The Responsibilities and Duties of the Secretary of the Treasury—“The Most Remarkable Man of His Time”—Three Extraordinary Men—Hamilton Makes an Honest Proposal—How to Pay the National Debt—The New Secretary at Work—Laying the Foundation of Financial Operations—The Mint at Philadelphia—A Little Personal Abuse—The Secretary Borrows Twenty Dollars—Modern Greediness—The Genius Becomes a Lawyer—Burning of Records—Hunting for Blunders and Frauds—The Treasury Building—Treasury Notes go off Nicely—Mr. Crawford Under a Cloud—He Comes out Gloriously—A Little Variety—A Vision of Much Money—Fidgety Times—Lighting the Mariner on His Way—Old Debts Raked Up—Signs of the Times—Under Lincoln—S. P. Chase as Secretary—The National Currency Act—Enormous Increase of the National Debt—Facts and Figures—The Credit of the Government Sustained—President Grant’s Rule—George S. Boutwell made Secretary—Great Expectations—Mr. Boutwell’s Labors, Policy and Success—The Great and Growing Prosperity of the Nation. After the Declaration of Independence, the first thing that the Continental Congress did was to organize a Treasury Department for the new government of the colonies. [Illustration: UNITED STATES TREASURY.—WASHINGTON.] Michael Hilligas and George Clymer were appointed Joint-Treasurers of the United Colonies. They were to reside in Philadelphia, and to receive each a salary of five hundred dollars the first year, and to give bonds in the sum of one hundred thousand dollars. The second year their salary was raised to eight hundred dollars each. In a short time George Clymer was sent to Congress as a delegate from Pennsylvania, and Michael Hilligas remained Treasurer for the Colonies to the close of the Revolution. In six months after the resignation of Mr. Clymer, a committee of five persons was appointed to assist him to superintend the small Treasury. Three months after, an office was created in which to keep the Treasury accounts. That office was an itinerant, like Congress, following it to whatever place it assembled. Acts were passed for the establishment of a National Mint. Alas! the poor Continentals had no precious ore to coin, and never struck off a dollar or cent. An Auditor General’s office was organized, and John Gibson appointed, with an annual salary of one thousand and sixty-six dollars and sixty-seven cents.