Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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History Of The Remarkable Greene And Gaynor Case. The arrival of John F. Gaynor and Captain Benjamin D. Greene in Sa vannab makes the story of their al leged crime of general interest. The events leading up to the present, as related some time ago by James Creel man in the New York World follow: On April 24, 1888, Captain Oberlin M. Carter of the United States corps of engineers, 'Eook c!harge of the im provement of rivers and harbors at Savannah, Georgia, for which work millions of dollars had been appropri ated. He so managed matters that the Atlantic Construction company, con sisting of Joh-n F. Gaynor, Captain Greene and E. H. and W. T. Gaynor got control of the contract. In May, 1887, Capcain Carter was appointed military attache of the United States '.legation in London against his protest. Captain Gillette, .the engineer officer appointed to suc ceed him in charge of the Savannah improvementEs, charged Captain Car ter with a cohspiracy to defraud the government in connection with the harbor contracts. In December, 1897, the secretary of war ordered the trial of Capt'ain Carter by courtmartial. The charges were, roundly, that Car ter drew the specifications for con tracts so that no firm but the A:tlan tic Construefion company would dare to bid on the work, that inferior work and materials were accepted and that the surpluA moneys ab.ove the actual cost were divided pro rata between Gaynor, Greene and Carter. Division Of The Plunder. It. was shown on .the trial that these payments were frequent, and that when they were to be made Captain Canter would go to New York, where he would draw a treas ury order for the-.full amount, plus $75, his expenses on .the journey; tfhat this check would be handed -to Greene, and that within a few days Gaynor would -hand his check for one-third of .the payment, plus $75, to Carter. The dates of the checks thus drawn correspond with Carter's visits to the Union League Club int New York, of which he was a member. It was es timated that Carter's share of the plunder amounted to $72,528. Car ter was found- guil:ry and sentenced to a fine and imprisonment, in addi tion to- military degredation. It took a long time to secure Cap tain Carter's punishment, and it was said that Gaynor and Greene were moving heaven and earth Ito :h-ush the *matter up. A few months after Car ter's conviction Gaynor, through the use of money, was elected a member of the democratic state committee from Onondaga county, New, York. It was said ethat he -was elected in the interest of Dayid B. Hill, but went over to Richard Croker, thus giving Tammany control of the state corn nmit-tee. In December, 1899, Gaynor and Greene and the other' members of the Atlantic Constru-ction company were indicted by the United States grand jury at Savannah for a conspir acy to defraud the United States of $5594.o A few days later .the in dicted men surrendered to Uni'ted States Marshal Shields, jfn New York. Then followed a long struggle against extradition to Savannah. Gaynor and Greene had appeared in Savannah and had each given a bond of $4o,ooo. Step by' step -the case was fought, and when the United States supreme court finally sweptr away all obstructions between them and their trial, Gaynor and Greene fled to Canada, and their bail bonds were forfeited. I-t is said .that the bonidsmen were afterwards reimbt'rsed by the fugitives. The two imen went to Montreal firstE and then to Quebec. The ex tradition commissioner lived in Mon treal, and they wanted 'to get as far away from him as possible. Tfhey set themselves up in ,the Chateau. Frontenac, lived sumptuously and hired lawyers. Extradition Commissioner Lafon taine, at Montreal, issued a *warranr for the arrest of the fugitives on the application of the United States. Then followed a dramatic event. On May 15, 1902, a party of detectives wentr to Quebec secretly with Commissioner Lafontaine's warrant, pounced upon Gaynor and Greene, thrust them into closed cabs, put tihem on the tug Spray, the swiftest vessel on the S-r. Lawrence, and started at full speed fo.r Montrea?. Gaynor shouted from the cab wMdow to *a frienid in the street, "I am keidnapped!" A detet ive put his hand over the prisoner's mouth. Bu:t that signal was enough and the cry was immediately raised by Mrs. .Gaynor and -her friends. The prisoners' lawyers went about Quebec declaring that their clients had been kidnapped. At once a boatload of Quebec officers was sent to overtake the Spray and bring Gaynor and Greene back. The dhoase up .the river was an ex citing one, and the news spreading rapidly, the progress of the two boats up the :St. Lawrence was eagerly watolhed. But the Spray was too fast to be caught. Realizing this, the chief constable of Quebec, armed with a writ of habeas corpus from Judge An drews, of :That city, hurried to Three Rivers on a special train, and setting out in a boat with his officers ordered the Spray to -halt in t)h.e queen's name. No attention was paid to the chal lenge. Gaynor and Greene were tak en to Montreal, where Commissioner Lafontaine committed them 'to jail. The high constable of Quebec hur ried back to Judge Andrews on a special train and secured another writ addressed to the Montreal jailer, who surrendered the prisoners; and so Gaynor and Greene went back to Quebec on a special train, -feating their official rescuers on the way. So fearful were the exiles that They would 'be kidnapped again, that they asked to be committed to the Quebec jail, where they felt reasonably safe from the Montreal and American detect ives. As the case developed, i:t was evi dent that Gaynor and Greene had laid their plans deeply. The law firm em ployed by them included in its mem bership the premier of Quebec, a son of the deputy attorney general, and the Canadian minister of justice. The son of the extradition commissioner of Quebec was alsd employed by the fugitives. The prisoners' lawyers appeared be fore Judge Andrwes and consented to the vacating of .the writ. Thereupon other writs were issued ' by Judge Caron, who had thad nothing to do with the case, were served upon the Quebec jailer. A's soon as he 'heard of this, Judge Andrews dismissed the writs and ordered Gaynor and Greene to 'be taken to Montreal. 