The daily Argus., 1876-04-01
The President Knew Babcock Was
Guilty.

Very important disclosures came out
yesterday before the Clymer investigating
COMMITTEES regarding General Babcock and
Mr.. Bell, who had formerly been adjective,
and was appointed a special agent in the
pension bureau at the request of the
president. who wanted him to 90 west and
examine secretly into Babcock's alleged
connection with the whisky ring, and to
inform him as to the facts. General Bah
cock and Luckey got hold of the witness, and
induced him, by the promise of a larger
appointment, to go to st. Louis and steal
from the district attorneys Office any evi-
dence against Babcock. which he was to
hand over to Babcock. He went west, and
abstracted from District Attorney Dyer's
Office the papers against Rabcock, which
he took to the Lindell Hotel. where Bah
cock and his counsel examined them. The
papers were not destroyed, however. but
returned. The witness got disgusted with
the whole thing, and returned to Wash
ingtou, and told the president that Bah
cock was guilty. The president dismissed
him from Office in three days. He said he
was greatly attached to the president and
had served all through the war with him
as a Union scout.
Q.-You informed the president that Babcock
was guiltyf Al took measures to info m him
that believe he was guilty. 1 did it because the
president himself told me that II Babcock was
guilty he wished to know it, He wished nothing
concealed ard he wished him punished Itook the
president at his WORD and informed him Of il. and
got my dismissal in three days afterwards
Q.-When you came back here you said you had
a conversation with Gen. habcock. A.-Yes;
met him No. 100 Pennsylvania avenue In that
conversation related all 1 had seen and heard in
st, Louisiana told him of this proposal OF Bradley
ito get the evidence and destroy i'll He said he did
not want me TO get 1t unless got the whole of it,
and told him oil this proposal of Bradley's He sa
that part oiit would be worse than none. The
matter was talked over between ue afterwards and
he remarked that II / got 1t would be well re-
warded.
The rotteness Of the Republican party
ought to be apparant enough to everybody
by this time. Grant sends this spy to ST.
Louis under pretence of wanting to know
whether Babcock was guilty or not, but
really for the purpose of destroying the
evidence against Babcock. The witness
gets his instructions from Babcock and
Luckey, the presidents private secretaries
goes to st. Louis and finds evidence thai
Babcocx is guilty; returns to Washington
and there Babcock tells him thar, to get 6
portion of the evidence and leave the
balance would be worse than to get none
of it, and if he would get it all and destroy
it he would be well rewarded. The witness
really supposing that Grant wanted tt
know whether Babcock was guilty or not
took measure to let Grant know that Bah
cock was guilty, and for doing this Gran
turned him out of office in three days. o.
course Grant knew whether Babcock wa
guilty-the people are we'll satisfied tha
ne knows all about the rascally thieve;
who hold office under him and that ht
shares in the robberies. What thi
witness was expected to do was to 60 t,
st. Louis and get hold of the evidence anC
destroy it and keep his mouth shut. In
stead of doing that, he managed to le
Grant know that Babcock was guilty, anC
Grant turned the witness out Office in three
days!