Waterbury evening Democrat., 1906-03-24
JEROME IS AROUSED.
Wanted Judge to Define Cam
 paign Contributions.
CORTELYOU AND BLISS BROUGHT IN
District Attorney Would Definitely Settle as to Accusations Against Insurance Officials Named In
 the Armstrong Inquiry.

NEW YORK, March 24. - Wher 1 Judge O'Sullivan in general sessions 1 fatly refused to charge the grand jury i in point of fact as to whether the crime ; of grand larceny had been committed 1 by the officers of the insurance compa
 nies in paying contributions to the i campaign fund, but held that it was the grand jury's duty to determine 1 from the facts whether such a crime 1 had been committed or not, District of the court and entered into a con- troversy with Judge O'Sullivan which
 brought out sensational developments in regard to his own investigation of insurance matters.
 From your honor's charge" MT. Je- rome said, T deem that the grand jury has not received the information. What
 theAgrand jury wants to know is wheth- CT the insurance officials committed
 grand larceny in donating political con-
 tributions without having that feloni-
 ous intent which is a supposed essen
 tial of all crimes.
 ''The district attorney, as legal ad-
 wiser, and the grand jury are perfectly
 able to go ahead with ordinary cases
 of larceny, but what we want to know
 is whether political campaign contri-
 buttons under the circumstances given
 by the insurance officers constitute the
 crime of larceny. The decision of the
 grand jury in this matter is all impor-
 tant and will affect interests and emil
 nent men in this community. 4
 Il appeal to your honor to sit as a
 magistrate and let me present to you
 dispositions upon which your warrant
 may follow for the arrest of George B.
 Cortelyou and Cornelius N. Bliss, for mer treasurer of the Republican cam paign committee, on charges of receiv-
 ing stolen goods.
 If your contention that crime may have been committed on the stated facts which have been presented to the grand jury holds it also makes George W. Perkins, partner of J. Pierpont Morgan, felon, who testified at the insurance inquiry that he paid s45,000 to MT. Bliss and Mir. Cortelyou.
 ''If you back up your judgment by warrant the question will be determin- ed by court of final resort, the most eminent lawyers both civil and crim- inal will be retained by both sides, and for the people I will retain that emil nent jurist, Alton B. Parker"
 Mir. Jerome then asked Judge O'Sul- livan if he would entertain his deposi tion. Judge O'Sullivan refused to do so. Judge O'Sullivan in refusing to sit as magistrate said that he couldn't understand why this great commotion had been raised at this time.
 Tt has been your practice, Mir. Je- rome, to take matters from the magis- trates to the grand jury. Why take this matter from the grand jury to the asked Judge O'Sullivan.
 MT. Jerome flushed, and, rising, he said he would like to answer that question. i
 If this grand jury takes your ad- ! vice rather than mine 1t will indict these people," he said. 1
 This is a case of such paramount importance that the question involved can be decided none too soon. There Is not a financial institution in this city whose officers could not be ad- judged felons in case the grand jury should find an indictment in this mat ter"
 The district attorney spoke at the , dinner of the Delta Upsllon club last ' night and scathingly attacked those who have criticised him for inaction in f Insurance prosecutions. In defending his course he referred to ex-Judge AL | ton B. Parker as "a man, believe, who ran for president once"
 By the serving of the complaint in a i suit brought by the Mutual Life Insur- lnce company against Richard A. Nc Curdy. its former president, it was earned that the company seeks to re- over from him S3,370.341.6s. which, it $ alleged, the former president paid ut wastefully and without reason for -arious objects, including S292,O00 for purposes. Startling facts hitherto never formally set forth are brought to light in the complaint. The Iummons in the suit was served on dr. McCurdy before he left for Eu- ope. but no inkling of it's nature came ut.