Waterbury evening Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1887-1895, 1894-05-26
BRIBERY NOT PROVEN.
The Senate Investigating Com
mittee Makes a Report.
KYLE AND HUNTON EXONERATBD.

mittee Makes a Report.
KYLE AND HUNTON EXONERATED
On-Progress Made on the Tariff Bill
| New England Commonwealers Reach the
CapitoI-Hoar and Harris Make Up.
| WASHINGTON, May 26.-The report of the
senate committee appointed to investigate
| the charges of attempts to bride senators
to vote against the tariff bill and the
charges of improper influences being used
in connection with the sugar schedule as
submitted to the senate today, so far as
concerns the attempted bribery of Sen
ators Hunton and Kyle, says:
sit appears from the testimony submit
ted that certain Charles W. Buttz of
North Dakota, but domiciled in Washing
ton since December last, where he has
been engaged as a lobbyist and claim
agent, did, on or about the LIST of April of
| this year, at the house of Senator Hunton
in Warrenton, Va, during the absence of
the senator, say to his son, Eppa Hunton,
Jr., that he would pay him contingent
fee of $4,000 if he would, by presenting ar
guments as to the pending bill, induce his
father, Senator Hunton, to vote against it.
''This offer was declined at once and per-
emptorily by Eppa Hunton, Jr., as set
| forth in his testimony, and the whole
| matter was communicated by him to
his father. Senator Hunton availed him
self of the first opportunity to disclose
the matter to certain of his friends in the
senate, as appears in the testimony, and
was in no other way connected with the
transaction.
Kyle and Hunton indicated.
at is also established by the testimony
that the same Charles w. Buttz during
the month of March last past approached
Senator Kyle of South Dakota with prop
osition that $4,000 would be paid to him
! Senator Kyle if he would vote against
the pending tariff bill. The said Buttz
when making this proposition also stated
to Senator Kyle that the money was in the
| hands control of an agent of certain
| bankers and capitalists of New York city
and that the money was in Washington.
Senator Kyles testimony is confirmed
by that of Mr.. Duncan McFarlane, clerk
to the committee on education and labor.
Senator Kyle is shown by the testi-
mony to have communicated this inter-
view with Buttz and the offer made to
him to several senators shortly after the
! said interview took place.
"Your committee are abundantly justi-
! fed in stating that the facts above recited
have been established by the evidence not
withstanding the denial on the part of
Charles w. Buttz, and they refer the SEN
ate to the testimony in detail in support
of this finding. Your committee find moth
ing from their investigation to impeach in
the least degree the honor or character of
! Senators Hunton and Kyle.
| ''There is no evidence to show the truth
of Mr.. Buttz's statement to Senator Kyle
and to Mr.. Eppa Hunton, Jr., that syn
dictate of bankers and capitalists had raised
sum of money to be used for the purpose
of defeating the pending tariff BILL or that
there was an agent of such a syndicate in
Washington, or that any money was in
! Washington for that purpose.
"Buttz denies that he made any such
statement or that he had has any
knowledge of the existence of such syn
dictate or that he was the agent or repre-
sent alive of any one. He further denies
that he has any money himself"
Investigation Goes On.
AS TO the offers of money to Senator
Kyle, the following is portion of the tes-
timony:
| The Chairman-Did you say to Senator
| Kyle at that interview or any other that
! ne COulQ nave Il large SUN Oh money IL ne
would vote against the billp
Mr.. Buttz-No, L never promised Mr..
| Kyle a cent
The Chairman-Did you say he could
have that? Answer my question, yes or
| no.
| Mr.. Buttz-What do you mean that he
! could have? That l would get it for him?
The Chairman-That he could have, or
that you would procure it-obtain large
sum of money in case he voted against
that bill
Mr.. Buttz-I could not say anything of
| that kind. But 1 will tell you what did
say. In this general running talk said
to Mr.. Kyle on several occasions that I
was satisfied there would be fund raised,
and that money would be offered. A man
told me here the other day, ''Buttz, 1 will
get a fee of SIS, 900 if the tariff bill is de-
feated, and will give you $1,000 of that
if you will find out how Kyle will vote. "
Said he, He is from your state. I said
mo; South Dakota" He said, IF you
find out how he is going to vote, it is worth
81, 900 to you
These samples show the character of the
Buttz testimony and probably explain
| why the committee made such brief re
port on the matter and dismissed the case
as inconsequential.
During the afternoon Senator Caffrey
and ex- Congressman Ben Lefevre were be-
| fore the committee. Both witnesses vol
unteered their appearances. Their names
| had been connected with the operations of
the Sugar trust in it's supposed efforts to
influence legislation by Mr.. Edwards in
his letter to the Philadelphia Press in
which he asserted that Senator Caffrey
had drafted the sugar schedule in a COM
mittee room of the capitol in the presence
| - nfh61.c f-siaoIlxy to
his interests including Mr.. Lefevre, while
the finance committee was waiting in an
| other room.
The Stubborn Newspaper Mon.
The committee took up the question pre-
Bented by the refusal of the newspaper
men to respond to the questions and has
not yet decided upon course of action.
| There would seem to be but two courses,
either of which the committee can pursue
| In view of the absolute refusal of the wit
nesses to testify in response to the ques-
lions put. They either can pass the point
over and drop the proceeding in that di
rection or report the situation to the SEN
ate, where the duty of determining wheth-
! Or the witnesses can be compelled to testi-
! fy will devolve upon the senate itself.
Ii the senate should decide to make an
effort to compel an answer, the witnesses
would be brought before the bar of the
senate and the committees questions to
them repeated by the vice president. If
in that case the witnesses should adhere
to their determination not to answer, the
senate would decide whether they should
be punished, and in case of decision to
lmprison the witnesses they could appeal
to the courts of the District through ha-
beas corpus proceedings on the question
Of Jurisdiction, and in case the decision in
| no ohoI11d tain fo
decision there would still remain an ap-
peal to the supreme court of the United
| States.