The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1876-03-06
BELKNAP'S FALL.
More Evidence of Corruption.
500. 900 Made out of Soldiers Head
Stones.
A Thorough Investigation to be
Made.

NEW YORK, March A Washington speo-
ial says the Committee on Expenditures in the
war Department have discovered additional
frauds In the department. Five other trader
ships besides Fort Sill were sold by Belknap,
for sums ranging from $4,000 to 5000 and
this is not all. An outrageous fraud has been
unearthed in one of the million dollars appro-
priated by Congress for putting up head stones
over the graves of Union soldiers. There is
evidence showing that Belknap made 100000
by letting contracts to one OF the highest bid
ders instead of the lowest.
Even this is by no means all. Blackburn, of
the committee, declared it would be difficult to
enumerate all of the other steals and frauds
discovered by the committee, but that when all
the evidence comes out, which might hot be
for a long time. as some OF the witnesses were
thousand miles away, it would constitute one
of the most gigantic chapters of official cor
Iuption in the worlds history
The idea that the late Mrs. Belknap was the
first mover in the affair was wholly erroneous
She must have acted under direct instructions
from her husband when she made the first pro-
posal to Marsh. Corroborated by other evil
depce they conclude that Evans and Belknap
used the late Mrs. Belknap as tool for their
own corrupt purposes. AS to the present Mrs.
Belknap the committee exonerate her wholly
They say she was undoubtedly cognizant of
payments made to her husband, but had moth
ing to do with the arrangement when Marsh
paid her the $3.50 last December in New
York.
Probable Indictment To-day.
The grand jury meet on Monday, when an
Indictment against Belknap will be found. The
penalty for the offence is stated to be three
years Imprisonment and a fine of twice the
amount received.
Frauds i'm Soldiers Headstones.
NASHVILLE, March 4.-The American will
contain the statement tomorrow that in 1873
the Secretary of War rejected the bid of the
Knoxville Marble Company to furnish head
stones for the national cemeteries, although it
was the lowest bid by $68, 900, and the contract
was awarded to the Indian trader at Keokuk,
which was at that time Belknap's place of res
idence.
BeIknap's Exposers.
CHICAGO, March At is reported here that
the part which George T. Robinson of Balti-
more and George @. Arms have taken in the
Belknap disgrace has led to an examination of
their army records, which show that they both
| scandalous practices upon charges preferred by
superior officers and after formal courkmar-
| tial, and not through the fundamentally Of
the late Secretary.
With reference to despatch March 4th, as
sociating. Capt. George R. Ames with Captain
George I. Robinson in criminal practices while
| officers in the United States army, Capt. Ames
| says that although they belonged to the same
regiment they were neither friends nor associ-
ates. 1t appears from official documents that
Odpps AImoS WAS lEleu anu dismissed from Ule
service on false charges, preferred against him
by two officers against whom Armes had pre-
viously preferred charges and on which they
were tried within two months thereafter, found
| guilty and sentenced to be dismissed, cashiered
and imprisoned in the penitentiary for three
| years and fined $500 each.
The Military Committee of each house in
February, 1874, in their report ON the bill auth
| oriZing and directing the Secretary of War to
give to Capt. Armes an honorable discharge,
| say that there was nothing in the record to
| justify the sentence that was imposed by the
| court martial, that the charges were preferred
through motives of jealousy and revenge, and
| the proceedings show that there was a determi-
nation on the part of the officers who instigat-
ed the prosecution to have Armes dismissed at
| any cost,
The bill, to which allusion is above made
| became a law under which he was honora.
| bly, discharged with one years extra pay.
A letter is on file in the War Department
written by Capt. Geo. Robinson of Baltimore
| to Secretary Belknap on the I'd of April, 1875,
while the findings of the court martial In his
| case and its recommendation of dismissal on &C.
count OF his selling duplicate pay accounts, etc,
were pending before the Department.
In his letter Robinson wrote that he had
heard j.. s. Evans & Co., the post traders at
Fort Sill, assert that they had TO pay money
| for Gen. Belknap's benefit, &C., and that he
was at that time. April ID, 1875, preparing
charges against them for malicious SANDER of
tu0 SECRETARY OF w az.
He continued, II honestly believe that these
ISLANDERS on your name and actions are false
and shall bring this firm to speedy Justice
Whether am in or out of the army, shall if
you desire, transmit all the documents entire
to you Tor your information and for such action
as you Sc fit to take" His letter explains that
these documents consist of memoranda that
he had made of things he had heard said by
Evans and other members of the firm. The
findings OF the court were approved by the
md nj acI,N Lev
cashiered on the ground there stated.
Marsh Gone TO Montreal.
| New YORK, March 4,-Mr. Caleb Marsh. the
| army contractor who bribed the Secretary of
War, left here last night for Montreal.
Comments of the English Press.
| LONDON, Mar 4.-The Times says of Bel
KNAPP: This event is more grave because, con-
firmatory of suspicion which has long pre-
| vailed among the American people. Even
we Europeans cannot but be struck with the
altered tones in which the Americans speak,
| If not of their institutions, at least of the men
who have the present direction of them.
| The News, abiding to the same subject, says
American political life seems to be in anything
but healthy condition. 1t refers to the whis.
key frauds, the Emma mine scandal and the
| downfall of Belknap and says these scandals
lift the veil from class of society which it
was hitherto pretty generally supposed had es-
capped the impurities of the social strata below,
and they lead one to fear that some of the worst
| vices OF municipal government may be preco-
lating into the federal government
The Telegraph says disclosures after disclos
ures, charges after charges, varying in degree
OF truth, but with the same ugly and untoward
character, have lately darkened the CONNER.
cial, religious, judicial and administrative in
situations of the United States. Some have
| proved false, others true, and more await evi.
dence, but the general effect beyond denial has
been to bring blush of shame and apxiety
| into the faces of all honest Americans, and to
make countless friends Of the republic in this
country silent and sorrowful when it's enemies
rejoice over these damaging revelations
The Standard says, happily the countries are
few IN ahnca Of fruc l.