State than for the accommodation of the holders
though having both ends in view. That law
was no part whatever of the original contract of
loan, and it might be repealed not only by this
Constitution, but by mere act of Assembly at any
moment.
The whole argument of his colleague, (Mr.
Dorsey,) was easily answered, in regard to the
necessity of retaining the Commissioner of
Loans. To show that there was no substance in
his objection, he would suggest whether celling
the Comptroller, "Commissioner of Loans,"
would not itself satisfy all the requisitions of the
technical argument of his colleague, in regard to
the terms of the loan laws. Certainly it would.
These laws, we will say, require the interest lo
be paid in Baltimore, at the office of the Commis-
sioner of Loans. Now, if your Comptroller be
styled Commissioner of Loans, and if he pay the
interest at the times specified in the original
laws, at the bank in Baltimore where he estab-
lishes his office for the purpose, are not the terms
of the law complied with in the strictest techni-
cally? But it is plainly unnecessary to use this
name of Commissioner of Loans, and the sugges-
tion is made merely to show that the objection
is without substance. The contract in the origi-
nal law means, that the officer who performs the
duties of Commissioner of Loans, shall pay the
interest in the city of Baltimore, and it no more
binds the State to retain for the office, the same
name which it bore at the time the contract was
made, than to continue the same individual offi-
cer, if such a thing were possible. Undoubtedly
the Comptroller will be bound to pay the interest
on most of the currency debt in the city of Bal-
timore, at some bank or other office to be se-
lected by him. It is not contemplated that a
single cent of the interest should be paid at An-
napolis, unless holders of stock might find it con-
venient to have it paid here. At present, just
before the day when the quarterly interest is clue,
the Commissioner of Loans, who is the President
of a bank in Baltimore, draws on the Treasurer for
the amount to be paid, and the holders of stock
call on the fixed day at that bank, and receive
their interest. The same process exactly, will
be gone through after the adoption of this report.
The Comptroller will draw his warrant on the
Treasurer for the amount of interest, the money
will be deposited in the bank in Baltimore select-
ed for the purpose by the Comptroller, and the
stockholders will be punctually paid as before,
and in exact conformity with the original con-
tract. It is no more necessary that the Comp-
troller should have his residence in the city of
Baltimore, than he shall be obliged to go in person
to London, to pay there the semi-annual in-
terest on the sterling bonds. A large amount of
interest on Maryland bonds is payable in London;
the Treasurer sends funds to the Commissioner
of Loans, who goes into the market, and buys
hills of exchange, which he remits to oar agents.
the Barrings, whose banking house is in fact the
office of our Commissioner of Loans in London.
The same thing will be done under the new sys-
tem and every fact of our contract with the |
State creditors will be punctiliously complied
with.
Mr. RANDALL said:
He had early in the session introduced a reso-
lution of inquiry, into the expediency of adopting
some plan for the protection of the Treasury, in
its present defenceless condition. He was grati-
fied that the performance of this duty had fallen
into such able hands, and he was still more so,
on examining the result of their deliberations.
When we reflect upon the vast amount of re-
sponsibility, reposed in this one single officer,
the Treasurer of the State, we cannot but be
surprised. Between one and two millions of dol-
lars are yearly received and disbursed by this
officer, without any legal check or restriction
upon his absolute official control. The whole
Treasure of the State, all the time, subject to
his own exclusive draft—all the settlements of
accounts, and claims of creditors and debtors of
the State, depending upon a complex system of
revenue laws, are to be examined and settled,
and paid or received, according to the individual
judgment of this officer alone—and to him alone
is confided the custody of all vouchers of these
various settlements. Consider the magnitude of
this responsibility in another view—the invested
capital of this State, in Banks, internal Improve-
ment Companies, &c. &c., exceeds twenty-one
millions of dollars, the liabilities of the State to
its creditors, including the sinking fund exceeds
fifteen millions of dollars. The arrearages now
due to the State for the direct taxes alone exceed
half a million of dollars, besides large
amounts due by other officers to the State. The
only security or check you hold, for the faithful
performance of these various and important du-
ties, is the official bond of the Treasurer, exe-
cuted to the State, in the penalty of about one-
tenth part of the money yearly received by him.
He doubted if such a case could be found, where
any government reposed such unrestrained power
such unbounded confidence in any such officer.
This was not originally the organization of the
Treasury Department of this Slate to be without
check or restraint. It will be seen that the 10th
section of our Constitution of '76, authorizes the
House of Delegates to appoint auditors to "ex-
amine and pass" all accounts, relating to the
collection and expenditure of the revenue, and
to "state and adjust the same."
The 52nd and 53rd sections of that constitu-
tion recognize the existence of the office of "au-
ditors of public accounts." At March session,
1778, the House of Delegates appointed an "Au-
ditor General," to supersede "the late board of
auditors," and defined his powers with a degree
of wisdom and prudence, exceeded by nothing
done since in this State. In the statement and
examination of all accounts, he "was to be guid-
ed by the law and regulations," and in their ab-
sence by general principles of justice, equity and
impartiality. All accounts rejected by him
might be submitted by the claimant to the chan-
cellor for re-examination and decision. All ac-
counts passed by him, were to be signed by him,
then submitted to the Governor and council for |
