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posites made therein, to his credit, by postmasters at a few of the principal post offices, on account of the Treasury of the Post Office Department; the same being subject to disbursement, from time to time, by warrants of the Postmaster General, according to appropriation by law, after being formally brought into the Treasury by the inducting warrant of the Postmaster General.

2. The Postmaster General having received quarterly certificates of settlement, from the Auditor for the Post Office Department, attached to the settled accounts current of the receipts and expenditures of all Postmasters, (nearly 14,000 in number,) he attaches thereto his warrant and counter warrant, (a single instrument,) countersigned by the said Auditor, which he addresses to the Treasurer, for inducting into the Treasury and disbursing the amounts of said receipts, simultaneously: so that the said amounts are constructively deposited with the Treasurer, at the same time that they are disbursed by him; although in most cases a GREAT PORTION of said amounts, and in the rest of them the WHOLE of said postmasters' receipts are actually disbursed by the direct drafts of the Postmaster General, before their accounts current are rendered to the Auditor. (26)

(C)-DISBURSEMENTS OF PUBLIC MONEYS FROM THE GENERAL

TREASURY.

VII. The Treasurer makes Disbursements of Public Moneys from the General Treasury as follows, viz:

1. He makes drafts (on moneys deposited to his credit and covered to his debit in authorized depositories for which he has passed his receipt on the covering warrants) to satisfy the pay warrants of the Secretary of the Treasury, drawn in favor of claimants or disbursing agents, in virtue of appropriations by law.

2. He makes drafts (in like manner to satisfy pay warrants of the Secretary of the Treasury in favor of claimants or disbursing agents) on certain collectors, receivers, and others holding public moneys in their hands, who are not convenient to depositories to make deposites to his credit; which drafts, upon being returned paid, are covered by the "covering warrant" of the Secretary of the Treasury, which is constructively the authority (though after the fact) on which the money is considered as having been deposited to the credit and covered to the debit of the Treasurer, and subject to be disbursed by him under the said pay warrants.

3. He makes payments, direct, by "treasury notes," to satisfy pay warrants of the Secretary of the Treasury, drawn in like manner, in favor of disbursing agents or claimants, in virtue of appropriations of law.

(D)-DISBURSEMENTS FROM THE TREASURY OF THE POST OFFICE DEPARTMENT.

VIII. The Treasurer makes Disbursements of the Post Office Revenue placed to his charge, as agent for the General Post Office Department, as follows, viz:

1. He satisfies the pay warrants drawn by the Postmaster General on him, by endorsing said warrants with his draft on moneys actually deposited in public depositories to his credit, by certain postmasters, (whose offices are called "deposite offices," in distinction from the great mass of offices which make no deposites, pay the direct drafts of the Postmaster General)-said deposites to his credit having been placed to his debit by his receipt endorsed on the covering warrants of the Postmaster General, issued quarterly on the depositing postmasters to cover their deposites; and he, the Treasurer, transmits said pay warrants and drafts, by the persons in whose favor they are drawn, to some depository of the Post Office Department for payment.

2. He constructively (or by a fiction peculiar to the fiscal practice of the Postmaster General) makes disbursements (after the fact) for the Post Office Department, by endorsing, simultaneously, the "warrants and counter warrants" of the Postmaster General for inducting and disbursing, at the same instant, the receipts of postages by the great mass of postmasters already consumed by the forgone direct drafts on them by the Postmaster General, as appears in their quarterly accounts current, settled quarterly by the Auditor of the Treasury for that Department.

(26) The fact is, that there are no returns made by the great mass of postmasters, of the money they receive, except in the form of their quarterly account current, by which they show that they have already disbursed all their available proceeds of their offices to meet the drafts of the Postmaster General, instead of the drafts of the Treasurer to meet his warrants, as in the like cases in the general Treasury.

(E)-TREASURER'S REPORTS.

