Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1889-09-25
ARMOUR is SAFE.
The Big Beef Combiner Doesn't
Have to Talk.
SENATOR VEST NAY KNAw A FILE,

But He Can Not Force the Pig Packer to
Tell What He Knows About How to
Run the Meat Market-The Presidents
in the Case Hunted Up by the Chicago
Millionaire. and Their Substance.
WASHINGTON CITY, Sept 25.-During the
last two weeks a quiet investigation has
been made for p ID. Armour, of Chicago
concerning the powers of the senate in pun
ishing recalcitrant witnesses for contempt,
since Senator Vest was in Chicago bent on
making the great packer talk of the beef
combine. Mr. Armour has no desire to pass
few weeks in the dungeon underneath the
lamp and gloomy walls of the capitol, and
with his usual cautiousness has caused in
| vestigation to bemade of the senate's legal
powers in such cases as that pending be-
tween himself and Vest. II there is a dun
geon and diet on bread and water before
him he wants to know it Mr. Armour's at
| torney is satified, and no doubt will lie able
to reassure his chief that the danger is a
small one
| Justice Fields Decision.
The precedents are pretty strongl Y in Mr..
krmour's favor, and il the little senator
rom Missouri should desire to press his
| tght in the senate there are two decisions of
| the supreme court which would he hard for
| him TO get over. One of these was that of
Justice Field, given on the California circuit,
| in the case OF Leland Stanford Stanford
was called as witness before the Pacific
| railway commission and asked what had
been done with sl9l 900 which appeared on
/ 4 ba Of h.
paid to him, AMI for which no vouchers had
been turned in did You use this money or
any port of it, asked the chairman, "in in
| 6ueDcing legislation in California and Wash
| ingtonf Mr.. Stanford refused to reply, ex-
/ cept to say that he had never bribed any,
body in California or anywhere. He was
placed under arrest and his case in contempt
| brought before the supreme court Justice
| Field decided he could not be held, and gave
| a very strong opinion concerning the con-
stitutional limitations of the power of con-
gress in furnishing witnesses who refuse to
testify. This decision is one that contri-
buted indirectly to the Terry tragedy, Terry
ienouncing the decision as having been
eorruptly procured hy Stanford
The Case of HaiIet KiIbourn.
The other decision bearing on the Armour
case was that of Justice Miller in the case
Of knbourn VS. Thompson. Hallet Kill
bourn, now proprietor of The Washington
| Capital, was some years ago real es-
tate dealer in Washington City A syndi-
cate was formed to handle n certain deal in
which the government WAS interested, and
when the inevitable Investigation by COM
mittee of the house came on Kilbourn re-
| fused to answer certain question, and was
thrown into the capitol dungeon for con-
| tempt Here he remained several DAYS, and
on his suing John G. Thompson, sergeant
alarms of the house, for damages, won his
| case in the supreme court The decision OF
Justics Miller was strong and broad enough
TO cover the case of Mr.. Armour, and &c
| give the millionaire packer good reason tC
| hope that he will not be compelled to read
| market quotations in the bastile.
| Vest still Loaded for Reef.
1 Vests friends declare he is still out for the
blood of the beef man, swearing he will have
Mr.. Armour before the bar of the senate il
he has to bring him in irons But Mr.
| Armour need not be alarmed Vest can do
| nothing without the assistance Of a majority
| of the senate. The senate might san its
sergeant-at-arms after the packer, and if h,
| refused to come the officer would return fol
instructions II an order for arrest wer,
then issued the sergeant at arms could brins
| the unwilling witness before the senate, pro
| vided he could find him. but having got il
| witness, the senate could not make him talk
All it could do would be to turn the cas-
to be by him laid before the grand jury.