Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-02-07
STATE OWES NATION
+. NEARLY S3,OOO,0OO
Former Financial Agent of
Commonwealth Confirms
Justice of Claim
LOAN DATES FROM 1886
Congress Now Seeks to Recover
s2,s6S,OOO Temporarily De-
posted" S2 Years Ago
nARRISRrRG. Fch. !

ltNlNlNlHIpN nv f'b.
Thai PENNSYLVANIA docs owe the Ma
,,oual Government nearly S3,000000, de-
snitn thc fact that the state Treasury
bos no record of the fact. was made
clear here today
"pcnnsylvana always was SHY and
uncertain i'm the matter of recording her
history" said Benjamin NJ. Mead,
"o,hrrwisc the state officials would be
,,lthpr mystilicd nor skcptical over -
ncws itcnS from Washington to the
fleet that Congressman Frank clarke.
of Florida through measure pending
IN congress. was about to get after our
state Treasurer for the neat little sum
Of S2.S6T.5Ii.1S: being money had and
received by Pennsylvania as loan or
temporary deposit cighty-two years ago
and never to this day repaid.
Mr. Ncad. who was the state financial
agent Of Pennsylvania at Washington
tor more than eight years under the
two administrations of Governor Patti.
s,n and had tu deal with all tho fiuan-
ciaI transactions of the State and the
Federal Government went on to say:
"'ro one familiar with the history OF
shc financial relations between the Fed
.,ral Government and the ScNcra,
ctatoe. il H. u fact well known thar
under The nct e Congress Of June 30
1SUh. the 'utldI Government, ndNlne
large amount Of surplus revenue ON
hand, was authorized to deposit S2S..
O0O. OO0 of that surplus in specified ror-
tons among twcnty-siN States. pcnu-
svlvania received and accepted several
installmcuts of her shac Of the deposit
amounting IN al in round numbers f.,
So S6S. 600.
"Thcsc nstalmCuts were received by
the Secretary of the Commonwealth and
held by him until they were properly
disposed of 10y the state Legislature
The money was received upon the CNccu-
ton Of certificates Of deposit. therefore
plcdgnc the faith Of the state for the
safckecping aud repayment of the scv-
eral nstalmcntS received when the Fed
eral Government should demand III"
same. This was the first money in bun,
which Pennsylvania round 1t necessary
10 apportiOn among the banks of the
State. II was deposited with the Bank
Of Pennsylvania. Philadelphia Bank Of
Moyamensing. of Philadelphia. and in
the Merchants and Manufacturers Bank
of Pittsburgh, according to their respec-
tive capitals actually paid in.
The Bank of Pennsylvania and the
Philadelphia Bank were to pay tn"
State per centum per annum interest
and the other banks ) per centum from
the day of deposit The fund arising
from the interest paid by these banks
was ordered to he paid and applied to
the fund for the support of common
schools within the Commonwealth.
pennsylvania. about this time being
in anything but prosperous financial
condition. received Legislative authority
tC use $50. 600 Of the deposit of Federal
surplus revenue to make up the de-
fciency in the semiannual interest due
on State loans. February |. 1897, and
to meet the ordinary and current de-
mands upon the state government.
at may ne remembered that some
twenty or twcnty-onc years ago, Penn
sylvania tanl other States. each the
amount tuc them individually was paid
lack by the United States Govcrnmcs,
about 81 .900 900 being the Pennsylvania
amount of direct tax which had been
levied upon and collected from the
states by the general Government dur
Ing the war between the States.
when the bill providing for this re-
imbursemcnt was pending before the
HoSse, of Representatives in Congress an
amendment was added, making the de-
posits Of surplus revenue i'm all the
States which had received il. a set-off
against the claims for direct tax. This
amendment was inserted but aftcrward
so strcnuously opposed by the State
agents interested that il was stricken
out and when the measure finally be-
came a law, the %et-off was not part
of it and Pennsylvania was reimbursed
in the full amount of her calm for di-
rect tax. This is the whole story"