IX. The Treasurer makes Reports to the Secretary of the Treasury, to the First Auditor, to the two Houses of Congress, and to the Register of the Treasury, as follows, viz :

1. He makes a weekly report or statement to the Secretary of the Treasury, of the deposite account, to his credit, of each depository of moneys belonging to the general Treasury-being a transcript from "the ledgers of depository accounts" kept in his office with each of said depositories of the public moneys received from whatever sources (except postages)-which are placed to his charge by his receipts on the warrants covering the same to his credit.

2. He makes a like weekly report or statement to the Secretary of the Treasury, of the accounts of public moneys in the hands of a few collectors and nearly all the receivers, who have no depositories convenient to deposite their surplus receipts; which moneys are consequently subject to be drawn and disbursed directly from their hands, by the Treasurer's drafts, (as if they were depositories in fact, and said money already covered therein by warrant, to the charge of the Treasurer;) which drafts being returned paid, place the said money constructively in the Treasury simultaneously with the disbursement of it, and is then only officially covered and disbursed (after the fact) by warrant and counter warrant.

3. He renders a quarterly account to the First Auditor, for settlement, subject to revision and approval by the First Comptroller, of all moneys received into the Treasury, and of all money paid out under the Secretary's warrants, on account of the various departments of the government, civil and diplomatic, naval and military...

4. He also renders a quarterly account to the Auditor of the Treasury for the Post Office Department, for settlement by him, (subject to no revision,) of all moneys received and paid on account of the Post Office Department.

5. He makes an annual report to each house of Congress, of the aforesaid quarterly accounts of the receipts and disbursements of the government, (exclusive of the General Post Office,) for the fiscal year ending the 30th June previous, with an account of the state of the general Treasury.

6. He also makes an annual report to each house of Congress, of the aforesaid quarterly accounts of the receipts and disbursements on account of the Post Office Department.

7. He makes an annual report, to the Register of the Treasury, of estimates for the expenditures of his office for the ensuing fiscal year.

8. He also makes a biennial statement to the Register of the Treasury, of the names, compensation, &c., of persons connected with his office, for the "Biennial Register.'

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(F)—BOOKS KEPT IN THE TREASURER'S OFFICE.

I. Books of the General Treasury of the United States.

1. REGISTER OF COVERING WARRANTS. This book contains a registry of all warrants drawn, quarterly, by the Secretary of the Treasury on collectors of the customs, receivers of land districts, the Commissioner of Patents, &c., covering payments or deposites made by them to the credit of the Treasurer, on which the the Treasurer endorses his receipt, by which the amount becomes chargeable to him on the books of the Treasury.

2. REGISTER OF PAY WARRANTS. In this book is kept a registry of all warrants (otherwise specifically called pay warrants) drawn by the Secretary of the Treasury on the Treasurer, and paid by his drafts or checks on depositories, and on collectors or receivers in capacity of depositories in such cases. This book serves also as an auxiliary to the "ledgers of depositors' accounts" described below, being a check upon the correctness of the pay entries thereof, by means of a weekly statement prepared therefrom, showing the condition of the deposites.

3. DRAFT OR CHECK BOOKS. These books consist of blank drafts or checks printed on bank note paper, of 250 sheets to a book, and four drafts or checks on a sheet, with margins sufficient for stating the date, the number, and the amount of each draft, and the number of the Secretary's warrant under which the draft is drawn, in whose favor drawn, and on what depository, collector, or receiver, as the case may be; which margin serves as a blotter to the "registers of drafts.'

4. REGISTERS OF DRAFTS OR CHECKS. Of these books there is one kept for each of the executive Departments; to which books, respectively, is transferred, from the above check books or blotters the registration of the drafts drawn in behalf of the respective Departments; which registers of drafts serve as "journals" to the "ledgers of depository accounts."

5. LEDGERS OF DEPOSITORY ACCOUNTS. Of these books there is one for depositories, one for collectors, and a third for receivers; to which books, respectively is transferred or posted, from the above registers or journals, the amounts of the drafts satisfied by the said depositories, collectors, or receivers, (collectors and receivers being, under such circumstances in regard to the payment of drafts, madesimilar or equivalent to depositories.)

