Sources of Revenue. 77 



enabled to pay off its temporary indebtedness of more than forty 



thousand dollars due to banks and to the school fund. 



The state also received, during the two fiscal years ending 



March 31, 1844, the sum of twelve thousand two hundred 



sixty-nine dollars from the federal government as 



its share of the amount realized by the sale of the 



pubhc lands. 



One more large sum was received by the state from the United 



States during this period. By an act of congress, approved June 23, 



;, , 1836, the surplus funds of the United States were 



burplus . . . ^ 



Funds of distributed in trust among the states that comprised the 



the United Union. The sum of $763,661 .83 was allotted to Connecti- 

 cut^ and it was accepted by the assembly at its annual 

 session in 1836.^ The act of acceptance also provided for the distri- 

 bution and use of this large trust fund. The money was to be depos- 

 ited with the towns of the state in proportion to their population, 

 under the census of 1830, but with the following conditions : 



1. The towns were to preserve the money as a deposit in trust 

 for the state. The state reserved the right to call for the money 

 on thirty days notice whenever the United States should demand 

 payment of the same. 



2. They were to keep the principal received from the state intact 

 as a permanent fund and to appropriate annually at least one-half^ 

 of the income of the fund for the benefit of the pubhc schools in the 

 town. 



3. They were to make good any deficiency in the amount received 

 from the state should any loss occur. The act also provided that 

 if any town failed to draw upon the state treasurer for its portion 

 of this mone}/, the treasurer was to loan the same at the expense 

 of the town. The interest received by the state on such a loan 

 was to be paid over annually to the town and the town was to appro- 

 priate it in the same manner as if it had accepted its quota of the 

 principal. It was provided that the investment of this money 

 should be limited to loans secured by mortgage upon real estate 

 of at least double the value of the loan. In 1846 the towns w^ere 

 authorized to make loans from this fund, known as the Town Deposit 

 Fund, upon such security as they wished and to invest it in any 

 bank stock of the state or in the bonds of any city in the state.* 



1 Bradley's Register, 1853, p. 121. 



2 Public Statute Laws, May 1836, chap. 71. 



^ Changed to "the entire income" by chap. 84, Public Acts of 1855. 

 * Public Acts, May 1846, chap. 50. 



