At a meeting of the Board held on the 20th day of October, the

William L. Riggs, Southern railroad,

The aggregate amount of claims allowed on the different works

125 00

The following claims presented to the Board have, upon examination, been disallowed, viz: Thos. Martin, L. P. Whitney, Porter and Bolton, S. R. Close, B. L. Yates, A. Coates, Brown and Patrick, Robert Wells, Cyrus Howard, M. McFaden, Josiah Ladd, Stockton and Payne, J. W. Stage, D. D. Dwight, A. Weeks, and P. Kibbee. The Board deem it unnecessary to enter into a statement of the various reasons which induced them not to allow the claims last mentioned with the exception of the claim of Aaaron Weeks.

The claim of Mr. Weeks is for damages for an alledged breach of contract which the state entered into with the claimant and his as

sociates, for the construction of a ship canal around the falls of the Sault de Ste Marie.

The contractors having, in pursuance of a joint resolution authorizing an advance to be made to them upon their contract, received from the then commissioners of internal improvement the sum of five thousand dollars-arrived in May, 1839, at the Sault; but, upon commencing work there upon the canal, were, as is alledged, forcibly prevented by an armed force of the United States, from proceeding with and fulfilling their contract. Besides the loss on provisions, implements and wages of men employed, Mr. Weeks claims to have sustained much damage by way of loss of profit on contract, and derangement of his business operations for that season. The Board did not enter into this subject, as they at once came to the conclusion that the proper place for the claimant to apply for liquidation of his damages, was not before the Board, nor before the state legislature, but before congress; as the non-fulfillment of the contract with him and his associates, was not caused by any delinquency on the part of the state, but by officers of the United States, acting under alledged positive instructions from the then Secretary of War. The state, on the contrary, having departed from the general rule in regard to such contracts, and made a large advance to them, had, itself, by the same cause, been made a loser, directly, to the amount advanced to the contractors, besides having been interrupted in an unusual and unprecedented manner from prosecuting an important public work.

For the view of the matter taken by the state legislature at their first session after the occurrence, the Board would refer to the report of a special committee appointed to investigate the subject, with accompanying correspondence, &c., to be found in the printed documents of 1840. (House documents, Vol. II, pp. 485–493.)

Settlement with State Officers and Disbursing Agents of the State, December 8, 1843.

Upon an examination of the books of the auditor general and of the office of internal improvement, it was found that Thomas W. Wells, acting commissioner, had received during the last fiscal year, $149,986 51, which, with a balance of $2,064 09, on hand at the

last settlement, making an aggregate of $152,050 60, was duly accounted for to the auditor general,. as appears by the following ab

The Board having this day examined the abstracts from the books of D. V. Bell, commissioner of the land-office, as prepared for his annual report, and compared with the books of the state treasurer, so far as payments to the treasury were made, find that he has accounted for and paid over the several amounts passed to the credits of the several funds or accounts kept on the books of his office, with the exception of eight hundred and twenty-one dollars and nineteen centleft in his hands, the board having audited and allowed him for ex pense account, the sum of four hundred and eighty-four dollars and eighteen cents as per voucher on file.

December 22nd, 1843,

The Board having examined the abstracts of receipts and expenditures by J. H. Cleveland, Superintendent Southern Railroad, as returned to and examined and allowed by the Auditor General, find his receipts during the fiscal year ending November 30th, to have been $24,054 50, and balance in hands Nov. 30, 1842, $195 81, and his expenditures, as per vouchers filed in Auditor's office, to have been

$24,260 79, leaving a balance overpaid by the Superintendent on the

Upon an examination of the books of the Auditor General and State Treasurer there was found after cancelling the vouchers which had been paid during the last fiscal year, a balance remaining in the hands of the State Treasurer of $85,789 55, which was exhibited to the Board by said Treasurer, and by the board examined and found

correct.

R. P. ELDREDGE,
Sec'y of State.

C. G. HAMMOND,

Auditor Gen'l

E. FARNSWORTH,

Att'y. General.

Auditors to settle with Tresurer.