New-York tribune., 1872-09-28
HOW TO BE NAVAL OFFICER.
THE CASE OF A. II. LATLN.

SIICIDE--A JESSON run lOe@'N N''--'
THE GRANT ADMINISTRATIONS
ro the EdfIor Of The Tribune. o,
c,p Mr. Addison H. Latin, the present Naval Ohi-
.o~ % the Port of Ncw-York is best known IN TINS
town. FIST through his Indictment by the 1ranu
Jury on a charge Of perjury, and secondly on ac-
count Of his fraudulent dealings with Pomeroy 'ne
defanliing cashier of the Mohawk Valley Bank
The following are tho circumstances OF these Two
cases ,, II
Some time during tho war, while Addison H.
Latin was a member Of Congress irom TINS DlstIlcb
and his brother Byron Latlin,waS C0lonei OF Notn
Carolina regiment, they met IN Washington. Inc
prevailing vice of camp life had fastenod ltseh
upon the Colonel ard, as Addison atterwaru eA-
planned " he was not in condition TO take care OF
bimselfp Among otherthings that happenedin con-
seouence Of this one Of those North Carolina bonds
from which dishonorable fortunes subsequently
crew to favored few, whereof the Colonel was one
cot astray and was captured by Addison. 1t repre-
scnted Al 600 Why the latter took possession OF u
is matter of opinion, notwithstanding tho reason
given by him that il was to preserve II tor dis
brot' er At al events it was incloSed III an
enyei " and sent here to John Hartman.
Hartman was political opponent of A. H. Lailin'
and there wero not wanting people uncharitabe
enough to suIIose that tie bond worth at that Time
only few cents On The dollar was intended TO pur-
chase tie votes and influence Of Mr.. Hartman ana
his three sons II this was the purpose, it failed.
Mr. Hartman disposed Of the bond, and declined to
change his politics. Mr.. A. II. Latin then alleged
that he had mailed the bond by mistake, and suit
was brought in the name of Byron to recover it.
A Aidson swearing on tho trial that the bond had
never been out Of Lis possession from tho time he
picked il mp until lie accidentally sent 1t to Hart
man. verdict was given for the plaintlfi, but the
bond had been sold and Judgment was not
satisfied. The Laflins now went before the OIanu
Jury and endcavOTcd to have Hartman indicted for
larceny Mr. A. H. Latin swearing this time, IN con-
tradcton Of his fomer testimony, that after pick
ing up the bond he had given 1t in charge TO Col.
Tanner of Washington, who kept 1t for some time.
Col. Tanner was not called to substantiatc this
statement; but if it was true Mr.. Lain's testimony
on the trial that it had never left his possession was
false. SO the Grand Jury evidently believed, for
while they refused to find a bill against Hartman,
they indicted 4. II. Lcfin for pdjUy, and he was
duly committed TO stand his trial.
There was a great deal Of suspicious action about
this trial and eight Of the jury reported to have
been "seen" by some judiCiCus friend Of the ac-
cused. Several Of the witnesses upon whose state
ments the indictment had been found disappeared
before the case was called. do not know that the
Lains kept them out of the way; but that was
what people suspected At any rate, the case failed,
through want of evidence. 1t was not doubted
that the false swearing lad been committed; but
the prosecution did not succeed in proving that 1t
was with reference to point material to
the issue then on trial After it was all over,
A. H. Latin met the foreman of the Grand Jury
the streets Of HeTkmeT, and confdentially inquired
chow they came to indct him." Because"
swered the juror, eve believed you guilty of per-
Jury; and we believe so still'
Let us see now, how far Mr. Lahin's dealings
with tho Mohawk Valley Bank sustain the reputa-
ton for perjury thus established by this bond trans
action.
The brothers Addison H. and Byron Latin were
in business together here for many years They
failed in April 1865, for $4,000 or thereabouts But
prior to that time Byron Latin engaged in some
stock specuatons with Robert H. Pomeroy, then
cashier Of the Mohawk Valley Bank in which losses
were sustained. Whether Addison had any inter
estin these stock transactions does not positively
appear. About that time notice was given by the
Bank Directors through POmeTOy TO the Latin
Brothers that their Indebtedness to the bank,
amounting to some 500 Geo. must be reduced and,
in consequence by false entries the books. it was
made to appear by POmeTOy that the Indebtedness
was reduced by the payment TO the bank of
$1,000 leaving balance of $4,000 against them.
Whether this $4,000 received and mis-
appropriated by POmerOy does not appear.
ton was made by collusion with the Lafns, not
cent of the $4,000 having ever been paid by them or
received by him Subsequently Byron on behalf of
his firm demanded from Pomeroy a loan of $4,000,
offering the firms note indoTsed by their father,
Walter Latin, as security TO this demand PomeTOy
answered that the directors, as lie ByTonl knew,
had demanded that their Indebtedness should be
decreased, and had refused to discount any more
paper for them at present But POmaOy Was at this
time detaulter. The LG6iHs knew IL, and the LofinS
alone. They used Ills knorltdge to enforce a loan-Or
in plain English, to lery bldck-mdH Byron informed
the cashier that they must have the money and he
must raise it for them. They knew of his transac-
tions and if the note was not discounted it would
be the worse for him. The result of the interview
was that the money was furnished them by Pom
eroy from the funds of the Bank and the note de-
posted by bIm in the Metropolitan Bank of New
York City, where it made payable, and where it
was taken up by him when due. This all done
without the knowledge consent of the other Off
GERS Of the bank, and was explained by PomerOy in
the confession he made when his defalcatons were
finally discovered in August, 1867 POmeroy then and
afterward positively asserted that the Ladins had
been the chief cause Of his trouble, and he
peated the assertion to A. H. Latin in
the presence Of A. II. Prescott and l.. l.. Lowell.
The discovery of the frauds he had peIpe-
trated and the disgrace which followed so
acted upon POmerOy that he put an end TO
his life by poison. Before his death he
claimed as stated that in this matter as well as in
the pretended reduction of Lafin's Indebtedness to
the bank he had acted colluion with them.
They were ready enough to deny his assertions with
the intmation that the word of man who admitted
himself defaulter should not be allowed to out
weigh theirs. But the public knew POmeToy wei
as they know A. II. Latin. They remember that in