Fremont journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County [Ohio]) 1853-1866, 1860-06-29

told Wendell at the time | was only bore
ing Reynolds; that / had no such power
that knew none Of tho members except
some Of the Ohio members, and l would
not dare to approach them with money. 1t
was then that Mr. Wendell made the pro-
position about the $4,000 that Mr.. Co
vode asked me about yesterday; refused
to have any thing to do with it that morn
ing, and told him / would study about it,
and see him again. met him again the
next morning, and finally took the check
for $4,000, and agreed to do all could for
it; which / was then doing, and had been
doing before.
Q. Did he designate any manner in
which you were to exert your influence ?
A. No, Sir.
@. Whether with money or solicitation 7
A. No, Sir; he never intimated that he
wanted me to use this on any member.
@. Did he intimate that you were to
keep ityourselfi A. He did not say l took it
as my own, and sent it off and used it.
@. With whom did you have any COM
munication about itl A. do not know
that l talked with any one; Reynolds knew
all about the transaction; may have told
him; do not know whether did or not;
1 know that he knew all about the transac-
ton, but whether he got it from me or
Wendell do not remember; may have
talked with Reynolds about it at the time;
/ do not remember how that was; but l
talked with nobody but him at any time
about it.
@. After the receipt of this check, what
did you do towards performing any service
A. Just as 1 had been doing all along before.
@. Whom did you see9 A. never ran
after single member; never had any op-
portunity without forcing myself upon any
member, which never did upon any sub
ject; l urged the settlement of that question
as l had been doing before.
By the Chairman: @. What conversa-
tion had you with Mr.. Wendell at the time
he proposed to give you $2O,OOOl That
grew out of my gassing with Reynolds, my
joking and plaguing him; he proposed, if
| would take the contract, to give me $780,
600; here is memorandum which he made
and handed to me when he left me, or dur
ing the first conversation, l do not now re-
member which it was in place of telling it,
he wrote it down while was looking on
says he, "Here is what will do" and then
wrote this: "$5- d., S. 90, So
CO., $5- 90" the understand
ing was that this was $4,000 apiece; said
81 would rather take the $4,000 down, and
not take the contract"
By Mr.. Olin: @. Was this $4,000 for
four men9 A. forget the number of men
needed to pass the bill, or raise the COM
mittee, whichever it was.
By the Chairman: @. Is this the men,
orandum the witness had produced in Mr..
Wendell's handwritingG A. Yes, Sir.
@. Did Mr.. Wendell evince a willing
ness to invest a great deal more than that
in Lecompton9 A. He made remark
something like this: "a bushel of gold is no
object in this matter"
@. In what matter9 A. In the passage
of the bill, or in the settlement of the Le-
compton question; there was no bill then
before the House, think; am not ccr-
tain which it was.
@. Do you recollect whether it was be-
fore the Conference Committee was raised
or after that you changed your deposit and
took draft9 A. 1 did it within a few
days after first went to the bank; I think
it was in the same week j got uneasy about
it, and did not know but what they might
90 and attach it, or do something to stoT
payment, if they found / was doing nothing
more than had been doing.
@. Could you understand why it wa:
that Mr.. Wendell offered you only $40, 1000
when he said that bushel of gold was no
object in getting that matter settledG A
He said that when he was urging this pro.
position upon me, urging me TO engage il
this matter; l understood him by that to
mean that if l oven wanted more l coulG
have it; that was what understood by thai
remark.
@. Did you not give Mr. Reynolds a
portion of this money, in consideration o.
his services in getting you the agency in
this matterl A. He said TO me one day,
"You made good thing out of this, and
you never would have got it but for me
and you ought to give me something;" say:
l, 81 will give you something, Sim;" told
him l would go up to the bank the mex
morning; l did go up, and drew out somc
money; do not remember how much
gave him it was either $3.50 or $500,
: do not know which; it was not over $500
and do not think it was under $3.50;
think it was one Of those two sums.
@. Did you know any other parties witt
; were engagee here as outsiders in helping
to get the Lecompton bill passed. A
There were plenty of them.
!, @. Who were engaged in that business
A. / do not know any one who had tn
; handling Of any money.
@. We understand that ono man VIII
had the handling of money in that matte
! would not tell any one else about il; meal
who wero engaged in getting that bill
throughG A. There wero great man,
men here from Ohio pressing members i
vote for that bill.
@. Can you name any one who came a
that particular time, for that purpose tina
you knew off A. do not know any VIII
came for that purpose; there were men her
J from number of districts who urged mem
bers 10 vote for that bill; Col. Medar
was here; Mr.. Johnson was here, as can
didate for United States Marshal; that wa
the business he was here about.
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