Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1884-03-25

coNTRADIcrs THE TESTIMONY OF MR.. COOK; ALSO
SAYS He DID NOT DIVIDE HIS FEE WITH Mr..
| BLISS OR ANY ONE EISE.
| Mr.. Richard Crowley ex-member OF Congress
| from New York, was examined before the Springer
investigating committee to-day. He gave his resi-
| dence as Lockport, New York. and said he was a
| lawyer. He was member OF the House OF the
| Forty-S1xth and Forty-Seventh Congresses. He
| was an attorney for Ottman, In cases pending in
the Us. courts at Washington and Alexandria.
MI. Springer-Please explain your connection
| with those cases
| Mr.. Crowley replied that early in the spring OF
| 1881 Mr. Ellison, who had been engineer in charge
OF the machinery OF the House OF Representatives
and was then clerk OF the committee on agricul-
ture, came TO him and said that Ottman, a friend
OF MS. wUnted to employ counsel in place OF Mr..
carpenter Witness replied that he could not then
decide whether TO take the case or not. but Ellison
gave him an outline OF the case In the latter part
oI 1881, while at Albany, witness received
| LETTER FROM oTTMAN.
which the witness read This letter stated that
Ellison had given the points of the case. and offered
TO give Crowley contingent fee OF 5000 on the
| entry OF nolle proSeQui in Ottman'S cases Ott-
man explained that he could only offer contingent
| ment.
Witness replied to that letter. saying he would
see Ottman In New York CITY In a few DAYS About
| the middle OF June he met Ottman In New York
| Witness told him ne would be in Washington in
| lew days, and would make full examination of the
cases Ottman told him that Carpenter, Merrick
and Cook had been his attorneys. Witness arrived
In Washington Oh the 11th OF July, and he devoted
three days TO examination OF the cases against
| Ottman- He found
| THREE INDICTMENTS AGAINST oTTMAN
| charging him with having stolen embezzled. etc,
$4,000 ThUse indictments were consolidated into
one Ottman had been tried twice on the consoli-
uaueu Indictment. NuneSST went over the record OF
the two trials, in both OF which there was a
failure to convict He said that In the first trial the
jury stood seven for conviction and five for acquit
/ Til1 NJ fhLj
| acqulttal and one was undecided That was the
condition OF the criminal cases. Witness found
tnat CIVIL case had been commenced against Oft
| man to recover S47, 900. Defendant demurred, and
! motion was made TO quash the attachment for
the money. The motion to quash the attachment
was granted In the lower court, but the General
Term reversed that and sustained the attachment.
The decisions OF the court were In 1876 and 1871.
Nothlng appeared OF record In the courts after
| these decisions. Witness called on Cook and had
brief conversation with him about the case.
| MIR. CROWLEY CoNTRADICTS MR.. COOKS TESTIMONY
ABOCT ''INFLUENCE."
Mr.. Crowley here referred to Col Cooks tpStf-
mony, and denied in the most sweeping terms that
he had intimated or implied that he had any iniu-
/ ence with powers in authority To show that he
had not he said that Mr.. Garfield was then Presi-
| dent; Mr.. MacVeagh was ATTORNEY General with
whom he had no personal acquaintance. and In
| fact he was not in accord with the administration.
| MI Crowley said he Was then trying TO return
| Conkllng and Platt to the United States Senate,
| ana was therefore
IN OPEN ANTAGONIST WITH THE ADNINIsTRA ALTON.
He then denied in the most positive terms the Cook
testimony, saying he wanted to answer it once for
| all His conversation with Cook was misinterpre-
TED Witness talked with COrkhill. who suggested
that special counsel be appointed to represent the
government. as he (Corkhill) could not serve. hav-
| ing been counsel for Ottman. Witness made an
| examination OF the Alexandria case. and found
that Ottman had ten thousand dollars deposited
In the Germania National bank. The courts were
not open then. and Mr.. Crowley returned to
New York and reported to Ottman the result
or MS examination OF the cases In January, 1882
a statement OF the condition OF the cases was pre-
pared and was signed by Ottman. 1t was sent TO
the Attorney General Col. Bliss was then stopping
at the Arlington. where witness was stopping Wit
ness told Bliss that Ottman was his client and had
| made application TO have the cases disposed Of and
witness asked Bliss to call the Attorney Generals
| attention 10 the request and ask him TO act upon
it. Bliss promised TO do so, and afterwards said he
| had made the request OF the Attorney General
Some time afterwards Bliss informed witness that
| the Attorney General had authorized him Bliss to
take charge OF the cases Bliss said to witness that
! he was
! SATISFIED THERE COULD BE NO CONVICTION.
