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2d Session.

No. 585.

AMENDING TEXT OF ESTIMATE OF APPROPRIATION,
THIRTEENTH CENSUS.

LETTER

FROM

THE ACTING SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY,

TRANSMITTING

A COPY OF A COMMUNICATION FROM THE ACTING SECRETARY OF COMMERCE AND LABOR SUBMITTING AN AMENDMENT OF THE ESTIMATES OF APPROPRIATION FOR THE CENSUS.

JANUARY 24, 1910.-Referred to the Committee on Appropriations and ordered to be

printed.

TREASURY DEPARTMENT,

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY,
Washington, January 21, 1910.

SIR: I have the honor to transmit herewith, for the consideration of Congress, copy of a communication from the Acting Secretary of Commerce and Labor, of the 20th instant, amending the text of the estimate of appropriation on page 152 of the Book of Estimates for the fiscal year 1911 for expenses of the Thirteenth Census, to read as follows:

For salaries and necessary expenses for preparing for, taking, compiling, and publishing the Thirteenth Census of the United States, rent of office quarters, for carrying on during the decennial census period all other census work authorized and directed by law, including construction and repair of card-punching, card-sorting, and cardtabulating machinery, and technical and mechanical services in connection therewith, purchase, rental, construction, repair, and exchange of mechanical appliances, to continue available until June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and twelve.

Respectfully,

CHARLES D. NORTON,
Acting Secretary.

The SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

JANUARY 20, 1910.

SIR: In the estimates for appropriations for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1911, for the support of the Department of Commerce and Labor, there is an item

For salaries and necessary expenses for preparing for, taking, compiling, and publishing the Thirteenth Census of the United States, rent of office quarters, for carrying on during the decennial census period all other census work authorized and directed by law, including purchase, rental, construction, repair, and exchange of mechnical appliances, to continue available until June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and twelve, two million dollars.

It now appears that this item when read in connection with the act authorizing the Thirteenth Decennial Census of the United States will not admit of repairs to the machinery used in connection with tabulating the census, and therefore I have to request that the estimate be amended to read as follows:

For salaries and necessary expenses for preparing for, taking, compiling, and publishing the Thirteenth Census of the United States, rent of office quarters, for carrying on during the decennial census period all other census work authorized and directed by law, including construction and repair of card punching, card sorting, and card tabulating machinery, and technical and mechanical services in connection therewith, purchase, rental, construction, repair, and exchange of mechanical appliances, to continue available until June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and twelve.

During the current fiscal year services and expenses for mechanical tabulating machinery are paid from the appropriation for the preliminary expenses of the Thirteenth Census, made in the act of March 4, 1909 (35 Stat., 927), which will not be sufficient to cover such expenses during the next fiscal year.

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BENJ. S. CABLE.
Acting Secretary.

No. 586.

ALLAN L. BRIGGS.

LETTER

FROM

THE ACTING SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY,

TRANSMITTING

A COPY OF A COMMUNICATION FROM THE SECRETARY OF WAR SUBMITTING AN ESTIMATE OF APPROPRIATION FOR THE RELIEF OF LIEUT. ALLAN L. BRIGGS.

JANUARY 24, 1910.-Referred to the Committee on Appropriations and ordered to be

printed.

TREASURY DEPARTMENT,

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY,
Washington, January 22, 1910.

SIR: I have the honor to transmit herewith, for the consideration of Congress, copy of a communication from the Secretary of War, of the 21st instant, submitting an estimate of appropriation in the sum of $2,000 for the relief of Lieut. Allan L. Briggs, Twenty-ninth Infantry, disbursing officer, Signal Corps, U. S. Army.

Respectfully,

CHARLES D. NORTON,

Acting Secretary.

The SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

WAR DEPARTMENT, Washington, January 21, 1910.

SIR: I have the honor to forward herewith, for transmission to Congress, a deficiency estimate of appropriation authorizing and directing the accounting officers of the Treasury to allow and credit in the accounts of First Lieut. Allan L. Briggs, Twenty-ninth Infantry, disbursing officer, Signal Corps, U. S. Army, the sum of $2,000 disallowed against him on the books of the Treasury, and to refund to said officer the amount repaid by him to the Treasury of the United States on account of this disallowance.

Very respectfully,

The SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY.

J. M. DICKINSON,
Secretary of War.

Estimates of appropriations required for the service of the fiscal year ending June 30, 1910, by the Chief Signal Officer of the Army.

