New-York tribune., 1876-05-31
the C1SE or Mr.. KERR

Speaker Kerr might be pardoned if he asked
yesterday, with some bitterness whether there
WAS no recognition on this side OF the grave
for an upright life, and no protection III
spotless reputation. He has been more than
twenty years in public employment, and is
serving his fifth term in Congress, and scandal
has never been busy with his name till now,
nor has the most INSCRIPTIONS Of his opponents,
in the many sharp political contests in which
he has taken part ventured to lmpugn his in
tegrty. He has been surrounded with temp
taton and has lived in the midst OF
corruption but men OF both parties
have agreed that he was one OF
the few politicians in Washington whose scru-
pulous honesty reflected credit upon the pro-
fession of politics Yet the moment man
we do not say of bad character, but OF no
character at all-accuses him of taking pitt
full bribe, not large enough to tempt an ordl-
nary thief, we find great many newspapers
of the opposite party ready to accept every
word of the tale for solid truth, and to de-
clare that unless Mr.. Kerr can prove his
innocence he is already practically convicted.
His honorable life counts for nothing. The
gross improbability of the charge counts for
these incorporate partisans even lose sight of
the very simple explanation of Harneys con-
duct which suggests itself at once to every
impartial reader.
The accusation was first heard of when
Harney began to use it privately as threat
to stop an investigation into n bureau OF the
CustCm-hOuse with which he was connected.
1t has been whispered in newspaper Offices ana
certain political club-roOms for several weeks.
In its original form the charge that Alr. Kerr
actually took the money from Harvey was not
distinctly made, and it is not difficult to under
stand how Mr.. Harvey, without intending to
do the Speaker any real harm, may have gone
about limiting mcnaces, and half-utterlng ds-
closures, in the hope Of frightening investlSa-
lions away from the Appraisers office, until
the scandal of his creation got beyond his con
troll. and he found to his dismay that 1t was no
longer Mr.. Kerr's reputation that was AT
stake. nor Mr.. Darling's, but his own. sum-
moned to Washington, he was driven to the
dilemma of either making oath to the bribery
of the Sneaker or coniCssing that he had
robbed Greene, slandercd MIR. Kerr, and at
tempted to blackma Il committee of Congress !;
and Mr.. Haney seems to have hesitated some
TIME DtIOIt nc up hio 'hihN "''AN'' A''"
to choose.
The extreme improbability of Mr.. Ker's
committing such foolish crime for $3.50, and
at the same time putting himself in the power
of his political opponents-for Greene was a
Republican, and IIaney was Republican
cffice-holder-has already been alluded to-.
There is another point which seems to have
escared notice. Why did HaIney make him
self party to the crimcl He swears that he
not only gave Mr. Kerr all the money which
he received from Greene, but he even adj
yanced forty dollars out of his own pocket to
make IN the amount. He seems to have viO-
lated all the precedents OF the lobby by
CHARGING nothing for his own services why
Certainly not out of friendship for Mr. Kerr,
because the extent Of his intimacy with that
gentleman seems to have been "passing the
time of day." Nor ont of friendship for
Greene. because Greene testifes that he always
believed, and believes still, that Harvey he'd
TO blm and kept the money himself, and that
is not the way man speaks OF his friends
No. il is morally certain that if Ilarney had
acted as the intermediary in any such tlansac-
tion he would have demanded his share OF the
nrotit: when he AYERS that he committed
felony out of pure benevolence toward man
who looked upon him as cOnsummate rascal,
be laws too heavy tax upon credulity, even
for campaign season.