Litchfield enquirer., 1871-07-20
LITCHFIELD.

LITCHFIELD.
 On Saturday, the case of the United
 States es. Joseph P. Moore. of Washington,
 had it's preliminary hearing before Geo. M.
 Woodruff, us. Commissioner. The charge
 IS that of having charged more than the
 $lO. allowed by law, for procuring pen sion for Adeline E. Wright, widow of de- ceased soldier. The facts proved were in substance as follows: The husband of Mrs.
 Wright had been four years in the war and died since it's termination. of disease con- tracted in the service. She was therefore entitled both to a pension from the U. s. government and support for her children under the law of our State. It seems that there had been difficulty experienced in ob- taining either. Application had been made during the life of the husband for pen- sion which failed. The selectmen of Corn wall, through whose town officers support was to come. were inclined to dispute that Mir. Wright died of disease contracted while in the service. The claim was for support of three children. two of whom were final ly put on the bounty list and received the back pay due, while the claim of the third still remains unsettled. Mrs. Wright final- ly employed MT. McMahon of New Mill ford, and agreed in writing to pay him $2OO for obtaining her bounty money. Moore had himself applied to her to be en- ployed in these matters, and was so en- ployed, but no positive contract was prov ed. MT. McMahon testified that they had little hope of getting the pension but were confident of succeeding in obtaining the bounty. When the pension money came, to over $7OO, Moore received $200 of it. Whether this money was re- ceived for services in obtaining the pen sion, or the bounty money. or both, is a very material point in the case, and one about which Mrs. Wright's statements are not altogether consistent She swore in court Saturday that she supposed it was in full for services in both cases, while she made affidavit sometime since that the $2OO was paid only in reference to the bounty She cannot read, evidently knows little about business, and is easily influenced, so we should doubt whether her statement in regard to the terms of the contract was worth much either way. There was con- siderable trouble in obtaining the bounty; amount claimed was near $2, 900; the busi- ness. is not yet finished, and Moore claims hat in his case, as in that of McMahon, he $2O0 was for services to be rendered in hat matter and not for obtaining the pen- |ion. His counsel also claimed that the | information vas defective and that his con. aection with she case was not such as to ,ring him within the purview of the statute. The prosecution claimed that the sum re- ,eived was evidently in part for obtaining he pension and that therefore the prison ,r had been guilty of exacting more than he lawful fee, especially as the services on he bounty matter had not then been ren. tered. Commissioner Woodruff bound | ,ver the prisoner in $500, to appear be- ore the next District Court, to be held in Hartford on the 4th Tuesday in August.
 We are very we'll aware this is one of the many cases started and main tained against he accused by Mir. G. 0. Hitchcock from motives of personal enmity; we do not im- lgine that the evidence is such as will war ant conviction; but we cannot at all justi, y the conduct of the prisoner towards his poor, ignorant woman. Granting the acts precisely as he claims, that the ob- aiming of the bounty might have attended with considerable trouble, and even litiga- ion; the exaction of so large sum as $2OO n advance by the agent. and the securing | ,f like sum by the attorney, in such a natter, we cannot but consider unjustifia- l ole and extortionate. -4
 On Saturday the Orientals of Wash ngton played their return game with the Outtons Jr. of this place. The contest was ! very close one as will be seen by the ap- pended score:- BUTTON, JR RIO. ORIENTALs R. o. l Hart, c. 3 8 Spencer, 2b 2 6