Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1897-11-28

walt until l could get 100000, and thus
let the State lose interest by having sc
large sum at one time.
II succeeded in getting the loan. pre-
pared four bonds In the usual manner
signing them myself as Auditor OF Pub
| lie Accounts; had them countersigned b!
| the Treasurer. and took them TO Governor
| Holiday 70 be endorsed. Governor Holli
day declined to endorse them. stating
| that borrowing money was one OF thu
| provinces OF the Governor. and that a,
the Legislature had seen ct to take 4
out of his hands and turn 1t over to me
| he would have nothing TO do with 1t, and
| would not endorse them.
II went back TO the bank and Informed
| the officials Of my failure TO secure the
usual endorsement. The president OF
the bank directed me to tear those bonds
up, prepare four others sign them my
self, and ask no one else to sign or en-
dorse them. i did so, and obtained the
10000 without any other signature 10
the bonds than my own. as Auditor OF
Public Accounts.
ANTICIPATED THE NOTES.
ct discovered that there were consider
able sums in the hands Of treasurers OF
counties and cities, and Of clerks Of
courts. which ought to have been paid
into the treasury. / commenced at once
pressing for their payment, and before
the first note for $4,000 was due had re-
ceived enough to meet the current ex-
penses OF the State and TO pay off that
note. / applied to the president OF the
bank TO know what his custom was when
notes were paid before their maturity
and he said that was a case without pre-
cedent. After talking with him for
time. assuring him of my desire to save
the State from any unnecessary expense
in the payment of interest when / was
able 20 take up the note, he agreed that
| might take my choice Of two plans that
/ proposed-either that he should pay me
interest on the amount from the time OF
payment until maturity Of the note, or
that he would deduct the amount from
the payment. AS he had retained the
discount at the time of taking the note,
proposed that ii would be better for
him to give me check for the amount
of interest that would accrue during the
period that elapsed from the payment TO
the maturity Of the note, and let me turn
that into the treasury TO the credit OF
the State. This was done.
Before the second note was due, an
ticipated its maturity and paid it. When
the third note was about TO become due,
/ found that we were short, and made
calls upon the treasurers CT the different
counties and cities to pay in at once all
money that they had in hand. These
calls were not responded to in time to
meet this third note. The president Of |
the bank agreed that, as j had paid the !
other two notes before they matured, II |
I should not be able to pay the |
third note for short time it |
JQ,tf
anxious to pay 1t at its maturity, and |
finding that had not a sufficient amount |
IN the treasury to do so, went to Char
ottesvlle, obtained 5000. and sent 1t to
my first clerk, with directions to go and |
pay that note the next day. He did so,
md left $40 in the treasury.
During the next week responses came
n from the different treasurers / had
,alled upon, sufficient to pay off the
fourth note, so that by pressing these
collections and by paying these notes be-
ore their maturity, / saved over 500 Of
interest 10 the State.
II paid off a large part Of the money
hen due to the public school fund. paid
Ill the appropriations that were made to
he different State institutions, all the
current expenses Of the State, and, at
he end Of my term of office, which was
wo years, I left in the treasury $4,000,
Iaving during all of the time received
large part of the revenue in coupons.
HIS FIGHT WITH MALONE.
There was. l believe, a general desire,
ven among those who had opposed my
lection to the Office in the beginning,
hat ] should continue Auditor, but Gene
al Malone, who had gotten control of
he Legislature, wished to use Offices for
ersonal and political purposes. and
laced conditions upon the holders Of them
hitch I regarded as entirely inconsistent
18th the public interest or with the main ,
enance of proper self-respect. While he
nd those who were carrying out his
lans urged me to accept the authorship /
gain, refused to accept 1t with the con-
itions imposed.
Among other plans of General Malone,
e required those who were willing to I
lace themselves under his dictation TO
gn pledges which were to be returned '
, and kept by him, to go into caucus and
support all men and measures that
light be agreed upon by the caucus.
is caucus rules were hastily read by :
eneTal Elliott anS then signed by it's :
embers, without being understood by
lem. The measures he proposed to have
lssed were such as would have formed l
round Virginia a network which would 4
ever have been broken during the life :
the present generation.
IF my memory serves me rightly, there =
ere about twenty-five measures. pre- .
nted one at a time, each Of which was ),
tended TO place Virginia completely un- 7
n the control of General Malone and a
lose who were ready to do his bidding.
THE BIG FOUR. v
Seeing the danger to which the State a
as thus exposed" said Mr.. Massey, II ~
ganized a force known as the Big II
,ur,' which could hold the balance Of u
wer in the Senate and defeat such O
as / regarded damaging to. or u
stTuctive of, the interests Of Virginia. a
.ese men had hardly anything in COM s.
on; each was a distinctive character u
himself; but all were true friends OF a
ne and high-minded men. They as q
red me that they would stand with me n
d carry out my wishes to defeat the 9
noxious measures that were being pro- .
sed. ei
For about six weeks vigorous at N
npts were made to carry these mea- e'
res through the Legislature, and had W
be on guard almost continually. i | 81
ink / did not average more than four | pi
urs' sleep in twenty-four during the 10
weeks. Every effort that could rea- X
nably be thought of to break up that m
* Four and to draw them from me g
IS made. Men who were under the re
ntrol of General Malone were put on b'
track to watch my movements every
ere l went and to shadow every man tn
II they saw in conference with me.
the mean time, was kept pretty we'll OF
;ted as to his movements and designs. m
onnrnanhnd