The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1862-06-26


be favorssiy received by our government ana
people
The Indiana State Frauds Again.
The case of the recent frauds in Indiana
State bonds Is assuming new and clearer
phase. By reference to our legal reports it
will DO seen that the Grand Jury Of this county
has indicted Mr.. G. D. Slower, who, as the con-
idential clerk and deputy Of Mr.. Craven, the
Indiana State Agent here, signed and issued the
fraudulent bonds, and that the amount of bail
required of Mr.. Samuel Hallett, one Of the Wall
street brokers who negotiated the bonds, has
been raised from ten to fifteen thousand dol
lars. It has been rumored that Mr.. Slower
would turn States evidence and disclose the
whole affair." but, as Mr.. Slower is now indicted
as . principal in the fraud, this ruunr is doubt
less untrue.
A representative of the Indiana State officials
and representative of the Wall street brokers
having been indicted, the whole case begins to
be better understood and appreciated. We
have before stated that, all things considered,
the Wall street brokers appear comparatively
uOHCot III luC diuII Vc MIC INV lHClIuCu w
believe, as the facts are more fully developed
that the honesty of the brokers interested i
something more than comparative, and that they
have been made the scapegoats for the Indiana
officials and politicians, who are in reality the
guilty parties Before the election Of 1860
ousted them from office, the democratic officials
of Indiana had authorized the issue of bonds
for loan of two and half millions of dollars
By fraudulent overissue, said to have been
devised and executed by the Slower who is
now indicted, four millions of dollars worth Of
bonds were put into the market instead of the
two and half millions authorized. 1t is EVIL
dent, therefore, that one and half millions of
dollars worth of these bonds were illegal, un-
authorized and fraudulent Now, which particu-
lar bonds were these? The legal and the illegal
bonds were ell in the same form. and all had
the same signatures. How, then, were the
brokers or the public to distinguish them! No
one could possibly separate the good from the
worthless bonds except the men who had issued
them. Why, then, should the Wall street bro
kers be considered guilty Of fraud because they,
as we'll as the public, were deceived into ne
gotiating these bonds!
Some Of the money obtained from this fraudu-
lent overissue may have been employed by the
democratic politicians during the Indiana cleo
ton of 1860. If it were thus used it carried
the republicans came into power, new State
Agent was appointed, and the fraud was dis
covered What then? OF course the facts
were Immediately placed before the public, the
illegal bonds were recalled, and the perpetra-
tors of the fraud were punished! Nothing of
the kind. The republican politicians OF In
diana, now in power, secretly abetted the
They made a private and criminal arrange
ment with the swindlers who had forged the
overissue. They actually reissued, from their
legitimate State agency, some Of the very
bonds which they knew to be forged. They
thus continued and extended the fraud. They
became particeps criminis as far - the reissue
of illegal bonds was concerned, and were
guilty of compromising a felony in concealing
the original crime. All of these officials,
from the highest to the lowest, are therefore
subject TO indictment, and we hope that our
Grand Jury will find true bills against them
upon these charges. 1t Is in vain for them to
attempt to shield themselves by holding up a
Wall street broker as q victim for the
arrows OF the law. What proof is there
that the Wall street brokers could dis.
tinguish the true from the false bonds.
What proof is there that the Wall street
brokers were not deceived into negotiating
just as the public was deceived in purchasing
these overssues. The transaction can no longer
be regarded as merely another Schuyler
fraud. 1t has assumed political phase. 1t
was evidently political as well a. financial
affair, in its conceament and continuance, IL
not In its inception. 1t is another instance of
the political corruption and official prohigacy
that have ruined the country
The Tribune, which has always been the
organ Of jobbery in mines, minerals, railroads,
stocks and muskets, at first appeared as the
champion of the Indiana politicians, because
of its republican afinities but it has since
given up the case as hopeless, and now re-
mains silent, lest 1t should be damned with the
bad cause it defends. Even silence, however,
10 an assistance to bad cause. The press and
the public should be outspoken upon the SUBJ
ject, and should rebuke both the perpetrators
Of the fraud and the politicians, republican
and democratic, who inspired, assisted, con-
cealed and protected it. As there may be some
of the fraudulent bonds still in the market, the
Wall street brokers should protect the public
and vindicate themselves by kicking oil Indiana
securities out of the stock board. This action
of tho brokers, and the summary indictment
by our Grand Jury Of all the Indiana officials
concerned, are retributions richly merited and
generally anticipated.
Our urou.Clad Nnyv.