The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1876-02-09
Dyer asked him ii Megrue ever paid him

Dyer asked him il Megrue ever paid MIN
any money.
Sto.rs objected to anything more per-
tanning TO what he called the Megrue
conspiracy. He said that Thompson had
testified that it ended IN 1872, and the
prosecution, in opening, stated the same
thing.
A Long Argument
ensued, during which Col. Brodhead
said, the truth is, there was conspiracy
formed in 1871, embracing the Super
visors, Collector, special Revenue
Agent and others; that they
went on making illicit spirits
to the close of 1872, when there was q
suspicion there. In 1873 the same parties
went on again and made more illicit
whisky. 1t was not necessary that they
should meet in room and lay their
plans; it was continuation Of the same
plan, the same division, &c. There was
no formal understanding; they all know
what they were to do.
Judge Porter interrupted Colone.
Broadhead, and stated that the counsel
did not meet the question fairly. The
question was whether the prosecution in
tended to convict the defendant OF con-
nection with the conspiracy of 1871.
We hear it openly avowed in dellb-
crate argument by the Government that
there was a conspiracy in 1871, which
ended in 1872. The same counsel calls
to the stand witness who says it was
closed in November, 1872. The man
who organized it, left it and went away,
and the effort is to convict the defendant
with it. We submit they cannot resort
to such means to prove the connection of
the defendant with this conspiracy.
Broadhead replied that theEosecution
did not admit that there was aconspiracy
commencing ina 1871 and ending
in 1872. 1t was continued from
1871 to 1875, where the strong
arm of the Government stopped it. May
we not establish the fact that Megrue
was only an officer OF the ring, and was
discharged when he went out, and some
one else put in his place. We do not
claim that the defendant was connected
with the conspiracy in 1871.
Mr.. Porter was glad that the gentlemen
so frankly declared that Gen. Babcock
was not connected with the Megrue con-
spiracy but is it fair for the
to return an indict.
ment charging an intention to make
Illicit spirits in 1874 into an excuse to
20 back to conspiracy with which 1t is
admitted he had no connection, to con-
vict him.
The Court said: "As we understand
it the inquiry of the witness is as to what
took place in 1872, and it is objected TO
on the ground that the conspiracy of
1872 ended IN that year and Is not con-
nected with the conspiracy charged
in the Indictment The counsel
stated in opening that the conspiracy
with which the defendant Is alleged
to have been connected, commenced in
1871 and extended to 1875 Colonel
Brodhead SAYS the Government has no
evidence to show the completely OF the
defendant in 1871 or 1872, if it was a
fact that the conspiracy ended in 1872,
we should hold it irrelevant to admit
ANYTHING further concerning that time,
but it is not admitted that the con-
spiracy ended then. Mr.. Thompson used
language which seems TO intimate
that the conspiracy ended then, but
that is the view of it from his standpoint.
AT the present, we think you had better
d,recvyour attention, not so much to the
conspiracy in TIP as to '73-74 Il we
can see when the case is all in, that the
conspiracy in '7l-72 snot part of the
conspiracy alleged in the indictment, and
that the defendant was not connected
with the conspiracy in lS7l-72, then we
can act on the testimony already pre-
sented and rule 1t out.
Court adjourned.