Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1869-01-20
Work City.



Congressional Celnnaiatee 80 Sheriff
OsBrieAss KnterfeYenee.
f1ror the New York Sun. 18th instl
About three weeks ago, a committee Of
seven members of Congress, who had
been appointed at the request, and upon
the evidence. of committee of New
ork citizens, arrived here to investigate
our reported election frauds This COM
mittee has been silently but steadily at
work ever,since. What they have accom-
piished cannot, of course, be publicly
known until their report is made to Cons
gress- Then spicy developments may be
expected. Their sessions, here in cham
bers street, are private; but the action
of Sheriff OBrien and his deputies, on
Friday ard Saturday, has ATTRACTED at
tention to the Committee, and given US
| hint Ut some the proceedings.
We have already in formed our readers
of the arrest by the SheriHrs officers of
seven witnesses who had presented them
selves to testify before the Committee -
Two more were arrested, on Saturday.
These men were taken to the Franklin
police station to be identified as thieves,
the inten ion being to invalidate their
testimony before the Committee. The
arrests were made on both days under the
| direction of the Democratic member of
the Committee, Mr. Kerr, of Indiana, who
pointed out the men to the Sheriff Off
| GERS. When the prisoners were taken
before Capt. Jourdan, that officer failed
TO recognize them professional thieves,
though there can be no doubt that some
/ OF them are thieves; for-as Marshal
Z - - -SPr4Su az 'TuCi ICn-
honest man ecu be found to engage in
THIS business election repeating.
On Friday, when the Sheriff and his
men appeared at the L. s. Courtroom
and began to arrest the witnesses, Mar
shall Murray mildly reconstructed The
Sheriff said the Committee and the Mars
shat were pushing things too far
Don you know, added the Sheriff. that
these men are thieves and robbers, some
OF them under Indictment at the present
time, and that their testimony is unwor>
thy OF belief? II know, aud am pre-
pared, IT need be, to 90 before the Cons
inittee and swear that they are such
But. while their testimony should not
convict man of capital crime, Or send
hlm to State Prison, they are capable of
telling the truth in this case, because
they speak from personal knowledge:
y
that nc honest man would engage in this
business"
But, said the Sheriff, ~ have testi>
mony to show that You, Mr.. Marshal
have hired repeaters IL. do this kind Of
dirty work for tire Radicals"
IF you have said Mr.. Murray, bring
1t along; Id like to see it.
The result of this challenge was that
on Saturday, four men appeared before
the Committee, who testified substantial>
II that the Marshal had hired repeaters
10 90 around voting the Radical ticket
The Marshal, however declared that he
never saw nor eonversed with the men:
and 1T seems hardly credible that an Of
heer of his experie nee would permit him
sell to be caught so readily even if he
had done so, which of course he did not
The law relative to purjury will undoubt-
edIy reach these cases
DAaAGIN6 Evidence AGAINST THE POLITE
CLANS.
The Committee have a pile of testimo-
ny, sufficient to hang, politically, many
prominent politicians here, and smaller
lights iRnumerahle. They have evidence
to pro that not less than 0,000 fraudu-
lent votes were cast In this city by re-
peaters alone. The business was re-
dueed to a science; and, had it not re
eeiSed such sudden cheek by Marshal
Murray, there is no doubt it would have
become of general application ia all the
large cities in the Union By his timely
action the Marshal prevented the 10000
from becoming 10000. Several of he wit.
nesses testify that they voted from nine
to thirty nine times, each.
HOW THE REPEArERs DID 1T
it Is well known that there are manv
thousands of thieves and other criminals
walking the streets of this city day after
day unmolested- Indictments remain
AGAINST them, in the District Attorneys
othce, and they are out on bail. The in
dtctments are never tried-and why p
simply because these men can be made
useful at elections, and in this way
The names of these persons are known,
or can be readily ascertained They are
sent for by Mr.. Blank, and informed that
majority of so many thousand is re-
quired at the ensuing election, and they
are expected to do their part or take the
aiternative-the Indictment, you know"
as Lord Dundreary would say, Well,
they, of course, have no difficulty in de-
cldlng. But how shall they know how
many times, and when, TO vote? That is
easily arranged. Each man is provided
with printed slip, something like the
check of a bank or counting house, but
Dot so large, on which the name of the
man 10 be personated, the residence from
which he must hail, and the election dis
trlct IN which the ballot is to be cast, are
gwen. The repeater, thus armed sallies
forth, confident of performing his work
faithfully and well, and without fear of
detection. Our readers will know, in fu>
ture, why so many robbers. burglars and
mardeIers go unpunished, and why in-
dlctments IN criminal cases accumulate
III the courts and in the District Attor-
ney office.
MAKING A CLEAN BREAST
There IS, of course, no way to estab-
llsh the identity of these repeaters but
oy squeakIng, or, in other words, max
ln- clean breast of it, This is how the
Zen mittee and the Government officers
have been able to procure such damuiug
testimony and so much of it. When
the es tall out honest men will get their
Gee 1t may be so in this case At any
rate the thieves have fallen out Ii APP
pears thai the reason. WHY so many ille>
gal voters have volunteered 10 give evil
dence before the Con cresrienal Comm
tee. ~, that the financial agreement with
them has not been kept Hence, the re-
peaters reveal
quo WITNESSES SUMMONED
The Committee intend to probe this
thing to the bottom and have summoned
nearly 4ts1 witnesses upon one question