The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1872-04-05

The excitement among the masters Of the
whiskey ring since the publication of the
HERALDs exposures continues to increase.
The sensations Of these gentlemen may be
compared to those of our friends in Cali
fornia the other day when they heard the
earthquake and saw the chasm opening
for miles and miles. Their expedients
and emotions and asseveratiops and invec-
tives are amusing. In the first place there
were no indictments; but the deputy marshals
dispelled that Illusion. Then there were only
ten or fifteen. Now they admit that there
were at least sixty, and when they come to
read Marshal Sharpe's return to Court they
will probably find that, with the exception of
few errors in Typography, the HERALDs list
was transcript from the minutes Of the
Grand Jury. Then came the averment that
the whole affair was q conspiracy, political
measure inauyurated by the President or
Mr.. Boutwell, for political purposes, or by
General Butler and his agents for personal
spleen, and the HERALD had been used to per-
petrate "huge joke" We have heard some of
General Buffers critics compare him to Apol-
lyon, and they certainly give him the Satanic
quality of being at the bottom of all the mis-
chief brewing in this wicked generation.
Now 1t appears that even General Butler
had nothing to do with these develop
ments, and that he first heard OF the in
dictments when he read the report in the
HERALD. So, what are the poor distressed
people to believe? Simply this, that this
movement was directed by General Grant and
the Secretary Of the Treasury; that their duly
appointed and commissioned agents made in
quiry and arranged the evidence; that upon
this evidence Grand Jury of respectable and
heightened citizens returned indictments
against those who appeared to be guilty that
the government officials are still at work. and
when the next Grand Jury assemblies they will
be asked to consider evidence affecting five or
six hundred more people who are believed to
have defrauded the Treasury of Its just dues.
This is plain prosaic statement, we con-
TESS. It would have been so much better to
have had a conspiracy, the Satanic Butler or
the diabolcal Murphy at the head of it, and
their attending imps conspicuous, busy and
! and send them to Jail, merely from reasons of
personal spleen. It would have been splen-
did card for the democrats to be able to assure
the country in the next canvass that the Presi-
dent had striven to send all Of his enemies to
prison. But, as if to add to the msfortuncs of
the situation, none of the indicted parties are
politicians even, if we except one ex-member
of Assembly and two ex-police justices. who
might as well be dead for all the political i'm
portance they have assumed in the last few
years. Aswe said in the beginning, these are
the first fruits of Grants resolution to In
vestigate the fearful frauds against the
revenue, by which hundreds of mil
lions of dollars were diverted from
the Treasury and consequent burdens
added to the taxation of the people, AS in
his campaigns against Richmond, Grant has
found the work tedious, difficult, almost i'm
possible. Most Of the frauds were committed
under a former administration. Many of the
responsible and guilty parties have left the
country. Some are dead. They were ingen-
ious men, and the evidence of their crimes was
carefully hidden. Those who remain are
mainly rich, and have amassed great fortunes
in their unlawful calling. They had vast
power in politics, not only in the republican
but the democratic party. Like the Erie
Ring and the Tammany Ring they are strongly
entrenohed. AS we are Informed, many of
them have earnestly supported the President
and are willing again to pay their money in
rtoip nj houo III
are liberal and would give largely for immu-
nifty Then Time has been rolling on, that
good old comforter and pacifcator and media
tor Time, who will give immunity to the
most guilty and compromise with
the most sinful if we only wait long enough
Justice has been patient and silent so long
that it was believed the revenue offences we're
barred by the statute of limitations. And we
have doleful complaints as to the Injustice of
these accusations and we are reminded that
nothing is meaner than this war upon corpses,
and General Grant is plaintivey implored to
turn his attention to matters more immediate
than frauds that took place years and years
ago.
On the other hand, there is no one thing the
President can do that deserves doing so thor
oughly as the investigation and punishment of
the frauds upon the revenue. We are familiar
with the Erie and the Tammany Ring, and we
have been accustomed by the rhetoric of the
press ~ a complete knowledge OF their enor-
mites. But great as these rings became, and
manifold as were their inquities, the whiskey
and tobacco rings surpassed them. The evils
of Erie were limited to one railroad and to
one State. We felt them more in the scandal
that came upon our credit abroad. The evils
of Tammany were limited to New York, and
were so largely political that It was the in-
terest of one great party to war upon them.
But the conspiracy against the revenue en-
hroo cd nf oil