6. TRANSFER DRAFT BOOKS. These books consist also of printed blank transfer drafts or checks, to be drawn on certain depositories, by the direction of the Secretary of the Treasury, to effect the transfer of public money therefrom, to other depositories; the margins of which are sufficient for stating the dates, the amounts, &c., of such drafts, and serve also as blotters from which to make the entries of the transfers of deposites on the above "ledgers of depository accounts."

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(7. Petit Ledger of Transfer Drafts. A book of this description was, temporarily, introduced in 1836; and continued only while transfers were numerous, and on time.)

8. REGISTER OF WARRANTS AND COUNTER WARRANTS. This book contains a registry of all "warrants and counter warrnts," (technically so called,) which are issued for the purpose of adjusting at the Treasury the credits and debits(27) of disbursing agents, to the proper heads of appropriation, when funds have been applied by them to other than the specified objects of such appropriations.

9. BOOK OF RECEIPTS FOR PATENT FEES. This book contains printed blank receipts for patent fees, with margins sufficient for stating the date and amount of each fee, and by whom paid or deposited to the credit of the Patent Office fund.

10. LETTER BOOKS. There are two letter books kept in the Treasurer's office; one for recording letters transmitting bills of exchange to foreign agents, and one for recording all other letters written on public business of the office.

II. Books of Treasury Note Transactions-(a practical Sub-Treasury.)

1. BOOKS OF NOTES. These books consist of a certain number of printed blank treasury notes received by the Treasurer from the Secretary of the Treasury, for signing and countersigning, in preparation for issue, having margins sufficient for stating the date, the number, and the amount of each note issued. This book contains a separate registry of all notes issued (in payment of Secretary's warrants) under the several acts authorizing those issues, amount of the warrants and notes, respectively.

2. REGISTER OF NOTES ISSUED.

public dues pursuant to the
showing the date, number, and

3. REGISTER OF NOTES REMITTED. This book consists of a registry of all notes transmitted by mail in payment of public dues, in pursuance of the Secretary's warrants, showing the date, number, and amount of the notes and warrants, respectively, and to whom the payments are made.

4. GENERAL ACCOUNT CURrent. This book consists of an account current of all notes received from the Secretary of the Treasury, and issued in payment of public dues, under the several acts authorizing such issues, respectively.

III. Books for the service of the Treasury for the General Post Office Department.

1. REGISTER OF COVERING WARRANTS. This book contains a registry of all warrants drawn, quarterly, by the Postmaster General on deputy postmasters who make deposites, (a very small number,) to cover (27) It will be perceived, that the purpose to which the warrants and counters are applied in the Post Office Department is very different from this, there being no disbursing agents, distinctively so called, in that department, (except in the office proper,) the postmasters or receivers of the revenue being required to disburse, in most instances, under the direct drafts of the Postmaster General, which dispenses with the circumlocution of making deposites, of drawing warrants to cover those deposites, of drawing pay warrants to disburse those deposites, or advance them to disbursing agents who might be under the necessity of diverting advances under one head of appropriation to defray demands under another, and thus require an adjustment of their credits and debits by "warrant and counter-warrant" similar to these; all of which, however, does not suggest or imply the necessity or the justification of the Postmaster General making these disbursements by his direct drafts on these postmasters, in contravention of the first and fourth sections of the Post Office law of 1836, and that, too, before their quarterly accounts current have been settled by the Auditor, to ascertain the amount in their hands; whereas, in the Treasury proper, the revenue from collectors and receivers who are not convenient to depositories, make their weekly or monthly returns of the amount in their hands, (as quasi depositories,) which are drawn from time to time by the drafts of the Treasurer, to satisfy warrants of the Secretary of the Treasury, all of which ceremony is dispensed with in the parallel cases in the Post Office Department, by the direct and antecedent drafts of the Postmaster General, inverting the order, if not effacing the application of the usual ohecks and balances of the Treasury Department.

their deposites made during the quarter to the credit of the Treasurer, on which the Treasurer endorses his receipt, by which the amount becomes chargeable to him on the books of the Treasury for the Post Office Department.

