The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1885-03-28
ULYSSES UNB0S0MS.
GENERAL GRANT AS A WITNESS,
Necoilections of tho Marine Bank Affairs
and His identity With Fish and
Ward-His idea of Govern
ment Contracts, Etc.

by the official stenographer OF the
court, in the trial of ex-Presi
dent Fish, of the Marine bank
was read in court to-day. Gen. Grant
testified as follows upon examination by
counsel for the defense, by Mr.. CLARK:
GU We're a partner in the firm OF
Grant & Ward?
Answer-Yes sir, | am informed |
was at the time the failure took place,
| never knew was anything else than
special partner clear to the end.
| paid in, say $4,000 first, then S5O,0Ol
moro. | don't remember the dates, |
paid in 100000.
Con May II, 1881, what did YOU UNI
derstand you were WORTH
Ans.-l supposed that / was worth
well nigh 100000. had nc
suspicion of any rascalitv,
and therefore there was nothing
TO confne my mine to any such dates
regarding my first acquaintance
WIN Fish, | suppose II
was upon tho Introduction
ny myself and Ward. | suppose if you
should so clear back, that 1t was my
son who got acquainted with Fer
dinand Ward, through Wards brother
and that acquaintance was lod on TO in
that way. had recollection, after tho
failure, of receiving a letter from
Fish while was staying
a. Long Branch. / went
down there in the middle
OF June. | don't suppose that ever
saw that one published. | have a
recollection Of receiving letter and
setting down and writing an answer at
once, and the substance of the an
sWer was that had n
good deal to do that dav
and that 1t was doubtful when | should
be able to GO to see him; that If | could
| would, but believed the matters that
his firm was engaged in were all right,
or something to that effect.
Haven't you any recollection as TO
what has become of that letter?
Ans.--No sir, | have not. never
have been in tho habit of preserving
private letters, and if | was to try
suppose Il should make
a poor record. My business in life has
been such that somebody else has al
ways taken care of my letters
II they had to be saved, and
the only way have nov
OF preserving letters that wish TO pre-
sorve until do something with them,
IS to put them in my pocket or my
drawer where 1 write, and
teen when want to look
at q letter it Is about
the last one | find. / might state here,
although l don't know whether IL would
have any effect or not, at the
time | went into the firm
had a very small income,
bnt had some money that my son had
saved Tor mo while ! was abrOad-somc
money that had left and which no had
so managed that had
saved some of it, and he
as special partner-special, not gen.
eral. Generously, as / thought ther
| proposed 90 let mo have half his inter
| est in the firm so ] would have an In
| como to live upon, and th0re was after
wards an income raised for e,and alto
that The firm generously concluded
to let me in as
partner.
I Cross examination by counsel for thl
/ government by Mr.. Root: Gen. Grant
| what WAS tho hour at which YOU Werl
. accustomed 70 reach your Office in thl
. morning, when you were etaylng a
Long Branch, in the summer Of 1852?
| Ans.-Ten O'clock was about my ar
irving time at the office.
Odd you observe in the letto
which you received from Fish, the an
swer to which has been identified Ivy
you, and which is entirely in your hand
/ writing, any reference to governmen
/ cOntracts2
/ Ans.-Noi there was not; had tolt
| Mr.. Ward when 10 was mentioned tina
| thore never must be any governmen
1 contracts there. There Is nothing wronl
/ in being engaged in government
contracts moro than anything else, un
/ loss made wrong by the acts OF an indi
1 vidual. But / had boon president o
| tho United States and / die
/ not think It was suitable
/ to have my name connected
with government contracts, and / know
there was no large profit in them OK
cept by dishonest measures. There ,art
| some men who got government con.
( tracts year In and yea
out, and whether they managed
their affairs dishono- tly 10 make prof
or not, they are sometimes supposed TO
aud | did not think II was any place fol
me.
Q.-And you did not find in that Letter
that you read any reference 10 anything
of that sort2
Ans.-I did not find anything Of that
sort, or should ave stopped; but "a .
matter OF fact | may never have seer
that letter. Mr.. Ward may have JUS
simply given me a statement of tho con.
tents OF that letter.
Q-What did YOU understand 10 be
the relations OF the firm Of Grant &
Ward to the Marine bank?
Ans.-Well, knew Ward was a di-
rector there, and seemed to have a greai
deal TO do with 1t, but never supposed
there was anything wrong about 1t.
Q.-Did you, at any time, know OF
understand that the firm Of Grant q
Ward had engaged in government con-
tracts, or in furnishing money 10 be
used In carrying on government con-
tracts2
Ans.-I never knew of but ono con-
tract. That is where he said there was
transaction of that kind, and / ques.
toned and he said no had
just been out and bought 5000 bushels
of oats. 1t was 10 be purchased In
Chicago, To be delivered. He told
me the date when II was 10 DO delivered,
and that the contractor hadn't the
money 20 do It with, and that
he was doing II for a certain
stipulated amount, but that tho contrse
was let to other parties. i didn't sea
that there was anything
the matter with that. A
man had a contract from
the EoNefnmont Tor q quantity OF
oats, and oats was an article that
could be purchased very cast.
" on the Chicago market.
| said | didn't see anything wrong In
that, - we had no contract
thon. Afterwards began 10
hear that Il was not
long before there would DO failuio.
Whisper we're around that he was say.
ing he had government contracts,
aud / questioned him about
a., and no said he had
no such thing. He said he wouldn't do
anything that was going to injure me,
or anything requested him
not TO do, aud said he
had no contracts any where.
II had been said he had city contracts,
aud he as much ~ said 10 me
he was very well acquainted
with the city officials aud that
made 1t easy to get contracts from the
city, and i told him did not
Know whether there was much
dltierence between city contracts for
New York city, and those made By tho