Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1865-03-17
arhe Raker Conspiracy -

We call attention to the folIOsing criticism OF
The Cincinnati Gazette uron the agencies which
the "government." ssoar republican friends de-
light to tern the administration. has employed
siBce lie advent into power. not only to detect
bet, a. IL has been demonstrated IN
m .ny instance. to seduce for partisan purposes
the unsuspecsing and innocent into the commits
sion Of crime or political Offences. The case Of
Col. BAKEE, upon which The Gazette comments,
and Justly 50. With Indignation. Is in point IL
Illustrate. most completely not only the moral
tarpitude. bat the PARTISAN sillsny Of the sys-
TEN. Tbs, print forcioly remarks that claw does
not Justify conspiracy to make men commit
crime By surrounding them with peculiar temp
tations In order 10 convict them. The person
who does this i the principal in the crime, and
should be treated ss such" This BAKER did.
upon bis own evidence, Jet his conduct has the
approval Of the war department No doubt
hundreds of men have been arrested. confined a.
political prisoners, and some convicted OF crime
through just such agencies. Ii was developed
10 the treason trials 10 this city, by witnesses of
the government. that detectives were authorized
and instructed TO inveigle innocent men into
what was termed disloysl organizations, and then
appear as Witnesses against them. And this was
done with the knopIedge aud approval Of men
hi in authority. Instead OF acting as conseI-
vators Of the peace. and using every influence to
deter citizens from wrong doing We End the
government" setting bats and traps, and spend
ing money. lavlshly. to induce the unsuspecting.
Who otherwise would have been guiltless. to COM
mi, crime. A healthy public sentiment will yet
bold and punish the persons who have been guilty
Of these transactions. as the principals in the
crimes which they have endeavored TO fasten
npon others. And we are happy 10 notice, as
the following comments OF The Gazette Indicate,
that the day israpidIy approaching:
The mission of Col Baker. TIE var depart
ment's chief detective officer. 10 New York 70
break Up the enlistment frauds seemed like a
large application OF the rule which chooses the
most expert rogues for detective purposes: and
IL appears that he has carried it out by opening
false recruiting Office. and paying full bOun-
ties to all Corners. with unlimited opportunities
TO desert, and by calling the bounty brokers
about his pretended recruiting Office. and showing
them how loosely il was carried on, and ho.
there were no questions asked. and guard
kept aud how the recruiting officers were wholly
corrupt. and would share 10 any manner of fraud.
After the trap had been thus baited for several
DAYS, il was sprung, and the catch ia reported "a
500 or 60O bounty recruits, who are set down a.
bounty Jumpers. and twenty seven bounty bro
kers. Ii is heralded as great stroke Of genius
in Col. Baker. IL appears to us great stroke
of rasczIity. carried oct at an enormous cost 20
the government. Law does not justify a con
spiracy to make men commit crime, by surround
ing them with peculiar temptations. in order to
convict them. The person who does this is the
principal In the crime, and should be treated az
such.
The business of bounty broker il not a crime.
aud the fact that persons are known bounty
brokers Is no reason for selling them in body
and sending them tn a military prison The re
cruts whom Baker seized had not deserted from
that enlistment therefore be has no evidence
against them except the fact that they enlisted
(it may be honestly and that he enlisted them
for trick. The aff,ir disgraces the govern
meat IL has committed crime instead of de-
tecting and correcting it.
The greater part of the enlistment frauds all
over the country exist by the rascslity of the re-
cruiIing officers. IL WAS known TO be the case
especially in New York before Baker went there
Ye, his energies have all been directed to trap
ping outside parties Ii is the general obser-
walton that there Is some Influence which pro
tects provost marshsls in the most notorious cor
ruption.
What has Baker accomplished by this trick
Does he expect TO abolish the race of bounty
Jumpers or deseTters by batting them with boun-
ties and facilities To desert? He hss,not caught
any Of the ieserters. They are at large with the
bait in their pockets. while ho has caught only
those who enlisted. and who. far as he knows,
enlisted honestly. Tie enlisted them dishonest,
and therefore treats them as criminals Is the
rule to be set up that any one who enlists for 3
bounty is TO be treated as q criminalg
He has expended. il is said, about q million
dollars in these sham bounties, a large part oi
which Is in the pockets of men who were fur
ni-hed facilities to desert. He has made parade
of nsbbing several hundred enlisted men against
whom he has no evidence OF an intention to desert
and whom he has northumberland from recruits
TO criminals. And he has seized twenty seven
bounty brokers whom he can accuse of no crime
that he was not principal in
u is said that he will send these recruits TO
General Grant az deserters. 10 be placed in the
front rank in the first battle This conspiracy
will not he likely TO help recruiting in New u rk
liz is stated that all the bounty jumpers thus
haited and encouraged To escape. and all Who
listed and are held will be credited on the quota
of New York Thus the government expends a
million IN a conspiracy TO make men commit a
crime. encourages hundreds OF bountied recruits
TO desert, treats the recruits that did not desert
as criminals. and counts them all on New YOrk's
quota. Ii IS the most rascally brilliant operation
of this age.