The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1884-10-31
CUMSTANTIAL.
EVERY SATURDAY.

ClRCU MSTANTlAL.
EVERY Saturday.
In 1884, while residing in Maine, went to
Wisconsin TO attend the cir nit court of the
United States. Soon after eEt> ring the court
house a stranger came to me and said he
wished to engage me. We stepped into a
lobby, and asked him what the case was
In reply he said that his name was Merriman,
that hc was postmaster at Camden, and that
he had been bound over on a charge of alb
stracting money from the mail said: "If
you are bound over, you have had a hearing
before magistrate; what was the evidence
in thet hearingi Tell me as fully as you
can" He replied that there were three wit
nesses against him: Mr. MITCHELL the post
master at Portland, M. Pi"kard, the mail
contractor, and the river of the
stage. Mr.. Mitchell testified that let
ters conta ming mouey having been several
times lost from the eastern mail, he was en-
ployed by the po tn4s,cr general to detect
the on II 'ers; that, for that pIrpo5e, he went
to Belfast and there h cni Mr. ri Lard, the
mail contractor, prepael letter ad 'ressei
to Gen. Mcclellan, of Bath, p3Ip, ing 10
contain remittance from Il 4 tor that
into this letter they put o sum p' money in
bank-bills, and made it up in surh manner
as to appear TO contain something, and be
easily distinguished from 9th r letters; that
they put it int) mailbag, whil was taken
by the driver into the stage; that they
(Afitchell and PickarD took caai and
accompanied the stage, leaving Belfast in the
night; that they arrived at postofiice he
tween Belfast and Camden that the bag was
carried into the Office, and in due time
brought out, and then examined by all three,
Mitchell Pickard and the diver, and the
letter to Mcclellan was fourd in it; that they
then proceeded On their way, till they came
to the pOstoAice in Camden; that the mail
bag with the letter - Mcclellan in it was
taken into the Office, and, after the usua
time, was brought outand put into the stage;
that they then drove some distance from the
village, there stopped, took the bag from the
stage and carried it TO the chaise and there
opened the bag, took out all the letters and
papers and placed the letters on one side of
the seat Of the chaise and the apers on the
other and then they all examined the bag:
that they took each letter and each paper by
itself and put them back into the bag, and
the letter TO Gen. Mcclellan was not there.
The bag was then taken by the driver Of the
stage, AM h proceeded on his
va. Mitchell Gnl Pickard returned
to the village, AMI had the postmaste ter
arrested for ats'racting money froh
the mails. Mr. Pic&afd testified to the same
facts, confirming Mr.. Mitchell in every par
ticular. The driver also was n witness, and
confirmed all that had been testified as TO
his participation in the business. In answer
to que ,tions Merr.man stated that all three
of the witnesses swore that the letter to Gen
MCLEAN was in the mailbag when it went
L. md in
the bag when it came out; and the driver
testified that there was no one in the office
hut the postmaster asked my client what
be had 10 say; he answered that all he had 30.
say was he was in his Office that morning
alone. The mailbag was brought
TO him; he opensd it as usual,
tooksy out the letter; for Camden,
!. pat IN those that were to go forward, closed
the Lag. locked it. AMI delivered TO the
driver WHO CT RI led It away, and that was all
he knew about it.
Such was the case OF my cIent, a. pre-
sented by himself Whit wsJ my dutyf Ii
Is true he denied that he was guilty, but so
can every criminn', and all do who employ
counsel. He admitted that he had not the
slightest evidence 70 offer against the testi-
mony of three resp ctable witnesses, and
that he had not wo:d tosay In explanation
Ou?ht ! TO have fEr,d up with yirtuous in
dignation, and at once REFUSE 10 aid a man 10
escare puni ;hment wh) was 70 palpably
guiltyg That was not my courSe; bIt after
rejecting few minutes, / sad: "Have you
ever caused inquiry to he made OF Cen
Mcclellan vile Ter he received Il at lstterF'
He replied: mo. / n,ve" thought of
such n thing" tkel advieel him to
send n PERSON iinm" "diately to Bath and ask
Gen Mcclellan II lie had any knowledge OF
such letter. and also to make the same I'M
quiry of the postmaster ut Bath. He sent "A
man accordingly, who in eu, time returned
and reported that Gen. Mcclellan said that
he did receive such letttr on the day which
he named. and which was a thDrt tine only
before Whrn he received the Ieit,r he had
no recollection OF the writer, but supposed
it was all right. The messenger then went
to the postmaster. who said that he recol-
lected such a letter, that it came by the east
ern mail, on day which he named, that he
opened the mailbag himself, and seeing a
letter directsd TO Gen. Mcclellan, which
looked as IL IL might have mcney in IL, he
did not like to have it lying in his ofice, and
sent IT by his boy TO the general The time
when the letter reached the postmaster Of
Bath and Gen. Mcclellan, as stated
by them, was the afternoon OF
the day on which 1t passed
through Camden. On r GIVING this intelli-
gence went TO th, ditri t att rGey, Mr..
Shep'ey, stated what in,o mItion we had
obtained. and recue ted him to ipnna
Gen. McI.ell IN a1d the postmaster at Bath
TO 90 before the grand jury. He did so. and
the resuit was that no indicim mt was 10 IN L.
and my Client was discharged. He had baer
so anxious that durny the cbence of his
ne senger at Bath, he r ia ned Gen. Fessen-
aan: AID we. at r colfe. ring t)se.her, al
v's,i cur cicn: to lring an action against
Mr. Mi clell for malicious prosesui'n Hs
did O. an | recovered ovsr 81, ,6)l. The case,
Merriman against Mitchell, Is reporaet In
Shepleys Maine Reports, about the year
1896 q. Mnins reports, 49,
Su, was this remarkable case, sde cribel
by the disting al he'd jurist VINO was instru-
mental In saving from ruin an innocent man.
III true there va, no trial, and the suggestion
made by Mr. Spragre to inquire Of Mcclellan
whether the letter had bsen received might
have occurred TO a layman, but 1t did not
occur 30 the person accused nor any of his
friends II required the brains OF man OF
practical experience and OF legal traini ig TO
get 10 the bottom of the mater at once, IL
this course hal not been pursued, the a5cussf
postmaster would undoubtedly have been
convicted, as Mr.. Mcclellan did not know,
and had no reason to suspect from whom the
letter came, and had probably forgotten all
about IT,