The comet. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1877-1882, 1881-05-28
THE ADAMS COUNTY POLITICAL
ARRESTS.
THE CASE ABLY AND COMING.
INGLY PRESENTED.
From the Natchez Democrat.

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE.
To the Democratic ErecutiUe Committee Of
-4dams County:
Your committee appointed this day
to ascertain from the United States
Marshal the nature of the charges
against the particular individuals in
this county whom he has been order
ed to arrest, and also to ascertain the
nature and extent Of the instructions
he has received in the premises, from
the District Attorney, and any other
statements made to individuals under
arrest, or their attorneys, and to care
fully report all facts ascertained by
them to this committee, beg leave to
report:
That they have had an int rview
with Maj. Il. w. Hunt, United States
Marshal of this District, and have
learned from him that he has arrested,
upon warrants issued from the United
States District Court, sitting at jack
son upon Information filed by the
District Attorney, eighteen citizens of
this county, who are charged with one
or the other of the following offenses,
to-wit:
Depriving voters OF suffrage.
Omission of duty as inspectors of
election.
Omission Of duty as Clerks of eiec-
ton.
Interfering with the United States
Supervisors of election.
A schedule is hereto annexed, con-
tanning the name of each person so
arrested, the specific oflense with
which he is charged, and the election
precinct to which he belongs.
Your committee were also informed
by Marshal Hunt that he received yes
terday telegram from w. K. Cage,
one of his deputies, stating that Judge
Lea, 1.-THE District Attorney would ac-
cept plea of nOio cOntendere, with a
fine of fifty dollars that he under
stood this proposition to be made not
necessarily as to all the cases collect
lively, but that Judge Lea would ac-
cept the above plea in any or all of the
cases that he, Marshal Hunt, was
positive that although the telegram
read "a fine of fifty dollars" yet that
the sum of fifty dollars was the aggre-
gate amount which each one would
have to pay, that sum "include every
thing" that the parties would have to
be represented by attorney, but that if
the above plea were put in and the
above amount paid into court in each
Case by the attorney, the personal at
tendance Of the prisoners would not
necessary.
That your committee have learned
from the persons who have been arrest
ed, and from others, that, at the time
Marshall Hunt made the first arrests,
which were on last Tuesday, he was
evidently in expectation of receiving
from the United States District AttOr-
ney, Judge Lea, either directly or in
directly, some such proposition, to be
communicated to prisoners or their at
torneys, as that contained in the tele-
gram from w. +. Cage that at the
time the first arrests were made, he
stated that he was expecting a COM
munication from the District Attor-
ney, which possibly might obv.ate
the necessity of the prisoners going to
Jackson that he afterwards stated
that he was expecting, by the mail of
Wednesday, letter containing
proposition from the United States
District Attorney, Lea, embodying
the terms of. compromise of these
cases; that he reiterated the same
thing substantially at other times to
different persons, ms well as to each of
the prisoners ; that Marshal Hunt, in
giving the above information relative
to the proposed action of the District
Attorney In the premises, disclaimed
any concern in, or connection with,
the District Attorneys action, beyond
conveying to the accused and your
committee, the instructions received
by him from the District Attorney.
That your committee has ascertain
ed that these prosecutions are based,
principally, upon IA report made by
said w. Il. Cage, Deputy United
States Marshall, after an er pdrtc, in-
vestigation, so-called, made by him
several months ago that said w. 4.
Cage is a protege Of John II. Lynch,
late candidate for Congress In this
and that said pretended in
vestigation was prosecuted by said
Cage under "A commission or an au-
thority derived from the Department
Of Justice at Washington that since
said report was made by Cage a Grand
Jury of the United States Distrsct
Court has been in session, and yet
these prosecutions have not been in
stituted by indictment of Grand
Jury, but by informations filed, inn
after the adjournment of
the Grand Jury, by the ID strict At
torney, the same officer who now, i'm
upon the making of the ar
rests, Is offering propositions for a
1t follows that the mat
ters were either ignored by the Grand
Jury or that they were purposely with
held with the cognizance of the Grand
Jury in order the more effectually TO
carry out pre-arranged political pro-
gramme.
That from the facts which have |
come to the knowledge of your COM |
mittee but which are In part only and |
very briefly summarized herein, your |
are convinced:
LIST. That the persons who have been |
arrested in this county as aforesaid, |
ire each and all wholly innocent of |
he crimes with which they are
charged, and of any other, known to
he law.
I'd. That these prosecutions have
,een instigated by John II. Lynch,
who has by some fundamentally sue
,eeded in putting in motion, the ma
,nlbtIN vi tut DtldFltntub oI Justlce
II the United States, and las prosti-
uted it through his minions, whom
ne has succeeded in getting appointed
With that view, for the purpose Of
his own and his party's
,ase ends.
Sd. That il was In pursuance of a
plan that said Cage was
ent here TO make an investigation
md a report thereof, the design being
o commence prosecutions against
,rominent citizens and then hold out
o them the temptation TO avoid the
annoyance add expense of attendance
lpon court, by suffering a judgment
4 conviction and paying a minimum
Inc, the ultimate object being TO thus
'btain judicial records to he used, by
aid Lynch, in his contest for a seat in
congress and TO be used by his party
n standardization of their wholesale
harges against the people Of the
,outh.
4th. That il is as well known TO
ohm II. Lynch and his associates In
hese prosecutions, as IL is TO us all,
hat the persons who have thus been
objected 10 the ignominy Of arrest,
nd to the expense and annoyance
incident 10 being dragged
rom their homes TO meet these
hargos, are among our best and most
.r.1 A.. .lfIf,. .lfs-~a |