Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1876-02-28
An Indian Con.rae, seanaa, Case

LIBEL SUIT FOR $1,000 on TRIAL.
This morning. in the Circuit Court Judge
Cartter), the case of A. II. Wilder agt. VIM.
welsh was called, and is on trial-Messrs..
Anssey and Hale for plaintiff, and Messrs
Davidge and Washington for defendant. This
is suit for libel, in which the damages are
laid at 500 600, which was Instituted April
I'd, 1874. The declaration in the case charges
at the defeudent, in a letter addressed to
George II. Stuart, wrote falsely and mali
ciOusly OF and concerning plaintiff, be being
engaged i'm furnishing supplies to the Indians
under oDtracts ma lie with the United States;
and that his accounts at the time were pend
ing for settlement before the proper officers
of the government.
The alleged libelous letter is as follows
81 have examined the vouchers that you
sent me for my inspection as chairman OF a
committee raised by the missionary board
that nominated the agents whose vouchers
are under consideration. That signed by
Chas. r. Birkett, agent for the Ponca In
dtans. is fraudulent, and should be sent to
Department of Justice in Washington. 1t
appears that Agent Birkett was induced
to sign voucher without filling up
the prices, leaving that to the per
son with whom the Commissioner OF
Indian Affairs had privately bargained
to furnish certain suPPhes The prices
bIm presented for payment. Agent Birk-
cit certifies that he had purchased in open
market those articles according TO personal
directions of the Honorable Commissioner of
INDIAN Affairs. This is untrue, az was known
by the Indian agent and a. II. Wilder, and the
Commissioner of Indian Affairs knows that
the articles were not purchased byAgentBirk-
EFT, ard that he did not afiS the prices. The
agent did not certify the quality or the value
OF The articles. If parties procuring or pre-
senting such fraudulent voucher are not
Immediately prosecuted it will be impossi
BILE to protect the Indian service from the
irauds that so long have been connected
with it,"
The plaintiff sets forth that he is n good
trre, honest citizen of Minnesota, and by
means of these grievances has suffered
greatly in his good name. And plaintiff fur
Their states that about August 18th last he
sent certain supplies TO Major c. u. Birkett.
Y. :. Indian agent at the Ponca agency,
DAKOTA territory, and requested a receipt,
and the latter sent him paper in the form
OF bill, (aEd certificate of receipt of the
articles,) with the amounts blank And on
the 9Th of November last, in this city, he
prices of the articles, TO the end that his
account might be stated, yet the defendant,
envying the condition of plaintiff. malt
ciously intending to injure the plaintiff,
intending TO bring him into public scandal,
DC. especially among officers of the United
States in charge of the Indian eervice, and
10 cause him 10 be suspected to have been
guilty Of procuring the making Of a fraudu-
lent voucher for his own benefit, and to yex
harness, impoverish, and wholly ruin plain
tlf, on or about November nth, in the form
OF letter addressed to George II. Stewart,
composed and published a certain false,
scandalous, malicious and defamatory libel.
MARRIAGE LICENSES have been issued TO
Michael =. Combs and Kate NJ. Hoffman,
Demuel +. Mayhem and Ellen Cassidy, Sol
OlIon s. Stubs, OF New York city, and Mol
lie +. Brown; John MalOney and Ellen
CTimmers, John s. Lovely and Caroline NJ.
Christopher, Chas. 4. Batter and Julia y.
Marshall, T. II. Allen and Lizzie A. Brown.
John Henry Jones and Mary Garrett, Mau
rice DOheIty and Maggie Moran, Jas. Atkins
and Margaret West, Joseph c. Foertsch and
NJ. Julia Barrett.