WAR DEPARTMENT.

MISCELLANEOUS.

Relief of Lieut. Allan L. Briggs, Twenty-ninth Infantry, U. S. Army-
The accounting officers of the Treasury are hereby authorized and directed
to allow and credit in the accounts of First Lieut. Allan L. Briggs,
Twenty-ninth Infantry, disbursing officer, Signal Corps, U. S. Army,
the sum of $2,000 disallowed against him on the books of the Treasury,
and to refund to said officer the amount repaid by him to the Treasury

of the United States on account of this disallowance (submitted)..... $2,000 NOTE.-The foregoing sum of $2,000 was embezzled by Ross W. Douglass in April, 1907, from United States Signal Service funds, for which First Lieut. Allan L. Briggs, Twenty-ninth Infantry, disbursing officer, Signal Corps, U. S. Army, was responsible. Douglass was at the time disbursing clerk in the office of the chief signal officer, Manila, P. I.

On March 30, 1907, check No. 59297, treasury of the Philippine Islands, at Manila, P. I., United States depository, was drawn to the order of Allan L. Briggs, first lieutenant, disbursing officer Signal Corps, for $275, as shown by the stub of check book and by cash book, for the payment of such salaries for the month of March, 1907, as were paid from Signal Corps funds. The check was given to Douglass to cash. He raised the check from $275 to $2,275. Douglass brought to the office the sum of $275, but failed to produce the $2,000 obtained on the check through fraud. Ross W. Douglass was arrested in Buenos Aires and an effort was made for his extradition to the Philippine Islands, an agent being sent with the necessary papers, but at about the time of his arrival Douglass succeeded in obtaining his release through a local court without the knowledge of the department of foreign affairs, the Argentine Republic, or of the American minister at Buenos Aires, who was, at the direction of the State Department, looking to his retention until the arrival of the extradition agent. Douglass then succeeded in evading the authorities of the Argentine Republic, who were attempting to rearrest him, left the country, and is still at large.

Under date of February 13, 1909, the Secretary of War in returning Senate bill No. 8799, being an act for the relief of First Lieut. Allan L. Briggs, Twenty-ninth United States Infantry, remarked as follows:

"Lieutenant Briggs has been charged on the books of the Treasury with the sum of $2,000 pertaining to the appropriation for the support and maintenance of the Signal Corps, the loss of which was primarily due to the dishonesty of his clerk, Ross W. Douglass. The circumstances attending the loss were made the subject of investigation by a board appointed for that purpose by the commanding general, Military Division of the Philippines. The conclusions of the board were, in general, adverse to the officer.

"Lieutenant Briggs submitted his statement to the department in explanation of the loss, in which it is alleged, and with considerable force, that the duties which were required of him as superintendent of the Philippine telegraph system, and as disbursing officer of the Signal Corps in the Philippine Islands, involved an amount of work considerably in excess of that required of officers charged with duties in connection with the military administration of the islands.

"Lieutenant Briggs is an officer of undoubted integrity, of good ability, and has an excellent record. He seems to have had little training in financial matters prior to his appointment in the military service. His statement, which is very full, is transmitted herewith for the information of your committee (Committee on Claims, United States Senate), and is commended to your favorable consideration."

This disallowance is again brought to the attention of Congress in this form with a recommendation for its early and favorable consideration.

In this connection it might be well to state that in addition to the embezzlement of the aforementioned amount Douglass also embezzled funds of the insular government for which Lieutenant Briggs was accountable as disbursing officer of the insular government. Lieutenant Briggs has, however, been relieved of the latter accountability by an act of the Philippine legislature, enacted May 20, 1909. (James Allen, Brigadier-General, U. S. Army, Chief Signal Officer.)

O

2d Session.

EXPENDITURES COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY, 1909.

LETTER

FROM

THE ACTING SECRETARY OF COMMERCE AND LABOR,

TRANSMITTING

A STATEMENT OF THE EXPENDITURES OF THE COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDED JUNE 30, 1909.

JANUARY 24, 1910.-Referred to the Committee on Expenditures in the Department of Commerce and Labor and ordered to be printed.

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE AND LABOR,
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY,
Washington, January 22, 1910.

SIR: In compliance with Section 264, Revised Statutes of the United States, I have the honor to transmit herewith a statement of the expenditures in the Coast and Geodetic Survey for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1909.

Yours, very respectfully,

BENJ. S. CABLE,
Acting Secretary.

The SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

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