Putnam patriot., 1929-12-12
RECALLS BITTER LAW
 SUIT AGAINST FATHER

don. who was himself a lawyer O high standing in Connecticut
 In addition to his great legal abil
 ty Mir Halsey's personal character was above reproaeh.
 The respondents had for counsel o' record Putnam lawyer and another from Plainfield, but at the trial the! were assisted by a prominent New London lawyer who had been for time judge of a United States count
 Trial Begins
 The trial began. as have alread! said. on "Wednesday. August 6, 1873 before committee of two judges wh' were appointed by the superior courf for Windham County and l was in at tendance throughout the trial.
 Moriarty claimed that the commis sion house and Mason had made false returns of the sale of his goods anc had thereby defrauded him of thu amount of money stated in the bill of complaint. He was the first witnes: and supported his case by mass of evidence from his correspondence ane account books covering his bushes: transactions with Mason and the com mission house for the years during which his contract with Mason had been in force. Moriarty was subject ed to a searching cross examination by the respondents New London counsel. He answered all questions asked him without evasion. At one point in his cross examination he was asked to give the details of a certain conversation which he had had. many years before the trial. with a person who later appeared as a witness foi the trustees He gave this conversa. tion up to a certain point when he was asked if that completed it. He replied ''No" and asked to be excused from giving the rest of 1t; his request being denied he asked the court for permission to consult his counsel. af- ter which he again took the stand and the cross examination was resumed. His reply to the question was then given and was in substance the fol lowing: This man in asking me about a law suit which I was having sug- gested that the way to win the suit was to buy the judge" adding. "as did in my suit with the United States government"
 The day was very hot and thun- derstorm had been gathering all the afternoon. At the very moment when Moriarty answered the lawyers ques- tion, the storm broke with a vivid flash of lightning which was followed by a terrific clash of thunder. The aged lawyer and ex-iudge dodged and fell out over the table in front of him as if the hand of the Almighty had smitte nhim. It happened that this ex- judge was the man whom the res pondents witness had said that he had bought l. was a dramatic scene. and, was only a young boy, the of that scene will re- main with me while memory lasts.
 Denies Bribery
 Of course the man who had said that he had bribed the judge after wards denied it on the stand, but would anybody have expected him to admit that he was guilty of such a crime? And of what value would such a mans testimony be on any mate rial point?
 Moriarty clearly showed by his testimony that the commission house has made false returns on the sales of his goods and that Mason had been a party to this fraud.
 The case for the trustees was tain ted throughout with perjury and corruption. When young Earl Philip Mason was called to the stand he at tempted to make a speech about black mail etc, but he was promptly squelched by NJ. Halsey. His testi- mony amounted to nothing.
 John H. Peet. of the commission house testified for the trustees saying that he knew Moriarty slightly and that he did not see him often.
 Now. as a matter of fact, 1t was my fathers custom to make frequent business trips to New York and his business with the commission house was always done with Mir. Peet For a number of years those trips were never less than twice a month and he frequently went every week. Mir. Peet came to Putnam occasionally and when he was in town l always saw him at my fathers office. He had also been a guest at my fathers house, had spoken to us about his family, particularly mentioning his son John n.y." as he called him, and yet he ex. pected the court to believe that he scarcely knew the man with whom he had been doing business for year: and from whom his house had receiv. ed thousands of dollars for selling Moriarty's goods. He was born and lived in the same town in Connecti. cut in which P. T. Barnum was born, so perhaps he believed, with Barnum. that the public liked to be humbugged It he had lived during the administration of Presiden, Roosevelt I think that Mir Roosevelt would have made him a charter mem. Der of the Ananias Club. He certainly belonged to that class of individuals who were described by an old army friend of mine as sublime and tran. quil liars"
 Become Bankrupt
 About ten years after .he close of this trial the firm of Whittemore Peet. Post < Co. became bankrupt and Mir. Peet was compelled Co ook for a position in order to support hi. 'amily. Accordingly, Marville W Cooper gave him a clerkship in the ap. p.afeae dfxrfetgp s, fka Na..4 W..A