Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1874-02-20
The Late Declarations i'm Vir-
ginia.


ginia.
The examination of W. d. Coleman,
late Secretary of the Board of Public
Works, Of whose defalcation forgery and
attempt suicide, the details were given
last week, will take place tomorrow. He
was in court on Tuesday and is quite re-
covered from his wound. The Richmond
correspondent of the Petersburg ''News"
writing of the matter says
1t is now stated-but not officially, that
the investigation which the Board of Com
missiOners Of the Sinking Fund have been
making since the arrest Of Colonel Cole
man, reveals the fact that the defalcation
amounts to about $4,000 in bonds, worth
about $500 in currency. The only evil
dence of fraud on the part Of Colonel Cole
man is his confession to Colonel Mayo
that he altered (forged) the entry in the
warrant-record book When he made this
confession he was laboring under mental
alteration. All agree upon this. The
question arises, would the admissions OF a
man in such q condition as that be received
ny THE court? Ii the answer is that they
would not, circumstantial evidence would
have to be exclusively relied upon. There
4 Is udluly CllOuSu VI W COIF1Cu.
General Bradley T. johnson visited Col
Coleman yesterday. 1t is supposed he will
be engaged as counsel.
1t is ludicrous to observe the air of right.
eous indignation assumed by certain capl
tai officers and members of the Legislature
who are said to frequent certain wei
known corners every night, assume When
speaking of 'shorrible conduct Of the un
fortunate Coleman. OF course no one
dares to speak plainly whom they mean lest
he should be summoned before the lnvesti
| eating Committee proposed by Governor
| Kemper.
1t is reported that suit is to be instituted
| by the State to recover the S25O,O00 due
| the State on it's interest in the Danyillt
| Railroad purchased by the authorities o.
| the Pennsylvania Central Railroad. Alst
abou 1.-THE mistake made by the Secretar.
of the Board of Public Works against tnt
| State in the sale of her interest in the
Richmond and Danville Railroad, recen
| developments have revived suspicious thai
people scarcely dared to breathe at thai
| time, and the present is thought fit OPP
| portunity, for the sake of justice to The
State and individuals, to have thorough
investigation of everything connected will
the two Boards of which Col. Coleman was
secretary.
THE DEFALCATION AT LYNCHBURG.
The total defalcation Of John G. Henry
at Lynchburg, appears to have been 1856,
241.78, of which $13.9s7 was found in hi
desk, $14,291 found on his person, ane
50, 800 paid by his father, leaving 1928
still unaccounted for. On the prisoners
arrival at Lynchburg in charge of Captain
Parent, of Staunton and Deputy q. S
Marshal, Wagner, the ''News," OF thai
city gives the following description
Long before the time of the arrival Of
the train at The depot, large crowd as
sembled, and their ranks were constantly
increased, until there was probably up
wards of one thousand persons present
the majority being negroes, and many OF
them boys. When the prisoner, under
guard. was removed from the Cal to car.
rage, which was in waiting, there was en-.
acted the most disgraceful scene we ever
witnessed anywhere. Shouts of ''here he
is, - ''there he goes, ;" ''where's your mon.
ey % and a thousand other expressions
created such din that one could scarcely
hear himself speak When the carriage
moved off it was surrounded by a motley
crew of shabbily dressed and worse man
nered boys and youths who ran over eaci
other shouting and bawling at every step
and, with this disgraceful rabble around
it, the carriage reached the courthouse,
when Henry was taken before Captain E.
W. Early, United States Commissioner
The interview between the prisoner, his
counsel, and two OF three other persons
was private, and nothing more than an j:
formal proceeding.
Meanwhile the rabble gathered fresh re-
cruits every moment, and the worst man
nered among the negroes blocked up the
starways Leading ron 9t the street TO Tnt
shouting, hooting, singing, swearing, and
indulging in every possible species of dis
order, while the crowd outside kept up q
continual yell. The services of two police
men were called into requisition on the
second floor, and it was next to impossible
for them to clear the stairWays and estab-
lish anything like an approval to decent be
havior on the part of the crowd.