The Potter journal. [volume] (Coudersport, Pa.) 1857-1872, 1858-12-09
From tie Lock Harea Wdtchman.

From tie L0ck Udren IFdtcimdn.
U. S. AMERICA rs. LORAN 4 ENswoRTH.
! Last week we gave some of the pro-
ccedingS in the case of u. S. of America
rs. Loran A. Ellsworth, which was tried
! in the District Court held at Wiliausport,
Sept. 20, 1873, with remarks thereon
! from the Elmira AdcertiSeF, aud also the
proclamation of pardon by Gov, Packer,
| freeing from the PenItautiary one notori-
Gus criminal, known By the name of Charles
/ Miller under circumstances to say the
least ut them, very dlscrcdltable Of not
oglminaO Oh the part Of the Executive Of
sovereign State.
The same plea offered in extcnuation,
by Gov. Packer for the pardon of Charles
Miller, could be entered with as much
justice i'll every case where a person has
violated the laws of lis country, and is
justly suffering the penalty for violating
those laws. Therefore, if nothing else, it
is a bad precedent, and for the protection
of all communities should not have been
made.
1t will be rocollected that the y. S.
District Attorney Roberts, abandoned the
case az soon as his evidence was all in,
before the defence had adduced any, say
ing to the Judge that the evidence was
such that they could not ask a conviction
under. apd the learned Judge instructed
| the jury to return a verdict Of acquittal
/ OF Mr. Ellsworth without leaving their
box, which they did,
! Now we wish our readers TO bear in
mind, that this evidence which Attorney
Roberts told the Judge was suoh that he
could not ask q conviction under, was the
evidence which Gov. Packer pardoncd out
of the Penitcntlary, (as we belieVe) for
/ the purpose, as far as IN his power, to III
! jure the reputation OF one man and his
friends, whose character for honesty and
morality no one had heretofore dared to
impugn, because they were leading men
of a political party who had refused to
sacrifice their principles at the command
Of dcmago@uc, who now, to the shame
of the keystone State be it said, sits III
her Executive chair issuing pardons to
criminals for the ostcnsible purpose of
punlshing some Of his political opponents
by cndeayoring to east stigma upon their
moral character. How degraded, how hu-
miIiating to contemplate
We speak plain on this subject, because
we speak feelingly; for if such things be
permitted aud passed by in silence, amy
one, no matter how pure his morals or how
correct lifs he may lead, may be in dan
er Of losing his reputation among his fel-
law-mep, and consequently the ruin of his
business, by any aspiring demagQgue who
has access 10 the ears Of the Governor.
Although MIR. Ellsworth, by the action
Of his prosecutors, stands as clear of any
-crime which they imputed to him as the
angels in heaven, yet the action of the
prosecutors had its desired effect, mainly
to cripple him in his business, and there
by injure his and his friends political
influence. This was all they expected to
do from the time they first got Prosti-
tute to swear against him.
This community all know with what a
flourish Of trumpets the arrest of this man
was announced by certain clique in Will
liamsport-how they asserted it would
lead to the arrest of other leading men in
Williamsport, Us soon as certain develop
ments were made, which would aetolish
the whole community, at the samo time
telling some of their friends who these
parties were who would be arrested, and
whom Gov. Packer terms before their
trial, or even arrest, as notorious crimi-
pals" and prejudges their case by saying
" that there is DO d3ubt of the guilt of
these parties," and with what astonish-
ment the news was first received. They
npw know how true were those assertions.
i Volumes might be written against such
pervsrsiou of justice BY persons who are
selected 10 execute the law III its purity,
but this will suffice for the present, and
we would not have mentioned it so much
at length as we have. If such acts had been
; properly commented on by the Press gen
orally.
81 We viii merely add that more out,