Year: 1878

THE CASE or JUDGE BLODGETT.


The Associated Press has taken the trouble
to communicate to the world good deal of
so-called news concerning the proposed i'm
peachment of Judge Blodgett of the United
States district court of Chicago. That
snews,' y however, has been of the Jug handle
description-all on one side, and that the
side of the judge. The movement has been
alluded to as conspiracy, and every means
adopted to prove that Blodgett is a badly per-
secuted man. The GLOBE is not of those
newspapers that regard charge of mall
feasance in office as prima facie proof of
guilt, but in this case it cannot fail to ac-
knowledge that if there is not good ground
for belief in the lack Of integrity of Judge
Blodgett, there is at least room for suspicion
that he has not discharged the duties of his
Office with that impartiality and fairness that
are incumt ent upon officials in his high
position.


Judge Blodgett was for many years the
attorney for one of the leading railroads
centering in Chicago, and was appointed to
the bench directly from that position at q
time when there was considerable litigation
affecting that road in the United States
courts. Although he had been an attorney
in interest, he did not scruple to sit in judg-
nnent where the interests of the
company he had formerly represented were
at stake, and his rulings at that time were
the subject of invldious remark. He out
lived that scandal, however, and it was sup
posed up to three years ago that he would
make good and just judge. But when
the whisky thieves were brought before him
for trial, his partisanship became so evident
that many of the best attorneys in
Chicago refused to conduct cases before
him. With the mandate of President Grant
before him-SLet no guilty man escape
he so ruled that the most guilty of the gang
an infamous lot of thieves and perjurers-
were allowed to turn States evidence and es-
cape punishment entirely, while few-a
very few-minor thieves were punished by
the infiction of mild fines and still milder
terms of Imprisonment AS result of those
trials, in which about thirty persons were
compromised in frands upon the revenue
amounting to more than million of dollars,
half dozen paid nominal fines to the gov
ernment and were in confinement, in ele-
gently appointed apartments, for few
.aonths. Every guilty man-every man
who was radically guilty-escaped.


When the conduct of the government Off
GERS in Chicago came under review about two
months since, Judge Blodgett took an active
part. Among those accused of misfeasance
was the register in bankruptcy, H. N. Hib-
bard, an especial pet Of Blodgett's, who had
grown rich from the pickings of his Office
He had been charged by the bar association
with extorting illegal fees, and under its di-
rection his case was submitted to the grand
jury. Judge Blodgett left the bench and
went into the grand jury room on behalf of
his friend Hibbard, and attempted to brow
beat them into returning 'sno Indictment. -
He failed, for the jury was not to be intimi-
dated, and Hibbard was indicted. He then
sought to set aside the Indictment for in
formality, but the assistant district attorney
succeeded in preventing it, and temporarily
putting stop to his extra-jadlclal proceed
ings. This last judicial outrage had the eff
feet of leading some of the most reputable
members of the bar to ask his impeachment.
Their conduct, however, has raised storm.
The members of the bar who have pro6ted
by his outrageous decisions are in
dignant at the proceeding, and so, it ap-
pears, is the Associated Press. Nevertheless
it is evident that Judge Blodgett has greatly
exceeded his judicial authority in diverse
matters, and that if he does not deserve I'M
peachment and removal, his official acts
need investigation. We are sure that when
the whole truth is known, the judicial er-
mine will be found to be considerably soiled.
One thing is certain: no judge who occupies
the bench should be allowed to discharge the
functions of his Office as long as there is the
suggestion of fraud, corruption or favoritism
about him.