'Now came the final trick. Judge Caron issued a cwrit of certiorari com pelling Com'missioner Lafontaine, of Montreal, to bring all t1Ae papers in tbhe ext.radition proceedings' into the court a-t Quebec for review. 'Immedi ately afterward Judge Caron allowed the prisoners to leave the jail and go to live at the Chateau Frontenac. A< few days later 'the prisoners declared in. court, through, their lawyers, that Mr. Enwin :The lawyer representing' the United States had offered to con sent to a dismissal of the case on the payment 'of $500,ooo. Mr. Erwin de nied the charge. Greene admitted that he offered to pay $200,ooo in settle menet. On August 13, 1902, Judge Ca ron discharged Greene and Gaynor and dismissed the extradition proceed ings. After this Mr. Erwin reported the facts to the United States government< and charged that Gaynor and Greenei had so interested eThe officials con nected with the administration of jus-( tice in Canada that the ends of jus-t tice had been defeated. The United1 States appealed the case -to the privy council-1wvhose decision sent the matter< back before the commissioner. Another legal battle was fought, and the fugitives lost again. Then1 they rwere brought 'back sto the United ( States. Cured of Pea Zoup.C The following was frequently told by Captain Martin Burns, of Bangor, Me., as one on him:t The cap-tain was very fond of sp1.ite pea soup, an-d before leavin~g por't he always put in *a good sized stock of I split peas. On this occasion, however, I his negro steward got whole peas, and so the soup that the captain call e'd for on the first day was thrown t away. The next day pea soup was again served, and this time the .cap'tain, af-a ter fhaving eaten a hearty meal, sai-d to 'his steward: "Steward, 'that's the .t kind of soup I like; we'll have some( more just like it tomorrow." "Fo de Lawd's sake, cap'n," ex claimed the steward, "ma jaws am 'so tred chewing dem whole peas dat a Ah just can't chew nom'. The captain never asked for pea HOW TO READ. There Are No Set Rules, Eeach Having His Standard. New Orleans Times-Democrat. "Men have curiously different tions on the subject of reading, an mos-t all .the literary men have something to say on the subj said an observant man. "Eme laid down three rules. He said: I do not read a book t1h(at is not a old; second, never read any b that are famed, and .third, never any book but what you like. it is not likely -that many per can follow these rules. In the place, it is quite impossible to serve anything like an arbitrary in the matter of reading. There i reason why a book should be a old before we venture thlrough pages. If -the book is good it is as good in fresh print as it wil at any other time. Besides, books printed so rapidly now that if we to wait a year before reading a I after it comes out, we should be very much behind the times. could no't talk to our friends a ontemporary literature, and woul :lassed as a back number. Emers second rule is worse than the All books do not become fani It is much easier for a bad boo blaze out and win popular atten Besides, how s1hiall we know whe a book is good or bad without r ing it? The same point may be- ri as to *the third rule. How shall know whet-her we like a book or without reading it? True eno some men like Carlyle. can 'ski: book and get a fairly good idea c but this is not a -satisfactory wa: rneasuring a book's value. I have little oonfidence in the literary j' mnent of -thLe skimmer. The fact is ter all, that severy man must ccording to his own notion. riend may like one book, I like ther. He may have one stan, >f literary excellence, I may have >ther, and so on. Rules for r ng cannot be arbitrarily fixed. nan nature is too fickle; and the1 :oo much .difference between thei peraents of men .to admit of uch thing. Getting Too Personal. hicago Tribhune. "Let's go out in your back ya said Tommy Tucker, "and play in woodshed." "We haven't got any woodsli ;ai.d the other boy. "Have you >ne in your 'back yard?" "Keep wood in it?" "None." "What's it used for?" "None of your business." CHEAP EXCURSION RATE Fo Columbia, S. C., and Return Southern Railway. The Southern PRailway will sell :ursion tickets 'to Columibia, S. C., e-turn, from all. points within State of South Carolina, and f Tharlotte, N. C., Asheville, Wilm :on, N. C., Augusta, Ga., and Sa' iah, Ga., and intermediate po rcount State Agricultural And hianical Fair, October 24t.h-2 :905, daily October 22nd., .to 26th. hisive, and for morning trains sce iled to arrive Columbia before r 3ctober 27., at rate of one first c are plus 25 cents plus 50 cents -ound trip, 'the fifty cents cove me admission to Fair Grounds. For Military Companies and B ands in Uniform 20 or more on 'icket, one cent per mile travele< tac'h direction plus arbitraries per ta. Dates of sale same as for ( i'ans as sihown above. 