The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1878-07-03
WHAT THE POTTER COMMITTEE
HAS ACCOMPLISHMENT.


HAS ACCOMPLISHED.
Never in the history of proceedings de-
signed to unearth crime has greater success
present date crowns the labors Of the Potter
investigating committee. 1t should be
understood by those who would form even
an approximately correct judgment of re-
suits to remember that the committee has
had to contend against corrupt and Grim
inal administration, the chief of which is
himself, the largest beneficiary OF the crimes
the Potter committee was created to expose.
1t should be remembered that every federal
official who holds Office by virtue of
the grace of Hayes, from the lowest
scullion who cleans spittoons or performs
other services of q still more mental charac-
ter to the most brazen villain that repre-
sents the government In the cabinet,
wears his crime scabs in a foreign court,
each and all were pledged to throw
every obstacle possible In the way
or the committee and to do all in
their power to obscure the tracks of
the radical rascals who, in the hour of de-
feat, transformed forgery and fraud and per-
Jury into lever and screw, and, IN defiance
of constitutions and statutes, and in utter
disregard of the anathemss of heaven lifted
Hayes into power. Against these guilty
conspirators and their guilty pals the Potter
committee has had to contend. But the
work of investigation has gone stead
ily forward John Sherman has
been laid cut cold and stiff
in his political shroud. He attempted the
old game of brsvado. He demanded hear
ing. He gave out that he would stand
firm" He was called before the committee,
and there he fell-a great lie stuck in his
throat When confronted with a copy of
his letter he dared not deny its authorship,
which in effect was a confession of author
ship, and his friends led him forth poor,
self-condemned crime stained conspirator-
a creature who bargained for perjury and
offered federal offices as it's reward. This
much the Potter committee has accomplish
ed, and the radical party realizes the indeli-
bic stain that has been fixed upon it.
The case of Stanley Matthewsis, If possible
still more humiliating. The brother-in-law
of Hayes, he assumed at an early day the
management of affairs, and at once placed
himself in intimate communion with such
despicable wretches as would do the most
lying for the smallest rewards. This radical
villain has been fully exposed by the Potter
committee. He has been placed in the pill
lory, and now the people divide him, spit
upon him and denounce him. Some declare
that he is fool, some knave. All agree
that he is despicable consplrator; that he
engaged in atrocious aggressions on the lib
critics of the people, aud deserves the fate to
which the Potter committee has assigned
him.
The Potter committee has mapped
out every Shiny track of the
periured conspirstors, located their dens
given to the country their most secret con-
situations. catalogued their forgeries and
perjuries, and linked the conspirators and
their crimes to the radical party by the logic
of facts, from which there is no escape in
time or eternity. Such mass of corrup-
ton, such fathomless depths of depravity
such a combination of crimes, such inter
laclng OF villalny, Such Wrlthlng, Squlrm-
ing mass of animate yiciousness was never
before presented to the Mortified gaze OF
mankind, and still it is growing 1t is a
continental tumor, and as the Potter COM
mittee punctures it the sickening flow of
rottenness deepens, and the radical party
cries out Hold, tits enough" But the Pot
ter committee is not yet done with the rad
ical party. There are other scoundrels be-
sides Noyes, Sherman aud Matthews to be
brought upon the stage. There are other
crimes to be laid bare. The weight of in
fanny that radicalism is to be compelled to
bear is to be increased, and when the work
is done the radical party will rank first of all
the curses that have fallen upon this or any
other country. So far the Potter committee
has been a success.