Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1880-09-22
WAS GARFIELD OR AMES THE
PERJURER 7


That somebody committed perjury
before the Poland Committee in the
matter Of the Credit Mobiier job. says
the New York World, is absolutely
certain. Who was it. Did Oakes
Ames commit perjury According to
a correspondent of The World he did
not, and his sons have the means ol
proving that he did not Did General
Garfield commit perjury According
to the Times he did. The Times Of
February 20, 1873, commenting upon
the report of the Poland Committee IN
the Credit Mobiiler case and upon the
implicated Congressman, said;
"The Committee distinctly rejects
the testimony of several OF the mem
bers. This can only be done on the
ground that it is untrue. But untrue
testimony given under oath is morally
if not legally, perjury
The Times here dealt with the ro
iected testimony in q general way, But
The World yesterday contrasted the
precise language used by the late oakes
Ames with that used by General Gar
field in testiiying before the Poland
Committee on the subject OF Garfeld's
interest in the Credit Mobilier stock
These witnesses so directly contradict
cd each other that if one of them spoke
the truth the other assuredly did not
and "untrue testimony given under
oath is morally, if not legally, perjury
Either Oakes Ames, therefore, died o
perurer, or the people of the United
States are now asked by tho Times to
put perjurer into the Presidential
chair. 1t Is idle to suppose that an
issue so clearly defined as this can be
suffered to sleep in political contest
1t must be met, and it will assuredly
be forced to definite and satisfactory
solution
For when the Times dismissed the
contradiction between Oal,es Ames
and General Garfield with the observa
ton that untrue testimony given un
der oath is morally if not legally per
jury" it stated the case too gently
There were express statutes in 1873 to
authorize prosecutions Tor false swear.
ing before House Copmitteos, and the
laws of the United States distinctly
recognized the operation of those stat,
utes. This appears from page 1888 oI
the laws of 1862 and page 156 of 1857,
which are now compressed in section
$50 Of the present Federal code. Gen
Butler, after the counter.swearing ol
Oakes Ames and General Garfield Of.
iered a resolution TO roicr this question
of false swearing to the law authorities
of the district, but filibustering tactics
prevented his resolution from being
considered Had Mr., Ames and Gen.
Garfield sworn before Court of this
State as they swore before the Poland
Committee, and had such a Court
"distinctly rejected the testimony the
Court which rejected, as the Poland
Committee did, the testimony OF Gen.
Garfield would have been required
under our State statute to commit him
or hold him to bail to await his trial
for perjury. And yet the Times and
Mr. Poland and General Banks, who
was member of that Committee, are
all Of them now hard at work psrsuad.
ing the electors to afford General Gar
field an opportunity of taking a solemn
oath as Chief Magistrate, while on the
records Of another branch of the Gov
ernment it stando that ho vas-to
state the case mildly as the Times in
1873 stated it-"morally, if not legally
guilty of perjury"