The Portland daily press., 1873-02-04
NeW York Letter.
New YORK, Feb.


trial, is the best result that could have been
hoped for from such panel. A greater bur
iesque on justice than the jury presented new
! er was witnessed in any court. Shortly after
the case was opened the District Attorney
| discovering new facts in reference to the char
for consultation with his associates. The u
ter hopelessness of obtaining a conviction,
no matter how conclusive the evidence, was
conceded. But, on the other hand, a discon-
| tinuance of the tiial, when all the witnesses
had been summoned. the briefs prepared anu
the testimony gathered, was grave al.eiha-
| tive, consequently it was deemed aa'''a0'o ~
allow the case to proceed, leaving 'ne ieSpoh-
sihility of the issue to the Twelve men VINO
had sound thei,. way into the jury box, under
+ho d.eac,ive laws which the Ring have FASH
;oned M doubt with reference to the very
emergency in which their leader now finds
himself placed.
The evidence was overwhelmingly strong
against the accused. To say nothing of the
statements Of the accomplice Garvey, who.
detailed with startling precision the naodus
operdndi OF the theits in which he particle
pated, Mr.. Tilden' mathematical der. onstra-
ton Of Tweed's completely in the alleged
crimes was complete. He literally traced the
stolen moneys from the city treasury to the
pockets Of the defendant. Nevertheless, tie
news that there had not been an AGO Initial
was an agreeable surprise to honest citizens.
The prosecution were not sure of a single
man on the jury. 1t was the common talk
in AMI about the court house for days before,
that every one of the twelve had been bought
up. Nor has this suspicion been entirely
dispelled by the finding. There is mys-
ferrous fellowship between the acquittit g
and convicting jurors which indicates
friendly understanding with each other.
They have agreed to keep silence as to their
votes. All this looks very much as if they
had formed an agreement to disagree for the
sake of appearances. To have acquitted the
culprit would nave been to bring upon them
selves the execration of the whole law-abid-
ing comm unity. Public opinion is just now
too sensitive on such questions to be prudent
ly trifed with. 1t was SO much easier and
safer to enter into snug little combination,
whereby Tweed should escape the State Pris-
on, and yet each juror should stand pledged
to relieve his fellows from the odium of hav-
ing contributed to this defeat of justice.
This view of the case is, to be sare hypo-
thetical, but is it not fairly inferabIe from
the facts? Is it to be supposed that any
honest high minded juror, actuated by the
single purpose of fulfilling his oath by finding
a true verdict according to the evidence,
would have consented to subject himself to
aspersion by bargaining with his associates to
keep his lips sealed about matter involving
his honor as man, and his probity as a citi-
zen. think. it much more reasonable to pre-
sumo that the verdict was the result Of mu-
tual arrangement by which Tweed's escape
should be effected, without forcing his crea-
lures on the jury to brave popular in iigna-
ton by showing publicly that they were all
parties to the wrong.
After all, it is dear victory for Tweed.
Public rumor names $500, 700 as the price he
has paid for counsel and jurylnen. There be-
ing forty-seven more indictments against him,
it they are each excessively tried at the same
ratio of expenditure he will have to spend
about fifteen millions of dollars to avoid the
penalty of the law. But then it must be
taken into consideration that with every
fresh trial the difficulty of packing a jury viii
be increased. A sharper eye will be kept OIL
the processes by which jury lists are made up
and by which panels are drawn. A detective
syste n will be put in operation to discover
the ways and means by which jurors are ap-
preached and negotiated with. Altogether
Tweed's situation is OF enjoyable and he is a
CONSPICUOUS illustration of the Scriptural dec
laration that 'the way of the transgressor is
hard"
RECEPTION OF THE UNION LEAGUE CLUB.
One of tn most brilliant social, entertain
ments of the season was the annual reception
ofthe Union League Club on the 3Oth ult, at
which about seven hundred ladies and gentle.
men were assembled. The entire building
was surrendered to the uses of the fes ival,
and the floor of the theatre is one of the very
best in the city for dancing and promcnading.
The stage was tastefuIly decorated with flow
ers, and presented the appearance of beau
tiful eonservat 'ry. The whole space from the
theatre to the drawing-room, It's feet, was
occupied by the guests, and music, conver:a-
ton and salatory exercises caused the hours
to glide ny with unwonted rapidity. The
four tables of the billiard room were covered
and decorated for the grand supper, and in
the picture gallery adjoining were contribu-
lions from among the members of the rarest
collection of gems Of art ever seen wi hin. tt e
walls of tie building.
Mr.. Choate supported his new honors as
President of the club with his accustomed
grace, dig ity and affability. He received
the guests in the grand drawing room, an
apartment large enough to accommodate two
hundred persons with reasonable space for the
long trains of the ladies, in which they shone
with imperial splendor, and which they man.
aged with inimitable dexter:ty.
The Bar was ably represented by Mr.. Ev-
arts, District Attorney Phelps and others,
the Bench by Judge Fancher. the Press by
George JOKES, Louis J. Jennings. Park God
win and Major Bun1y, the Federal Serv ce by
Collector Arthur aud Col. Frank E. Howe
and the cause of Reform by that sturdy foe
Of municipal corruption Jackson s. Schultz,
and the brave Dorman B. Eaton, now happily
recovered from the dastardly blow with which
the Erie gang struck at his life.
Among the ladies present the beautiful Mrs.
Jennings. formerly Mics. Madelaine Hen
riques, looking as young and fresh as in the
days when she carried away so many
hearts by her charming acting at Wallack's,
received marked attentions. Miss Worthing-
ton of Iowa, neice of Sec: etary Belknap was
especially noticeable for her loneliness of
person, and the elegance of her toilet. She
was accompanied by Miss Nellie Murphy,
daughter of ex- 'ollector Murphy, a graceful
and pretty blond of eighteen summers, and by
Mr.. Murphy himself who is as much at home
m the saloons of fashion, as he is popularity
supposed to be in those political conclaves,
wherein he has wrought such marve,s of Or
ganization and combination, that he has
brought down upon his devoted and unofend-
inc head the hatred and calumny of all that