The Savannah morning news., 1901-11-12
THERE WAS NO FRAUD.
essays Carter's Answer to the Rule
TO Show Cause.


sosays Carter's Answer to the Rule
to Show Cause.
bunch of new papers has been filed
in he office of the clerk of the United
sites Circuit Court here in that vol
uninous, interminable and. apparently
in@plicable proceeding known as the
cater case. These papers are the an
sWers of former Capt Carter, his
brther, uncle and former counsel to
the rule to show cause why the funds
beonging to the principal defendant
should not be placed in the possession
of a receiver.
There are many reasons, all good
and sufficient, the answers allege The
principal objection urged by Carter to
placing his property in the possession
of the receiver is that it was never
obtained by collision with the former
| contractors on government work in the
| harbor of Savannah and Cumberland
sound, or in any other illegal or i'm
proper manner.
He declares that he acted only as a
disbursing agent of the government
in the payment of money to the con-
tractors and that every payment that
he made was approved by his superior
officers in the corps of engineers. In
any event he was only required to
exercise due care and diligence and
that he did. Every cent of the money
for the contracts, which to the best
of his ability he required should be
lived up to by the contractors in letter
and spirit, he paid over to them, and
rot a cent of it did he ever receive
back from them, either directly or in
directly.
Carter says he is informed by his
counsel that he was never convicted
by the court martial by which he was
tried of emblezzling any money of the
United States. but upon a section of
the articles of war which makes an
officer liable to punishment when mon
ey is paid out by him under mistake, or
to third party not entitled to receive
it, He has never been convicted. he
declares, of,embezzling any funds that
were ever the property of the United
States.
A third objection to the rule to show
cause is based upon the fact that the
affidavit to the truth of the allegations
upon which the rule was granted was
made by Edward I. Johnson, upon in
formation and belief only and lot on
personal knowledge. 1t is asserted that
it is against the practice of the court
TO cause defendant to answer upon
rule to show cause based on such aft
davits.
The answers of Lorenzo d. Carter,
the uncle, and /. Stanton Carter the
brother, of the principal defendant,
make substantially the same allega-
tions, though they do not go into and
discuss the case with the same fullness
as does the answer of the once cap
tain of engineers.
Messrs Mackall e. Anderson declare
that all the money and property of the
defendant that ever passed through
their hands was in their capacity as
his counsel, and that the facts con-
nected with the receipt and disburse-
ment were known to the government
at the time The government, through
its failure to enforce it's claim. is now
estopped from asserting it. They deny
all knowledge of any conspiracy or
scheme to defraud. At present they
have on on hand $3S035, which is the
property of former Capt. Carter and
which they hold as his counsel.
The answers of all the defendants
named to the rule were filed iii their
behalf by Mr.. Walter G. Charlton who
is representing them in this proceed
ing before the Circuit Court of this
district