The record-union., 1895-02-13
ILLINOIS Ex-srArE TREASURER.
Discovery Made That He Was Many
Thnusands short In Iiia Annnnntr


Discovery Made That He Was Many
Thousands short In His Accounts.
ST. LOUIS, Feb. IA special to tho
PreSS-DiSpdtcb from Carlisle, H., says:
When Rufus Ramsey, who died sudden
~ three months ago, supposedly of heart
disease, went into the State Treasury two
years ago he was thought to be the richest
man i'll Southern Illinois. Within week
over $500, 900 in claims against his estate
have been filed, but the most startling is
that five were Chicago bankers who wero
his surety as State Treasurer. When
Henry Nulf succeeded the dead man he
found shortage OF sos, ,539 o2, which he
communicated to his bOnGsmen, who
made II good, but have so 1ar suppressed
1t IN the hopes Of REIN DursemenL OuC Of
the estate OF the dead man. Now BloUnt
and Carl Moll, cashiers of tho two Chi
cago banks, have filed in tho County
Court claims Tor the full amount OF the
shortage.
When the bondsmen fled their claim
in the County Court for S3GS, ,539 %, tho
amount was so stupendous that judge
Jesse Jones refused 10 allow it until fur
ther proof Of its correctness was filed.
This was done on February 9th, when an
ltemlZed statement OF the amounts abb
stracted by Ramsey from the State Treas
ury was put IN the hands Of the court. II
showed that Ramsey had begun tamper-
ing with State funds seven days alter
taking office, on January ., 1858.
The claim of the bondsmen on the bond
which was filed in the County Court is
very simple in language, and reads as
follows: Estate OIL RUFUS E. Ramsey to
John ii. WitbeCk, ct al, Dr., to cash paid
by them as bondsmen tor Rufus Ii. Ram
sey, late Treasurer OF the State OF Illinois,
to Elijah Z. Ramsey, his successor IN
Office, 10 make good the former deficit as
State Treasurer, sos, ,039 o."
This sum will have to be paid before
any Of the other sums can be satisfied. 1t
is known as the nth class trust funds,
| while depOslLors' claims are in the seventh
class. Together with the claim was Il
paper connecting Ramsey with Henry
Setter, the Lebanon, Ill, banker, who
failed SO disastrOusIy just after Bansey's
death. This paper shows that the bank
ing firm Of Henry Setter * Co. owed
Ramsey personally the sum Of SZt3,71 81.
There were also due bills from the NaDau
Land Company amounting to 81, 100. The
three amounts made up the sum which
the bOndsmen were obliged to make
good.
! In addition TO the claim of 1868, $50 81
| made by the bondsmen, claims OF mer-
chants and farmers of Carlisle ana Iron
/ Counties have been filed in the County
! Court, the entire Indebtedness up TO daJe
| amounting to Sl66, 2TS S5 while the estate
! IS probably not worth over 500, 900, in
! Guiding the assets Of Setter which can Ds
| held.
EVERYTHING REPORTED STRAIGHT.
ST. Louis, Feb. I2.-W. II. Curtin, q
| close friend OF Rufus f. Ramsay, the de-
| ceased State Treasurer OF Illinois, had
! this TO say OF his affairs: mo better man
than Rufus Ramsay ever lived, and had
| he lived every dollar OF his indebtedness
would have been paid and his family LEFT
with $50, 600. Had not Henry Setter tailed
everything would have been all right.
Setter borrowed over $4,000 from the
Union Trust Company of Chicago, and
gave security on 1900 acres Of land near
Lebanon. This money came out of tbs
State Treasury, the trust company acting
| as a go-between. When he failed, hls
| assignee filed motion to set aside The
conveyance OF this property, and Uhs
bondsmen, rather than accept security
over which there was liable to be itiga
ton, filed a claim against the State. This
property is worth in ordinary times Over
$1,000 1t was worth that at the time
was accepted, and Ramsay had a right K
do as he did. The law allows a State
Treasurer TO use the money as he pIeases
AIl he has to do is to put it back, This
has been done, and everything is al
straight"