The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-01-13

be repealed. since it il evident enough tina
considerations Of duty or ethics are quite
inadequate always TO prevent abuse OF HI
I power Under existing conditions. them
| selves vicious and to a great extent rene
/ disble II is for the present well enough e
! provide some means by which surplus fund,
! in the Treasury can be used temporarily to
avert panics. But even that discretion
should not be left alone to the Sec airy
! Why, il is needless to say. in the light OF
recent disclosures. But. otherwise the
practice OF allowing the friends or favor
ties OF the Finance Minister TO do bushes
at great profit, on the money of the tax
payers: without the slightest remuneration,
is too outrageous TO require argument
That hole in the national money chest
should be closed at once and eJerni lly.
But Mr.. White says:
cone other TACT Of Importance in the premises
Is that public money in national bank. that
has been c.,ly designated as depository IS
money in the Treasury jlst the same Is though
il were in the vaults Of the Treasurer ~ Wash
ingtou or in those OF any Of the Assistant Treas
urcrs in other parts Of the country congress
has provided various places in which public money
may be kept. and therc j. no reason why money
in one OF these places should he considered out
Of the Treasury. In contemplation - law they
al alike the money being equally sdfe M
al and equally subject 10 the Government sight
drafts
Perhaps The editor Of the Evening Pest
regards this edifying sta ement as kim
dergsrten recitation. and it certainly is
much like the Gage defence. which Mr..
White regards as work Of that kind.
However that may be it is absolutely with
out vestige OF foundation in fact. Money
in a designated depository is not money in
the Treasury in any legal sense OF the
term. In 1879 Chief Justice Waite. speak
ing for the Supreme Court of the United
States. decided that money POSTED with
a bank that was designated depository
was not paid into the Treasury. Again, in
October 1899. the same cou-; decided, Mr..
Justice McKenna reading the decision. that
money placed in regularly designated de-
pository could not be held o have been
covered into the United StasSs Treasury.
In the law providing for the sale of the
New York custom house (ehapter go, stat
utes enacted by the Fiftyifth Congress-,
the following mandatory language is used:
The Secretary of the Treasury is hereby
c directed TO deposit the
proceeds of the sale in the United
States Treasury as miscellaneous receipts"
Section $3.50 OF the Revised St;tutes reads
Every officer or other person charged By
any act Of Congress with the safe keeping
of the public moneys who fails to keep
safely the same without deposit
ing in banks or exchanging for other funds
than as specially allowed by law. shall be
guilty Of embezzlement of the money so
" . deposited or exchanged, and shall
he imprisoned not less than six months nor
more than ten years, and fined in a sum OF
money equal to the amount so embezzlcd
In view OF all the foregoing, the situation
of the unfortunate matter Of the Treasury
scandals is. as the Hon. Horace White re-
marks. in a different vein. so clear and
complete that little needs 10 be- said in ad-
dition." But something remains 10 be
done. ought to be done, and, We are conf
dent, viii be done