The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1892-06-09
CONGRESSIONAL
CORRUPTION.
STARTLING STATEMENT OF
HOW THE DEMONETI
ZATION OF SILVER
WAS ACCOM-
PLISHED.
English Cold Said to Have Flood
ed the Legislative Halls at
Washington--An English
mans Revelation to-
an American.

Isl ecial Dispatch to the Glohc-Democrat.l !
DENVER, Colo. May 12.--Mr.
Frederick a. Luckenbach is citi-
zen of Denver, and is well and fa-
vorably known by many of Colora-
dos leading business men. He has
been engaged for two years past 70
Introducing his pneumatic pulveri-
zer and has met with fiattering sue
cess. 1t having come to the ears of
Mr.. NJ. III. Slater, Chairman of the
Executive Committee of the State
Silver League that MIR. Luckenbach
possesse d the startling information
contained in the following affidavit,
that energetic gentleman waited
upon him and induced him to put
the whole story into explicit form
and give it to the public. This Mr..
Luckenbach did, and the result is
the affidavit published below:
State of Colorado, County of Ara
pahoe Frederick Luckenb ich, be.
ing first duly sworn, on oath deposes
and says: 81 am 81 years of age.
was born in Bucks county, Pa. 1
removed to the city of Philadelphia
in the year 1916, and continued to
reside there until 1866, when l re-
moved t, the city Of New York. In
Philadelphia l Was in the furniture
business. In New York l branched
into machinery and inventions, and
am the patentee of Luchenbach's
Pneumatic PulVerizer, which ma
chimes are now IN use generally in
the eastern part of the United States
and in Europe. I now reside in
Denver, having removed from New
York two years ago. / am well
known in New York. / have been
a member of the Produce Exchange
and am well acquainted with many
members of that body. l am we'll
known by Mr.. Eiastus Wi'nan. In
the year 1865 | visited London, Eng
land, for the purpose Of placing
there Pennsylvania oil properties in
which | was interested. took with
me letters of introduction to n.any
gentlemen in London. among them
one to Mr.. Earnest Seyd, from Rob
ert Nj. Foust, eX-Treasurer of Phila-
delphia. I became we'll acquainted
with My. Seyd and with his brother,
Richard Seyd, who / understand is
yet living. | visited London there
after every year, and at eath visit
renewed my acquaintance with Mr..
Seyd, and upon ea-h occasion became
his guest, one Or more times joining
his family at dinner or other meals.
In February, 1874, while on one
of these visits and while his guest at
dinner, [, among other things, allu-
ded to rumOrs afioat of Parliamen-
tary corruption, and expressed as
tonishment that such corruption
should exist. In reply to this, he
told me he could relate facts about
the corruption Of the American Con-
gress that would place it far ahead
of the English Parliament in that
line.
SO far the conversation was at the
dinner table between us. His broth
er Richard and others were there
also, this was table talk between Mr..
Earnest Seyd and myself. After
ter dinner ended he invited me to
another room, where he resumed the
conversation about legislative cor
ruptio.i. He said: IF you will
pledge me your honor as a gentle
man not to divulge what Lam about
to tell you while I live I will con
vince you that what / said about
the corruption of the American Con-
gress is true.n Igave him my prom
ise and he then continued: "I went
to America in 1928, authorized to
secure, if could, the passage of a
bill demOpetizing silver. It was to
the interest of those whom l repre-
sented-the Governors of the Bank
of England-to nave it done. I took
with me 100000, with instructions
that if that was not sufficient to ac-
complish the object, to draw for an
other 100000, or as much more as
was necessary" He told me the
German barkers were also interested
in having it accomplished. He said
he was the financial adviser of the
bank. He said: 81 saw the COM
mittees Of the House aud Senate and
paid the money and ssaid in Ameri
ca until | knew the measure was
Saie.D
I asked if he would give names of
the members to whom he gave the
money, but this he declined to do.
He said: ''Your reople will not now
comprehend the far-reaching extent
of that measure, but they will in af-
ter years. Whatever you may think
of corruption in the English Parlia-
ment, | assure you / would not have
dared to make such an attempt here
as did in your country.
/ expressed my shame to him. for
my countrymen in our legislative
bodies. The conversation dried
into other minor subjects, and alter
that, though I met HIM many times,
the matter was never again referred
to. (Signed)
FREDERICK A. LUCKENBACH.
Subscribed and sworn to before
me at Denver, this 9th day of May,
A. D., 1892. (Signed)
JAMES A. MILLER,
Clerk Sunrama tn1rt.