New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1873-07-10
THE VERMONT CREDIT MOBILfER.

THE VERMONT CREDii h"D'"'",'
Upon the whole might we not as wen say
that crime is only possible to poverty Inac
breach of trust is only mistake; an error OIL
iudomentP That millionaires cannot under
opv construction of the law steal2 That legis-
Iators. though they may misapprehend their
privileges and misconceve their duties,
cannot be corrupt We have had here
some notable instances of the impossibllity OF
doing wrong on the part of legislators and
rich people lately, and the people take
to them very kindly and philosophy
cally. 1t is, so far as we can see, an admitted
thing. No one is surprised at it; no one seems
to grieve over it. 1t is taken for granted that
the member of Congress who has to vote upon
land grants and subsidies may properly hold
stock in companies interested IN such grants
and subsidies; that rlch corporations may
properly pay legislators general retalners, and
that wealthy capitalists may organize corpora
tons within corporations to plumber innocent
stockholders, and there be nothing wrong In
any of it.
There has been no more striking illustration
of the general tendency toward lower stand
ards of public morality than that just offered
by the Vermont Legislature In the report OF
a committee appointed to report upon sundry
crookednesses in the management OF the Yer
mont Central Railroad. The managers of the
railroad company were charged explicitly with
corrupting the Legislature by bribng the
members thereof; with organizing car man
ufacturing and iron foundery companies as
leeches upon the railroad corporation; with
tampering with the judiciary of the State, and
various other peccadillOes of minor Importance
as compared with these. The Legislature APP
pOinted committee of investigation, and
their report has just been submitted. 1t Is
valuable AS an indication of the drift of pub
lie sentiment and the present standards OF
political morality. The Committee report that
one ]. ID. Hatch rendered an account against
the Railroad Company for one thousand
dollars, disbursed at the capital In resisting
adverse legislation, &C., in the session OF 1862,
accompanying the account with general state
ment of payments of fifty dollars each to sew
eral prominent members Of the Legislature.
But the Committee find that none of them
received money "for any but legitimate and
lawful purposes" With q simplicity which,
even as coming from Vermont, startles us.
the Committee say they have not found
that any of them received the money be-
"lieving it was paid for any services they had
performed or were to perform for this rail-
"road in their official capacity, but on the
CONTRARY supposed that the reason assigned
"for their employment was as stated by
"Hatch, for the purpose of retaining them III
ga legitimate and proper manner, and placing
81 them under obligation to render for the
railroad such professional services as they
"might be called upon thereafter to perform"
With just mild suggestion of disaDproval OF
this sort of thing the Committee add:
owe are not equally fortunate being able TO find that
ths money was paid solely for assigned that II
was entirely the purpose Of having counsel In differ
ent parts OF the State look after the interests OF the
road by attending to the business that might arise in
their immediate localities in their professional capaoi
ties as lawyers II such the fact then the distrbu-
ton OF their retaners exceedingly inudicous and
illadvsed, least the claims for lost baggage,
oyercharges OF freight, and other and similar claims
were and troublesome in those localities
where energetic young lawyers united TO their profess
onal qualifications considerable political activity and
influence"
There Is q very soft-spOken tone of satire in
this which the report hastens to qualify and
correct by saying that the Committee do not
find "that any particular measures before the
Legislature were passed or defeated IN con-
"seduence of these retainers, or that legisla-
"tiou has been improperly influenced thereby"
but they believe it to be their duty to "con-
"demn the practice of employing more attor-
"neys in different parts of the State than
"would be necessary to transact their legal
"business, az one calculated to impair the
coincidence of the public generally In the
"purity of our legislation" The Committee,
still stepping gently on thin ice remark that
although It is fair to presume that in the employ
ment OF these attorneys 1t was contemplated at the
time that road might receive some assistance from
them In professional capacity still we ind that the
chief object and purpose to their friendship
10 the interests OF the road and its managers We do
not believe that they retained attorneys believing that
by means OF the retainers they would their CO.
operatlon and assistance in legislative matters against
their honest convictions, but we do think that they
hoped and expected to find them friendly to their inter
ests unless manifestly inconsistent with their Official
duties In short they expected moro OF them in gen
era way by helping to and maintain public
tment favorable to them than from any professional
services they might be called upon 70 perform"
Was there ever a more delicate rebukei
Or ever anything that would so glance off
from and titillate in its passage the average
| attorney who represents his little town in the
Legislature and gets these small, these very
small general retainers from rich railroad
cOrporationsf
In the matter of the Car and Foundry COM
panies, they find that the stock Of these COM
panies was good stock to hold, and that, as a
matter Of fact, it was held by the trustees of
the Vermont Central; also, that while the
railroad was losing, these companies were
making money. But they say nobody was de-
frauded, although there rs a "liability of
"abuse that arises from the very nature of
"things, and must always accompany bust
.l.a = a. =.