2. Register of PAY WARRANTS AND DRAFTS. This book contains a registry of all warrants drawn from time to time on the Treasurer by the Postmaster General, for the payment of moneys in his charge for the service of the Post Office Department; and as these warrants are always endorsed with the draft of the Treasurer on some depository, of the Post Office funds, and transmitted thereto by the persons in whose favor they are drawn, this book also necessarily contains a registry of the Treasurer's drafts to satisfy those pay warrants. 3. REGISTER OF OUTSTANDING PAY WARRANTS AND DRAFTS. This book contains a registry of outstanding warrants and drafts not returned as paid, within the wonted time :-such warrants and drafts, being transmitted by the persons in whose favor they are drawn, are liable to be delayed or held up as equivalent to money, placing them in the category of outstanding warrants and drafts.

4. LEDGER OF DEPOSITORY ACCOUNTS. This book contains the debits and credits of depositories, transferred or posted from the foregoing registers; showing the amounts received and paid by said depositories on account of the Post Office Department.

5. REGISTER OF WARRANTS AND COUNTER WARRANTS. This book contains a registry of all "covering and counter warrants," drawn quarterly, (the former on postmasters, and the latter on the Treasurer,) for inducting into the Treasury and disbursing therefrom at the same instant (by a convenient fiction of the Post Office Department) the receipts of the great mass of postmasters, already consumed by the direct drafts on them by the Postmaster General during the quarter, as appears by their quarterly accounts. 6. RECORD OF QUARTERLY ACCOUNTS OF THE TREASURER. This book contains exact copies or record of the quarterly accounts of the Treasurer's receipts and payments (real or fictitious) on account of the Post Office Department, for each quarter in the year. These quarterly accounts having been rendered to the Auditor of the Treasury for the General Post Office, and having been examined and certified by him to be correct, one copy is placed on file by the Auditor, and a separate copy is transmitted to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, independent of a fourth, preserved as

a record in this office.

7. LETTER BOOKS. The appropriate letter books are also kept in this branch of the Treasurer's office.

(28) A question having arisen between two eminent officers of the Treasury in relation to treasury notes, and mainly whether they be properly considered as “money in the Treasury," the views adopted by the Department, embracing the entire fiscal character of those issues, as evidences or assumptions of public debt, so clearly set forth in the following extract from an "official letter" to the Secretary of the Treasury, have an inherent interest that justifies their introduction here, in the form of a note. It may be safely left to those who are more competent to carry out the parallel, whether the same views are not in every respect applicable to every description of paper issues in evidence of debt, when they are raised to the dignity of being received in payment, relying upon their future redemption. Extract from an “official letter" to the Secretary of the Treasury-showing that Treasury Notes are not money. "I have duly considered the letter of my reasons for dissenting from some of his suggestions in relation to Treasury notes.

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referred to me

and proceed to explain

"In the first place, I protest against the position that treasury notes can or should, under any circumstances, be considered as money in the hands of the Treasurer; because it is contrary to Treasury principles, not sustained by the facts of the case, and not necessary for the purpose of facilitating the settlement of accounts.

"It is contrary to Treasury principles, because they recognize nothing as money, but gold and silver, or notes convertible into specie at the will of the holder; nothing as money but what, when received in payment of government dues, may be placed in a depository to the Treasurer's credit, and be used by him in payment of government debts.

"It is not sustained by the facts of the case, because Treasury notes are evidences of debt, not convertible at the will of the holder, and are issued for the purpose of deferring payment by an exchange of evidence.

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"It is not necessary for the purpose of falicitating the settlement of accounts, as will appear in the sequel. "The suggestions of the --, in regard to the issue of the notes and the manner of accounting for them,' so far as they affect the Treasurer's accounts, are in accordance with general practice, and sufficient for the purpose. But I must remark here that this operation is solely for convenience in keeping the appropriation accounts rightfully adjusted, and not for the purpose of showing the eondition of the public treasure; for, in point of fact, the money in the Treasury is neither increased nor diminished by it, but an exchange is made between parties-the creditor giving up an evidence of debt now due, for one due at a future time. Inasmuch, however, as the first evidence of debt actually reduces the appropriation for its object, and it is expedient to keep up a regular system of accounts, the Treasurer claims credit for paying the first evidence, by subscribing to a fiction of indebtedness for its substitute, the second, the one balancing the other in his accounts.

