The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1907-02-12
ALBANY STIRRED
At CRAFT STORY
ScANDALOUS LAxiTY IN HAND
LING TAX STAMPS CHARGED
BY COMPTROLLER.
SENSATION is PROMISED
In Examination of Charges--No Check
Was Kept on Supplies Said to
Have Been Burned--$5,-
100000 Worth Gone.

Albany, n Y, Feb 11.-Facts which
are likely to develop one OF the mos
sensational scandals in the states
! history were made public today by
! the new state comptroller, Martin II
Glynn.
! II is shown that miliois of dollars
worth of stock transfer stamps were
| kept unguarded in a stoIeroom IL
| Green street; that over S5,00O00t
worth of stamps were burned at dit
ferent places, the only proof of theil
destruction being the unsupported
statement Of $250) year CLERK
| that no count was made of stamps
| destroyed to determine whether any
| had been olen: that the sheets upon
which the stamps first issued were
printed do not tally with the sheets
that remained; that the clerk was tho
only person who had access to the
safety deposit vaults where all the
printed stamps We're supposed to be
kept and theat he could freely inter
the bank at any time during the night
and that the paper used was kept in
an ordinary vault in the office OF the
printer who has the contract to pin.
the stamps.
No Way TO Get at Truth.
i do NOT accuse anyone Of dishon-
esty," explained Comptroller Glynn.
II want 10 pro tect myself in case
anything should come out in the fu-
ture. think the public ought to
know the facts
is there any way Of finding out
whether there are more amps out
standing than are accounted for IN
your office" Mr. Glynn was asked.
so far as | can see, considering
the condition of the records, there Is
no way" he replied
Elk Comptrollers Kelsey and Wilson
We're in charge of the department
from June 1905. when the stock trans
fer tax law took effect, until Jan. |,
when Mr.. Glynn took office Mir. Kel-
sey retired last May to become SUI
perintendent of insurance and was
succeeded by Wilson
Charles NJ. Watkins of Penn Yam, a
of MIR Kelsey's, was the c!e'k
in charge of the stock tax bureau, He
was removed by Mr.. Glynn and Viii
liam +. Kearncy appointed in his
place. Mr.. Glynn then employed John
an expert accountant, tol
make thorough examination of the
bureau.
No Explanation is Made.
Mr. Huurigan completed his inquiry
about three weeks ago. but owing tpI
the difficulty he had in getting Wat
lins 10 come to Albany and explain
conditions here the comptroller de-
laycd making the facts public until
today. Watkins, according 10 Mr.
Glynn. replied invariably when qucs
Toned about his accounts that ut was
the way they had of ding taings"
The total amount of stamps rccori-
I'd as destroyed al different times Va.
'weon Juno >. 1905. when the first T.
sue of stamps began. and Dec. 20,
1906. two days before Comptroller
Glynn assumed Office was $j.Sll.G5S.
Two lots reported as actually burned
represented respectively sI7ioJJ ana
s2.2S3.5OIfO,
Another lot said 10 have been de-
,troyed at the time of manufacture
because one or more stamps in each
sheet were defective amounted to|
s9g3.Oi2G0. The balance of the vas,
total of over S5.000.0o0 are recorded
a. destroyed in some stage of the pro
cess OF manufacture.
The stamps were printed by Quayle
& Son of this city at their plant on
Green street The plates were IN the
custody Of the c)mptrollers reprcscn.
,atiyc and each day or week we're de
livercl 10 Qua,lp.
No Safeguards Are Used.
The papo- fr-i used was Of an ordi-
nary commercial sort which Comp
iroll,r Glun said was stored in the
guayir -hop under an ordinary lock
In an ordinary room. and Whlc the
sheets we're counted ouf before print
ing there was no safeguard 10 pre-
vent their being ab-tacted More
over iho comptroller declares She
ruu, ol sheets does not .alis. ihr oN-
1lauatiou being that come of if was
used Tor other purpuses
The first Issue of amps was found
10 d. susceptible Of cOunterieing and
he removal Of cancellation marks and
IN Nav or June of last year the print
ng Of these was stopped and a new
s-ue was begun cn patent paper
When the new paper. which was
.o defy counterfeiting came 20 hand.
5sid the comp roller. 1T received no
better safeguard. but was left in m
Qudyle shou The comptroller seal. .
rffh --hfrh the hundlass u-rra sealed /