The Sunday herald. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1866-1887, 1882-09-10
HOW 1T OTGHT TO BE DONE.

Phipps, the runaway Phipps of the Phila |
delphia Almshouse was ill-advised or rather |
never cut out for the profession he at.
Refuge training. When lie found that the
supplies at the Almshouse were getting
badly depleted by his style of " expediting"
them into the larder of his housekeeper and
the cellars of other members of the Ring he
should have gone boldly before Councils
with demand in the name of humanity
and everything else that is sacred that adj
ditional appropriations be made at once for
the paupers, under threat of stopping their
provender altogether if he were not obeyed.
He might even have enlisted the Associated
Charities and the most eminent citizens on
behalf of this noble demand. Councils, of
course, would have come down handsomely
and doubled tho appropriations for the
AlmshOuse for several years together,
greatly enriching the field for stealing, and
permitting large investments in telephone
' stock " and other luxures on the part of
Phipps, and diamonds for Mrs. p, if there
be a Mrs. p. When the inevitable blow
up came Phipps should boldly have stood his
ground. Running away was cruel and fatal
mistake. So far from confessing and beg
ging mercy, he should have juicously in
vested his savings from " telephone stock "
III buying controlling share, say in the
morning Ledger, the afternoon Telegraph,
and the Sunday Transcript, of Philadelphia
and in the able writers the refor, and in
feeling eminent lawyers of all degrees of re-
spectability and shades of opinion. From
all these mouthpieces he should have
opened fire OH those who We're bold enough
to attempt to prosecute him, pronouncing
them liars perjurers," malignant
" blackguards," and other pet nicknames,
proclaiming himself meanwhile an injured
martyr and great benefactor to the suffer
ing poor, whose rations these h" so-called re-
formers were trying to reduce to starva-
ton point. Ii all the other newspapers
pitched into him, nothing would be more
easy than to select few of the most promi-
nent ones as target for billingsgate and
personal slander of their conductors, dis
missing the others cOntemptuously as vic
tins of prejudice or misnformation. All
these measures would infallibly produce
profound effect ON public opinion 1--WE de-
cline to say which way.) If ever brought to
trial, Phipps would then have his phalanx of
lawyers to defend him, by telling the OPP
posing counsel, in open court You lie I"
and other polished and logical arguments,
while his newspapers would carefully mis-
| report the proceedings in his favor, and do
| all the coarser vilidcaton of the prosecution
| and its witnesses which the lawyers were
| afraid to do in court, (not to say that
| this would leave very much margin)
| Phipps himself would, of course, not so on
| the witness stand and contradict the tesi-
| mony against him. In fact, it would not be
necessary to make any defense at all, which
is convenient, where there is no defense.
His lawyers could first say they were not go
ing to put in any testimony, then call few
witnesses whose testimony was chiefly favor
able to the prosecution, and finally claim
triumphantly that the prosecution chad not
"made out prima facie case" taking be-
sides numerous exceptions all the way
through in case the verdict should go
against Phipps nevertheless. We feel
sorry for Phipps. He is evidently a
novice, or else lacks stamina badly for
the career he attempted 10 follow. 1t is
an easy and profitable one, we admit, for
men Of the right constitution for it, but
others make Iamentable breakdowns, which
reflect uudeserred discredit on the noble
profession of public tEisYery.