The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1872-09-27
On january 25, 1868, Ames had writ
ten to McConb as follows about bribing
members of Congress-


members of Congress. Ez1=-
o- W wssHrssFTo2s, Jan. 2. 1855.
is at hand in STi6 Eo sv Senator RayaTd and
Fowler have written You in relation TO their stock
nave spoken 10 Fowler, but not TO BayaTd,
fhim soon. You say I must not put TOO much in one
locality. have assigned as far as have given TO
four n hlassachusetLsi one from New .HalnP-
shire one pelaware; ore Ienne3see; one-hali'
Maine and have three 70 place, which shall put
on the spot nd can better Judge where they should
go. think after this dividend Is PAD We should
stock where it viii protect us Let them have the
60 per cent Increase on the old stock yvantfor dis
tributon here. and soon. Alley is opposed 10 The
SC. should think that we ought to be able to
spare then WIZ m A l 20 Pa @ Ge @ 70 on PsoT tRs s9
we had no credit and debts pressingi we. are now
655ut 6E5 ~ the Bond vded? part ef The paFckasers
@ here are poor and & an teF 9e2af & 10 ss s 70 D ena ma
&. NJ. I have tod them what they would get
bonds the parties received as the 50 per cent divi
amount to anything with us some of the large
holders VIII not care whether they have the bones
or certificates, they viii lend their bonds TO the
Company, as they have done before. or lend them
that 0ne-tenth thai UnderwoOd's L have itaS
ken % half QGigley a quarter ana you a quarter
day Yeare to surrender a part to him. Yours truly
The act so much desired by the inside
ring was passed by Congress, everybody
very well knows. An act twice as iniqui-
tcus could have been pulled through when
Wilson and Patterson IN the Senate, and
the Speaker of the House, Mr.. COlfax, and
Messrs Blaine, Schofeld, Kelley, Dawes,
Elliot Boutwell,, Bingham, and Garfield
had been bribed, as Ames declares they
we're. They were the most prominent and
influential men on the Republican side Of
the House. Dawes being then Chairman of
the Committee on Elections, and Schofeld
Chairman of the Committee on Revised
and Unfinished Business. Boutwell, was
on the Judiciary Committee, Bingham and
Blaine prominent members Of the Commit
tee on Military Affairs, and Kelley and
Garfield held equally important positions
As bad a showing as Amess list makes
for the great lights of the Grant party, it is
not as bad as it will be when the whole
truth is known. The Ames list is not com
plete. 1t viii be observed that it does not
include the name of James Brooks of New
York yet Col. McCOmbs swears that he re-
ceiyed 80 shares.
But Brooks was not the only one omit
ted. We have been informed by one of
the legal gentlemen employed in the case
of McComb agt The Credit Mobiler. that
Robert c. Schenck, of Ohio, Benjamin NJ.
Boyer Of Pennsylvania IN the House, and
Pomeroy, Chandler, Cameron, Nye, Stew
art, Sherman, and Morton IN the Senate al
so. received a number of shares. McComb
has the proof and Will produce It or COM
pei Mr.. Ames, who all along refused to ap-
pear before the examiner and testify, to
produce it.
From the same source we also learn that
Ames pursued the following novel course
in bribing some of these men: He would
first hand to a member or Senator n GER
tifcate of stock and tell him it was good
thing. If asked how much money was re-
quired, he would say, Not q cent at pres
ent" Then in a few weeks he would again
pay a visit and hand the gentleman a
check drawn by the Treasurer of the Cred
it Mobilier, and say: Here Is your first
dividend was sufficient TO pay forthe stock
at its nominal value That the dividends
were sufficient tOfdo this Is shown by the
following exhactf from Col. McComb' testi-
mony: a..--
O. What dividend was declared on the
Credit Mobilier stock after the delivery Of
Ames contract2 A. My books show that
received Jan. 4, 1868, so per cent Union
Pacific Railroad stock, 334 per cent Union
Paiciic Railroad stock, 80 per cent Union
Pacific Railroad bonds. Above dividend
was on $50 shares. Feb. 3, l got from it
in dividends so shares of stock of Credit
MObilier. June IL / received 40 per cent
in Union Pacific Railroad stock, with 50
per cent in cash, on $50 shares; July 3,
1868, IS per cent in stock and 10 per cent
in Union Pacific Railroad bonds on $50
shares Sept. 9, Is per cent IN bonds and
100 per cent in stock; Dec. 70, 200 per
cent in stock In addition to this there
was I44 per cent in gold paid IN January,
1868, Credit Mobiler stock, and II per cent
gold for cash dividends. #
The above extract also gives some idea
of the real value of the stock Senator
Wilson, Speaker Blaine, and their asso-
ciates received. But we do not need TO en-
ter into any calculation to arrive at its
value. Col McCofnb on this point swears
O. What was the cash value Of this
stock at he time it was issued ? A l.
would sell in the market at S2GO per share,
cash value and very little could be had At
that-m0re buyers than sellers ag0od deal
/ was offered $500 per share for mine
shortly after that time.
O. What has been the highest value
reached By the Credit Mobilier stock A.
] was offered So per share for mine.
This was in 1868, long before this suit be
gan I refused to sell at that time / con-
sidered it worth 81 600 per share, and it
would have been readily worth that, bon
estly and fairly managed, at that time
The pertinent question which these facts
must suggest 10 all honest and intelligent
ment Is, Shall these men be continued IN
Office?