Rensselaer Republican, Volume 15, Number 41, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 June 1883 — THE STAR-ROUTE TRIALS. [ARTICLE]

THE STAR-ROUTE TRIALS.

Wh»t the ftwecßtfons Hare Cost the Government Dorsey Writes a Letter to Secre- »' tary Martin. The first Etar-route trial began one year ago Thur-day, says a dispatch from Washington. It lasted three months and one day. The second trial began Dea 4,1882. From the date of the beginning of the preparation the Government has been engaged quite two years. Further proceedings, civil and criminal, already begun, are likely to last much longer. The trial just closed, to say nothing pt the one before it, which was of remarkable duration, is said to have been the longest jury-trial on record It was also one of the most expensive. The cost to the Government and the defendants has been very heavy. The array of legal ability, as to numbers at least, has been great On the side of the Government, Deride, at times, the full force of the Department of Justice, with the Attorney General at the head, three special attorneys, and frequently more, with a corps of expert detectives, postoffice agents, inspectors and other servants have been employed. Indeed, the whole machinery of the Government has been at the command of the prosecution, and frequently in use. The amountspaid to special attorneys are given below. To this gross sum should be added the cost of securing the attendance of witnesses. Generally they were from a great distance and their number was about lbft Under this head for both trials the cost will be in the neighborhood of 8200,000. The total cost to the Government, since the prosecution began to the present time, will not fall short of 1500,000. To the defendants the expense has been very great. It has been borne principally by two or three of them. Seven lawyers, generally high-priced, have been employed, and other expenses have been borne. Though the cost to the defendants has not been as great as to the Government, it has come near enough to it to cause a heavy and constant draught on the pockets of those who had pockets with something in them. The following are the payments made by the Government to special attorneys to the dates specified. The statement will throw light on the general question of cost of this trial:

BLISS. Nov. 10,1881$ 2,500]00t. 20, 1882 5,000 Jan. 14. 1832 3,888 Nov. 16, 1882 5,193 April 13, 1882 5,427 Jan. 24,1883 4,471 Mav 3, 1882....... 878 March 22, 1883.... 5,700 May 31, 1882 7,426 Oct. 14, 1882 6,224 T0ta1546,208 Nov. 10,1881.52,500 Jan. 4,1882. 2,500. Totalss,ooo COOK. Deo. 23, 1881.51,699. Feb. 4, 1882 5,250 T0ta156,949 GIBSON. Feb. 6,188255,000 KEB. March 13. 1882... ,sl,oOoDec. 15, 1882 7,000 June 14, 1803 370DeC. 18,1882 342 June 16, 1882 5,200 March 22, 18835,000 Aug. 22, 1882 233 May 25,1883 5,427 Sept. 18, 1882 5,000| T0ta1527,873 MEBBICK. June 12, 188255,000. March 5, 1883 7,500 Deo. 15, 18821'5,000 April 23,1883 5,000 T0ta1..532,000 Alien A. Pinkertonsl,3l7 Allan A. Pinkerton 1,602 Total <.$2,949 ; Grand total. .$125,979 To the above payments others are to be added, which will considerably increase the aggiegate paid to the Government lawyers. Dorsey has writ en the following letter to the newly elected Secretary of the Republican National Committee:

Gen. John A. Martin, Atchison, Kas. Dear Sib : At a time when I was confined in a dark room,not able to see thewalls that surrounded me, I received a letter from you whioh I answered by dictation, as I have been obliged to do for many months. I supposed my answer was sent to you, but it turns out that the stenographic notes were never transcribed. I. regret this, for the reason that I would not wish to feel guilty of discourtesy to a man who has always been just to me. When I was appointed Secretary of the Republican National Committee, at the request of Gen. Garfield, and accepted the place at the earnest solicitation of Gen. Arthur, representing the Grant side of the House, and the Hon. w. E. Chandler, representing the Blaine side, I made tWe same request of Gov. MeCormiek, who was my predecessor, that vou have made of me. I had at that time a fanciful notion that a record had been kept of the Republican party that showed its life and purpose, and that would leave a permanent history of Its honorable existence, and what had. transpired in 1860,1860, 1864, 1868 and 1872, and that that record belonged to the Republican Na'l' tional Committee, and that the Secretary was the proper custodian of it. The answer received from Gov. McCormick was that no record had been kept : that the bonfire of forgetfulness was built to eat up what he had a right to assume to be the evidence of honesty at the end of each campaign. By the great mass of people of Intelligence in the North, it is believed now, and will be believed for all time, that there is not a scrap, a word, a dot, or a line in any record that will show a wrongful act on the part of any person chn? ged with the duty of representing the Tiepublican party during a National campaign. Mr. Chandler was, unquestionably, the ab:est man who served as an executive officer of the Republican National Committee, being one of the first, if not the very first, who was - recognized as tho real iiead of the Republi can party in the sphere assigned him. It was, therefore, only proper that those who followed him should be governed by the precedents he laid dowp. Mr. Chandler gave Gov. McCormick no records.' Gov. McCormick, in response to a letter similar to the one you have written me, told me he had no records to give. They were my predecessors, and you are my successor. I have nothing more to give to you than they had to give to me. I have a great mass of papers relating to the last campaign. They are chiefly made up of. letters addressed to me and letters written by me to others, in which no one could have the slightest interest except to obtain curious information. When I accepted the secretaryship I made it a ccndidon ret n i«cnny o* money subscribed for political purposes should come Into my hands., and there never was a dollar of the subscribed funds received by me or paid out by me personally. Money was used under my direction, but all my personal expenses, and -the expenses of the clerks serving with me, were paid from my own pocket, amounting to something over 113,0u0. I say this much lest you may think I have records showing the receipts and expenditures of 1880. The only records of that kind I have are the paid ch take, my own contribution and my unfortunate bank book showing charges of my own folly. I regret more than! can tell that I made it possible that such records should be in my hands; but they are here, and 1 think it best to keep them as a reminder of the splendid gratitude of dishonest power. Ido not owe the Republican National Commttee a cent of money or a grain of thankfulness. In the midst of the storm brought about by the efforts I had put ioith under its directions, and in its behalf, a brutal assault was made upon me at the last meeting of the committee, when I was not present to defend myself. Not one among the forty members present had the courage or manhood to resent tne miserable cowardice of an ambitions hypocrite. But never mind that, the balance sheets of justice will some time be written by the hand of honor. So far as you are personally concerned, if there is any paper in my possession, or any suggestion I can make that you think will be useful to you, I will be gratified to respond to your call Stephen W. Domex. Alexander Mitchell, of Milwaukee, is laid to be the richest man in America ■,