The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1876-02-17
BY TELEGRAPH
TO THE
WHEELING REGISTER.
Associated Press Report. by Western
Union Line, otfice Northwest cor.
of Main and 18th Sts.
BAB'S TRIAL.
Case Opened for the Defense.

|
Mr.. Williams devoted considerable time
to an argument of the probabilities OF the
case AMI to a revision Of the evidence for
the government, assuming that what the
government had presented was conclu'
sive evidence, which was by no means
admitted General Williams said the
case might present some suspicious cir
cumstances, but by no means the ground
| on which TO base conviction. lie then
proceeded with some explanations which
would throw a different light upon the
communications between Babcock and
the ring at that time. He said that Joyce
and Mcdonald were trusted officials men
of influence, and possessing confidence
with all good people. Babcock on the
other hand was warm'heartedS conid
ing and generous man, who did net give
up friendship once cemented, for the
whispers of calumny. Everything pre-
sented by the defense was incom-
plete and could not but
leave q painful uncertainty in every
mind rs to whether it was to convey a
proper suspicion, or to simply indicate
weakness of the judgment to which every
one was Liable. The quantity of this kind
of evidence, said General Williams,
avails nothing. A house is made OF
bricks, but million of bricks scattered
over an acre of ground do not
make house any more than two bricks
do. General Williams then traced Bah
cocks military career from West Point,
which he eulogiZed as place where
honor and honesty were inculcated, and
where thieves and robbers were not ed
ucated. He told OF the defendants SER
vice in the late war; how he rose 10 be
chief of engineers in the Ninth army
corps. and afterwards to be aid TO Lieu
tenant General Grant, with the rank OF
Brevet Brigsdier General.
A good deal of attention was given
10 Gen. Babcock, on account OF his rela-
ton To the President and the confidence
reposed in him as private secretary 10
the President. In one sense Gen. VIII
liams said he became part OF the exec
utiye; his official delinquencies would
more or less reflect upon and de.
GRADE the chief executive Of the nation
and no ingratitude would be so black Ms
his if he would bring disfayor on one
who had put such confidence in him.
| While explaining some OF the tele-
Grams. between Babcock, Joyce and Nc
Donald, the speaker referred especially to
The SyIph Dispatch.
and called it the pivotal point OF the
prosecution. If Babcock sent the tele-
gram for any criminal purpose, he took
| the very course to prove that purpose,
because if he sent kilograms over his own
name much of its significance would be
lost, vet he sent i. in his own handwrit-
ing, leaving proof that be sent it easy to
procure. The sylph signature
was mere act of thought
iessness or playfu!ness of which
all of us are guilty at some time or other.
The Speaker here referred TO the letter
stolen from Rogers and given by Melon
aid to Babcock. Mcdonald had given 1t
to him. If Babcock had been a conspira
! for would he not have told Mcdonald OF
| The abandonment of the raid? But he
did not. and when Babcock found it out
eleven DAYS later, he telegraphed to Nc
D,pald that he had succeeded in con-
v.ncing Douglass that the scheme had
been for blackmailing, and that Books
and Hoge would not go Nc
DoDald's statement was partly true
too. 1t has been proven beyon da doubt
AS at that very time Hoge, one OF the
men who were to make the raid, carried
IN his pocket a $4,000 bribe, paid to him
by the ring. Referring to the dispatch
of December 5, 1874, which is one OF the
three telegrams not passed upon by the
court and which reads as follows, "Have
not heard that any body has gone or is
going" Williams said: Babacock does
not remember having sent it, and hence
REQUIRES the government TO prove IT..
! Babcock was in intimate relation with
/ the President, and 1t was the
custom of officers all over the country TO
address him in relation to anything they
| desired to find out, or secure, so Baocock'
knowing Joyce only as an honest official,
answered the latter's inquiries rs TO
whether agents were coming here, rs ne
answered thousands of other inquiries.
No one suspected at that time that Joyce
WAS irving TO do anything but his duty
toward the government, but this very
tsleyram showed that Babcock was not
an interested friend o. the ring, Tor the
reason that at the very time when ne
sent this telegram, the raid had oeeh
/ nlsnned and Brooks was IN New York
/ intending to come here. This shows Bao-
cocks ignorance of the affairs when ne
/ should certainly have known, had ne nad
/ the relations with the ring thst are
CHARGED. Illustrative OF the practices OF
Mcdonald was the telegram, "had a
/ long ride with the President, &c, which
he sent to Joyce. The purpose OF this
was to enable Joyce to show this to The
distIl.erS, and convince them that the
President was hob.nob bing with Nc
Donald, and winking at the con-
spirscv. Yet the President tes-
tides that he WAS riding out one day
when he saw Mcdonald standing on the
Sidewalk and asked him to ride With
him. During that ride nothing what.
ever was SAID of the St. Louis affairs. Its
sucb incidents as this which have placed
The President Under Suspicion.
which have occasioned the daily ava
1sncbe of newspaper scurrllity which /:
directed at the President.
The testimony shows another
trick ofJcyces, he did not place
the letter privately in the postottie'
as was natural to a criminal ac', but ne
cot 81, 900; parsded two letters addressed
to Babcock and Avery; pretended TO pu,
money IN each and sent them by Everes'
TO the mail. This was only dsmnsole
trick of desperate william 10 convince
the distillers through Everest OF theli
security. That no money was sent '(
Babcock would be proven to the satlsfac
ton of the jury before the case wa:
closed. The whole case shows and will
soon show far more plainly that an at
tempt is made to sacrifice Bsbcock IN
order to serve the fraudulent purpose OF
of Mcdonald and Joyce. Much stres:
had been placed on the fact that Bsbcocs
bad oorresponded with Mcdonald under
the cover OF Major Grimes, but