Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1876-02-09
Che FIREMAN.
The Whisky War.

his campaign against the men who have
been defrauding the government by
means Of crooked whisky. He has made
more hcadwav than those who have been
engaged in the more forlorn hope Of pre-
venting the country at large from being
dcbased 10y the coumon Use of the liquid,
whether crooked or straight.
The Secretary of the Treasury half
wear ago was comparatively unknown; and
he has come to be one of the most talked
of men in the nation by steadily going
about hi, business and getting lightning
10 strike where it ought to. st. Louis,
Chicago, Milwaukee, indianapolis and
many other places have been the stage of
remarkable transformation scenes.
In each place men who cnioIed wealth
and social distinction We're ut first ''malign
ed by the tongue Of SANDER then oblig-
ed to submit with an air of injured limo
ccncc to the - indignitv Of Il gently con-
Quoted arrest, ana finally brought TO The
bar of Justice. These nice men began to
be convicted. Tie bottom began to give
way. and amid mingled confessions. curse
and protcstatons it soon went out alto
@cther.
The later developments ;,re that the
frcshcr victims have given up useless
fight, and when brought up conclude to
plead guilty and save the cost and lone ex-
posture of ii trial. This is the general re-
cord in Chicago, Milwaukee and fndiana-
polls, though some Of the big fish in the
net are still struggling to gel: away in each
place.
The interest, after all, has centered on
st. Louis, the fight began and has
been fierce>t there. There was Avery-and
it seems Il long while since he was convic-
ted then Joyce and Mcdonald, each of
whom was to be shown innocent and q
victim of persecution. They went down.
Then came quite Il rest, for there re-
manned of the St Louis batch two who
We're going to be shown innocent beyond
a doub.. They were Con Mcguire and the
editor Mckee: Of the innocence Of the lat
ter there could be no question: he was IN
entirely different man from any man who
who would make money in any way cx-
cept very straight way. But poor Mr..
Mckee's trial a couple of weeks AGO show
ed him up as n very different being from
the Mckee he was supposed to be, and
conviction resulted. Mcguire concluded to
confess.
Last Monday the most interesting of all
the whisky trials began before Judge Dill
lon in st. Louis. The respondent is Gen.
O. +. Babcock, private secretary of Pre>i.
dent Grant.
lie was attended by Judge John X. Eos
ter, Emery A. Storrs. cx-Attorncy General
Williams. Judge John Nj. and Chester II.
krum rs counsel. His flthcrin law, Mar
shal Campbell, and his brother, G.. w.
Babcock of Kansas, sat in the court room
near HIM District Attorney Dyer, special
counsel James o. Brodhcad and Major
Lucien Eaton appeared for the govern
mcnt. Judge Porter of n. Y, also of
counsel for Gen. Babcock, was detained by
sickness from being present at the bcrin,
ming of the trial.
Gen. Babcock and his friends claim that
he can show conclusively his innocence. |
The long line Of the convicted in JUDGE
billions court have said the same things, !
and the publis is anxious to have the
sensation of IN acquittal; Il conviction
too \,
The private secretary must, however. if
he Is to get free, have some other cxpla- /
nation OF his kilograms than one that is re- |
ported to have been obtained at IN inter
view, IN which 1t was given out that the |
dispatches were sent, believing that joyce
and Mcdonald We're nice and honest men
and working for the government. Gen.
Babcock might As well let himself 90 for Il
kna1c as to try to prove himself a fool.
a Jury was obtained yesterday. and in a
few days we shall know whether Mckee is
to canfess as reported. whether Maruire
will "tell " on the private secretary, and
finally whether Abial Everest, the treas
urer of the ring, will testify that he paid
Babcock money. We shall know, also.
the history of the remarkable dispatches. |
and finally whether Cen Babcock is really
an innocent man, or Il man who has been
carrying guilty head very high.
The rumored GOODNESS between the
President and Bristow, ought to have no
foundation, in fact, for the latter is but
carrying out the formers Injunction 70
" let no guilty man escape" As long as
the Secretary of the Treasury works in
that line he will have the support of the
country.
Should Babcock escape because of limo
cence, all who are not blinded by partisan
malacc, will rejoice that in this man at
least, the chief magistrate of the republic
was not deceived when he made him 4
trusted friend. Should he be proved gull
ty, all honest men will be very glad; not
Of his crime, but of its discovery in spite
of the shield of high position.
That ADVISORY CoTNCu.-Plvmou,h
Church has invited III churches and %
ministers without charge to constitute the
advisory council to be held in BROOKLYN on
n N 'In.,,