"It is proper here, also, to remark, that the general account of receipts and expenditures kept by the Register is in substance identical with the Treasurer's general account current, each, as founded exclusively on warrants placing moneys in or taking moneys out of (technically speaking) the Treasury. Of course a fiction in one is a fiction in the other; and a fiction is rendered necessary in several cases, because appropriations aro always made payable out of any money in the (technical) Treasury; and in point of fact, moneys are thus paid in some cases which have never been in the Treasurer's hands or under his control. For example, marine hospital disbursements are made by collectors out of their receipts; but as their disbursements are provided for by appropriation acte, and must therefore be paid by warrant, the fiction of warrant and counter warrant is resorted to for the purpose of placing the transactions upon the Treasury accounts, though the sums paid have never been under the control of the Treasurer.

"The analogy between a receipt for a marine hospital disbursement and a treasury note received by a collector in payment of duties, is so strong, that I must beg leave to present it. A collector has original and even judicial authority in both cases; in both a creditor of the government presents to him an evidence of debt, which he satisfies, and thus becomes the assignee of the creditor; the debt must, in each

case, be paid by warrant on an appropriation of money in the Treasury, and the collector, as assignee, is entitled to the warrant. It has been from the beginning, and now is, the practice to grant him the warrant in the first case; but, inasmuch as he is debtor to the government for the like sum, the fiction of counter warrant is issued to balance the pay warrant, without the intervention of the Treasurer's authority, and without his ever seeing the evidence of debt. Then, why should not the same course be pursued in the other case? In my opinion, the Treasurer has no more interest or concern in the one case than in the other; and in neither can the evidence of debt bo fairly transferred to his keeping to be held as money in his hands.

"As a treasury note on its being issued was, by a fiction of receipt on the part of the Treasurer, made to increase apparently the amount in the Treasury, and at the same time to satisfy and reduce an appropriation, so, by converse, when it is returned by a collector, it must, by a fiction of payment, effect a real increase, because, by the change of position, the deferred debt has been actually paid out of the real increase.

"In short, the appropriation has been satisfied by the fiction of receipt, and the public creditor has been satisfied by the fiction of payment, while the harmony of accounts has been preserved, and the real increase of the amount made to appear.

"I have made the foregoing statement of principles, not because I suppose the Comptroller to be unacquainted with them, or that he differs with me as to their correctness, but to sustain me in demurring to his practical application of them.

"It must be borne in mind that the Treasurer is not an accounting officer-that his official accounts are founded exclusively on warrants "pro and con," and that he cannot receipt a counter warrant until its fellow pay warrant is made available by certificate of the Comptroller as an offset.

"Now, the suggestion, that the notes should (after examination and comparison by the accounting officers) be placed under the control of the Treasurer, to await the settlement of a general account of treasury notes redeemed,' &c., if adopted with a view to their being paid as money, has been shown to be contrary to principle and practice. If with a view to the pay warrant for them being used as a set off to the counter warrants previously issued, it will produce delay in closing personal accounts, for reasons above stated. If with a view to making him a general agent for the reimbursement of treasury notes, it will be to assign him extra official duties, manifestly incongruous with his official one, and tending to produce confusion. And in either case it will render necessary an examination and comparison, to bring them back to the point at which they were transferred to him; creating, in my opinion, with some risk, more labor in the end than will be saved in the beginning; besides, that it will not vary the results upon a general account of treasury notes issued, which it may be deemed proper to open.

"It seems to me a fallacy to say that the notes being cancelled, &c., will, as money, be made to redeem themselves; for, in point of fact, they are redeemed by the pay warrant, which is satisfied by the counter warrant being considered money, as indeed it should be, for it represents new receipts of a collector now for the first time made to appear upon the Treasury accounts, as technically covered in the Treasury.

