New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1874-04-18
THE COURTS.
.,r,,oDS or IFcrsI.ATroN

IT, most interesting case that mas come up
=. ,no C,r, of Common Pleas for many months was 20
gun on Thursday, aud Is no" IA p iOeA~s" -, ISl. u
J,.,,sa D,lv. IN Pars l. it ie brought oy eNa'e
shaw. lawyer OF this cty' against Davle O"D ,rs
.on,,.o,o- and the facts a. brought out wa '"e
-, - into the case q familiar favor OF
,h o,hods NJ legislation which obtained under the Old
,rao1 Connolv regime and show very strikngly the
sf3cuities which were in those days encountered oy
persons seeking the payment Of large claims against the
civ with hints manner in which those obstacles
wero overcome. The counsel for Mr.. Shaw are MT
pcvesn of DeveHn, Miller & Tran and Mr., Ormsby
while Henry l.. Clinton represents Mr.. pspcock
Mr.. shaws story runs as fo%.ows. according TO the
complaint aud his tsumony, which was submitted on
Thursday m 1889 Mr.. Babcock had claim OF so',oOO
Against the city, properly audited and allowed oy .uo
city officials for work and materials I'D IMPROVING
the Battery under contract dated May 81 1900 DC a"
uorized by an Act OF the LEGISLATURE passed NAY -
1858 II being contract in favor OF = NJ Dro"' ~
assigned 10 Babcock, by whom the improvements "eie
made. - -. ,nta
Mr. Babcock employed J. W. Culver lawyer OF tnis
city to get the bill inserted in the Tax Levy "uu VIM"
Culyer was IN Albany, not considering himsen com
,ept 20 engineer the matter he applied, as agent Vi
Babcock 20 Shaw take his Culvers place. the "see
u,ept being that TO receive nothing II uhsue
eesf but II he secured the insertion OF the OH III te
Tax Levy he was 20 receive sO0 it being UNDERSTOOD
that Babcook would be satisfied siGW ol
mia claim OF $4,000 as he FIRST represented
,n WAS paid him. and that Shaw could have the
balance of SsOO0 Mr. shaw was successful,
aud when the lax Levy appeared tne 2li y, S ,Iicd
discovered amNnS us Sp fcd Culver mat he had been
tod that did not do the work. bUt sOneOouy sse,
Sy nm 10 meet Babcock at his tCuver') Office. and
Al tbs interview Mr.. BaOcOek stated the same thns;
Mr. shaw assured hun that he alone ala the WORK ana
Was entitled TO Day FOR his services as agreed BaO'
cock told him all he had 20 say was go 20 the Cou
troer connolly his deputy (StOrrs), who was AT
Albany all The time resisting, as usual the claims
against the city uutl found to be bona HIDE and as tne
know who advocated the measure they VIZ zen ,h
shaS saw the Deputy Controller che next day ana the
Deruty told was satisfied that ne shaw ua tHe
serNicss shaw demanded from BaOcOek some security
Cor Ills bfI Tor services BabcOck issued an assignment
20 saw Tor his (Babcocs) whole claim addressing an
oner on the Controller 10 issue warrant t0r els wv on
lie sum 10 W. Culver Mr. shaw proposed u sh9nll
he drawn In Cuver's name as security, ana Cuived
thereupon affixed the acknowledgment 81 take the
ABOVE ASST guhrut In trust go 90 800,
claim pad ny the Controller, aud IL was DELAYED GU one
prelext aud another until, IN November 1862 B2oeoeA
the Controller Office embarrassing the craving u
the money from City aud # IT was out OF tne way
the mOneT could he obtained much sooner shaw &C
cordIHg,y Withdrew It from che Controers Once III
January following the money was PAID 20 baDGGeh: VIZ 0
then, which he dld aud 5000 more ID Few
days; that ne had other Oils t,a |" n Ee'
ness or securing payment aud him the remainder ot
his eaui. the way Of this employment rms
vas aud BabcOck at the moment picAed up
the assignment which laid Oh the table, ana tore IL up
When shaw demonstrated against this Nj Babcock told
nm il was all right. they had made this new agree
lent suce thai day says he has received neither
money nor business as promised hm anu rs LOT 'he
balance of 81 600 that be now sues.
