Daily national Republican. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1862-1866, 1864-10-28

1
his own comfy on the plea that his writing
might be Known by some of the supervisors o
the election returns when they we're opened.
The work went bravely on at No. IS West
FsycLto street. Clerks were busily at work
filling mp blank powers OF attorney in the names
of deceased soldiers transcribed from the rec
ords of the hospitals in this city, Washington,
AnnSpollF, Horper'S Ferry, and other places,
10 which access had been had on the ground
that the names were to be published for the In.
formation Of their families Jones took the
place Of one of the clerks, Lud filled some OF
the blanks, which yet needed the signature Of
a commissioned officer to the AFFIDAVIT. lie
profossed a great desire to forward several Of
them 10 New York to the Democratic Com
mittoes TO whom they were 10 be transmitted,
but this was objected To by Ferry, who stated
that he must get Donahue 10 sign the officers
names. Donahue, II will 10 remembered, Is
commissioned by Gov. Seymour 10 take the
soldiers vote. He was tolegraphod for to
Washington 10 come immediately 70 Baltimore
and sign the afiidavlts. which was, of course,
done. Among the names OF the officers forged
are several who are dead, many who are In
hospital, etc., and number whose names do
not appear on the records Of the Adjutant Gen.
cral at the War Department, and have no ex-
istence whatever, except in the imaginative
brain Of Donahue.
Mr.. Jones was kindly Informed that all the
tickets that were forwarded from Baltimore
"werc all right" It is known that in a great
number Of cases where votes were collected the
tickets with the names OF the Union electors on
were distracted from their envelopes and those
Of the Democratic persuasion were substituted
in their stead. In several instances the Uncon.
ditional National ticket and the Democratic
State ticket were placed together by soldiers,
but when their ballots, which were found at
the office Of the Commissioners, were opened,
the Union ticket was gone, and that for Nc
Clcllsn in its place. How far this infamous
and atrocious fraud has been practiced, and to
what extent il will Affect tho vote Of New ork,
cannot be ascertained at present. Nor can the
exact limit TO where the operations have been
carried on be determined. A number Of the
envelopes in possession OF the authorities pur-
port 70 he the votes Of the members OF the One
Hundred and Twenty-eighth New York regi.
ment, and are superscribed "Near Petersburg" !"
while the command ia known TO be in sher.
dams army, and are located near Hsrper's
Ferry.
Seven Or eight large dry.goods boxes Of
"votes " have been sent by express from the
mauufactory here, and large parcels have also
gone by mail. When the parties were arrested,
a large number were ready TO be sent of. II
behooves the friends OF the Union throughout
the city and State Of New York TO be on their
guard and protect themselves against this out
rage. The tickets are now in the hands Of the
Democratic county committees Of New York,
and will be Offered on the Sth OF November, If
a sense of shame and fear OF detection docs not
deter the holders.
When the parties were arraigncd, NJ. J, Ferry,
Governor seymour's agent, plead guilty, and
Donohuo was allowed till ten O'Clock this
morning TO consult counsel. After the ad-
journment of the court Ferry made the follow
ing confession in form To Colonel Foster,
Judge Advocate Of the Commission;
CONFESSION OF NJ. J. FERRY, THE STATE AGENT
or GOVERNOR SEYMOUR.
do not rccollect the time when the first
papers were forged, but II was in the presence
of Orvllle r. Wood, Of Clinton county, New
York; il was done in my office, No S5 Fayette
street, Baltimore; am, and have been for the
past two years, the agent Of the State Of New
York, appointed by Governor Seymour, to look
after the sick and wounded soldiers OF New
York; | first saw Wood on Wednesday of last
week, at my office; he came and represented
himself as an agent OF the Central Committee
4 Il l..Ir tt.I q Al q
talked about the ways In Iich votes could be
taken; 1t was agreed that ". ihould sign the
names OF soldiers and oilicers, and then send
them home to have the local tickets filled 10; |
made out such papers; signed the names of
soldiers on quite number of them; l cannot
tell what names VIC signed; the papers are in
the bundle now on the tables did not sign the
names Of officers, but Donshue signed any
quantity OF them; there was large package Of
these papers left with me, which destroyed;
that package contained over two hundred;
Donahue signed them all; the idea of forging
these papers was first suggested by q man
named Stephen Maxon; he Is from the western
part Of the State of New York; do not know
from what county; he is not in the service; he
| is State agent.
cannot say at what time II was first pro-
posed 10 forge these papers, but 1t was about
two weeks ago; do not think there was any
body present but Donahue and myself when
was a man named G. VI. Bundy In my office;
he is now in New York; also a man named II.
| Newcomb; | never saw him until he came
there; he Is a lawyer in Albany; part of the
| forged papers were made In my office, and part
brought there; they were usually brought in
bundle tied up; ] do not know who brought
them; had no letters from Peter Cagger, ox-
cept what were found In my desk; / never
knew of any correspondence on this subject
with Gen. Farrell, the Commissary of Subsist-
ence, except the package which you have; the
package contained a lot of blank envelopes and
forms Of attorney, with letter from Gen. Far
| rell, marked CONFIDENTIAL" !" which contained
q list Of names Of residents Of Columbia coun-
ty. did not let any one know that destroyed
the forged papers left with me, but told my as
sociates that l sent them 10 different parts Of
the State to be mailed; ayoung man came from
Washington on Friday or Saturday last, saying
II l had any spare blanks to send them over TO
Washington; l am not certain that he did or
did not say anything about there being twenty
men over there who would attend 10 these mat.
tersj do not know how many forged papers
were sent of, but l heard them say they sent
them from Washington by the dry goods box
full do not recollect hearing them talk des.
pairingly, but they talked quite jubilantly and
confidently. ! sent a package of forged pa.
pers 10 General Farrell, with the following
I letter:
BALTIMOHE, October ~, 1854