The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1905-10-18
purloined From the State Treas.
ury and Resold.
BY THE BOND CLERK
MIR. Daniel Zimmerman, For Whose Ar
rest q Warrant Has Been Issued,
but he Ceuld not be F0uad.
The Dedication Will be
Made Good.

Made Good.
The Columbia State says there was
a great deal of astonishment In Col
umbia late Tuesday afternoon OF last
week when it was leaned that the
State treasury had lest SIC, 500 by er-
ror OF by criminality. When 1t was
learned that q warrant had been Is.
sued by magistrate and had eeen
lodged with the sheriff for execution,
charging that Mr.. Daniel Zimmerman
is guilty of q breach of trust with
fraudulent intent, there was even
greater surprise, and much regret
was expressed because name as yet
untarnisbed had been connected with
such an # ynse, Justly or wrongfullY.
Mr.. Zimmerman had been the bond
clerk in the office OF the State treas.
urer, AID held that position from 1881
until 1901. It was during that per-
fod that the fraudulent occurrences
were found after great deal OF In.
vestigation. The specific charge ID
that when bounds were brought In to
be EXCHANGED for stocks, one or more
bonds would be extracted from the
package and instead Of being cancell-
ed would be sold ind an old bond or
bonds of prior Gaze you'd be dug up
from the vaults AID substituted In
the bundles for ca. c. iation so that IN
a cursory examination IT would app ,ar
that all Of the boLd. "a that package
were properly cancelled.
In this way a bond and q certificate
of stock would both be in the hands
of innocent parties and the State pay.
ing interest on both and obligated to
pay the pr.i.cip ! at the expiration OF
the time ST. c Il L-lnd OF q reality
the bond had be Ii ,edeemed by the
State, the stock hayn G. been In ex'
change therefor.
II a trick it was, 1t required nerve
to carry it through for the occurrences
covered q period Of several years. Mr.
Zimmerman's friends, and they are
multiple, persist in declaring their
belief in his innocense, and expect at
the proper time to see him vindicat.
ed before the law In the courts. Mr.
q mmerman has been looked upon as
a man in rather Strengthened circum.
stances, and it is believed by many to
be impossible for him to have covered
up such shortage.
There are two things which have
made some of Mr.: q mmerman's
friends wonder. First Is the fact that
he repeatedly declined to appear at
the Office OF the State treasurer and
clear his name of the odium which
was sure to be attached to an unex-
planned pub; ;ication Of the facts. The
other Is that yesterday before the
warrant could be issued, Mr.. thinner
man, who prob by was apprtsed OF
what wa5 snut 10 transpire, walked
out of the heck door Of the Office OF
Mr.. S. l.. Miller where he was EN-
ployed in q clerical capacity and dis
appeared. He has not been seen
since.
Even II Mr.. Zimmerman Is the vic.
tim OF circumstances, 1t is quite evil
dent that the transa ,tions Gould not
have been conducted without the as
sistance of an outside party. Had an
employe Of the State treasury present
ed bond for sale, the prospective
purchaser would have declined, Tor
The incident would have been suspic
ious and the purchaser would want
nothing but gilt ecg'd" investment.
Evidently there was a broker. To
find that man is now the otjact OF the
State officials Interested. The inno'
cent holders Of the oonds will be ask.
ed through whom they secured the
negotiable instruments. No innocent
holder will lose any thing for the
bonds will be again redeemed for cash,
although once before they have been
redeemed in stocks. While the loss
is not so large, 10 shows how, even ir
the most jealousy guarded system ol
business, error and sometimes wrong
may creep in.
DISPARITY NOTICED BEFORE.
AS far back as two years ago, Mr.
s. T: Carter bookkeeper In the of1ct
of the State treasurer, called to tht
attention tf the ways and means com
mittee the IacJ that there was some
thing wrong with the interest paid or
stocks and the coupons paid on bonds
What this trouol was no one at tha
time could tell, although it was seeI
that tha State was actually paying
more interest than was mathemat1
csuy proper. At that time no inten
was ~ pectsd or the matter coul'
have been aired.
Mr.. Carter had been called befor
the ways and means committee to tes
tify in regard to the petition OF MI
Geo. 81. Cornelson, Of Ofangeburg
who state d that his brother, who ha
lived in Australia had died, leavin
$4,000 in South Corolina bonds
which could not be found. 1t wa
while looking into the Cornelson mat
teri that Mr.. Carter first had his at
tentlon attracted to the disparity Il
In the interest accounts.
About month or six weeks ag
Capt. Jennings received letter fror
.some ladies in Charleston iu referenc
TO some bonds in their possession, an
in looking up the record with refer
ence to these bonds 1t was found tina
there had been substitution. Th1