Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1877-10-19

result but they would have found other
excuses, if that had not existed. They would
have accepted the assurances OF Stanley
Mathews ard Others of Mr.. Hayes friends,
that he could and would do as much Tor
them as Mr.. Tilden, and have gone to the
country for the next election, as now, on the
cry of fraud and usurpatiOn.
The practical results of the Commission in
the preservation of peace have, according To
this view of the case, been of small conSe-
quence. Another result involves grave con-
tingencies for the future. The course ot the
leading Republican lawyers of the Senate,
and the adoption of the method OF hding
over the late emergency by the expedlent
of an Electoral Commission. leaves the
country practically without any established
means Of deciding a future disputed ma
tional election. 1t becomes duty with all
patriotic statesmen, and especially with the
authors of the Commission, to provide some
means to that end, before another election
comes. Mr.. Edmunds presents his plan IN
the article which we are considering. What
it is, and what hope there is for ITS adop-
ton, We will consider in future article.
GILM,N's CoNrEssIoN.--lt was, by all ac-
counts, an impressive scene, when Gilman
the forger of insurance scrip, appeared IN
court ION Friday TO plead guilty. Gilman $
confession was read by his counsel, l.. +.
Chittenden, Esq 1t was addressed to Rev.
DR.. Houghton and to his vile. Gilman in
PRODUCES his statement by saying that he
does not tell the story of his crime in extern
uation of his conduct but in explanation oil
it. From the time when he began business,
friends who trusted him implicitly had
placed in his hands sums of money ranging
froru 800 to So 900 on interest at per ct.
He never specialized, or lost or won any
money by any wager. lie made investments
in enterprises which promised to turn out
well, but they all turned out utterly bad.
The control of so much money gradually
made him feel and act as if it were his own,
and encroachments upon it, whether from
losses or expenses, which began many years
ago. came so gradually that he was scarcely
sensible of them, ard, while he knew that
he was running behind. he could not bear to
look deficiencies square in the face. The
worse his affairs grew, the more unwilling
he became to investigate them. His books
and accounts. which had been his pride,
were neglected, and in some cases he al
lowed his reputation to suffer by long delay
in making up accounts which were called
for. Pricr to the panic of 1872, he had made
improper use of the trust funds in his hands
under the pressure of declining business, and
the trouble of that year involved him in ad-
ditional losses. After that time he must
have put forth the first raised certificates
lie bad suffered in thinking of his baseness,
in abusing the confidence Of his friends IN
ZINE street, IN TWO llSuIdnVc Yum pants
and in tie bank. every one of whom had
treated him with the greatest kindness.
Hoping that the next step would e1tricate
him. he plunged in deeper and deeper. lie
had not sold any fraudulent sureties, but
had borrowed on them. lie alone was re-
spOnsible for every wrong act, and no hui
man being ever had a suspicion Of it, and
only he was to blame for his extravaganza,
his wife never having persuaded him to any
thing of the sort Other persons than those
already known must suffer to considerable
extent, chiefly his brothers and sisters, prob
ably to the extent of $50 200, and some per-
sons who had accounts with him for years.
The prisoner said that he loved better to
give money away than to spend it On HIM
self, and that he was much interested in
charities.
Recorder Hackett passed sentence Of five
years in the State prison on Gilman. and he
was taken to Sing Sing.