The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1870-02-04
Moses III. GrinnclI should be Impeached
md Removed.

II is q fact, and the books OF the Custom
House show t. that MOSES II. GRISNETL
the Collector Of this port, has paid TO SAMUEL
r. BLATcnFoRp, lately one of his deputies
who was q party TO enormous frauds upon
tho revenue, and who fled TO Canada with
Mr.. GRINNELL's connivance to escape arrest
md punishment for his crimes, and who
came back by the connivnnce Of somebody
else in such way rs to claim the immunity
accorded TO criminals that turn States evi
dence-it lie a fact that Mr.. GRTSNErL has
paid this man lis salary as Deputy Collee-
tor from he time that he ran array Until the
date Vhcn he vas dllo'c6d by tbs committing
Collector to rcsgn his Office In other words,
q scoundrcl who has robbed the Govern
mcnt of hundreds of thousands of dollars,
md who has fed to Canada to escape pun
ishment, is paid by this good-natured
guardian Of the public money as much more
"a he nsks for, on the pretence that the Gov
trnmcnt is still his debtor
The whole history of this case shows q
degree Of official ,ncapacity, If not Of criminal
culpability, in Mr.. GRISNELI, which renders
II necessary that he should at once be
removed from all power 10 deplcte the poo
ple's treasury hereafter.
BLATcuFoRD s u man Of respectable con-
ncctions, and the influence Of his family is
for special reasons peculiarly powerful over
Mr. GRINNELI. lis frauds were discovered
In the latter part OF October, and Mr.. GRIN
NELL was officially informed of them by Dis
trict Attorney PIIRREPoST. Thereupon he
gave TO BLArCHFoRD n leave of absence,
with which Lie at once fed to Canada,
evidently in the hope that his crimes
might be covered up by the help of
HE friends and associates, so that he could
return to lis Office as if nothing unusual had
happened. Mr.. GRINNELL at once entered
upon the work of covering mp the crimes Of
his subordinate, denying TO the representa-
tives of the press and others that BLATcH.
FORD had done any wrong, and denying that
he had left the city for more than n
day or two, - though there were tele
grams in town at the time proving that
BLATCuFORD was in Canada, pooh pooh
ing all reports that any fraud had been com
mittcd by him.
The effort to hide BLATCHFoRD's rob
berries, however, proved failue. Thanks to
the independent press, the facts were dragged
Into publicity and then what did our ven
cradle Collector doH Why, he accepted ho
pcsigndti0n Of this detected robber, Just rs Il
he had been an honorable, blnmeless man
This he did without consulting tho Secretary
Of tho Treasury upon the subject. He evi
IDENTIFY feared that Mr.. boutwell, would no
let his friend of 30 easily, and accordingl!
he forcstallcd any order from him by nc
ccpting BLATCnPoRD's resignation and nomi
mating q successor in his place.
The final act of paying BLATcHFoED hi
salary for nominal services in the time Will
he was fugitive from justice in Canada /
Of q piece with oil the rest Of Mr.. GRIS
EELL's acts In this case. II there man q
dcmcntcd as to say that the official who thu
abuses his trust, the Collector who pay
money to those who have broken into III
treasury and have been caught robbng il
should be permitted day longer to contro
The vast sums Of money and the vast inter
csts that pass through the Custom House
Or IL there a Republican in Congress VIII
will not fool that there is no safety for hi
party until MosEs II. dnISHEIL is in
peached and removed from Officer