The Advocate and news., 1897-12-15
MAKES A FIRM STAND.
Governor Leedy Does What No Other
Governor Has Dared Bring
About.

LOOK the pOSlJlOu Jndl Ine oIdle Oodl
Oil Inspector should make monthly re-
ports to his Office. The Oil Inspector
recently wrote the Auditor that he would
be governed by the Attorney Generals
opinion of the law. The Governor be-
came interested and determined to go
to the bottom of things.
AS means of settling the matter Gov
ernor Leedy sent the following letter
to Attorney General Boyle:
A law passed in 1877 says that GER
tain officers therein named and all 9TH
ers who receive and disburse money for
the State are to make monthly reports
to the State Auditor. Since that time
laws have been made creating new Of
fees, such as Oil Inspector, Insurance
Commissioner, Bank Commissioner and
Grain Inspector, each appearing to have
an enactment of it's own with regard
to the method in which the respective
offices so created shall report. ] would
be glad if you would let me know to
what officials, in your Judgment, the law
originally made refers, and which of
them are governed by statutes since
created with special reference to the
given officers.
Mr. Boyle transmitted a lengthy re-
ply, in which he said:
In reply thereto l will say that the
section you have reference to- | pre-
sumo, is No. 66S3 of the compiled laws
of 1882 which section reads as follows,
to-wit:
"All public moneys received. from any
source except from State Treasurer, on
appropriation made by the Legislature,
by the warden of the State peniten-
tiary, regents of State university, Agri-
cultural college directors, Normal school
trustees, or other officers of any State
institution or department authorized by
law to receive and disburse moneys on
account of the State, shall be turned
over to the State Treasurer on or before
the fifteenth day of each month sue
ceding the one in which said moneys
were received, except at the close Of the
fiscal year, at which time such returns
shall be made ON or before the close of
the fiscal year, taking duplicate receipts
Of the State Treasurer for the same,
one of which shall be delivered to the
Auditor of State, together with the
sworn statement of the officer so de-
posting, setting forth the source from
which such moneys were received, and
that no other than the moneys so de-
posted with the Treasurer have been
received by him during the period cov-
cred by said statement, and the other
filed in the Office of the institution or
department"
fnly ! ic lint CnPn nd
able contention to say that the above
section had reference to all State Of
licers who received and disbursed public
moneys at the time of it's passage. AS
you will observe by reading the same,
after naming certain parties it goes on
and says, ''or other officers of any State
institution or department" Conse-
quently it makes no exception, and, in
my judgment, it now is applicable to
all State officers unless there has been
some subsequent statute in reference
to certain particular State officers which
is in conflict with this statute or which
repealS the same
| find no statute passed since 1877
that is in conflict with section 6683 ex-
cept those that | have already called
your attention to. Therefore | would !
say that said section is fairly applicable |
TO all other State officers without any
qualifications than those above named, |
who receive and disburse public money |
This means that all State officers who |
handle public moneys must report |
monthly on the same, with the exception |
Of the Bank Commissioner, who makes |
quarterly reports under the new bank
ing law.
The Governor wrote the Auditor, ask |
ing what officers complied with the law |
during this and preceding administra-
lions. Auditor Morris was out of the |
city, but the records indicate that under |
the Leedy administration the warden of |
the penitentiary, the grain inspectors,
the Secretary of State, and probably the |