Union County courier. [volume] (Elk Point, Union County, D.T. [S.D.]) 187?-1913, 1884-08-27
ELK POINT UNION COUNTY
TRUE STORY OF THE NJtLLNHAN
LETTER&

TRUE STORY OF THE NULLIGAN
LETTERS
Washington Cor Cincinnati Enquirer.
Tho nomination Of James g. Blaine az
the Republican candidate for President OF
the United States recalls the famous and
exciting scenes Of Juno, 1676--over eight
years ago. Blaine was then candidate for
the Presidential nomination. He was q
member Of the House Of Representatives.
He was acknowledged to be far in the lead
In the Presidential race, and but for the ex-
posure of what are known to history as the
Mulligan letters he would probably have
been nominated.
THE BEGINNING OF THE PLOT.
Some time in April or early in May pre-
convention met at Cincinnati, Mr.. j. ID.
Harrison, Of Indiana, an implacable enemy
then as now to Blaine, caused to be printed
in the Cincinnati Commercial q charge
which very seyiously affected Mr. Blaine Z
integrity. Harrison was director, repre-
venting The United States, Of the Union
il1 HI tos6Sm -
Ch6tes briefly stated was that the Union
Pacific Railroad had charged to some one
S64,00O of the bonds Of the Fort Smith
and Little Rock Railroad of Arkansas, and
that the real beneficiary was James G..
Blaine. A quadrilatenl of newspapers,
WHICH are now, strange to say, Sealously
supporting Blaine because they believe
that his innocence has been fnlly estab-
iishedl, rung the changes on the charge
until public opinion forced Blaine to ask
Tor committee Of investigation. The in
tvstigation was ordered by the Judiciary
Committee, Of which the Hon. J. Proctor
kpott, of Kentucky, was Chairman As the
investigation proceeded sub-c committee
took more active charge of 1t, Of which the
Hon. Eppa Hunton, Of Virginia, was Chair
mnn.
Nothing Of any special importance de.
veloped until one Warren Fisher, Of Boston,
and the now famous Mr.. Mulligan were
quite prominent speculatcr in milroad
securities. In the Little Rock and Fort
Smith Railroad transaction he acted as the
confidential agent Of Josiah Caldwell, who,
1t was charged. was the man that gave
Blaine the $64, 600 Of stock. Caldwell was
1t the time in Europe, and it had been i'm
possible to secure service upon him.
Mulligan, OF whom more hereafter, had
been bookkeeper for Fisher. Up to the
time Of the arrival Of Fisher and Mulligan,
Blaine had met every accusation against
him, and the bent Of the investigation COM
mittee was to make a report of exoneration.
Fisher was first placed on the witness stand.
TWAS evident ut glance, whatever might
have been his capacity therefore,, he was re-
duced through alcoholism to almost a
wreck. His mind seemed to be gone. His
memory was impaired, and his testimony
wholly unsatisfactory.
MULLI8AN.
Then came Mulligan. As his name indi-
Gates. he was terrier, chuck full Of Celtic
blood. He was spare built man, with a
malicious look in a blue eye well back in
his head, small red face more oval than
angular, with an intensity Of expression de-
noting hate and malice. At first his inclina-
tion was to be evasiye. Then questions
were put to him which gave evidence he
bad been well coached. He was itching to
unload. but his cunning had planned so as
to make 1t appear that secrets were being
extorted rather than confessed One day in
the course OF his testimony he indicated he
bad some very interesting documentary tes-
tlmony. Following this day or two after
Mr.. Muuigan made bis appearance before
the committee in u stzste VI great excitcnIeut
He said that Mr.. Blaine had twice called
upon him at the Riggs House; that at the
first meeting Blaine, on his hended knees,
had besought him to give him the letters he
had in his possession. This was corre-
spondence between Blaine and Warren
Fisher, which Mulligan, as Fishers book
keeper, had stolen out Of the latter's safe.
After some hesitation, and upon the prom
Use that Blaiue would return the letters,
Mulligan gave them to him. Blaine kept
them few hours and returned them. The
succeeding night Blaine again asked to see
the letters to refresh his memory as to the
contents of one of them. Mulligan
them In his pocket and refused to give
them up.
When Mulligan made this statement to
the committee it created a sensation.
Blaine did not deny that he had taken the
letters, but he justified himself on the
ground that the letters, having been stolen
by Mulligan, were not his property. They
belonged either to himself or Fisher,
and the latter declared that he was anxious
that Blaine, and not Muliigan, should have
them.
THE INVESTIGATION.
The committee, then, through Chairman
Eppa Hunton, demanded the letters,
Blaine first asked time for consideration.
A day was given him. The demand was
again repeated, and Blaine plumply refused
to give them up. Then it was that the
quadrilateral Of organs now supporting
Blaine which then were bounding him, ad-
Judged him guilty because Of his refusal to
expose his correspondence. The commit
tee, too, had long executive session, and
had agreed to report Blaine to the House az
. recalcitrant witness. Thus matters stood
until the 4th day Of June, 1875, when
Hlalne made dramatic scene in the House
OF Representatives. which suggested to Bob
Ingersoll his term Of the ~Plumed Knight,
afterward applied to him in his famous
speech at Cincinnati. Blaine arose in his
seat to . question Of privilege. He was
the very embodiment OF rage and passion.
His face Was pale and bloodle.ss No one
who sat within his hearing could
have failed to surlnise that something
was coming. Thereupon he reviewed suc-
cessfully what he deemed his persecution at
the hands Of the Judiciary Committee, his
refusal, under legal advice, to give nm the
4ulligan letters, and said:
"When the fAmous witness. Mulljpan.
cAme here loaded with information in re.
gard to the Fort Smith Road, the gentleman
from Virginia drew ont what he knew had
no reference whatever to the question Of
investigation. He then and there insisted
on all Of my private memoranda being al
lowed to be exhibited by that man In refer
ence to business that had no more connec-
ton, no more relation, no more TO do with
the investigation than with the North Pole.
And the gentleman tried his best also,
though believe that has been abandoned,
to capture and use and control my private
correspondence. This man had selected out
OF correspondence running oyera great many
years letters which he thought would
be peculiarly damaging 70 me. He
came here loaded with them. He came
here for . sensation. He came here primed.
He came here on that particular errand. I
was advised Of it, and obtained these let
ters under circumstances which have been
notoriously scattered throughout the United
States, and are known to everybody, /
claim have the entire right 70 those let
ters, not only by natural right, but upon all