'inal Limit All Tickets October 1905. Southern Railway, in addition he regular passenger t,rains runt m -convenient schedules to Colunm vii operate special trains Octobe: Ln'd 26th., between .following poi Between Branchville, Camden, S er and Columbia. Spartanburg. lolumbia and intermediate po nders'on, Belton and intermed >oints to Columbia. For further informnation, apply .ny ticket agent, or write R. W. Hu nt, Div. Pass. Agt. THE'GREATER STATE FAIR. ao- Everyone is Going to Attend I al- the One Great State had act, i Reunion. rson C irst, The Day of Prosperity to be Celebrated. C year The Tidings From Columbia for the yoks .Fair on October 24 to 27, Inclusive. read Cheap Pwates. But sons With the continued prosperity first that is now blessing this State there ob- is every indication that the State rule Fair for 1905 will be more largely s no attended than ever before in its his year tory. Last year the South Carolina its State Agricultural and Mechanical justI Society celebrated its annual Fair I be at its new home in the southern su are burb of Columbia. As is usually are the case, there were some little de >ook tails that could not be finished for ;001 the holding of the last Fair, but President Guignard has had a full year in which to have all of these rough spois smoothed out, and the dabe outlook is that never before in its ' history will the State Fair have a irst. more stfcceesful Fair than that. ous. vhich is to be held here on October < to 24th, 25th, 26th, and 27th, inclusive. Hion. The inquiry for space at the ther grounds, as well as from small ex ead- hibitors, indicate a very general ap 1ade preciation.of the value of such ex we hibits. A great;1deal of interest is not being shown in the mechanical de ugh, vices for use in agricultural pur .n a suits. From the inquiries that have i it been received there will be quite a of number of labor-saving devices ex but hibited, and, of course, all up-to date farniers want to see these things. af- There is, however, a far more in read teresting phase of the State Fairs My than the mere exhibits-in the build an- ingys on the ground, and that is the lard opportunity for intercourse between an- the people of the State that the ead- State Fair offers. Hu *e The railroad rates are always , - is cheaper for the State Fair than at :em- any other time, and more people aycome to Columbia during Fair Week than during any other of the fifty-two weeks of the year. In fact, pretty much everybody who is any body in South Carolina is here dur rd," ing Fair Week. Relatives, friends1 the and acquaintances from all parts of the Stat-e gather in Columbia toj ed,'' talkc about the joys and sorrows of got the year, and to join in the festivi ties. It is the one week that is given up almost entirely by the people ~of the State towards having a good time, and the family gatherings and reunions that have already been planned for the coming Fair Week all go to show that this custom at each succeeding State Fair is being S. more emphasized than ever. One of the particular attractionsI Vafor a great many folks will be the Vafact that the 65o cadets of Clemson College will be encamped here (lur ing the 1entire Fair Week. They ex- will give dress parades and drills and feach day while here, and will have te ample time in which to mingle with. rom their friends. in- A great many people in this iaState now are taking a keen interest* a-in football. Two of the best games nt'of the year are played here during Me-. each Fair Week. In one of thce 7tn- gantes the team of the South Caro i-lina College participates, and in the 1-other Clemson College en gages.I ***i Both of these teams are strong and lass manly, and two exciting games are for to be expected. ring The southern territory is devel oping a very strong horseracing rass field. More and better horses are one brought here to participate in the I in races. The finest racetrack in this :ap- territory is at the State Fair ivi- Grounds, and it has been estab fished at a considerable expense 29, Every comfort for the patrons as well as for the fine racers has been to provided. Lig The city of Columbia, in addihir bto extending a cordiai welcome tc b2a the visitors, has arranged for fret 25street attractions. Even if therc t.were no free street attractions, the apeople of South Carolina ought not ato miss the chance of meeting their lts friends from a!! parts of the Statt aein Coiu.abia on. Oictober 24th. 25U1 The police in Greenville have no tified the gamblers of that city that When Labor Did Not Tell. 'xchange. A home missionary who visited sing Sing prison took occasion to ave a heart to heart talk wirh one of ,e convicts. "Don't you know my friend," said e, "that crime never brings success? t is only achieved by hard labor." "I did six months of it at a stretch nce," said rhe convict, "and I didn't ame our no richer than I went in." IIEADQUARTERS FOR China Ware, Cut Glass, Pictures, and Novelties of all kinds. WO RK BY A \ewberry Steam Laundry Co. 3est Mineral As phalt Roofing. C. H. CANNON, lear G., N. & L. De pot Cheap Trips California All the Way Daily, September 15 to Oc tober 31. "Colonist" rate from St. Louis only $30 and Chicago $33. Tickets honored in Tourist Pullmans and chair cars. Touiist Pullmans run daily, St Louis to Los Angeles by way of Kansas City and the Santa Fe through without change. On request will tell why you should visit California this Fall, and why you sht uld travel on the Santa Fe. Write to J. C. Sartelle, S. F. & P. A.-, 16 No. Prior St., Atlanta, Ca.