486 HISTORY OF CALIFORNIA, 



expenses of the existing civil government, be given to 

 California as a *' school fund," to be exclnsivelj devo- 

 ted to purposes of education. No difficulty has been 

 experienced in enforcing the tariff of 1846, and there- 

 venue has been collected at a very moderate expense^ 

 considering the peculiar circumstances of the times. 



All officers of the civil government of California 

 will be paid out of the "civil fund" arising from the 

 customs, the salaries fixed by law, and I would recom- 

 mend that those officers of the army and navy who^ 

 have been employed as collectors and receivers of 

 customs in California, both during and since the war, 

 be allowed a fair per ccntage on the money which 

 they have collected and disbursed. Two and a half 

 per cent, on the amount collected, with the restriction- 

 contained in section 2 of the Act of March 3, 1849, 

 is deemed a fair allowance for collecting these customs, 

 and two and a half per cent, on the amount actually 

 expended is deemed ample compensation for keeping 

 and accounting for the same. It would be more just 

 and proper to make the allowance for the actual eX' 

 penditures than for receiving and keeping these 

 moneys ; because, if the reversed rule were established, 

 officers who have received large sums, and within a 

 few days transferred them to others, with no other 

 trouble than merely passing recdpts, would be entitled 

 to a higher pay than those who have had all the 

 trouble of expending this money in small sums, and in 

 keeping and rendering accounts of these expenditures. 



As soon as these " civil funds" can be collected 

 from the officers now holding them, it is proposed to 

 place them in the hands of some officer, or other 

 responsible person, who will act as treasurer for the 

 civil government, with a fixed compensation for his 



