The Newberry herald. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1865-1884, 1880-06-30

CrCUlL AoUtlicI HoO SiA Si"o s'
tracted attention. Elihu 3. Wash
burne introduced a resolution in
the House which alarmed the
iobbers for their immense profits.
Col!xx, then Speaker, and one of
the creatures Of the ring, silenced
this movement for 4 time by par
iiamentary tricks.
Still the Credit Mobiier monop-
oIists were uneasy, and proposed
to buy off opposition. In January,
1868, Ames wrote 10 McComb,
who afterwards started the in-
vestigation from motives Of re-
vengc. 1 have assigned, as far as
| have gone (ccrtain shares to
different StatesD y the fifty per
cent. increase | want for distrl-
button here and soon A few
days after be was still moic ur-
gent. He wrote again; In view
Of Washburne's move here: go
in for making our dividend in full.
l want that $4,000 increase of
the Credit Mobilier to sell here.
We want more friends in this
Congress- As he himself said,
the object was to put the stock
where it would do the most good
The stock was then selling at $3.50
share on a par value of 500.
It was issued in blocks of thirty,
twenty and ten shares to members
of Congress at par, and the So
called purchase was moro than
extiuguished by accrued divi'
dends. 1t was a nice stock to
hold,
The first disclosure of this cor
ruption was made in the Sun dur
ing the summer of 1872, implica-
ting many of the Republican lead
ers. A Presidential election was
then pending, aud they all ve-
hemently denied any connection
with the fraud.
GARFIELD's STATEMENT
was more explicit and bolder than
that Of any ofhis confederates in
the crime. An investigation was
ordered by the House soon after
the meeting of Congress the OK
animation Of witnesses began on
December IL, 1872. At first Oakes
Ames declined to make any ex-
posure; but when the incrimina-
ted members combine cd TO swear
him down and to free themselves
by rank perjury, his blood warm
ed quickly and he determined TO
let the truth be known, though in.
the end there was much concealed.
Garfield submitted to the COM
mittee a prepared statement on
January IA, 1878:
i never owned, received or
agreed to receive any stock of the
Credit Mobilier or Of the Union
Pacific Railroad, nor any divi-
dends or profits arising from
either Of them
Ames was recalled January %,
1872, and testified to the stock he
had issued to Garfield, the divi-
dends allowed him, and the
balance of money paid into his
hand, which Garfield pretended
was 'loan.' He submitted q
memorandum of the account in
detail. It came to- the knowledge
of the committee that Garfield had
visited Ames with the object Of
inducing him to retract or modify
his testimony, and he was re-ex-
amined on the 29th of January, as
follows:
Q. You may state whether, in
conversation with you, Mr.. Gar
field claims, as he claimed before
US, that the only transaction be-
tween you was borrowing $500 ?
4. No, sir, he did not claim that
with me.
9. State all you know in refer
ence to it. A. I told him he
knew very we'll that that was a
dividend. | made out statement
and showed it to him at the time.
In our conversation he admitted
it, said there was s2,4O0 due him
in stocks and bonds. He made q
little memorandum Of 81, ,0C0 and
s1,400, and said there was $1,000
of Union Pacific Railroad stock,
$1,000 Of Credit Mobilier stock
and $400 Of stock or bonds.
Q. When was that memorandum
made? A. 1t WAS made in my
room. l cannot remember the
date. It was made since this in.
vestigation commenced.