The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-07-23
MATERIAL FOR A NOVELIST.
UnSOlvCd Mysteries Of The Washington
Departments.

!
From the New York Times.
! "Some of the best material for novel
| list that can be imagined is to be found in
! the United States treasury" said a gen
tleman who had been in that department
| of the government for quarter of u
! century Where is it2'' he replied, in
answer to a question. Why, every
where. There is n bureau called the Di-
| vision of Abandoned Lands and Property
! that in itself is one of great romance. Its
history is fuller of the marvellous than
! anything ever written. Why, there are
| S13, 1000, 900 in its charge belonging to the
| south alone. You see, during and at the
| close of the war there was valuable prop
| erty of all sorts which fell into the hands
! of army officers and was turned into the
| treasury Over $4,000 900 of the money
charged to that bureau is the proceeds Of
cotton taken from plantations all over
| the south and sold. The money it brought
was turned in, as l have told you. The
amounts finally became so great that Mr..
Chase, then secretary, created a division
| that should have especial charge of all
this sort of thing.
why, there is one instance in which
| Sl75, 900 worth of cotton was taken from a
! far south estate, when cotton was worth
| about $500 a bale, and sold. The persons
! to whom it belonged were not confeder-
ates, but lOyalists. They haven't an idea
| of where their cotton went to. Their
names were on the bales, and il would
not be difficult for them to make case if
! they knew what / do. But it has been
nearly twenty three years since the
| y
| whether any of them are living now or
not, and it is hardly probable that they
| will ever get what is really theirs. All
! the testimony relating to the case is in the
! possession of the government. The agent
| who took the cotton and the one who sold
| it are both dead, and the owners would
not be able to make their case without
| some proof, which they haven't got.
| Not knowing when the claimants
might make "a demand on the treasury for
! the proceeds of their cotton, the money
| was never used, but remains untouched
| in a fund by inself. But it has been so
! long ago, and the testimony necessary to
make a case valid being in many instances
unattainable by the owners. tits not prob
able that any great portion Of this enOr-
| nous sum of money will ever leave the
| treasury. The only large sum that ever
was paid back was in the case of GAIA
way B. Lamar, of Georgia, then president
| of the Bank Of Commerce, of New York,
which you must have heard Of Ex-At-
! torney General Williams and Gen. B. F.
| Butler got back for him $780, 900 for cot
| ton taken in the manner have described.
! Gen. Butler said to me at one time If |
We're younger and wanted TO make a great
| fortune quickly l could do it more surely
and easily in prosecuting these cotton
| claims than In any other way
A GEORGIAN WHO GOT HIS MONEY.
| "There are no other instances similar to
| this. In 1868 we received S109, 600 from
| government agent for cotton taken from
a foreigner, supposed to have been a
| blockade-runner in one of the seaport
| towns of the far south, Secretary Chase,
| when he had heard the circumstances of
| the case, said This money is only held in
trust by the government, and some day
we shall be obliged to account for it, for
| the United states really has no right to
| keep it. But no demand was made on
the treasury for it. I doubt if the owner
| knew just where it went When the
! Union army under Gen. Sherman Occu-
| pied the South Atlantic seaboard towns
| the COnfederateS used to destroy all the
| dered, and millions of dollars worth
were burned to keep it from failing into
| our hands. The owners did not know
what was burned and what was saved.
! The way we know is this: The books
we often captured showed that John
| Jones, for instance, who was a merchant,
! had so many hundred bales marked in
such a way. The bales not burned could
easily be identified by the marks on them.
| In many instances all the books contain
| ing the owners names were forwarded
with the other papers relating TO the
| capture. Where they are don't know,
| but ] presume they are somewhere in the
| treasury vaults
1T was always q wonder to me that.
after the action of the government in the
| Lamar case more southern people did
not attempt to recover from the govern
ment. The main difficulty was in proving
| that their particular cotton was taken
| sold and the money turned into the treas
urY. Then, they didn't believe that they
would have any chancein a fight with the
| United States. But wherever evidence
of seizure can be obtained upon the testi-
mOny Of good witnesses and the sale
| proved, the case is a good one.
UNCLAIMED PRIZE MONEY.
"The cotton cases are not the only ones
in which the United States retains money
belonging TO its citizens. During the war
| the United States navy was allowed large
sums for prize money. Rear Admiral S.
p. Lee, brother-in-law of Frank and
Montgomery Blair, who commanded the
Mississippi squadron, got nearly 5000, 900
in this way for captures, and Admiral
Porter must have received large sum.
But there are many instances in which
those entitled TO prize money never got it.
Every sailor was entitled TO his proper
tiOn, and, while all who claimed their
shares received it, many We're killed or
badly wounded. and were taken home
and died Their prize money belongs to
their heirs. You would be surprised TO
know how much of this money is I'M
claimed
The English government publishes
the name of every person who has any
money belonging to him in every depart
ment of its exchequer Why our govern
ment does not adopt some such system |
cannot tell Yet it stands in the position
of keeping from its own citizens the
money that often cost the lives of those in
whose name it stands. Many a family
would be elevated from poverty to com
paratively comfortable fortunes if our
government would only act honestly.
Then there are nearly $1,000, 600 of I'M
claimed interest on its bonded debt in the
treasury. This should be advertised. and
the same trouble ought to be taken to
find the lawful owners of this money that
is used in collecting what is due the
United States. l could tell you many
curious things if l dared"
A sANCTTMONIOUs SUSPECT.
Good Heaven!' - said an old-time com