Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1876-03-15
TELEGRAPHIC.
WASHINGTON,
The Democrats Becoming
Dismayed at their Own
Blundering stupidity.
Having Accidentally Discov.
cred . Fraud they Forgot
to Secure the Evidence,
And Now Find Themselves
Unable to Sustain the
Charges they Have
Made.

Unable to Sustain the
!, Charges they Have
II Made.
The Delknap Case Too Big Z
Fish for Democratic Fish
ers to Land.
A Retaliation Of ln4uiry which
| the JDemocrats Would Not
:. Permit to he offered.
II
Il the BELKNAP CASE
TOO BIG A FISH FOR THE DEMOCRATS
Special telegram to the Inter- Ocean
! WASHINGTON. March 5.-The fish
the Democrats have got OH their hook
is so big they can't land him. and not.
withstanding the dramatic repre-.
scntation of Mr.. Clymer the Belknar
case is liable to fall through for wan,
of bottom. The departure Of Marsh
for Canada has given the Democrat.
a great deal of trouble, especially be.
cause he took his contract checks and
other papers with him. and Mr.. CIV.
inner is getting some very severe GEN.
sure from his fellow reformers on the
Democratic side. In the House to.
day, when it became known how the
Belknap case had petered out, as soon
as the Judiciary Committee began to
examine it,
Mr.. CLYMER WAS SET UroN FROM ALL
! Objections,
so that he left the chamber angry, and
did not return again during the aft
crnoon. 1t has got to be by-word
flows the investigation 2" Menu
bcrs would go up to Clymer and ask
"Clymer, how's your investigation -
Another would say: 'Clymcr, where's
your friend Marsh p Another,
"When did you hear from Canada p
Another, "Who are You going to in
vestigate next?''
T: The Committe OIL Judiciary. after
breaking the Sabbath in trying to fix
j up a law. came into their room this
! morning with series of twenty ar
ticlcs of impeachment. Sixteen Of
these articles covered sixteen pay
mcnts of money made by Marsh to
Belknap or Mrs. Belknap: one of a
! general character, covering the taking
of bribes: another charging him with
continuing to take bribes: the nine
tecnth charging that he used his Office
for mercenary purposes: the twenti-
eth that he made am appointment for
money in the case of Evans. In the
/ sixteen charges il becomes necessary
to put in the dates. and descriptions
F! of the method in which the money
was received. The committee dis
covered that they had no such data
Marsh had gone. taking his checks
and papers with him. forgetting to
tell who his banker was. so that the
checks could be traced. and emitting
to give various information which
the committee considered judicialiy
important just now. There was
! FEELIN. oF HLANk DIsMAY
when the facts. or rather the lack of
facts, was discovered. and Proctor
Knott proposed to go into the House
opened. Barney Caultield objected.
because that would be a confession OF
weakness, and would be comfort and
and encouragement to the enemy for
Barney had Chicago pluck, it he
didn't have evidence. But he was voted
! down.and Knott was ordered TO re-
port to the House that the Com. found
the evidence insufficient to base art
iclcs of Impeachment on and ASK to
have the case vcopcMcd. barney pro-
tested, but the committee adjourned
1t was whispered around on the floor
that the committee was going to make
such report, aud Morrison, Tucker
Randall. Cox. and Others entreated
Knott to do no such thing. for til.
Republicans We're already laughing
i'm their sleeves. So Knott did moi
offer the report. The Democrats
have been depending great deal on
Belknap's confession. II has been
said that that he confessed to the
committee, to Secretary Chandler
and to the President. What he said
to the President has already been
stated in these columns. What he
said to Chandler was very nearly the
same. What he said to the commit.
tee was: Gentlemen. this is terri.
bic surprise to me. | shall have to
ask you to allow me time to make an
explanation. know Mr.. Marsh, and
| have heard his statement read.
lam so bewildered that can't remem.
Der mucn that is in the statement, bu'
of what do remember some is true
some is false, and some things III
says l do not know anything about.
Bclknap's tears and the manner il
which he said it impressed the com
mittee that it was confession: bu'
when the Committee on Judiciary ex,
anime it as lawyers they fear
COURT WOULD NOT ADMIT IT
as such. The Committee OH Judicia
) ry will be called together again to
morrow, and it is proposed that the,
change their plan and write only on
article Of impeachment, leaving tn
general charge Of receiving bribe.
i without dates or names. and see i
they can't make out a case on that
: The moral Of the whole thing is tha
the Democrats have lost an opportil
,, nifty. and the same can be applied t
every movement they have mad
since they had the majority. The,
4, blundcrcd upon Belknap's crime, an,
they will blunder till they acquit him
To-day Bclknap was to have bee
!, uiouSN VI III TIC DAstIICt SouIt. WI
! the matter was continued owing to
disappointment in the matter of bal
but il is expected that he win com
up tomorrow. His attorneys den
>. that he has made any attempt 10 e.
cape. but the detectives insist this
: they had evidence which juStiiie
4 them in taking the action they die
. The public should be reluctant I
i believe
5 THE STORIES OF OFFICIAL CRIME
J. that are now in circulation. for then
y is no foundation for them whatevt
: beyond the snpposition Of their orig
J. inators. The suddenness of the Be
y knap exposure has dcmoralizcd g,
! erybody. aud great deal is saii hcl
.. which is made the foundation /,
: newspaper statements that will
e gladly recalled soon.
). WAsHiNsToN, Marci, S.-To-ds
"a at noon. Major Richards. Chief
~ Police. made Il formal arrest Of be
knap. ex-Sccretary nf War. aud bro
i, him into the Police Court. Eclkn;
4 was accompanied hy his counsel. q
Senator Carpenter. who said III,
waived examination and were pr
pared to give bail for Bclknap's a
10 pearance before the court. Jud.
10 Smell then fixed the amount of i
ID bail AT Saatn when the parties I
y, tired 10 arrange the bail.
!" BclkMap showed by his movement
u