"As. the first Auditor is the arbiter in all cases of reimbursement of treasury notes, it will be necessary for him, first or last, to ascertain and declare the amount due for every particular note. Where they are to be redeemed in satisfaction of a debt due to the government he must ascertain and declare the amount before any credit can be given on account of the debt. Now, as that credit can only be satisfied by warrant on the debtor, and as debit and credit must correspond for each case, whether aggregated or in detail, it appears to me decidedly the most simple and easy course, to issue the warrant and counter warrant at the same time. I cannot perceive the expediency of making the distinction between the different classes of holders of treasury notes, of their being in the one case both creditor and debtor, and in the other creditors only. All must be reimbursed by warrant, first or last, the latter to be paid out of any money in the Treasury; the former by balancing accounts, for the purpose of bringing money into the Treasury, being the avails of new revenue; and there will be much less risk of error in balancing each account separately, than in settling one side by itself, and connecting the other with a general aggregate.

The case of a bank which is debtor for money already in the Treasury on deposite with it, offering notes in payment of that debt, differs from the case of a collector, in this particular only, that no counter warrant will be necessary; for the pay warrant being directed to itself, to be charged against money in the Treasury, the payment would be actual, and the amount in the Treasury would be reduced by the operation.

"I have no doubt that much convenience would result to (exclusively creditor) holders of notes, if a reimbursing agent were employed; but it would be necessary to vest him with the powers of the Auditor and Comptroller, that his decisions might be final or binding on those officers where they settle the accounts of his agency. For very obvious reasons, however, this agent should not be the Treasurer. "In fine I can see no sufficient reason for changing the uniform practice of the Department in relation to claims, because they may happen to be for the reimbursement of treasury notes."

The foregoing views may be further elucidated by the following statement from the same authority-for the subject is certainly of sufficient importance to justify any pains to insure its being well understood.

"Treasury notes are issued either to satisfy warrants on the Treasurer in favor of public creditors, or in exchange for money paid into the Treasury, by being placed in the hands of some depository to the credit of the Treasurer.

"In either case, when the notes are completed and delivered, they are charged to the Treasurer as so much money, because, in the first case, he is credited for paying the warrant, and in the second, he has the money on deposite.

"Treasury notes are promises to pay money at a future time. The holders, then, whoever they may be, when the time comes, possess claims on the Treasury for money, which can only be paid in the usual form of an account audited and approved, followed by warrant on the Treasurer.

"Treasury notes are receivable in payment of all government dues, at any time, before maturity or after, and when so received must be considered as money paid into the Treasury. It follows, then, that an assistant treasurer or depository, a collector of customs or receiver of land money, may be required to take treasury notes in payment, and having done so, they possess the claim for reimbursement.

"An assistant treasurer or depository will credit the Treasurer with so much money, and the warrant to reimburse him will be paid by the Treasurer's check on himself-one item balancing the other. A warrant to reimburse a collector will be satisfied by a counter warrant on himself for so much derived from customs. The Treasurer will be credited for paying the first, because he will acknowledge the payment to him of the second, by the collector; and he, the collector, will be credited for the latter, in his account of customs. These two classes of officers return the notes received by them to the First Auditor. Treasury notes paid in for lands must be treated in the same manner as those paid in for customs. But, as the First Auditor is the auditor of all accounts of customs, so is the Commissioner of the General Land Office the auditor of all accounts of sales of public lands, and the receivers of land money must send the treasury notes received by them in payment for lands to the General Land Office. In both cases, a warrant and counter warrant necessarily follow the auditing and approval of the accounts, in order to reimburse the treasury notes thus received in payment of customs and lands."

The process of auditing and settling the accounts of treasury notes received and debited to the government by revenue officers on account of revenue, and the reimbursement thereof to those officers holding them, and the adjustment of the same on the books of the Treasury balancing the account of their issue and reimbursement, being more complicated and circuitous than the adjustment of a simple account of debit and credit for receipts and disbursements, the process thereof has been given in the "Tables of Details" in the chapter on the First Auditor's office (A) I. 1. and note thereon; and in the "Tables of Details" in the chapter on the General Land Office (B) IV. 1. and note thereon, which see.

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