, 1864-12-19

THE WEED~0PDKKE LIBEL
SUIT.
Some Interesting Developments The
Mariposa m1nes-Fre1nonts IS Dearn
Friends.
The famous Weed -Opdykc libel suit is now in
hearing in the New York courts. From the
opening speech for the defense, By judge
Picrrcpont, We gather the following:
THE MAR1PosA AMATTER-GENERAL FREMoST's
''DRAR" FRIENDS.
We come down now to the Ma1iposa charge
--tlat In this Martposa transaction there was
very large amount Of money obtained by
Mr.. 0pdyke out Of General Fremont. What
are the facts about thats Nov all know Gem
eIa1 Fremont The world knows his name.
There is not q name more renowned in the
history Of the world than bis is to-
dny-at least of any living man
BE has been heard Of wherever civ
i1ization has gone. He ID very remarka-
bic man; be is a very peculiar man, q very
singular man, man with whom politically I
with sort Of poetry In his nature, q touch of
Wildness and Imagination which leads him to
be man Of ideas far in advance of the times
in which he lives; a man that has never
troubled himself about money; man that
don't understand financial matters; q man
hAo IL eAAPle ab q cuA1y lAuu "Aou HAeH you
see put upon that stand, rs you will, you will
SEQ exactly the Kind Of simple, honest, singu-
1ar, peculiar, romantic, remarkable man
he is, you Will find that It fell to
his lot TO become the possessor Of the Mari
posa tract In California, q mine that was con
sider1d, ind is perhaps, the richest in the
world. That mine was considered one OF e1-
much toll aid strife, md litigation, and
trouble, had become the owner. He was in
debt, and 1t was desirable to get him out of
debt, and it was proposed that he should
mortgage these Matiposa lands for the sum OF
ono million five hundred thousand dollnrs,
and make Morris keteham the trustee, and
on that mortgage deed bonds should be Isl
sued and the bonds sold In the market. Tint
was done, and that being done it was then at
ranged by the friends, as they were called, Of
whom Mr.. George Opdyke was one of the ac-
tive ones, Mr. Morris Ketcham another, Mr..
Hoey another, Mr. Field, Mr.. Opdyke's coua-
sci, another, that they would get up Mari.
The concern, and put it into stock on top
Of that mortgage, and call it worth ten mil
lions of dollars, which, It WIS supposed. was
what It WAS worth. This whole Mariposa
property belonged mostly, st least i've
s se1s g fb o t. oree sin ans nrsSes SeS ma h
under the laws of the State Of New York,
company called the Mariposa Mining Com
many, and issued upon that stock shares Of
one hundred dollars each. What do you sup
pose was then required by thesa "friends"
who had aided in getting up this matter for
Gen. Fremont? It was required that he
should give to Mr.. opyke, and Mr. Ketcham.
that stock-{e, sd, ,000-for being his friends.
Two millions five hundred thousand dollars
for being his friends? Very dear friends they
wkre-most expensive friends they were.
Now, gentlemen, they never put into that
stock ono dollar. They merely turned in
Frcmont's property to make the stock, and
Mr.. Opdyke, out of that, had more than $780,
be proved to you, gentlemen, and by General
Fremont's own lips. Then they required that
twenty-five thousand more sharcs-two mil
lion, five hundred thousand dollars which be-
1onEed to General Fremont should be placed
with Mr.. Kctclam, 60 that they could have
proxy On 1t, and 80 that they could control
the property, and General Fremont should
have no control over his own property. He
Welded to them, and he says when he signed
the paper he understood It was proxy, but
afterwards, when he tried to getit back, he Was
told it wns trnst 80 that they could hold bis
property and thus control the whole stock Of
the company in California, While this thing
tween him and California which cost thou
sand dollars, it was given out one day that the
office must close Immediately or it would all
fail through in California, and tho thing was
hurried through in this way. And when this
was going on Mr. Field, who was counsel in
the case, must have his fees, which were two
hundred thousand dollars, and he got his two
hundred thousand dollars in stock for his fees.
Gen. Fremont will tell you this. Thus 1t went
on, and finally Gen. Fremont concluded that
lie was placed In situation where he had not
much control ovcr his own property, and he
employed lawyer for the purpose Of trying
10 get 1t back, and in the attempt to Sctback
the twenty-five thousand shares they f1nally
agreed that they would give him up twenty
thousand shares if he would let them have 1--WE
thousand shares ut twenty-five cents on the
dollar, instead-of sixty cents, which was the
price Ut which it was then selling. Whether
this is anything TINT is improper to be done
or whether 1t has look Of extortion, or any,
thing that would make anybody blush Is
say. It is subject upon which shall say
nothing. I am merely telling YOU what
bis witnesses~that tits viii prove to
DC true; and it will be for you to
say what II all means Now, when these
things come out before you, and when you
have heard the witnesses upon this subject,
aud when you find that man in the position
Of Mr.. Opdyke has done the things which
are charged in the libel, and more than those
Which ale charged, you will judge whether
Mr.. Weed has Or has not done this man a
wrong. You will lind that when It was found
ont General Fremont owned this lnrgc MARI
posa tract-thls very valuable property that
: It was proposed by these gentlemen, Of whom
Mr.. Opdyke was lcadcr-thc same gentleman
who contsived to get through this gun con-
tract when he was mayor; the came who
contrivcd to send to Ira Harris, as though he
had received q Kind, sympathiztng letter from
Harris, when he Ind not, to make the public
believe he had-he leading this matter-pro-
posed to hold q meeting to fix up these things
tn. General Fremont. These "dear'' kind
friends were to do it. 1t was very Hike the
hmpcror Of Russia, who, few years ago, as
Franco to meet together and consider the
suhjcct Of Turkey With the ldea that they
should make adinner out Of it for themselves,
and they took it pretty nearly MI. Aud this
genius Of man who was once worth SIC, ,00O,-
0o0 and more, will come here in court and
show you that it has, in these various ways,
been stripped away from him, and that he
has but little left. I hare nothing to say TO
Jon about the right Of the thing. It will be
left tor you to soy w4etherit is right OF wrong,