The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1876-02-13
A Conspiracy to Destroy the Testi-
mony Against the Ring.
BUILDINGS TO BE BLOWN UP.
Details Of the Arrangements
with the Robbers.
HOW THE CRIME WAS PREVENTED.


the federal building this city, and If necessary the
Newhal House, OF the largest of the
West full Of cool malignty and nendsh diaboli
cal cunning that the meagre outline sent by telegraph
already will merely have served TO whet the appetite
OF the people for the entire tale in all its naked hideous
ness When the facts FIRST leaked out and were tele
graphed TO the HERALD a broad smile of incredibly
ilumined the land from Maine to San Francisco and
to-day, as sit writing this despatch, hear per-
discussing the matter in a manner that sufficiently
proves their want OF faith in the story. Therefore
is time the whole TRUTH far developed should be
told with something like attention to detail
In order to ascertain the circumstances called
special prosecuting counsel Mr.. Mckinney and others,
from them gathered the tale told to the Grand
Jury and known to the principal parties to tho
transaction, and there remain no doubt as to
the main points having been testified by competent
witnesses under oath, and that the men, Alderman
julius Jonas and Philip Goldberg, OF Chicago and W.
A. Crosby, indicted by the Grand Jury for completely
as principals in aplot to
BOOKS
and records Of the whskcy prosecution will have to
stand their trial ON sufficiently grave testimony In
July last when the whskey trials this district were
in their infancy and the government had only Just
begun to accumulate the testimony which proved the
knife that opened the whskey fraud oyster these three
men Of this city, and about whose identity there can
be no mistake here for tho purpose Of suggest
ing plan by which the records could be obtained and
made away with.
NEGOTIATIONS
were merely preliminary intended to feel the way TO
something serious and far satisfactory that
more than dstler placed in possession OF the
fact plot foot TO put the records of
the frauds out of the way. The whiskey at that
period anything but alarmed at the prospects OF
conviction; SO It was determined, before proceeding
further sound their counsel to the prospects Of
acquittal Matt Carpenter understood TO advise
that the entire practice of conscaton Of dis lcrs'
property before trial unconstitutional that the
greater portion OF the internal law was mop
erativc also the same ground and hence tho
distillers at first felt inclined to- draw back
from tho proposed plot soon however it became
apparent that the government was in possession OF
cews suspected, and that very quickly the Ring
would be lighting for bare life instead Of boldly
testing these fundamental questions with the United
States AS the trials advanced and Matt Carpenters
best efforts faded away like mist before the memorable
logic OF facts the Ring became and more alarmed
and negotiations; temporarily suspended,
sumed in earnest
Then, for the first time
THE PLANS or THE coHsPrRAroRs
were made known They proposed to make simple
ment supposed TO be kept IN the Office of the
Clerk of Court, Mr.. Kurtz the Office Of the District
| ney belonging 10 United States Marshal Hamilton;
room temporarily rented BY Acting Supervisor He'd
rick for the use OF himself and the Secret Service
agents. block opposite the federal building, and In
the bedroomA OF Acting Supervisor Hedrick Mr. McKin.
nsy aud tLe secret Service agents IN the Newball
kept the destination OF all papers relating the
| whiskey trials and Il discovered that very
few, fanny of these allmportant documents were in
| accessible
now THE PAPERs WERE KEPT
To begin with the federal building Tho
whole Of the law and revenue Offices arc on lthc
second and third noora The lrst floor occupied
| the Post Once. AT the head OF the stairs on the
second door Is the Office Of the District Attorney and
tho Offices this floor is the suit occupied by the
Collector OF Internal Revenue and his assistants The
first door the right hand at the head Of the stair
case on the third floor 10 that of the ONCE OF the
| United States Marshal; the second door that Of
hcKinney's temporary ONCE, and between the two
was = common panel door, On the opposite side
the Judges chambers and the two OF the Clerk
OF the Court, and then comes the court room, jury
rooms, &c. United States Commissioner Bioodgood,
who had taken the evidence in all tho preliminary
aminations which the prisoners had been held and
which examinations were in reality the basis
| on which the structure Of tho prosecution rested
has the room between the court room and
McKinney's temporary office The whole OF
the testimony, indictments, records OF the pre-
lminary examinations proceedings and findings
OF the Grand jury orders aud decisions OF the Court
and, in fact, everything Of importance under which
the whiskey men were held every thing upon which
future proceedings could be based were lying in
drawers, boxes and pigeon holes IN these rooms
cold chisel could have forced open the most of
all the hiding places any OF these rooms All this
having been determined the next point to discover
how much or how little Of these papers had been dupl
Gated and sent TO Washington, and IL was found,
supposed 10 be, that At this early stage scarcely
thing OF real importance had been duplicated and OF
the actual law records not trace would remain II the
originals, thus lying open TO the hands OF bold rob-
bers, we're once destroyed The means OF ngrcss and
egress were next investigated. All the doors 10 the
offices referred TO Of ordinary make and material
with ordinary fastenings There is not a lock that
cannot be opened by experienced burglar In few
minutes with piece of wire and small pair Of pliers
proper In the building Is the anitor Mr. John Burke,
who has sleeping apartment and whose vigil Is or
shared by his The Post Office Department
has q watchman but the rooms are 80 far apart the
walls thick and the distances great that for all
the purposes OF securing the building against bur-
glary there might we'll be nobody on the premises
after lockng-up hours as the persons in question.
With common locks, wood doors and SILENT deserted
halls at their mercy with at worst but three TO
overcome the kernel Of the vast building would be in
complete possession Of the consprators should they
But 70 the credit Of the distiers so bankrupt In
good name. be II said, the committee authorized to
treat with the robbers refused TO have anything TO do
with scheme OF robbery that might involve the
der OF the Waterman or the loss OF any lie. and then
the robbers unfolded new plan, which was in eject
to buy OF the ofi-als. Those who knew John Burke
laughed at such an idea, and IL was abandoned,
and the matter dropped for a while Later
proposition was submitted embracing
project to approach Prosecuting Attorney
Mckinney his assistant, and other persons having
for whatever may be said against Mckinney hts worst
enemy Will concede his bulldog honesty Then II
that driven 70 desperation and there being other
resource, the subject OF blowing the federal build
ing and the Newhall House preached. To
the aTocty Of the design the matter was rst treated
In bali testing way; but the minds OF the parties
became accustomed 10 the idea the jest became earnest
and
THE HORRIBLE
ectually discussed The FIRST asked as reward
for sccessiuI destruction Of the records $1,000
Their $780, and finally $50, 600 No details wero
given OF The proposed plan. II tacity understood
thatthe job 10 be DONE but how and when was TO
be ldt TO the discretion Of the active criminals Their
sleeDing partners not 10 know anything more
thar thai the evidence OF their guilt bad been de-
strWed And after all the job, when regarded In de-
tail lost much OF its horror, and although the hendish
nesi OF the conception 10 still incredible, yet one
might see that the idea the mems minds not
neKy so bloody Al flrst supposed. The EXPIRES
sioi, blow up the federal building" when examined
ment the explosion OF dynamite In the ofces OF the
Click OF Court Kurtz United States Marshal Hamilton.
| Prdecuting Attorney Mckinney, the District At.or,
neN United States Court Commissioner Blood <ood
thecbambcrs Of Judge Dyer and the court rom a.