St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1892-12-13
SAYS THEY ARE WEAK
Col. Elliott F. Sheppard Charged
With Attempting to Bride
Public Officers.
Sensational Testimony Given in a
Civil suit for Damages in
New York

NEW YORK. Dec. 12.-There was big
sensation this morning in the suit
brought by Frank S. Gray against Col.
Elliott Sheppard to recover some $4,000
for breach of contract. in part second of
the supreme court. Judge Beach sitting.
Mr.. Gray was business manager of the
Mail and Express. He had five years
contract at $4,000 year, and was dis
charged on Jan. l. 1890, about two years
before the contract was up.
Mr.. Gray was OH the stand this morn
ing. He testified that the only reason
the colonel gave him for his discharge
was that he was incompatible. There
was something about incompatibility in
the contract, but witness was not al
lowed 10 tell what the colonel said he
meant by incOmpatibility. Col. Inger-
soil. counsel for Mr. Gray. developed at
this point something OF a sensation. He
led MIR. Gray up to the point where he
said he had proven that there was no
ground of incOmpatibility, save one. and
that WAS when Oil one occasion Mr..
Gray refused to do something the colo
mel had asked him to do. Mr.. Gray
said that he received letter on July
%, 1855, from Col. Shepard. who was
then at Bar Harbor, but eX-Judge Noah
Davis, counsel for Col. Shepard, OBJ
jected to its being put in evidence. Col.
IngerS0ll said he wanted to show that
the only reason for the breaking of the
contract was because Mr.. Gray refused
TO bride public officers at Col. Shepard's
request. The judge oyerruled oDjec-
tions. and Col. lngersOll read the letter,
which. undated and unsigned, was as
follows:
: commissioners are not generally
paid until the bill is collected. Fifteen
per cent is the usual advertising COM
mission. In some rare cases, higher
rates may be paid. Undoubtedly % per
cent consideration would be very salts
factory. DO not have any trip up. Do
not use check until necessary. You
may have $40, 900 added TO the bill. Try
them. They are weak and yield easily"
T. Witness said the men he was to bride
were Police Commissioners McClave and
Stephen 3. French. Witness then de-
tailed a conversation he had with Col.
Shepard on Aug. q of the same year in
reference to the letter. Col. Shepard
asked hin, he said, if he got the let
ter. Witness said yes. The colonel
asked if he burned it and
told him he should always burn
things of that kind and not tear them
up. According to the witness, Col.
Shepard said: witnesses are here
now. You can go ahead" Witness
said that he refused point blank. He
had deposited the $4,000 check in the
Park National bank to his own credit,
and he gave Col. Shepard his own checks
for the amount. The check, he testi-
fed, was to be USED i'll bribing the COM
mssoners to give advertising to the
Mail and Express.
Witness Was not cross-eXamined in
reference to this matter. EX-Judge
Davis, in his address to the jury, char
acterized the bribery strry as a
'.schem, pure concoction of the wit
ness" He said that. in common with
all newspapers in New York, the Mail
and Express was in the habit Of paying
commissioners for advertising. prac-
tice which might be remarked as im-
moral, but really was not so.
Col. Shepherd was called to the wit
ness box after recess. Mr.. Parsons
asked Col. Shepherd if the $4,000 check
sent Cary was to go to either Commits
sioner McClay or Commissioner French?
mo, Sir" replied the colonel, land
the statement that it is is positive
faisehood."
WAS it to go to any police commits
sioner?"
mo; quite the contrary"
The colonel was asked to explain the
matter.
Before | went to Bar Harbor," he
said, Il had conference with Mir. Gray
about things generally. said to him:
Now, the Mail and Express is es
sentiaily a Republican newspaper; the
polling places for the county election
must be advertised in two papers. Can't
we get it?' Mr.. Gray said he would I'M
dertake to get the advertising, and after
ward MIR. Gray told me that he had
learned that a certain firm of solicitors
controlled the police advertising. tie
said that for $1,000 we could get the con-
tract, and | sent he $1,000 from Bar
Harbor. 1t was to be used, Of course,
in paying the commission of this firm
of solicitors as advertising agents.
Afterward, when l had occasion to
speak to Gray about derellction
of duty he said: 'l've got Il letter OF
yours that will take care of me and pre-
vent you making any changes he
gave me to understand that it was the
Bar Harbor letter. l told him that gave
him no hold over me and demanded its
return as confidential epistle. He said
he had torn it up and thrown it In the
waste basket. l said that was no way
to destroy papers. After Gray was dis
) charged his counsel, eX-Judge Often
choefer threatened me with the publica-
stion of that letter and offered to give it
to me if would settle the threatened
suit. Gray himself tried to blackmail
me-"
4, After some further testimony, the
colonel stepped down for moment,
and Mr.. Warrell, his private secretary,
was called. His testimony was unim-
spOrtant.