St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1895-02-03
Financial 1nte9rity--t Violate" !" Public and Commercial, Life

and was seeking investment. 1t pre-
cipitated the great boom in the West
which was ready just then for devel-
opment. Fortunes were easily made,
sometimes in day. Everybody
speculated, the dry goods clerk as
well as the capitalist. 1t seemed
such an easy thing to make 81 for
every 81 invested. This mania for
speculation has been the cause of a
great deal of defalcation. Men in
positions of trust, with large sums
of money at their command, could
see opportunities to make thousands
by investing small amounts of the
money under their control. They
would use the money with honest in
tentions Of replacing it as soon as
they realized on their investments.
If they were not successful at first,
and found it necessary to invest a
little more in order to save them
selves, they would not hesitate to
do so, and, in that way, became in
Volyed deeper and deeper. If they
were successful from the first it
emboldened them to try it again,
perhaps on larger scale, and thus
would they be caught at last.
A man is defaulter when he
first uses money entrusted to his
care, whether for speculative or
other purposes. His intentions may
be honest, and most men elected to
positions of trust are honest, as the
world goes, and would remain honest
were it not for temptations put in
their way. Some men cannot resist
the temptations of money. There is
a German proverb, 'Gelegenheit
macht Diebe," which is a very true
enc.
If officers and trusted commercial
employees were kept under closer
surveillance there would not be so
much defalcation; and, in my opin-
ion, directors of banks and other
moneyed institutions are as much to
blame as defaulters, and should be
prosecuted for neglect of duty in
cases where innocent people lose
their savings which they trusted to
the institution on account Of the
prominence of the men constituting
the directory.
Another cause of defalcation is the
great adulation paid to Wealth-the
great desire to keep up in style of
living with people in higher social
Men with expensive habits and ex-
travagant families are always be-
hind, and in debt. They haven't the
moral courage to curtail, but, in
stead, devise ingenious ways of max
ing false entries which will go along
sometimes for years without detec-
ton. They are generally found out
at last
Gambling and dissipation are the
causes of great many defalcations.
Young men especially are easily
led astray, and where they hold
positions where they have the
handling of money, they are
very easily tempted to appropriate
small sums at first when they get
into tight place, usually with the
intention of replacing it when they
get even; but if a man breaks over
once he is almost sure to do it
again, and it is only a question Of
time before he is found out. Gam
bling in all it's different forms is
probably the cause of nine-tenths of
all the defalcatiOns, whether it is at
the gaming table, betting on horse
races or dealing in margins.
The matter of salary cuts no fig
ure. If man is strictly honest and
above temptation, he will live on the
wages he receives, be it ever so
small. It is not the want of the
necessities of life that make de-
faulters, but fast living and de-
sire for money, which they cannot
acquire honestly. Whether a man is
married or single makes no differ
ence in his character. There are as
many married men among default
ers as there are single. if not more.
The best remedy for tbs evil is to
keep a closer watch over public Off
GERS and commercial employees. If
state examiners, directors of banks
and other mOneyed institutions and
heads Of commercial houses will do
their duty, defalcations will not be
SO numerous in future. If you want
to keep man in your employ honest,
keep a proper supervision over him.
No amount of legislation will ever
make a man honest.