Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1876-04-19
Letter From Miles.

The following is the letter written by
Miles from Windsor Prison to Proctor
Knott. the chairman of the House Judic
iary Committee in Washington, about the
Harrington safe burglary:
WINDSOR PRISON, Vt, April 10, 1876.
Dear Sir :-You will pardon the liberty
take in dropping You this note. trust,
when | stat, that feel | have borne the
stigma of that notorious Washington safe
burglary affair already too long. l take
this means to state to you the following
facts: am the principal party engaged
in, and present AT, the blowing open OF the
safe in the district attorneys office, on the
night of April u, 1874. In the month of
March of that year, was sent for by Col
Whitley, then chief of the secret service
division detectives department. and by
him told there was an Investigation gong
on rs to district affairs at Washington,
and he wished me to see Ncttleship and
90 to Washington, and see If 1t was not
possible to break the force OF this lnvestl-
CATION that prominent officials there were
involved, and that if | would 90 on l
would be well paid | met \ettleshlp sew
eral times in New York. and finally went
to Washington an met him there, where
he introduced me to Harrington, with
whom | canvaSSed over the matter, and
finally agreed to do the job on the 9th;
bat as the time approached Nettleshlp be-
gan to show tho white feather, 50 much so
;hat did not feel warranted to proceed
further in the matter, without some fur
Their assurance of protection. not wishing
to embark in Job Of that nature without
being fully assured OF protection. This
was finally promised by Harrington. Ev-
ans and B;tbcock. | then went ahead and
did the job; but as they wished to make It
sort of Fourth of July affair out of it the
matter became very much mixed up.
However. carried out my part of the
contract to the letter. see \etle-hip
and Mike flaws have given You The II YER
sion Of tie affair; but is they took good
care to place themselv safely IN Ne"
\ ork. when the Job WAS to be done, they
can give you none Of the details of til"
night work In fact there is no one that
can but myself The man Benton, who
was with me, WAS not knowing to the de
tails and All that he done WAS under my
direction am familiar with the details
Of the entire Job; also with all that has
been done in the matter subsequent, and
had not worked like a beaver and done
very much dirty work, the result of that
safe burglary t, ial would have been quite
different. had done all, and much more
than had agreed t. do. On their part
they have not paid As per agreement, be
sides several other promises they made.
and which they have since broken. Had
they done for me in july last what | as ked,
and which was not one hundred and fifty
parts of what | hid done for them.
would not to-day be here in prison. And
this is not the worst feature in the AFT llr.
| learn that they have secretly connlvcd 10
keep me here. with view of getting me
out of the way. A> | now wish TO relieve
my shoulders of this scanialous affair. and
place it ut the door of those where it ri CHI
fully belongs. am 1t your service if can
in any manner assist Your honorable COM
mttee in furthcring the ends # Justice.
| remain your very ohrlirnt servant.
G., f. MINIS