Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1876-08-03
SLIPPERY SAM.
He Sells His Name for Greenbaeks.
A History of His Trusteeship of the In
diana Southern Railroad.
How He Betrayed His Trust and Joined
Hands with IFS Enemies.
TILDEN's ATTORNEY, IN HIS INTEREST.
coRRUPTs a JUDGE.
[From the Cincinnati Enmirer.l

From the Cincinnati Enquirer.I
In the glare of the calcium light o.
impartial investigation the hoof prints
of Samuel j. Tilden are found in such
devious and serpentine paths as were
never irodden by the foot of a reform
er We have been led to this conclu-
sion of late by the exposure of Incl
dents in the career OF the favorite
son of York which have come to the
light of day. and the story we are
about to relate more than confirms it,
The facts in the case have been care
fully collated by a representative OF
the Enquirer, sent to Indiana for the
especial purpose, and they will be
found to be backed up by documen-
tary evidence of a most corrobora-
tive character.
THE STORY OF A RAILWAY. flof !
In 1S49 the Legislature OF Indiana,
by special act, chartered the Fort
Wayneand dSouthern railway company,
a road designed 20 run between Fort
Wayne and Jeffersonville, Indiana.
1t was also designed to extend the
road into Louisville, by means Of a
tunnel under the Ohio river, and a
charter for that purpose was obtained
from the Legislature of Kentucky. A
special clause in its charter from the
State of Indiana permitted stock sub
scriptions to it to be paid in real es-
tate, and the farmers of Allen, Wells,
Blackford, Delaware, Henry, Rush,
Decatur. Jennings, Jefferson, Scott
and Clark counties, under this pro,
vision, took stock in the road to the
amount OF third of a million OF dol
lars. The land thus subscribed was
conveyed in trust to Hon. John ID.
Defrees, to be by him held for the
benefit and security OF the original
In 1853 work was CON-
menced on the road, and the hearts
OF the farmers beat high in anticipa-
ton of the time when the iron horse
would go snorting by their doors.
The work Of negotiating the bonds
was slow one, and the trustees of
the road found friend in the person
Of John G. Parker, who assisted them
with loans and also indorsed their pa.
per. In 1855 Mr.. Parker was elected
President of the road, much against
his will, and he at once set about
raising the means TO complete the
road. With this end in view he yis-
tied the East and made an arrange
ment with a well-known New York
Custom House broker named Herman
who took S6,130,000 OF
the company's bonds to Europe to en-
deavor to raise the means on them TO
purchase iron to rail the road. In
London Livingstone met certain
VIM. Raester Wagstaff, who hod been
a Banker In England and was repre-
sented to be immensely wealthy and
well versed in railroads, he having
been concerned with Sir Morton Peto
in several OF his speculations. Liv-
ingstone and Wagstaff made con-
tract by which the latter agreed to
come to this country and bring civil
engineer witt him, and assess the
value OF the work on the bed OF the
road. and then, IL all was satisfactory,
to complete the road. Mr.. Bolt, the
President of the Liverpool London
and Globe Insurance Company, of
furnished Wagstaff with an
order on the branch office of his COM
pany in New York for $4,000, and
soon after Mr.. Wagstafr. accompanied
by private secretary and a civil en-
gineer, arrived in the Empire City. i
em HoNoRs TO wAGsTAFP. asns II
On his arrival in this country he
was teted by Mr.. Pell, the American
Of the Liverpool, London
and Globe, and all the @nobs" OF New
York were invited to meet him.
among those who attend
ed was her Britannia Majesty's Con-
sui at New York and the Hon. Samuel
J. Tilden. Mr.. Parker, who had gone
East for that special purpose, was al
so present, and met the distinguished
Britisher. The day after the Jete Mr..
Pell, SO Mr.. Parker says, informed
him Parker) that Mr.. Livingstone
was not a man OF sufficient standing
or otherwise, to be associ-
lted in a large enterprise like the
of railroad or to be as.
,ociated with srch gentleman as
Mr.. Wagstarr. This information,
,oupled with the fact that Living
stone had not given entire satisfac-
ion to Mr.. Parker, and the glamor Of
The fefe to Wagstaff, ) blinded Mr.
P Parker, and he at once dismissed
and made fresh con-
tract with Wagstaff without any fur.
ther inquiry into his financial standE
ng. on
LITTLE sPECK OF TROUBLE.
Mr. Wagstaff's engineer found that
the Fort Wayne and Southern Road
nad graded its roadbed from Fort
Wayne to Muncie, and from North
Vernon TO Jeffersonville, and he esti-
mated the value of the work done at
about 81, ,250,000. This was satisfac-
tory; but upon making an inventory
Of the bonds Of the company, handed
down from the original officers of the
road, it was discovered that 100 of
them. each OF the value of $1,000,
were missing. In this dilemma it
was resolved to foreclose the mort
Cages on the road. and to facilitate
the company (Which was in
reality John c. Parker) failed. By
the use OF little crooked swearing
an order of court was obtained in
January, 1866. and the road was sold
after seven days notice, and said no.
tice only published in Louisville