New-York tribune., 1871-03-24

RAasEY's CONDUCT
MFR Field further says that his proceedings are ex
| cused by Ramsey's conduct
| Right here may say that ! am not defending Ram
soy am spoken OF by Mr.. Field as his " friend'
never spoke TO him, or had any communication "hat
soever with him until Ihad substantially finished my for
mer etters Since then have seen him ana attorneys
IA to the vercaton Of the facts Ramsey mas nothing
whatever to do with my criticisms on MI fieu' IL
he or his counsel can DO shown TO nave Deeh gul'y
OF fraudulent suits and the prostitution OF the courts let
them be visited with the condemnation whch rests
among honest upon Mr.. Field but thiS VIII hot
iustify Mr. Field The doctrine that you may use cor
rupt agencies because your adversary is doing go VIII
not he accented by any one whose good opinion Mr. Field
would desire TO retain.
But the fact Is that Ramseys course was ~
| fully vindcated by the decision of the Courts as
Flsk's was condemned When Mr.. f1eld says that
the management OF the Albany and 5usquehanha
Railroad WAS 50 "extrayagant and corrupt" that the
stockholders appealed to Fisk & Gould as reformers
whose administration 10 restore purity and economy
and that these things done in that interest he GER
| tainly enists a strong moral element on his side.
Hear the Rcformer Fisk when he went to take posses
| sion OF the road as Receiver:
crush I'm boys and take possession" This
il the twenty-seventh raid have made and propose to
| take Won fellows" I" / have come here TO take
possession OF the road, and I'll bet million dollars III
get possession and got thousand men to take It,"
We knew that Mr.. Field law reformer but 1t Is
gratifying learn that he has also been able to give his
| aid TO the cause Of railroad reform raids"
Now al TO some particulars Of Ramscy's alleged mis-
conduct Mr. Fields letter il full Of charges and argu
ments pamed of the public, which does not know the
facts when he utterly failed In them before the Court
| which did know the facts. One instance OF Ram
.ey's misconduct which Mr. Field mentions is that he
procured his friends to subscribe for $500 shares OF stock
on which the preliminary subscription Of 10 per cent re-
auired by law was not paid 1t is sufficient answer to
this TO say that Judge Smith finds that the 10 per cent
was paid and that stock subscription was legal and
valid Mr. Field further complains that Ramsey ana the
| Treasurer removed the books OF the railroad ana
| concealed them until the day OF election. They were
the legal custodans Of these books and it was their
| duty TO protect them. What could be done by
| Barnard Fisk Could, Field & Shearman in the
way of breaking into safes and selling orryng to eze
the books and records of Company had previously been
shown in the suit OF Fisk ag The Union Pacific Railroad
Ramsey feared similar raid, and no man VIII blame
him for guarding against IT in the way he did Had he
not removed the books they would probably have Jared
as did the books Of the Atlantic and Great Western Rail
road which the Fisk Barnard Receiver assisted by Mr.
Shearman, in December. 1862 carried of in Che night
from the Office OF the Company. Not alteration or
mutilaon made in them and no transfers were en-
tered except those which made before the closing
OF the books To those entirely proper Pres
business often requires transfers made before the
closing to be entered the stock ledger afterwards Not
single alteration or improper transfer was proved on
! the trial The whole object and result OF the removal
was to keep the books from the raiders no injury
being done to any one. This charge OF removing the
| books was strenucusly insisted upon by Mr. Field
| at the trial as reason why the Ramsey election
| should be held void. The answer he got was de-
cision holding it valid. But the best answer to Mr.
Fields pretense that the removal OF the books the
reason which justified the fraudulent suits is that Ram
sey did them until after two Of the fraudu'
suits" had been begun and the others were foreseen
or the charge that the Ramsey party brought rouChs
into the building it is sufficient to say that Judge Smith
| holds the Fisk election void, because, among other
things Fisk and his associates brought such people into
the building to ntimdate the stockholders and interfere
| with free voting The same conduct by the Ramsey
party would made the election held by them void
But Judge smith holds the Ramsey election TO be valid
thus finding, ~ the was. that Ramsey did nothing
kind The Judge distinctly that 1t was tho
/ FISK rctaner-, Erie conductors, stockholders, ana
roughs who packed .thc room, TO the exclusion of the
stockholders Ramsey did have body of the Susque-
hanna employees in readiness al the Companys shops to
repel any violence that these New-York rowdes light
| attempt They not in the building or near IT, The
Fisk roughs only brought into the building but
were furnished with proxies in order, a. Mr.. Field
avOwed, at tho trial, they might vote ut all rira
r0es votes where voices count" Instead OF
| giving the proxies TO a few respectable stock
| holders, they gave one each to 50 60 ruiians
Mr. Fields statement that he did not advise the bringing
into the election any man "who had not right be
there" eyasiye. His argument il that they chad
right be there" because they had proxies The giving
OF proxies to these ruians was aggravation not pal
| liaon. Mr. Fields assertion that II Ramsey who
| filed the room with roughr, will have weight or
credence in the face OF the finding Of the Judge that
was the Fisk party who did il. There T. evidence
| showing Ramsey's connection with single i'm
proper person there present. And Mr.. Fields connec
ton with it much than simply going there and
Jiug aruff in he RI
OF the grand scheme for carrying the election fraudu
lently, and this general scheme talked over the
night before, at meeting IN which Mr Field took part
| havo thus gone the denias and excuses which
| Mr. Field has made regards his conduct in the
susquohanna have only into details in the
one case Of the Fuller Receiyershp. II space permitted
an examination and analysis OF the evidence his peryer
sion Of the truth would appear remarkable, and his
preenses astonishing in that matter The forth
coming number OF The Worth American Rerfec will con-
tain (as told, for have not seen the aricles) two
accounts OF the susquchanna case which will state the
facts and details much fully than can he done in
| this form.
Mr. Field does not venture 10 deny the ability or i'm
peach the integrity Of Judge Smith, but says his udg
| ment has been appealed from. Few criminals are
convicted without appeal being taken from the judg
ment; but the public does not suspend its opinion Of
thes guilt until the has been through the Appellate
Courts While a mans innocence is presumed in the first
instance, conviction before fair Court changes the
presumption and he Is held to be guilty until reversal
and Mr. Field like all the rest Of the world must submit
TO this method Of forming opinions. This very cOntro
yersy shows the necessity OF this / affirm that
certain acts dsrcpuable. Mr. Field denies this. In
this state Of the the public seeks impartial
arbiter, and will inevitably accept such the Judge
| who tried the cause.
Mr.. Field refers to tho certificate OF certain counsel
that in their judgment Judge Smiths opinion was in
every mGteraP point erroneous either in fact law
This certificate was drawn up the heat of conflict by