Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1880-01-22
CONTEMPT OF A PHILADELPHIA
COURT.
The Appeal of . Ponniloss Man With q Siel
EamilY-LOckedC Up E0r It.

Family-LockedU UP Eor 1t.
At the opening of the court of oyer and
terminer in Philadelphia yesterday Judge |
Elcock had brought before him Henry |
Rahe, and said to him "You have writ
ten me letter, and l propose to learn
from you under oath what the meaning of
IS contents is Mr.. Rahe was then sworn |
and examined upon the letter, which is as |
follows:
PHILADELPHIA, Jan. 20, 1SS0.-Hon.
Jugde Elcock, Esq.-DEAR SIR: Yesterday
got certificate for my witnes feessighned
by Mr.. Henesey and Distrikt Attorney
Kerr, and you refused to sighn it. l was
taken away from my place of employment
by one of your officers, MIR. Brady, before
Christmas, and made to stay in court
every day, old court house, telling me that
if was not present when called l would
be fined twenty-five dollars, etc. Could
get no satisfaction from Mr.. Read when
trial would comence, but for me to
stay in court. So when the busy
time in store was over l was told by my
employer that as could not be in store on
busy OCCASIONS l would be no use in dull
times, and lost my situation. | am out
of money and have sick wife and
one of me children sick. AS this was a
CASE VI dsStulG DdIlcIy Will "
kill am certainly entitled to my fees. for
whole of it. This man Mccoy, who has
very bad reputation who has
been in prison often, struck
an old man, and when McColgan
came to stop Mccoy from abusing the old
gentlemen he turned OH McColgan, drew
his revolver and put it to head and said l
am going to kill you and fired. Another
man who stood there knokt up McCoy's
hand and the ball went past McColgan's S
head and nearly killed the cashier at the
table on the platform he felt the bullet
burn his face. The case was in old court
house. heard rlmOrs that they were
trying to settle it. McColgan had Cassi-
day and Mccoy had Hevcrin as their attOr-
neys. On Friday morning the bill!
was taken over to your court, and
there allowed to render q verdict
of not guilty and the man left to
90 free to shoot or kill again. Ii it were a
poor man who stole loaf of bread to sup
port the starving family, he would Ger,
tainly have been prosecuted to the bitter
end. Now how much money the lawyers
and court house officials got out of the
transaction | am as yet not aware of but
understood it was considerable, and how
you could let man slip out of laws
clutches perpetrating such 4 crime, ant
the best of evidence, am yet at loss t(
kno but be that as it will, for all require
is nv witness fee wich according to law
am entitled to Just rs we'll as your cOur
house officials and me beliving that thu
case has been misrepresented to you ant
you are at least y just and upright maj
and sec that am paid. Hoping to hea
from your honour before | speak any
further on this matter to any one else.
Il remain respectfully yours
"HENRY RAHE,
''2O1S North Twentieth street,
Judge Elcock said to him I" You hav'
sent me this letter in which the bill wa
submitted without evidence. Now, wan
you to tell me, under your oath, what yOl
mean by it. What court officials received
money in this matter?''
Mr.. Rahe-"I mean the attorneys
Mr.. Read" There are two kinds Of at
torneys. The private attorneys for tn
parties and the district attorney
Mr.. Rahe-''I mean the private attOr
neys, Mr.. Cassidy and MIR Heverin."
Mr. Read" Do you mean that the dis
trict attorney got any money in this case ?
; mo- sir"
Upon being further questioned, he SAT-
that he is in no business at present tha
he was formerly special Waterman a
Wanamaker's and at SOuthwOrth's tina
he had been informed by man who's
name he didn't know, but whom he sup
! posed was one of the witnesses in the case
that it had cost between $500 and $500 t.
settle the case by his expression that h
was ''as much entitled to his witness fee
as the court officials to theirs" he mean
that he was us much entitled to his fees Il
they were to their salary. by the ex
preston that che hoped to hear from hi
honor before he spoke to any one else,
he meant before he spoke to the officer
about the court. In answer to Mr.. kc
he denied that he had gone to McCOlgal
and told him that he had seen the whOl
transaction and wanted to be witness
He said that he told McColgan that he die
; not want to be witness. Mr.. Ker re
,. piled that Mr.. McColgan had told him tha
Rahe had volunteered to be a witness
Judge Elcock then said that he would no
permit a letter of such a character to b'
written to him, and would therefore ente
a rule against Rahe to show cause why ht
should not be committed for contempt o
court, which rule will be returnable OF
Saturday.
The bail of Rahe was fixed at $500, an'
, , he was taken into custody until he shOult
be able to give the security. Assistan
District Attorney Read who is referred
to in the letter, states that he never saw
the man at all until yesterday morning.