St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-09-06
IsOICOI u . DOII II III LID
Text of Attorney General Miller's
Letter to Marshal Franks.

WASHINGTON, Sept. 5.-The follow
ing is the letter from Attorney General
Miller to Marshal Franks, of California,
authorizing him to protect Justice Field
and Judge Sawyer from assault by Judge
Terry or wife, which was introduced
yesterday in the hearing of the case
against Deputy Marshal Nagle:
Washington, April II, 1SS9.-John G.
Franks, United States Marshal, San Fran
cisco-Sir: The proceedings which have
heretofore been had In connection with the
case of Mr.. and Mrs. Terry, in your United
States circuit court, have become a matter of
public notoriety, and deem it my DUTY to
call your attention to the propriety of exer-
cising unusual caution, in case further pro-
ceedIngS shall be had in that case, for the
protection of his honor Justice Field, or
whoever may be called upon to hear and de-
ter1nine the matter. OF course do not know
what may be the feelings or purpose of Mr.
and Mrs. Terry in the premises. but many
things have happened to indicate that vio-
lence on their part may not be impossible
1t is due to the dignity and independence of
the court and the character of its judges that
no effort on the part of the government shah
be spared to make them feel entirely safe
and free from anxiety in the discharge of
their high duties. You will understand, of
course, that this letter is not for the public,
but to put you upon your guard. 1t will be
proper for you to show it to the district at
torney II you think best. Yours truly,
W. H. H. MILLER, Attorney General
Subsequently Marshal Franks was
granted permission to employ special
deputies to protect the judges. In his
official report to the department under
date of Aug. 81, Marshal Franks says
that in obedience to the instructions of
the department he had constantly ex-
No e. al,
lection of Justice Field and Judge Saw
wife, OF the assault in the dining room
at Lathrop, Marshal Franks says Terry
struck Justice Field twice before Dep
uty Marshal Maggie interfered. He con-
tlnueS:
Terry was man of very large physique
and of great strength. His passions were ap-
parently beyond his own control, and he was
most ready with knife, weapon which he
himself declared he had habitually carried
for thirty years. Maggie is man of slight
build. and he well knew Terry's violent char
acter and skill with weapons. When he saw
good reason to believe that Terry, SO far from
being deferred by official warning Ito STOP
was desperately determined to take the fife
of Justice Field and his (Nagles) own life
Nagle prevented it in the only way any rea-
sonable person conversant with the fact will
pretend he could have done. 1t will be
clearly shown that there were not two Sec
onds between Justice Fields life and the
shot from Nagle's pistol that saved It.
Accompanying the reports are num-
of exhibits containing information in
connection with the exhibits and subse-
quent proceedings. One of them is a
pamphlet giving an account of contempt
proceedings before Judge Sawyer in
September, 1883, when Marshal Frank
says:
Terry desperately resisted my officers,
fourishing his knife and endeavoring to do
violence, Notwithstanding the pistol of Dep
uty Tafgar1, leveled at his head. He was
then overpowered by number or men, At
Lathrop he had every advantage. and was on
the point of completing his desperate enter
prise, with only Nagle and Justice Field to
oppose him.
Another exhibit is Judge SaWyer's
narration of the facts attending the
gross insult to him by Mrs. Terry on the
train between Los Angeles and San
Francisco Aug. IA, 1888, while in com
pany with her husband, which has been
greatly exaggerated by Mrs. Terry's ae-
counts of it, the judge says. Mrs. Terry,
he says. merely twitched his hair where
it was short as she passed him in the
no one but himself, Mr.. and Mrs. Terry
and Mr.. Cowles noticed the action.
Later on the trip, the judge says, Mrs.
Terry contemplated an assault on him
with her parasol, but was deferred from
attempting it by the presence and atti-
tude OF two passengers, to whom Judge
Sawyer had spoken of the hair-pulling
and requested them to observe
the future actions of the Terrys closely.
In subsequent letter to the depart
ment, Marshal FRAMES denies the state
ments of certain papers that Nagle was
a killer of the border ruffian type,
and asserts that his reputation was that
of peaceable, law-abiding man, but of
much courage, which has been proven
on several occasions