The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1872-07-16
piation, which numbers several hundreds OF pages.
The affair may be reviewed in few words.

Ihe analr may De reviewed In q few words
| ANCIENT HISTORY
merchant captain by the name OF BENJAMIN
Perkins associated himself In 1855, with Polish
Jew by the name Of Rakielvitch, q dismissed agent
OF the secret police OF New York. as well with a
Mr.. Kidder, doctor Of medicine and merchant in
gas piping In order to extort money from my prede-
cessOr in the United States, Mr.. StOeckl, In pro-
posing to him to furnish powder and arms for the
Mr.. stoeckl declined these offers, while as to the
powder and the arms, he sent Mr. Perkins to our
military agent In the United States, Captain Llien
This latter gentleman accepted conditionay the
proposition OF contract for $4,000 carbines-that
Is TO say he accepted 1t while reserving expressly
the right to annul this preliminary engagement.
Being assured Of the insolvency OF Mr.. Perkins,
ment, Captain Lilienfeldt availed himself OF this
privilege OF cancelng the contract by declaring In
writing to Mr. Perkins that their preliminary con-
| THE CLAM BRcOMEs DEFINITE.
Not one grain Of powder, not one carbine, was
spite Of a Judgment without appeal OF the Supreme
Court Of New York, Judgment to which Mr.. Per.
an amicable compromise, sum of 5000. his heirs
formulated his rights after his death into claim
r. The widow Perkins ceded these pretended rights in
consideration ola small compensation to advocate
named J; B. Stewart. In order to assure the sue
In shares, which he disposed of at o low rate in
such manner as to create powerful protectors In
|
| value.
| ABoRTIvE IMPORTS AT SETTLEMENT.
From 1855 to 1869 the federal government made
three different occasions advances, more or less
earnest in order to support this pretended claim.
respect due to the demands Of a friendly govern.
ment, by refusas grounded on the absence Of ali
proof and Of all justice.
supreme magstracy OF the Union the federal Secre-
tary OF State proposed to the Imperial Cabinet to
submit the question to an arbitration.
EMPEROR. 4
name me at this time his representative to the
Before furnishing me with my instructions His
Majesty ordered an investigation to be instituted
in order to thoroughly sound the Perkins affair.
Chancellor Of the Empire signifed to me In the
following terms the orders OF His Majesty
''rhe Emperor" said he, ''wlshes that you should
| proceed In this matter with the most scrlpulous
mp mp II IN right or even in equity we
lars, we ought to pay without hesitating; but II
this Is an attempt at extortion, destitute Of any
just basis must not lend ourselves to it, despite
ment."
1t was in this disposition that the Commission OF
| Inquiry set to work. l must add that for my part
brought to it sincere desire to find some way
of resolving amicaby an affair which l foresaw
! plishinent OF my mission.
The labors Of the investigation ended in the evil
dent demonstration OF the complete inanty of this
| claim.
| CATACAZY's INSTRUCTIONS.
to explain to the Cabinet at Washington, in cate.
gorical though friendly terms, the reasons which
made made: It impossible, for the Imperial Cabinet to
In the absence of any just ground FOR It, to an arbi
| tratiOn.
on my arrival at Washington Mr. J. B. Stewart
and his partner, Mr.. l.. Tassistro, demanded an
interview with me- alleging as the ground OF their
bort their camu ana Of having
never been understood by my predecessor:
did not believe it my duty to decline this
w NH y pRD KVN1 nrS
Mr.. Tassistr0 was the first to present himself
producing full authority from Mr.. Stewart as fol-
81 take the liberty to inform you that Mr.. Tasss-
tro the bearer OF this letter. Is now my associate
In the Perkins affair." and that he is authorized to
It is Important to establish the close and I'M
doubted unity Of interest existing between Mr.
Tassistro, discharged emplOye OF the State De-
partment and Mr.. Stewart, for one may estimate
~ consequence the value Of the testimony which
the said fassistrO has borne In an affair which will
be spoken OF further on.
THIS By progressing to 70
amount OF the claim making me at the same time
understand that an agreement could be arrived at
! In consideration OF a few thousand dollars.
} Ideclined .peremptorily all idea OF compromise.
Passing thence to another subject, Mr.. Tassistro
mediation and that Of Mr. stewart three rs nons
of obligations of the Credit Foncier de Pologne,
sovie recently Imported into AnNrica, and which
had been thrown upon the market OF New York.
ANOTHER INTERVIEW
few days after Mr.. Stewart presented himself at
my house. Without producing any new proof he
tried to convert me to the idea OF q compromise in
saying "that the support Of the administration was
gained to their cause, that Judge Dent the brother
in-law of the President, was interested in it, and
that II made too much opposition they would find
received with the same Indifference these offers
Of compromise and these menaces
FALSE AFFIDAvITS.
The day after MI. j. b. Stewart sent me So
q
uted to me proposals that had not made, and by
which, II made, would have recognized the valid
Knowing with whom had business had taken
precautions person placed in the next room
Stewart, forced to submit to the truth saw at to
withdraw his false a1ldavit.
After this forbade to the advocates of the widow
Perkins access to my house, and l answered none
OF their written communications.
Five months AFTER that is say the 14th Of March,
1870, had a confidential interview with Mr. Hani-
ton Fish, OF which have rendered an account to
the Chancellor OF the Empire Prince Gortschakof
in a report of the 21st March, given below in the
appendix.
CURIOUS CONCLUSIONS
II appears from this report
That Mr. Stewart had sent back to the President
by the mediation Of Mr.. Dent, brother-in-aw OF
General Grant, dispatches which had been attr-
buted to me.
That in the faith of false Geographic rumor,
spread at this time in the United States, an
nouncing the retirement of Prince Gortschakof aud
hfs replacement by General Ignatief, these pre-
tended dispatches, Of an inadmssible tenor, and
which had been exchanged between the Minister Of
Foreign Affairs and myself, were placed under the
eyes OF the President, with the end OF preudicing
him against the Minister OF Russia; and in short,
That the Secretary OF State, while recognizing the
apocryphal character OF these dispatches was not
willing to begin suit against the authors OF these
wrongs, Sin order to avoid scandal and under the
pretext Of the legal impossibilty OF being severe
upon them.
WHAT FISH SAID.
At last Mr.. Fish told me some days after that he
had had Messrs. Stewart and Tassstro before him
in order to interrogate them on the manner in
which the dispatches had been procured, and that
they had affirmed that they held them from the
First Secretary OF the Imperial Russian Legation
protested energetcally against assertion so
calumnious. l said to MIR. Hamilton Fish that 1t
seemed to me impossible that people even OF that
character should dare to attribute to an employs
whose honor had always been undlsputed such an
act. demanded of him. indeed If he had not made
mistake, and II it was not some other individual
| bearing the same name that had been designated.