The Highland weekly news. [volume] (Hillsborough [Hillsboro], Highland County, Ohio) 1853-1886, 1880-08-12
THE LAST DEMOCRATIC ROOR-
BACK
ABOUT GARFIELD AND THE
DEGOLYER PAVEMENT.
A DOWNRIGHT FORGERY I
PENETRATED BY A CORES
PONDENT OF THE NEW
YORK WORLD.
A PRETENDED SUPREME
COURT OPINION
MANUFACTURED OUT OF
WHOLE CLOTH.

Seeing the utter failure of theil
previous attempts to prove Gen. Gar.
field guilty Of anything wrong in the
DeGOlyer business, the Satanic por.
ton Of the Democratic press has for
the last week. or two been industri-
ously circulating and chuckling over
a most outrageous falsehood, origina,
ting in the N. Y. World, which is ap-
parently trying to rob its great rival,
Dana, of the Sun, of his well-earned
laurels as the champion "fraud and
corruption" shrieker Of the age. The
Washington correspondent of the
World, under date of July 10th. sent
that paper the following pretended
extract from a decision said TO have
been rendered by Justice Swayne. of
the U. S. Supreme Court
"The agreement with Gen. Gar
field, a member of Congress. to pay
him $1,000 as a contingent fee for
procuring a contract which was it
self made to depend upon a future
appropriation by Congress, which
appropriation could only come from
a committee of which he was Chair
man, was a sale of official influence
which no vail car. cover, against the
Plainest principles of public policy.
No counsellor at law while holding a
high office has a right to put himself
in position Of temptation, and, un-
der pretense Of making a legal argu-
ment, sell his OfhCialinfuence upon
public officers dependent upon his
future action. Certainly the courts
Of justice will never lend themselves
to such contracts obtained by such
influence"
1t turns out, as might have been
expected, that no such decision was
ever rendered by Justice Swayne,
and no such language ever used by
him. Hon. Saml ShelIabarger, of
the Republican National Committee,
Immediately set about investigating
the matter, and found that the Ian
guage attributed to Justice Swayne
was used by ex-senator DoolittIe, in
his brief as an attorney for one Chit
tenden, who had suit with one Of
/ the owners of the DeGolyer pave
pavement. The World correspond
ent has since explained that he found
the extract in a Washington paper
and forwarded it to the World, sup
posing it to be genuine, but the edi-
tor of the World refused to admit
that it was a fabrication, even after
his attention had been called to the
fact. The World has accomplished
its object, and sent the falsehood
broadcast over the country, but many
who read it will never see the con-
tradiction and proof of its falsity.
At last Justice Swayne himself settles
the outrageous lie by publishing the
following
81 never wrote a word Of what is
attributed to me with quotation
marks. I never knew anything of the
facts Of the matter charged against
General GARFIELD, and it was Ger
tainly never in any shape before the
Supreme Court. l had, therefore,
neither occasion nor opportunity to
express any Judicial opinion upon
the subject. 1t is not stated where
any case in which General GARFIELD
was concerned is reported. My con
ident impression iss that 1 never
heard Of such a case before. Gen
eral GARFIELD is a personal friend of
mine, and 1 have the highest conf
denCe in his integrity. The state
ments in the World are an entire
fabrication, and without a particle of
truth to sustain them.