The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-07-09
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QUEER REVELATIONS
Prominent Clubman of the
City Sued for a Remark
able Grocery Bill.
WERE LIQUORS CHARGED AS TEA9
Serious Allegations Against a
Grocer Family Broken Up Be-
cause of the Discovery.

Testimony in a very remarkable case
was handed to Judge Henry Puster of
the First District Court this morning.
1t was that IN the suit of John H. Gar
ides, a grocer on C-ommunipaw and Cres-
cent avenue, against Mr.. Thomas Nc
Ginness, a wealthy property owner of
Clinton avenue, and some of the facts
disclosed are as sensational as the most
confirmed gossip could wish.
4 MIR. McGinness lives in a handsome
house directly opposite the Jersey City
Club, of which he has been a member
since its start. For nearly twelve years
he has bought groceries, ETC., from John
H. Gardes. Like most men he didn't
bother about the passbooks of the
grocer; didn't figure out how much soap
and candles he was charged for; but
when his wife asked him for a check to
settle the bill he handed one to her.
So this went on until Mr.. McGinness
heard ugly rumors that a member of
his household was ~betraying too great
a fondness for liquor and his bright,
pretty children were in danger of con-
terminating influences. He at once order
ed his servants to bring no intoxicating
drinks into his house on peril of dis
missa1 and imagined that would check
it.
WATCHED THE GROCER.
To Mr.. McGinness' surprise the danger
was still there and he was at his wits
end to discover how the drink got into
his house. He watched the servants and
errand boys and at last caught Grocer
Gardes' boy with a bag containing
empty beer and wh:skey bottles, in the
act of removing them to the grocer's
store from Mr.. McGinness' cellar.
Mr.. McGinness Immediately notified
Gardes that he must send no more
liquors into his house. But still they
came. and an investigation began.
When Mr.. McGinness looked at the
grocery bill for August last year he
found that Grocer Gardes had charged
him for 60 pounds of sugar, 3 pounds of
tea. 9 pounds of coffee and nineteen
small family. Then in September there
were AZ pounds of sugar, 3 pounds of
of butter, besides milk, though Mr.. Nc
WORDS WITH THE GROCER.
Meeting the grocer on the street MT.
for August and September, but he nd-g-
nantly replied
These charges are G~utrageou;s So ana an
liquors into my house and f~raudulently
setting them or my bill as sugar, etc.
! ! /, W WI ignt mot 40 - pay pay your ba bln a 9 aneer w yay
of doing business"
To make matters worse so democrat
ized had the MeGinness ho use ddl .g neI
to close up his house, take his wife away
to the country and place his little ones
under the care of the sisters OF st. Alloy
sius Academy.
In the meantime Grocer Gardes brought
suit to recover the bills and the testi-
mony was heard yesterday;
Counsellor William F. Midlige appeared
for Mr.. Gardes. The complainant testi-
fed as to the facts IN the state of de-
mand with the so pany POM pounds So OF sagar
John A. DENIM began to cross examine
BATTING THE GROCER.
Didn't Mr.. McGinness always pay
your bills by check?"
The grocer said yes and admitted that
for ten or twelve years he had @a sMnp 255lied
having objected to certain questions, Mr..
DENIM said warmly.
Your Honor, I will show you that this
charged for goods which he never de-
livered, but sent whiskey and beer in
stead, in spite of the warnings of my
CLIENT
Judge Puster allowed the lawyer to
bring out that McGinness had told him
two or three times not to send drink to
Gardes, that his bills were fraudulent.
Then Mr.. DENIM put Bridget O'Brien
and her daughter en- the land. Thew
are servants of Mr.. McGinness and
swore that when Grocer Gardes was
ordered to send two pounds of butter
they weighed it and found only one
pound.
Mr.. DENIM of the boy Murphy, an
other witness
he told me to mind my own business:
that Mrs. McGinness and he knew all
about it,"
Both servants said that the light
weight and the bringing in of whiskey
charged by Gardes as SUGAR and tea
We're unknown to Mr.. McGinness for a
long time. In fact. this queer business
had been going on for years, and to stop
it and expose such reprehensible prae-
tices this suit is vigorously pushed. Mr..
DENIM said that his client had
been tr.cked and deceived, and
IN spite of his warnings Grocer
Gardes had kept sending secret
ly Intoxicating liquors into the McGin-
ness household. The family had been
| broken up and the house closed, and all
because of this.
Mr.. Gardes admitted that he had sent
liquors to the house and that he had
been ordered not to do SO by Mr.. Nc
Ginness, but the items in his bill were
bona fide and the servants were mistaken
when they said he sent half a pound of
butter for two pounds. and three ounces
of tea for a pound, making up the diff
ference in drink.
Judge Puster, having heard both sides,
took the printed testimony and will de-
eide in a day CIR two.