Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 4.djvu/514



certificate copy of the said application, with such instructions as he may think proper; and it shall be the duty of the said district attorney to lay the said copy of such application before the commissioner or commissioners of insolvency to be appointed by virtue of this act, and to appear and act before them as counsel in behalf of the United States.

. And be it further enacted, That the Secretary of the Treasury is hereby authorized and directed to appoint any number of commissioners of insolvency he may think proper, not exceeding three in each judicial district or territory of the United States, who, before they enter upon the duties of their appointment, shall severally take an oath or affirmation before one of the justices of the Supreme Court, or before any judge of a district court of the United States, that they will faithfully execute the trust committed to them: and it shall be the duty of the said commissioner or commissioners to proceed publicly to examine the books, papers, and vouchers of each of the said applicants; and they, or either of them, shall also be authorized to examine each of the said applicants, or any other person or persons, upon oath or affirmation, touching the said application: and it shall be the duty of the said commissioner or commissioners to make a report, in writing, to the said Secretary, of the result of their examination in each case, therein particularly stating, as near as may be, the time when the applicant became insolvent, how soon thereafter he made known his insolvency to his creditors, the cause or causes, and the amount of such insolvency; and, also, all the estate, real and personal, which the said applicant owned at the time of his insolvency, and the manner in which such estate has been disposed of; and what estate, if any, he has since owned, and still owns.

. And be it further enacted, That the Secretary of the Treasury, after he shall have received the report of the said commissioner or commissioners, shall proceed to examine the circumstances of each case; and if it shall have been proved to his satisfaction that the said debtor is unable to pay the said debt or debts which he owes to the United States; that he hath done no act fraudulently to deprive the United States of their legal priority; that he has not been guilty of any fraud, nor made any conveyance of his estate, real or personal, in trust for himself, or with an intent to defraud the United States, or whereby to expect any benefit or advantage to himself or family; then and in that case, the said Secretary may compromise with the said debtor, upon such terms and conditions as he may think reasonable and proper under all the circumstances of the case, and may execute a release to him or her for the amount of the said debt or debts which he or she may owe to the United States; which said release shall contain a recital that the foregoing particulars have been satisfactorily proved to the said Secretary; Provided, however, That the said release shall be rendered null and void, if it shall at any time be ascertained that the said insolvent debtor hath obtained the same upon false suggestions.

. And be it further enacted, That if the said insolvent debtor, or any other person, shall falsely take an oath or affirmation under this act, he or she shall be deemed guilty of perjury, and shall suffer the pains and penalties in that case provided.

. And be it further enacted, That each of the said commissioners of insolvency shall receive five dollars per day for each day they shall be actually employed in the performance of their duty under this act; which sum, together with the actual expense incurred for office rent and all other contingencies, provided the same shall not, in the whole, exceed two dollars per day, shall be apportioned among the several applicants by the said commissioner or commissioners, under the direction of the Secretary of the Treasury, according to the time occupied in the investigation of each case; and each of the said applicants, immediately after the investigation of his or her case shall be completed, by the