The sun., 1907-08-31
COUNTY TREASURER ACCUSED
CHARGES AGAINST DAVID n. KING
or BROOME COUNTY.
Comptroller Glynns InvestiEat ers Fund
Tbat He and Republican Leader Back
Had Been Using Thousands or Dollars
" Public Funds as Their Own.

ALBANY, Aug. 3O.-Folowing up his disc
closures as a result OF the examinationof
the books Of Westchester county officials,
Comptroller Martin Glynn has transmitted
to Gov. Hughes charges against David r
King. treasurer Of Broome county. The
charges are based upon the investigation
Of Comptroller Glynn's examiners and
show that King and Republican Leader
Arthur w. Y. Back have been using thou
sands Of dollars Of the county funds as their
own. The investigation also involves two
other Republican county officials, and Il Ia.
expected that Gov. Hughes will be asked to
remove them from Office.
Comptroller Glynn action against County
Treasurer King is the result Of an investiga-
ton of the accounts. books and vouchers
in the Office Of the County Treasurer. which
has been under way since July "a, and
which will be continued until IL has COW
cred the transactions Of that Office for sew
eral years. 1t has progressed to a point,
however, where the Comptroller felt that
the facts disclosed should be placed before
the Governor. A copy of the charges
was served on Mr.. King at Binghamton this
afternoon by a representative Of Gov.
Hughes. The Governor has given him
until September o to file an answer and will
afford him an opportunity 10 appear in
person at public hearing to be held in this
city at the Executive Chamber at 2:30 o. clock
on that day.
Five charges are made, the first Of which
is that on August 27. 1904. the County Treas
urer withdrew 5000 Of the public funds
Of the county and retained the same until
November 20, 1904, when il was replaced
in the county treasury.
The second charge recites that the Treas
urer on August 20. 1904, withdrew $S.3W
from the public funds Of Broome county
without lawful authority. and that on
December IL, 1904, made false and fraud
ulent entries in his books for the purpose
Of conceahng the msappropriation. 1t
is set forth that the Treasurer paid to Arthur
w. J. Back. custodian Of public buildings
and grounds for Broome county, for service
az such custodian, s4,525 between January
3. 1905, and July -, 1907. The charge recites:
The salary of said Arthur w. Y. Back
as such custodian was duly fixed by the
Board of Supervisors of Broome county
at $500 per annum. and from January I,
1905, to July 81. 1907, amounted to sl.288.
and all of the payments in excess Of 81 ,2o8
were made by King as County Treasurer
without lawful authority"
The fourth charge is that King paid
George W.. Eisenhart for legal services
sum of s9is without lawful authority.
A payment of 81, il8 to Samuel W. Murray
on January 3. 1907. to pay the balance OF
bills contracted at the Broome county
centennial without legal authority. con-
stitutes the fifth charge.
Examiners Austin and Rockefeller have
Submitted 10 Comptroller Glynn a report
upon which they based their charges.
"We iind,' says the report, that the
County Tressurer's books have been kept
with "A fair degree of accuracy 80 far as the
figures themselves are concerned, but they
were very unsatisfactory, in that the pur-
poses for which moneys have been received
and disbursed are seldom shown, and In
many instances where the purposes are
shown they are vaguely indicated, and the
orders directing payments which show the
purposes thereof have not been retained
by the treasurer for more than one year at
a time. IL has been the treasurers g. Gus
tom, as we are informed by him personally.
to turn over all his orders and vcuchesu
for the preceding year to Arthur w. Y.
Back, the clerk Of the Board Of Supervisors.
Immediately after the so-called examination
OF his books in the fall by committee
of the Board of Supervisors.
The treasurer stated to us that he con-
sidered himself relieved from liability after
his accounts had been passed upon by the
Board of Supervisors, and that as his
filing facilities we're inadequate he turned
over all OF his orders and vouchers to Mr..
Back each year. Mr.. Back is also custo-
dian Of county buildings and grounds, and a
large part of the county's moneys has been
distributed by the county treNsurer upon
the sole audit and order OF Mr.. Back in one
OF his capacities. Mr. Back Ia the one per-
son beside the treasurer himself who might
be interested in the alteration or dectrlic-
tion OF such orders. SO IL may he doubted
whether the treasurer's action in turning
over such papers to MIR. Beck showed q
responsibilities as guardian OF the county
funds, especially i'm view OF the fact that Mr..
Back has been recently indicted by the
Grand jury for altering certain OF such
vouchers.