The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1871-10-08

We publish to-day letter from Mr.. John
II. Keyser which places the action Of the Com
mittee of Seventy in regard to that gentleman
in very singular light II was announced in
yesterdays morning papers, on the authority
OF Mr.. Jackson Schultz, that Mr.. Keyser had
| appeared before the committee at
secret session, made a confession that
he had deirauded the city out of large
amount OF money, assigned property to the
value of six hundred thousand dollars in par
tial restitution, and pledged himself to give
up all he possessed, if ii should be needed, to
restore the whole sum out of which he had
robbed the treasury. The statement was COM
mented upon in the daily journals, the alleged
dishonest contractor being. of course, severely
assaled. and the committee Landed for the
efficiency IL had displayed in securing the
| repayment Of six hundred thousand dollars
OF the peoples stolen money. 1t now
appears that there is not a word Of truth in
Keysers pretended confession; that, on the
contrary, so far from admitting that he had
wronged the city out of single dollar, he
avowed that all the work for which he had
been paid had been honestly performed, and
that instead Of having defrauded the city, it
was at this moment his debtor to the amour.
OF S3OO,0O0 Equally false was the state
ment that he had made restitution of
six hundred thousand dollars, as alleged by
the committee. On the contrary, he had
simply assigned this amount in the conscious
ness of innocence, to be held in trust until his
accounts with the city should be finally settled,
because, as Mr. Keyser states, he was annoyed
by the unwarrantable attacks of the news
papers and the persistent reports that he was
about to abscond or to make away with
his property So far from the money
being restored to the public treasury, Mr..
keyser expects to receive back every dollar,
together with the three hundred thousand
| which he claims to be justly and honestly due
to him for work done and now under contract
| 1t would therefore appear, supposing Mr.
| Keysers statement to be correct, that the
members of the committee have allowed an
honest man to be unjustly accused and abused
| in order to obtain a false credit for themselves.
| IL Keyser is to be believed the claim of the
committee that they have made any discove-
ries in his individual case, or caused him TO
make any restitution to the city, is entirely
unfounded
One rascalty has, however, been brought
to light through the fundamentally of Keyser
himself and that is, that number of accounts
purporting to have been presented by him to
the city have been passed through the Comp
troller's office, have been audited and allowed,
the warrants drawn and the money received,
not one Of which is genuine. From first to
last they have been forgeres. Some person
has made out the accounts in his
name, has received the warrants and
has forged his name to draw
the money. Now it is very plain who is the
culprit in these infamous frauds and whole
sale forgeries. The committee need not look
for him in the Mayors Office, or the Depart
ment Of Parks, or elsewhere. They have him
under their own thumb; he sits at their
elbows, consulting and advising with them
day after day, and aiding them in the
address they are preparing for the electors of
the city, in connection with the Republican
General Committee. The whole rascally
business must have been concOcted and car
ried out inside Comptroller Connoys depart
ment. Could he have been innocent of it !?
Was bogus account for thousands upon
thousands Of dollars put into his Office by q
stranger without discovery Was it passed
through the Auditors Office, of which Watson
was Auditor and Connolly, Jr., was Deputy
Auditor without detection? Was the war
rant for enormous sums handed over to some
unknown party instead of to Keyser, in whose
favor twas drawn? And did the Comptroller
himself, the head of the department, a SHIRE wd
and able financier, know nothing about it?
The people will now demand that the Com
mittee of Seventy shall rigidly perform the
duty it has taken upon itself, or dissolve and
60 about its business. 1t has been talking
loudly of furnishing the guilty; now will it
give Richard b. Connolly an opportunity to prove
his innocence in the matter of these Keyser
forgeries? II his examination is to implcate
and convict Others as we are told, it must do
so in court of Justice. 1t is there an
accused party must turn States evidence, and
not in secret committee room. The fact
that the Comptroller allowed millions of dol
lars worth of these very vouchers and war
rants, now alleged to have been forgeries, to
be stolen by his Auditor, and not only con-
cealed the theft but retained the offender in
Office up to the time Of his death, is of itself
fact sufficiently suspicious to warrant the
arrest of Connolly. BY what right does the
committee screen this suspected public officer
and stand between him and justice? 1t will
be dangerous experiment for these seventy
gentlemen to attempt to select their own vic
Tins and to turn the power entrusted to them
by the people to political and partisan pur-
| poses They are asking money from the peo-
Pile, who care nothing for politicians and par