Bliss added that Mr.. Wells thought that the civil
suit might be successfully prosecuted. and that he
| Bliss was unwilling to set aside that case but
would consent to dismissal OF the criminal cases
| witness persuaded Ot;man to accept the compro-
mise. Witness judgment was and is that no con-
| V1ct1On within any reasonable probability could
have been had. He did not believe that any judg-
ment could have been secured against Ottman
AS counsel for Ottman witness would
REPLY TO WELLS TESTIMONY,
|
ecuted to success that Wells remained district at
torney three years after the commencement OF the
action, yet he never took single step to prosecute
the civil case. The TO 1889 from 1877 with
ness held that it was due to Ottman to prosecute
the cases at once or dismiss them He told Bliss
that the government could not afford to hold indct
! mentS over citizen for years without trial Wit
ness advised Ottman to compromise; to buy his
peace, II necessary He told Ottman that the cases
could @ d. be he. held L. over W him for years, and he
| to submit to annoyance for years.
THE DISPOSITION THE MONEY.
In reply TO question about the disposition OF the
money, Mr.. Crowley said the government never had
in its possession the sl9,525 which was seized In
different places and handed over to the District
Commissioners. The money, as evidence, was used
in both cases against Ottman. After the second
| trial Commissioner Morgan took the money to
Treasurer Gilf1llan and made a special deposit of
! 1t in the Z. S. Treasury. Witness went with Nor
! gan and Bliss and Ottman. got the package and
| broke the seal 1t contained $19.525 and some pa
pers. In Alexandria there was deposit OF So 0OO
When the suit was settled, the government claimed
that it could succeed in the Alexandria civil suit
| and the interest OF the Alexandria money $4,000
was figured up, and, with interest from the time OF
the deposit to the time OF settlement 1t amounted
| to $12,70O. This amount was allowed the govern
ment At the meeting at the Treasury, out of the
package that was opened Sl2 200 were paid to Bliss
| for the government. Witness took out OF the re-
| naming to Ottman.
| oTTMAN's SMALL SHARE.
Ottman was paid out OF the package 81 .Sa5. and
| the suit in Alexandria was left pending. Witness
called on Coleman, the law partner OF the late Mr.
| Carpenter, and Coleman said he had instructions
| to commence suit against the bank OF Alexandria
and that he had the certificate OF deposit OF $4,000
| in Alexandria Coleman said the certificate
| belonged to Russell Sage, OF New York. Witness,
| with Ottman and Coleman had consult ations with
the bank officers and Russell SageS representative
| but nothing was done. He was informed that last
| year this matter was settled. On the basis that
Russell Sage who had bought the SO 900 certificate
OF deposit from Matt Carpenter for 6OOO got back
| got the balance. Witness was not present but
| knew that settlement was made. The government
| got no part OF the money at Alexandria All the
| government got was sum equal to the $4,000
| attached at Alexandria with interest, amounting
| in whole to sl2,7OO.
| Witness said, in relation to his asking that the
government employ special counsel to conduct the
trial. that Mr. Corkhl was disqualified to try the
cases. and that he would have asked that the cases
be nOlle pressed.
"Would you have asked for a speedy trial In the
| case?" asked Mr.. Springer
81 would, ," was the reply.
"D1d you urge the COMPROMISED"
| 81 did not opposed it."
MR.. CROWLEY THINKS THE GOVERNMENT HAD NO
| RIGHT TO THE MONEY.
"Then you thought the government had no right
| to any of the money!"
81 thought then, and now think, that the govern
ment should not have had cent OF the money and
| the evidence In the trials.n
"Why, then, did you not urge your client to insist
upon speedy trial?"
-"Because the government could call ND the TRIAL