New-York tribune., 1873-02-01

gentlemen who are suspected OF having re-
ceiyed those dividends on the sly. Nobody
has thought of examining their bank accounts,
except in the case Of Mr.. Colfax, and IN this
instance tho inquiry was limited to an item
corresponding with the cash dividend. Now
suppose Mr.. Colfax and others have also re-
ceived stock and bond dividends and SOLD
them Il is easy to find out the market price
of those securities, and to estimate within
few dollars what they must have yielded if
they were sold as soon as they were received.
Bank books may throw light upon this
subject.
The corruption fund of the COmpany-we
do not mean the $4,000 which Mr. Oakes
Ames deposited with the Sergeant Arms,
but the much larger sums disbursed through
Stewart Dodge, Oliver Ames, and other per-
sons-is still a mystery, and unless zen.
Dodge, when he arrives from Texas, is pleased
to tell something, 1T is likely to remain so.
The House will get nothing from Stewart,
who has everything to gain by an easy mar
tyrdOm of five weeks in one OF the Commit
tee-rooms, and everything to lose by answer
| ing the questions of the Committee. We only
know, about DR.. Durant's Suspense Ac-
"countn of S4S5,OOO that it was audited in a
loose sort of way, and the items were
never reported. Probably Durant himself
does not know how it was all expended,
though of course he has his private sus-
picions there are transactions in which the
principals prefer not to scrutinize too closely
the accounts of their agents, and it Is not
unlikely that if this money was distributed to
Members of Congress it passed through sew
eral intermediate hands. A good politician is
wary in such matters. The note for S2,OOO,QOO,
charged by some extraordinary process OF
bookkeeping to the HOxie contract, which
had already been closed, is another mystery,
| and the Committee seems to have abandoned
| it in despair. But the charge on the books OF
the Union Pacific Railway Company in May,
1871, of $4,000 for Especial legal expenses"
it seems to us, ought to be capable of expla-
nation. The Auditing Committee, consisting
of Thomas A. Scott Gen. G. NJ Dodge, and
Government Director James F. Wilson of
Iowa, considered the items secretly, and or
dered Treasurer Rollins to pay the bill. Mr..
Wilson declared that he refused to serve
on this Committee, because he had an
| idea the money was to be used as
a sort of corruption fund; but Mr.
Spence, who was cashier of the company at the
time this payment was made, and who drew
the checks and draft for it, made some very
curious statements. The money was disbursed
in three amounts; a check for $4,000 was
handed to Mr.. Wilson; a check for S4,5OO
went to Gen. Dodge; and a draft for sS9,5OO
was given to Mr.. Bushnell Mr.. Spence did
not know what these gentlemen did with the
money; but he understood it was "for lobby
ing purposes" and he heard some cOnversa-
ton at the time about securing reversal OF
the order Of the Secretary of the Treasury,
retaining the transportation money due the Com
pany to meet the interest on the bonds. This
was in March, 1871; and it was in March, 1871,
that the 9th section of the Army bill reversed
the Secretarys order. Mr. Oliver Ames ac-
| knowledged to the Committee that though he
had not the least idea " how the money went,
he supposed it was furnished for the purpose
"of obtaining favorable legislation" Mr. Ames
was undoubtedly right.
Now these checks and the draft can perhaps
be traced. good lawyer, with such clues
as are here given. could undoubtedly mako a
strong case for jury. If neither the Poland
nor the Wilson Committee embrace such
man, it seems pity that the services of outside
counsel could not be secured for the prose-
| cutiOn, as well az for the defense.