TIE answer OF Mr.. Babcock 10 these statements lie
denial that he ever employed shaw at ali or agreed 10
ps him tor his that he ever rendered such
seryces IL also states that the $1,000 was extoFted
from him; that Culver and shaw held the assignment
aad the Controller would not pay tne b 10 NM Whlie
The e1 6 Snd o we 1 hands 20 p R WAITED me
money badly and succumDed 10 the unjust demand He
The testimony of Mr. Culver, gwen yesterday,
furnishes a necessary Ink in the preliminary crcum
Hrlra fnIfA ogy in WI Ia II l1auV
Ba0cock, with whom he had some ACQUAINTANCE as man
mad. Ike himself, been somewhat In politics came
~ MIN he about starting Tor New YORK, ana
wanted him 70 stay ana engineer ms Dill through.
Culver told him he bad important business at home
and would not stay for $500. Mr.. BabcOck said
81 Will give you that and {oH VII STAY mere anu
seven times that" culver accepted these terms
ana demanded $50 down. Mr.. Culver said on the wiz
ness stand that upon thinking the matter over he
had not been iu the habit doing this sort Ofwork be did
not know He had only been TO Albany Tor the
purpose OF getting small oils through Tor ocd dtVets
lie dd not remember whether he Inumated to Babcock
he should employ some one else however he soon
saw sAaw, ana told hin that BaoeoeA Iaa t0lo mn ~
Just claim. ana ne waited him TO take the matter
hand Shaw took the papers anu 1hay agreed 70 40
u for $4,000 as stated PIeVl4Iay CuI0et Iet'ea ~
BabcOck the agreement he had made out con-
eeiied sha~s name u1tii alter eno @You, rueut %
EXPRESSED solicitation 20 know who was 70 DO THIS i'm
pOrtant work and receive these large wages nut was
satisfied anu assented % H. Mr. Culver confirmed ms
story IN detail not being able. however, 10 recouect
dates or than the substance OF his CONVERSATIONS
until COM nE doWh 70 the acco'u "a 'g
suaW's demand for payment he SAID that BaOeOck
Connolly tGat The service had been doue ~
else who would have % be paid. After corroboratng
in the Otuer particulars Ar. sAaWs story ne
said there great trouble II getIng the
money from Connolly as Tweed ana ne wanted 70 nave
ihey claimed had used his influence TO get the OIL
through.
20 shaw one OF which said: have got copy OF the
Tax levy and the SUN OF $4,000 IS allowed nay man
Babcack absolutely for his aDOrs done, and Peter II.
Mr. C9,y YER was Sl asked what Ba6eocE told him about
Ia utVu itlA
impression IT, aud here, on the objection Oi NJ
clinton eusGed long discussion about the identity Of
an tnipfession with "a recollection hut Judge DAILY finally
ruled t out series OF sharp questions was put DY the
ChieJu-tlce a. 70 Tor Cuyers agreeing to
pay shaw such a large sum-One-thlrd OF the whole
ciam-wthOut giving particular instructions, Tor MT
Culver had insisted tnat be could not reeOect Bah
cocks telling INN what wanted him 10 do specially,
nor even remember that he himself told shaw any
thing more than that he wanted him to get the biif
put in the tax-levy. The clearest explanation
Mr. Culver could make was that Shaw was expected 10
become familiar with the facts, and work them up and
get the Jaw upon the matter, that the Committee
understand 10 and have II put through the Legs-
lature Judge Day took up Cuyers statement that he
had confidence In Shaw and asked him why 20 which he
replied THAT he understood Shaw TO be ian able Young
man and had a large acquaintance " 1t requires
70 do thing OF that kind well" He finally admitted the
possibility his having said something 20 Shaw about
the Of the services he expected " per
form, although IT has escaped his recollection.
Tie crosse Examination OF Mr. culver was long and Sc
we're ana Mr.. Clinton unsuceessfuly sought to elicit
that Culver mad been paid $500 70 attend 20 the matter
PAID hl in al about $500 and that he had him for
the rema nder which mad been promised, obtaining
from the trial $3.50 This suit brOughC the award
Of shaw who was selected as arbitrator between Cul
yer and BabcOck.
Tie crosse Examination OF Mr. Shaw, which occurred
iut before Culver told his story very interest
ing aud SPICY He was asked II, at the time the 5000
paid him by Babcock. Senators Nation and VIII
hams present, and replied No. He was questioned
at length about his interviews at The Fifth Avenue
Hotel, IN which Senators Nation and Williams played
important part. He denied that on Jan i9, 1870 at
the hotel had any conversation with BabcOcE about
the atters paving him $1,000 10 get back the assign
ment, or that Babcock then repudiated any CLAIM
him. He denied that he SHAW first demanded