Richmond daily Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1842-1861, 1860-09-15
By whose act?
@ By whose act?
A. By the Prcsideuts. .,..-,., A.
o That was taken from you to divide with other
friends of his:


ness These facts arc sufficiently shoSn by the follow
ing testimony Of Isaac West then Inspector in the Gus
tom House at Philadelphia. We give thequestiOns pro-
pounded 10 Mr.. West, and his answers:
20 How long did you remain in Office thereg
A. About hve years.
o. Were you there at the time of the election in 1885,
when Mr.. Buchanan elected
A. Yes sir.
. What DO you know about moneys being raised of
the employees OF the Custom House on that occasion!
A. There was a certain tax levied upon the persons
connected with the Custom House.
.. What amount on each person.
A. A certain percentage. On person receiving ST.
u95 year. think the for the Presidential election
was from $50 TO SSS.
o. Do YOU mean for the Presidential election alone,
both Presidential and Congressman elections!
A. I mean the Presidential election alone.
O. What about the other elections
A. The amount was not great for the State cleo
lions.
o. How much was thatg
A DO not recolcct. Il strikes me that i. was from
s. TO S., something like that.
o. The two then would amount to in the neighborhood
Of $l0s
A. Yes, sir, in that neighboshood.
o. Upon what sihttd ohccrs was that?
A. Those Of 81 100. or rather 81 ,0s1 year.
Q We're the Others assessed in proportion TO their sal
aries.
A. Yes sir.
o. To whom that money paidf
A. Il was generally deposited. That portion which
collected in my department, gave TO the deputy coec-
,cr Mr. larb, soul believe he the treasurer so far
as the Custom House cOnccned-and he paid it
TO the Executive Committee, lbeieye.
O. A political Committee:
A. Yes, sir
q DID all the employees pay
A. / never knew one TO refuse.
Q What wl the impression that it was rather obi
glt0ry upon them 10 pay
A That seemed 70 be the impression they all felt it
their duty 10 pay that more promptly than Of their
I.bts tina, the impression; but l do not know
about whether they would have been removed if they
had not paid but il considered obligatory, be-
Heve
Q. Do you know of any person receiving pay during
thar P,esi nih contest who did not render service in
the Custom House
A. TIA. is a pretty nice question to answer. There
IL parties absent during that for month;
bl could not on my oath say whether they received
their salaries not they were absent some months.
o. Who were those absent cauvasiug duug that cleo
ton
A Mr. Gideon Westcott was in the State Central
Committee room for some months from four TO SIX
moaths, probably more or less.
o. Name an t1at you recouect?
Mr. Whitaker vas one | forget his first name
ohm Shell and Daniel Fry; think there were others
believe those are al can think Of now.
o. Can YOU state hos lOug they were away
A. could not; some more, aud some less some were
on iuty occasionally: Mr. Wesco.t absent all the
time; the others duty occasionally pephaps at
the Office half the time.
d Di YOU not see a letter authorizing Mr. Wescot
10 be absent or % scme way referring to that natter
A. Mr. Wesc0tt read me letter from Mr. Buchanan,
according TO my recollection, SAYING that be had obtain
Cd leave Of absence for him for certain time FROM the
Secretary OF tie Treasury.
D. When wss lha,y
4. Ia 1856
n addition to the above it i shown BY the testimony
before that Com ues that large numbers Oforged aud
fraudulent naturalization papers were sent on, in Penu-
sgylc 70 ba illegally used in the election in favor Of
n. B.clluaa. VIM Elrns that he had $50 Irshmen at
al. ulrs on -lc ion Ctull At aiding aud that he re-
c.ved u7wlri, OF two hundred naturalization papers
from one .u52u T. Blown. Some Of these papers were
certified D. .erk o, prothonoasy in Philadelphia, icIo
h1f BEEN dad pr sir years. and received Instructions
from Brown to Gu them up to correspond w..u
date of the certificate O.he7s Of them we're forged ou
rzh- Brown cts atsr-tri, appointed % office under
ITr. B4el1aqnl To the same general effect il the TO-
lowing from the testimony Of Isaac West then Inspector
in P-u.d-l3..a:
q Have YOU any per- DUAL knowledge about the issuing
0i iraGiuieu, uItgra iza'iUu papers,
A. have no personal knowledge Of that.
Q. Do you know otauy persons who were engaged in
distributing thCms
A snow parties Of course, ,ri9 hare been convicted
here and seq, % ths psHiedry for distributing ten
at least that csne cut before the Court.
q Do you anoE Of any parties not yet in the peni,en
isry who we're engaged ia distributing them
A. / would not know excep, from hearsay have no
personal kuosledye OF their distributing them.
Q Did certain individual tell you that be had dis
tri6uted a large number OF them and going to dis
tribute more, or something Of that kindly
A Yes sir.
A. Do YOU know whether they were distributed in the
city Of Philadelphia, elsewhere
A By tina. individual in the counsy-:hlt is Chester
county
o What was hes An American or German?
A. he himself an American, and held position
on the railroad.
o. Ga the Columbia riilroads
A Yes sir; 'o,dsr Nr Baker hepr@e1't collector Of
s port Of Phlis phiawho was superintendent Of that
road al that time
Did that man tell you these we're fraudulent
papers that he had been Distributing, or did he say they
were genuine.
A lie did not say they were genuine
. Did be say they were fraudulent.
A Yes sir.
. Have you no, som, knowledge about a number Of
these papers being distributed amOng the German popu
aion that had been in this eountry but little wLiey
A / heard that in the same way know nothing
personally abOu IT,
- O. Did not a man tell Won tha. he had distributed
large number Of them in that way.
A Yes sir, a told me that.
o What title did he give those who had been in this
country bus a little while.
A. Well you seem to have found out great deal about
these things there was German messenger m the office
Who bad been away for days and when he came in
took him account for being absent; 'Otr said he L
was dong good Doing good said l. what good have
You been doing, Chris. have you been sick? No. he
said 4 putting out these papsrs had never seen
three naturalization papers in my lite suppose unless
was a: some election. What they | asked him /;
On" said he these are sck' Whit do You mean BY
being sickT I said: 90 God said he these 6llops
krgs Hi been here Than sir moahs and he had some
Others there that he said were good told him he had
better look out for HIMSELF he would get iu,O the
pruitentiiry; he said dop qigs these to them isaps
them Lers ey get dsu aud they don't knoS where
they come from"
Such Is bu, partial insight into the used in
bringing the Breckenridge administration into
poser. What other eEpedents used in Pennsylva-
MA in other States where eorrup ion and fraud and
bribery have been reduced perfect system, shall
probably never be informed If these developments
shall prove sufficient to the great popular masses
to just sense of the eaOrmy of such means, we shall
be content The legitimate use Of money in the prepa-
ration Of facts aud the distribution Of correct nforma-
ton amoag the people, coupled with arguments on the
policy Of conducting public Affairs aud fair discus
sious Of those prneps and about which the
American people may differ, cannot be deemed repre-
heusibe By this means the popular mind educated
and elevated the public virtue cherished and the patr
oc instincts Of the citizen strengthened But when the
system Of eectoneerng exhibited by the foregoing
facts, directed in the channels of Fraud when Federal
oceholders detailed from the public service for the
purpose Of interfering with the elections Of the people,
vb,n the candidate for the Chief Mapstracy of this