TREASURY. 



693 



magnitude, responsibility, and importance. There is 

 required of tlieui, in the discharge of those duties, 

 nut (lie capacity of the accountant alone, but of a mind 

 trained to and adapted for administrative and judicial 

 investigation. Those duties embrace the examination 

 of facts, the sifting of evidence, the determination of 

 conflicting claims and adverse interests, as well as the 

 construction oi' statutes and the application of settled 

 and well-defined principles of law. 



The auditor provided lor by the act creating the 

 department, was then known as auditor of the treas- 

 ury. His duties were to receive and audit all accounts. 

 {Subsequently, by the act of .March 3, 1817, four addi- 

 tional auditors were provided for, and he was then 

 denominated the first auditor. He is required by law 

 to examine all accounts relating to the receipts from 

 customs ; all accounts accruing in any department on 

 account of salaries; all accounts for salaries and ex- 

 penses of judges, marshals, and other officers of United 

 States courts; expenses connected with the construc- 

 tion of public buildings; and generally all accounts 

 relating to the civil expenses of the government with 

 the exception of those incurred in the consular and 

 diplomatic service and internal revenue bureau. E-irly 

 in this century such a distribution of the public busi- 

 ness was demanded as was calculated to result in a 

 prompt settlement of public accounts. Hence the ne- 

 ressity for the act of M arch 3, 1817, which provided 

 for five auditors, to whom were assigned, respectively, 

 the settlement of the accounts of the different depart- 

 ments. The duties of the second auditor, as now de- 

 fined, are the examination and settlement of accounts 

 relating to the pay and clothing of the army, ordinance 

 service, subsistence of officers, bounties to soldiers. 

 hospital stores, and contingent expenses of the war 

 department, and of all accounts relating to Indian 

 affairs. The third auditor is required to examine all 

 accounts relative to the subsistence and transportation 

 of the army, and generally all accounts of the war de- 

 partment other than those assigned by law to the 

 second auditor, and all accounts relating to army pen- 

 sions. The fourth auditor receives and settles all ac- 

 counts relating to navy pensions, and accounts pertain- 

 ing to the naval service. The fifth auditor receives 

 nnd examines accounts accruing in or relative to the 

 diplomatic and consular service; accounts relating to 

 the census, the National Museum, and the comin.L'cnt 

 expenses of the patent office. The office of the sixth 

 auditor was originally created by the act of July _'. 

 1 v;ri. Previously the duties had devolved on the fifth 

 auditor in addition to his other duties. The diitic > nf 

 the sixth auditor bear relation both to the Treasury 

 an 1 IVt Office departments. He is an officer of the 

 trra-ury, and under the direct control of the secretary, 

 but. at the same time, he is also by law subject in cer- 

 tain respects to instructions which maybe given by the 

 Postmaster-General. He is required bylaw to examine 

 all acvomits relatim: to the postal service, and to report 

 to the Postmaster-* icncnd all balances found on settle- 

 ineiit nf such accounts. Unlike the other auditors, his 

 settlements of accounts are not subject to revision by 

 any other officer, except when dissatisfaction is ex- 

 pressed by any person or by the Postmaster-* ieneral. in 

 which case an appeal may be taken within twelve 

 months to the first comptroller, whose .decision is final. 

 All the aeeounts passed upon by the other five auditors 

 KO to the first or second comptroller or commissioner 

 of eu-toins for re-examination. All returns relative to 

 the survey and sale of public lands are made to the 

 commissioner of the General Land Office in the Interior 

 department, who is required by law to audit and settle 

 all public accounts relative thereto, and to certify the 

 balances and transmit the accounts to the first comp- 

 troller of the treasury for his examination and dec;- ion. 

 He is thus made an auditing officer, with duties relating 

 to accounts pertaining to public lands or of like char- 

 acter as those devolving on the auditors of the treasury, 

 with regard to their several subjects of accounting. 



The first comptroller is required to examine all ac- 

 counts settled by the first auditor except those relating 

 to receipts from customs; all accounts settled by the 

 fifth auditor and by the comu:issioner of the general 

 land office, and to certify to balances arising thereon 

 to the register of the treasury. He is also required to 

 countersign all warrants drawn by the Secretary of the 

 Treasury which are authorized by law, and to superin- 

 tend the recovery of all debts certified by him to be 

 due the United States, and for that purpose to direct 

 such legal proceedings as may be adapted to enforce 

 prompt payment thereof. The second comptroller 

 examines all accounts settled by the second, third, and 

 fourth auditors, and certifies the balances arising 

 thereon to the heads of the departments in which the 

 expenditures have been incurred. He a'so counter- 

 signs all requisitions drawn on the Secretary of tha 

 Treasury by the Secretaries of War and of the Navy. 

 The office of commissioner of customs was created 

 by the act of March 3, 1849. At this time there were 

 two revising officers, already described as first nnd 

 second com pt rollers, the former of which was charged 

 with the duties transferred by that act to and now per- 

 formed by the commissioner of customs. He is re- 

 Suircd by law to examine all accounts settled by the 

 ret auditor relating to the receipts from customs, nnd 

 to certify to balances arising thereon to the register of 

 the treasury. In addition to the foregoing there are 

 also embraced in the organization of the department 

 the following named officers : Treasurer of the United 

 States; Itegister of the Treasury; Commissioner of 

 Internal l!evcnue ; Comptroller of the Currency ; Di- 

 rector of the mint; Chief of the Bureau of Engraving 



| and Printing; Supervising Inspector-General of the 

 Marine Hospital establishment; Supervising Inspec- 

 tor-General of Steamboats ; General Superintendent of 

 the Life Saving Service ; Superintendent of the Gout 

 and Geodetic Survey ; Chief of the Bureau of Com- 

 mercial Statistics ; Supervising Architect ; Commis- 

 sioner of Navigation Chief of the Secret Service ; 

 and the Light-House Board. 



Persons appointed to the office of Secretary of the 

 Treasury, first comptroller, first auditor, treasurer, or 

 ivL'i.-ier. arc prohibited bylaw from being concerned 

 or interested in trade or commerce, public lands or 

 other public property, or public securitjes of a State, 



i or of the United States, and from taking to his own 

 use any emolument or gain for negotiating or transact- 

 ing any business in the treasury department other than 

 is allowed by law. The duties of the register are to 

 keep all accounts of the receipts and expenditures of 

 the public money, and of all debts due to or from the 

 government; to receive from the first comptroller and 

 commissioner of customs all accounts finally adjusted 

 bv them, and to transmit to the Secretary of the 

 Treasury copies of the balances of accounts so cer- 

 tified ; to record all warrants for the receipt of pay- 

 ment of moneys at the treasury, except those drawn 

 by the Postmaster-General and those by the Secretary 

 of the Treasury upon requisition of the Secretaries of 

 War and of the Navy. This officer also has charge of 

 the accounts of the issue and redemption of bonds, 

 notes, and other securities of the United States, and 

 is custodian of the records and files pertaining to the 

 accounts arising in the civil branches of the govern- 

 ment. The office of Treasurer of the United States 

 was created by the act establishing the Treasury de- 

 partment. The treasurer is required to give bond in 

 the penalty of $150,000, conditioned for the faithful 

 discharge of his office, and for the fidelity of the per- 

 sons to be employed under him. He receives and 

 keeps the moneys of the United States, and disburses 

 them only upon warrants drawn by the Secretary of 

 the Treasury. He is also charged with the custody of 

 nil public moneys deposited in the various sub-treas- 

 uries and depositories throughout the country ; ha 



! receives from the Bureau of engraving and printing, 



1 aud counts and seals preparatory to use, United States 



