundred bales marked i'll such a way.
The bales not burned could be easily
identified 10y the marks on them. In
many Instances all the books contain
ing the owners names were forward
ed with the other papers relating to the
capture. Where they are i don't
know.
Not knowing when the claimonts
might make 4 demand on the treasury
the moncy received for it was never
used, but remains untouched in Il fund
oy itself. 1t Was SO long ago and the
money needed, a case that would be
valid III any Instances unattaiu able by
the owners, it is not probable that any
great proportion Of that money will
ever leave the treasury.
Ihe only large sum ever paid back
was in the case Of GaZeaway b. Lamar,
OF Georgia, which you must have heard.
EX-Attorney General Williams and
Gen. IS. +. Butler got mack for him
SoOO,UOO for cotton taken in the manner
! have described"