Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1871-10-01
ONE OF GRANTS PETs--AsTOUND.
- ING DEVELOPMENTS.


blme has been making some damaging de
velopments touching the army contracts of
Mr.. Thomas Murphy, the present Collector
of the port of New York, alms-giver m
ordinary to Gen. Grant, and his especial
friend and crony. According to the TIT
bame, Murphy is one of that "Grand Army
Of Northern politicians who went in for the
war to make money. and came out oft
rich. He appears to have had large con-
tracts for furnishing supplies, and TO nave
swindled the government without the slight
est computations Of conscience. The tes-
timony presented by the Tribune demon
strates that Mr. Murphy was guilty OF the
grossest frauds in the delivery ofshoddy hats
and caps to the government; that these frauds
were intentional, and under his own per
sonal direction: that they were so gross asto
attract the attention of the workmen and
to elicit from the Quartermaster-General
| the declaration that the goods could have
been received only through the incompetent
CIV or collision of the inspector who passed
them; that Mr.. Murphy had found such
known means as presents of elegant car
riages and the like for making terms with
inspectors, to say nothing of unknown and
more powerful means, there were reasons
for suspecting;and that the frauds neverthe-
less established in the few trifing contracts
amounted to $4,000. Col. Henry
S. Olcott, who prosecuted the investigation
of Murphy's frauds, publishes statement
of the case in the New York Tribune, and
his showing clearly implicates Edwin NJ.
| Stanton, then Secretary of War, and the
Quartermaster General with compromising
fraud on the Government, and entering
into a conspiracy to screen the man who
had committed it. After Col. Oleott sad
gathered ''little by little" as he says, evil
dence that Murphy had defrauded the Gov
eminent in his hat contract, ''the papers
were sent to Washington, but to my sur
PRISE he says, ''no response came" He
then proceeds to implicate Secretary Stan
ton aud the Quarternaster General with
conspiring to defeat justice and protect Muir
ply as follows:
u waited and waited, and finally wrote
again, calling attention to the importance
of the case, and asking its speedy settle
ment. | selected fair average samples OF
the hats and caps and sent them to the
QuartermaSter General and the Secretary
of War The former officer finally, on the
18th of February, 1865, wrote Gen. Ninton
a letter, and after my going TO Washington,
and writing and waiting, the order came to
dispose of the case-nOt the customary Or
der to try it before either a military or civil
tribunal. but one to the effect that L might
90 before a Special Commission, composed
of Senator Morgan, Judge PieITepont, and,
| think, Mr.. II. A. Hurlbut, and produce
my proofs. on Will imagine
my feelings when my application for special
counsel to take charge Of this case before
this Commission 1CdS refused, and was
obliged to conduct it myself against Mr..
Evarts and Gen. Arthur, who appeared for
the contractors"
That is pretty explicit as to the part these
functionarieS played in covering up Muir
phv's frauds and protecting the perpetratOr.
Murphy appears to have proceeded in his
work of plumber by bribing every man with
whom he was to come in official contact.
II heard" said one witness under oath,
..about Mr.. Murphy's getting some tlTs for
Col. Vinton's wife; l also heard something
about Col. Vinton's having a carriage; it
was the talk among hat-men down town
that Mr.. Murphy could get contracts ifhe
wanted them
The Tribune states that other and inn
measurably worse charges against Murphy
were on file in the War Department, and
only failed to be investigated through the
political influence shown in this case, and
the apparent reckless use of money in get
ting rid of testimony.
This man Murphy, with this damning
record on file in the War Department, Is
put forward and recognized by Grant as his
Champion in New York, and has more in
fuence with the Grant administration than
perhaps any other man in that city,
There is an old adage about ''birds OF a
feather focling together which seems to
find a peculiar Illustration in Grant and his
champions 1t is remarkable at least that
Grant selects just such men as Murphy TO
champion his cause, wherever a champion
is particularly needed.
The New York Times (RadicaD enter
tanned and expressed keen appreciation
of the character Of Murphy when Gran
conferred upon him the present office.
Speakino Of the contest in Washington over
his appointment, and the probability Of his
confirmation. the Times of July s. 1870,
said:
| :. The manner in which the nomination
/ of Mr.. Murphy to the Collectorship has
/ been discussed by his friends in the press
/ and at Washington, the combinations which
| that nomination called forth, and the
/ grounds upon which his selection has been
! defended, all indicate the extent Of the de-
moralization which peryades the Civil Ser
vice, and the unworthy influences by which
! il is controlled. Unity IS
| further off than ever. Good feeling has
| vanished. Those who eXult most loudly
| and with the most substantial reasons be-
/ long TO the class VINO have ldIStiN CoiiJIlo-
| uted to the defeat and the degradation OF
! the party here. They are the leeches who
| have reduced it from strength to weakness,
/ and who, instead Of being discarded as an
! evil. are to be allowed TO fatten unmolested.
The parasites of the
party are still its masters. The
| President has the satisfaction of knowing
| that he has taken step which all his enc
mics exIllt over and ali his friends depiore.'
! That is the man whose rascalitiesaIe now
being brought to light. lie is Grants right
/ bower in New York. lie was = war pat
riot of the most approved stamp and he
made his patriotism pay. He, like thoas-
! onds of others, who bawlcd themselves
boarse in clamoring for war and ldrg" levieS,
Illustrated with singular aptncss the ruth,
rs to himself al least. of DIR. johnson well
! known axiom, that patriotism is he last
refuge of a scoundrel." Notwithstanding
! there are hundreds fjust such cases III the
! North. the public has vet to learn OF single
! instance in which a contractor wa, pun
ished for defrauding the government.
| The leaders OF the Radical party
were willing to conceal Murphy S
~, lo,.f IN have LET thgm