STATE REVENUE.
On motion by Mr. PROSSER, (the order of business being again suspended,) the Senate joint resolution, directing the Treasurer of State to issue his circular to the several county treasurers, directing them to send up the State revenue in their hands by the 10th February, was taken up.
Mr. P. said, in his judgment, this was the best proposition to raise money, and he thought it might yield $60,000 or $70,000 at once.
Mr. PARRETT moved that the House concur.
Mr. BRANHAM would say that there is already such a law on the statute book, but unfortunately there is no penalty attached to it. Before the Committee on Ways and Means reported the bill providing for borrowing money, they made inquiry of the Auditor and Treasurer, and satisfied themselves that no money could be go? here in time by a call on the county treasurers. Almost all the money in the hands of these treasurers was loaned out till the third Monday in March. Pass this, and in the first place you will not get any money, and in the second place, if you do, you will not get it in time. We shall be obliged to pass some law for the replenishment of the Treasury, or we shall be obliged to stop. The system under which we have been doing business had made a custom which was equal to a law; and under that custom, about all the revenue of the State in the hands of the Treasurers was now out on loans till the time the law requires, them to sottle with the State Treasurer. The existing law authorizes the State Treasurer to call on the county treasurers whenever he needs money. But the county officers will make as much as they can out of it while it is in their hands. Some of this money had been loaned out in this town till April. We have been, for a long series of years, taxing the people for money, for the benefit of the men who handle it. The Warden of the State Prison had told him that he had not money to buy provisions; and the Treasury here was empty. This joint resolution provides no penalty. Then how much stronger or more effectual would it be than the law already on the statute book ? None at all. If they disregard the one, they will disregard the other.
page: 134[View Page 134]Mr. DOBBINS. It might be amended so that if they neglect or refuse to respond, they shall not be entitled to their fees. That was, perhaps, the most and the least that the Legislature ought to do in the case.
Mr. WOODHULL. A penalty might work a hardship, for a county treasurer could not well tell how much was in his hands till he came to settle.
Mr. BRANHAM. It was only a joint resolution, and could not have a penalty.
Mr. PACKARD. It might work hardship in cases where the revenue had been put into speculations in hogs.
Mr. BUNDY. The passage of this resolution would avail nothing. The revenue in the hands of the county treasurers was loaned out to their friends for banking purposes, or deposited for interest, &c.
Mr. DOBBINS. His county treasurer was not in the habit of loaning out the revenue. He kept it in his office; and a thief came along lately and stole about $2,600 of it.
Mr. BUNDY. It was a general rule. There might be exceptions, of course.
Mr. PROSSER was in favor of doing something to compel the revenue to come in. It was not a good proposition to borrow from the Sinking Fund, which, under the Constitution, was sacred to the schools. He was glad it had failed. He knew we could get some money under this resolution, and it could not, do any harm.
Mr. EDSON concurred with Mr. Branham that the passage of this resolution would do little good. In his region the people had not paid their taxes; and he apprehended there would be but little revenue, till the very last day of payment in March. He had voted against borrowing from the school fund. He did not know a better place to apply for this loan than the Bank of the State.
Mr. PARRETT expressed his astonishment to hear gentlemen make such statements-that the revenue of the State was in hogs, used for banking purposes, and stolen. The treasurers, in his region, would not lend out the revenue. If such was the case that the money of the State was loaned out-to the Bank of the State, that never accommodated anybody but speculators and railroad men, it was time this resolution was passed. Should the revenue of the State go to Toledo, Chicago and elsewhere,, whilst we were here unable to pay our board?
Mr. PACKARD was in favor of the resolution, with a penalty.
Mr. ATKISSON said his county treasurer was at all times ready to come up to the time. He was in favor of the resolution.
Mr. BRANHAM. The Senate had not yet defeated the bill sent there. He indicated that a bill with the needed penalties would be introudced here soon; and that the loan proposed in the Ways and Means bill in the Senate could not affect the distribution of the school money.
Mr. BLACK and Mr. McCLURG stated that their county treasurers would respond to the proposed Circular, and they were in favor of the resolution.
Mr. SMITH, of Bartholomew, made a similar statement with regard to Jacob Snyder the long-trusted and reliable Treasurer of his county.
Mr. CAMERON demanded the previous question, and there was a second.
The resolution was adopted by-yeas 61 nays 33.
YEAS-Messrs. Anderson, Atkisson, Black, Boydston Brett, Brucker, Cason, Collins of Whitley, Combs,' Cooprider, Grain, Dashiel, Davis, Dobbins, Edson, Epperson, Feagler, Ferguson, Fleming, Ford, Gifford, Gore, Haworth, Hayes, Holcomb, Hopkins, Horton, Howard, Hudson, Jones of Tippecanoe, Jones of Wayne, Kendrick, Kitchen, Knowlton, Lods, Lane, Lee, Lightner, McClurg, McLean, Moss, Mutz, Orr, Packard, Parrett, Prosser, Prow Piagan, Bobbins, Roberts, Sloan, Smith of Bartholomew' Smith of Miami, Stevenson, Stotsenberg, Trier, Underwood, Warrum Wells, Williams, and Woodhull,-61.
NAYS-Messrs. Bingham, Branham, Bryan, Bundy, Burgess, Cameron, Campbell, Collins of Adams, Fisher, Fordyce, Gresham, Hall, Harvey, Heffren, Henricks, Jenkinson Jones of Vermillion, Moody, Moorman, Nebeker, Newman, Owens, Pitts, Polk, Randall, Sherman, Thomas Thompson, Turner, Wilson, Woodruff, Woods, and Mr' Speaker-33.
On motion by Mr. CAMERON, (the order of business being suspended for the purpose,) the House took up the consideration of his order to suspend the rule for adjournment till the 10th of February, so as to require but one session a day.
On motion by Mr. HEFFREN, it was laid on the table.
Mr. JONES, of Vermillion, from the Select Committee thereon, reported his bill [51] to fix the times of the Circuit Court in the Eighth Circuit, recommending its passage,
The bill was ordered to be engrossed.
