The Indiana State sentinel., 1876-07-19

VIC COhnmlssion Was PcIlcCtAy CoLhPotons
to act upon the case, and awarded the
claimants $3.50 900 in gold as the dam
ages sustained. An appeal was taken
to Tslmsge's young man, who
acted as umpire, and he, of
course, confirmed all that the American
commissioner had done, the Venezuelan
commissioner entering his protest against
the whole proceeding, which he de-
Hounced as iniquitous fraud. There was
another claim of Jacob Idler and ssso-
cistes for supplies furnished to the OLD
Colombian confedeIecy during her war Tor
Independence. The confederscy was sub
sequeDtIy dissolved, and New Granada.
Venezuela aud Ecusdor became iDdepeDd-
ent republics. jacob Idler instituted an
action in a Vene zuelau court to recover
the whole of the Colombian claim,
BILE for only her share OF 28H
per cent. The Case beirg some
what complicated, It was referred, and the
referee made report awarding Idler $7O,-
$40 IL u in the currency OF VeE zaels, which
vas equivalent to niDe-Genths of that
amount in gold. This finding was con-
irmed by the court, but an appeal to the
Superior Court being taken by the treas
ury, on account Of 81 eyed mistakes and ir-
regularities, that court or tered the matter
to be put back to where it stood August
81, 1880 Idler sppealed to the Supreme
Court, where the decision appealed from
was con firmed. Idler now had an oppor-
tuuity to institute his sction anew, stand
ing just IS he did before any proceed
ings had been taken but instead OF do
ing so be abandoned the case aud won't
nome to the United States. Thus the
claim was dead and buried Tor come thir
ty-fve years, when it was resurrected by
lalmsge, who got a clue TO 1t rom some
old papers in the archives of the Ameri-
can Legation IN Caracas. When the Mixed
Commissi sion was first organized, Talmage
proposed among other rules that one claim
should be sdjudicated every five days.
Mr.. Conde, tbeIfirst Venezuelan commits
sioner, did not suspect the object of this,
and the rule was adopted. The first case
presented was this relic of bygone
generation, the Idler claim. Tslmsge mad
il all cut and dried; the decision
OF the court in favor of Idler was put in
evidence, but that OF the higher court to
the contrary was withheld. Five days
having expired, Talmage demanded of
Mr.. Conde his decision, when the latter
replied that he could not give it without
information from his government, as he
knew nothing of the facts in the case. To
this Talmage responded that the five days
allowed for is consideration had expired;
that he had made up his mind upon its
merits, aud unless Mr.. CoDde had done
the same the claim would go to the
umpire. Mr.. CoDde protested against
this decision, saying that he was taken
by surprise, and that moreover the greater
part OF the claim, ii not the whole of it,
mad been paid by Bogots; but Talmsge
persisted, aud Mr.. Conde resigned MIR.
Jose g. Villafane was then appointed com
missioner on the part of Venszueia, and
he also resisted the claim, which finally
went up to 1slmage's umpire, young
Machsdo, who found it all right, and
awarded the claimant S252, ,Sl4 in the gold
currency of the United states, being S70,-
$40 for the original clsim, and SlS2, ,294 for
interest.
BRIBERY, ExroRrIoN AND BLACKMAILINe.
There are several points otintel est in this
case. In the first place, the claim was OF
Colombian origin, and only 2sH per cent.
of 1t was Justly chargeable to Venezuela
Secondly, the claim was pressed on the
ground of decision in a Venezuela count
which had been revoked by the Supreme
Court of that nation. Thirdly, the claim
was private one for goods sold and de-
livered, which could not possibly be con.
verted into an international claim, and
the Mixed Commission had no authority
whatsoever to sdjudicste the case.
ed claimants, or tue ring, have
already receivetfrom the treasury OF Ven
ezuels some SAC 900 on account of it
through the state department in Washing
ton. Fourth, Idler having abandoned his
claim for nearly forty years, be had no
right, either in law or equity, to demand
interest upon the amount OF the original
claim. But, as / have shown, payment
was resisted on other grounds; and as IL
VA hn all
loss was the result of any act of violence
agalDsE tDe person or property OF the for
eigu claimant, 1t - evident that Talmage's
biaCkmailiDg commission had no
business to entertain iG at all. 1t will be
remembered that this commission sat
while the late Il. N. Ssilwell, al intimate
friend of Senator Morton, was United
States minister In Venezuela, and that
Murray, the brother-in-law of Stilwell.
who acted as secretary of the legation, was
employed as jsckal to hunt up fraudulent
claims for the ring. In each OF the pow
of attorney given by the claimants was
\ clause agreeing to give the attorneys sp-
pointed hereunder one-half the amount
of the money which should be awarded,
and claimants who refused to submit
to this blsckmailing process could
not get their claims passed by
the commission, no matter how meritori
Gus they might be. But any kind OF
fraudulent claim would be sustained by
ralmage and his subservient tool,
Machado, provided the claimants would
give the ring half the proceeds. In SET
Ting, however, the ring cheated their
clients in numerous Instances, and this
led to the exposure of the strocious jon.
Portions OF zoe plunder, in the shPpe Of
certificates OF award, were traced into the
hands OF Still ell, Mursv, Tslmsge and
G0dtove s. Orth. Alter paying large sums
OF money on tbess r4ud ulent awards, the
government OF Ven zleis, whicn is
weak replblic with financial
embarrassmeots, becoming fully ac-
qaainted with the strocious character OF
me swindle, protested sgsiost making any
further psymen s. and demanded a re-
consideration of the cssss before an honest
tribunal. It was then that OrCh appeared