Maryland independent. [volume] (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1874-current, 1897-08-20

under investigation since tDe zVlh or Juhe
last This report In regard 70 NO ware
house is SO misleading IN many particulars,
that deem it justice 10 myself, who as chief
Clerk Of Inspector Naylor had charge Of the
accounts OF sand warehouse that ! take this
method Of making some explanations and
contradictions relative 70 statements made
therein, and am sure YOU will allow me
space in your Journal for such purpose In
the beginning Of his claims Of Irregularities,
this Special Agent states, that on the time
book and cash book for quarter ending jane
30th, 1896, employees are credited with wages
amounting to oveT $3.50 more than they are
entitled to according 70 the time entered.
rhis-statement and tie three Others Of a sitai-
lar character. viz. that Of the cver-pavment
Of SSs 80 10 quarter ending September 30th,
1896 S4s in quarter ending December 3lst,
1896, aud S24 in quarter ending March 3lst,
1897, would, in lieu of any explanation, very
naturally inUife the inference that sach
amounts had been taken from moneys that
should have been paid 70 the State, and paid
ia excess Of the earnings of the labor Of the
house for the quarters in which their over
payments are said to have been made. Such
is not the case, and think Mr.. Tompkins, in
justice to all concerned in this investigation,
should have been more explanatory, and not
rredjudiced public sentiment against those
who we're responsible for the management Of
the warehouse and who did not have an OPP
ortuuity Of defense. These apparent over
payment to certain parties in the employ o.
the warehouse, is in consequer ce Of division
Of salaries among employees. The lnepectori
deputy, chief clerk, shipping au receiving
clerks, are the salaried officers ola warehouse.
All others are classed as serewmen or laborers,
. .a 80 = -. iatt n
per day. If man receiving more thar 50
per day has arranged with man receiving
50 per day, to pay him so much Of his salary
as to make the amount received by each
equal, and the chief clerk who pays the force
is requested to make such payment from time
to tine 1t could not be otherwise than that
the man classed as screwman would show up
on the weekly payroll an amount N excess Of
his per diem, but at the same time, the sala-
ried officers account would show a cores
ponding diminution, and at end Of the quarter
the aggregate amount paid both would be
screwman's wages at 50 per day and the on
GERS salary for the quarter II is the omission
of the latter part Of this explanation, that
gives US grounds for complaint against Mr.
Tompkins, 81 the admission Of which, would
have given the public correct statement,
from which proper deduction Of facts could
have been made The claimed excess
amount paid in the first quarter being so much
larger than those in the other quarters per
haps will need some special explanation, The
shipping a1d receiving clerks, though their
appointments took eject from the time Mr..
Naylor took charge Of the warehouse-they
being salared officers, their names may not
appear upon the time hook uutil some time
after, and presume Mr. Tompkins made his
calculation from that time and not from the
beginning OF our quarter Our payroll for
the quarter shows amounts receiped for by
these gentlemen from the beginning of Nj.
Naylor ilcumbency. A great deal is said
in the report of this investigation, Of the diff
ference between the number of names appear
ing on the time book and those on the paw
roll for the quarter 10 other words the
quarterly payroll is somewhat condensed
form of he time book. Such is the case, and
for reasons which not only prompted our &C
ton, but which must have manifested them
selves to those who had charge n the ware
houses i'll the past, as it was done then and
must be done in measure in the failure In
the very busy season when large force Of
day labor is necessary on. certain days when
the receipts Of tobacco is large, men are EN-
ployed whom you may not see again during
the quarter, having been paid for their time
by some one who will advance the amount
due them. When the quarterly payroll is
made up it is impossible to hunt these men,
bnt such time made is added to that Of some
one who knows such labor to have been per-
formed and paid Tor, and, who accepts the re-
sponsibIlity OF signing for same This may
b. an irregUl rity, but it is warehouse Gu :
tom, which must oe practieed to u certain ex-
tent from the necessity Of circumstances, and
without any intention Of working injustice to
either the State or individual as the aggre-
gate amount paid from the time book for
quarter, will correspond with payroll for same
quarter.
The next item in this 'partiqI report to
which ! will give explanation is the fictitious
George w Smith who made such a mare's
nest for those of cur critics, whose maignaty
would make deaf TO IA truth that would vim
dictate an object Of their hatred. This Geo.
Smith was put upon the time book Of thu
warehouse. not for the purpose as our enc
mics would have it, to raise personal revenue,
but to pay for some tobacco that had been
misplaced or lost during the very busy sea
son OF last year when the capacity of the ware
, house was so over-taxed that storage room
had to be procured in private storage houses
This fact is known to no one better than the
gentleman upon whose evidence the Governor
based the necessity of the warehouse investi.
cation. He knows to whom the money was
paid and that it was paid for an item ofex-
pense tor which the State was responsible.
am sure the Authorities will need no better
proof to substantate this statement. 1t is
rue that this method # paying for lost to-
bacco may be questionable, butt was done
as the facts bear proof, with no intention to
defraud, but to cover perhaps what might
have been construed as negligence upon the
part of the management or the house No
better evidence is needed of the probability,
even with diligent care, of the loss or mis-
placement of tobacco from a dis ributing CEN
ire as No warehouse is, than that the Gov
ernor has created an $500 office and ap-
pointed the man to attend to such work
In regard to the division Of salaries between
Mr.. Naylor and myself as also between other
employees of warehouse. need say nothing,
as / do not think it comes within the pro-
vinc Of anyone, however, so high in station,
to prevent men from dong as they please
with What belongs to them. ! now cone 10
that Uery misleading summary of receipts and
disbursements which Special Agent Tomp-
kus has made up for No. 3 warehouse. in
which he shows discrepacy Of over 1920.
In the FIRST item Of outages-whch means
hoEsuNauo VI tpbabNO AipHtu iiOAn tue uuuSt
he shows an excess Of receipts per his es-
innate over those returned bv US up to March
3lst, 1897 Of $3.50. This possibly may be the
case, and herein comes what is ptedjudical to
our management, for want Of facts which
would have been adduced had Mr. Temp
kins con pleted his work up to the time we
left the warehouse. He, TO arrive at the
amount raised from shippers from the house,
presume, took all items Of shipments from
the shipping book up to March 3lst, 1897,
whilst considerable amount for same re-
manned unpaid and in the hands Of the buy
ers, and which amount was collected by as
since March 3lst, ls9T and will show in re-
port made by me from that date to the 18th
of June, 1897 the time we were removed,
The item for storage as given in our reports
to the Comptroller is correct. Mr. Tompkius
undoubtedly calculated storage on our stor
storage notes. This we did not do, as there
WAS an agreement made between the Inspectors
and the tobacco buyers, at the suggestion Of
many of the most prominent Commission
men, who are the farmers agents, that all
storage on common tobaccos Of the cent grade
be released, as the BUYERS would not buy such
tobacco unless storage on same was Cancelled
This | am sure will not be considered an IN
wise action, in view Of the anxiety of the
farmers and commission men to get rid of
such crops, and of the necessity of getting
all possibe ROOM ia warehouse for the 's6