file. I think Mr. Woodward brought it to me some time in December. There had never a word been said to Mr. Woodward that that report had been made, nor had anything been said to me. By reason of that report, they got at least a quarter's pay. Mr. Woodward was as much astonished at finding this report on file as I was.

I was going to say that from the time my eyes struck that report, whatever remaining vestiges of belief I had that Mr. Gibson was honest and sincere in his efforts on behalf of the Government, were all dissipated.

By Mr. STEWART:

Q. What is the date of that?-A. It must have been some time in the latter part of December, 1881, or first of January, 1882.

By the CHAIRMAN:

Q. Did you say you would furnish the committee with a copy of the report?-A. Yes, sir; I have a copy.

Q. Has it been transmitted to either house of Congress?—A. I do not know.

By Mr. HEMPHILL :

Q. Mr. Woodward made a general report in which he embraced this report of Gibson ?-A. No, sir. Mr. Woodward, in going through the post-office files for the purpose of examining the case, took up a great bundle of papers, and on looking over them he found this report of Gibson. He then brought it down and showed it to me. We then made inquiries as to how it came to be made.

Very soon after that we thought it behooved us to protect ourselves, and we concluded the best thing to do would be to change the combination of the safe in the office in which the papers were; and we there fore had it done.

Q. As against whom?-A. Against Mr. Gibson, and Mr. Finley, a boy who had been acting as clerk for Mr. Gibson. I do not think Colonel Cook ever had the combination. Those two, with Mr. Woodward, and some other person in the office, had the combination. Mr. Wood ward thinks he originated the idea of a change of the combination, but I have an impression that it was my suggestion. At all events, it was done with the concurrence of both of us. We sent for the proper person, and had the combination changed.

Q. Who has had the combination since that time?-A. I think it was arranged that Mr. Woodward alone should have the combination, and I think when Mr. Woodward had occasion to go away, then it was given

to me.

By Mr. FYAN:

Q. Whom did you want to prevent getting into the safe?-A. We wanted to preclude anybody from going into it except Mr. Woodward. I wanted to preclude Mr. Gibson, if you wish me to say so. I will remark right here that after the change in the combination no paper of ours, no evidence of ours, got out which we could not trace and show had gone out before that combination was changed. Immediately after the change in the combination, Mr. Gibson came to the office one day and tried to get into the safe. Finding the combination had been changed, he walked out of the office, and I do not think he ever came in again.

Q. Do you mean to convey the idea that before that time information had gotten out?-A. I mean to convey the idea that I had no question

in my mind that Mr. Gibson and Cook had in their possession our evidence, and that some time before the trial of the Dorsey case portions of that evidence were given to the defendants. In an examination of the witnesses on the trial of the Dorsey case, questions were asked which never could have been asked except on information obtained from our papers, and which papers had never gone to anybody, had never been accessible to anybody that I know of, except Mr. Gibson and Mr. Cook.

Q. Your belief, then, was that Gibson and Cook were selling you out to the other side ?-A. Yes, sir; and I have no hesitation, if you desire to know why I think so, in telling you. On the second trial of Dorsey, I subpoenaed James W. Bosler. Mr. Bosler I had known for two or three years. Before the second trial had commenced, Mr. Bosler came to me and said, "I want to know if you are going to indict me."

By the CHAIRMAN:

Q. J. W. Bosler, now deceased?-A. Yes, sir. He said to me, "I want to know if you are going to indict me." I said, “ Bosler, no; though I think you have been distributing this stolen money." He said to me, "That is a little sharp." I said, "I mean this: you advanced money to Dorsey upon assignments of contracts. I have not any evidence that you have done anything that subjects you to the criminal law. I think, however, you were instrumental in securing the arrangement by which Rendell, after he had told his story to the Government, concluded to go back upon the Government." He protested that that was not so. I then repeated to him in a subsequent part of the conversation that I had seen no evidence on which I thought he could be indicted. I said to him, "You are not going to run away, and I will, therefore, say to you without any hesitation, possess your soul in patience.'" I added, "I will not tell you that I am going to indict you at any time. I will say to you, however, that if ever I change my mind as to your relations with this case, and find that you do come within the terms of the law, I will inform you that I have changed my mind." He said he would glad to know it if I did so, and thanked me. I saw him at various times as we went along with the cases.

During the preparation for the second trial, and while looking for all the additional evidence that we could get, I made up my mind that it would be very desirable to have Bosler's books. He kept the accounts of this combination. Among other things claimed by the combination was that it did not make any money. I thought I would like to see how that was. I sent to Carlisle, and had Mr. Bosler subpoenaed. He came on at once to see me, and begged not to be examined. I said, "I will have to examine you." He said, "You do not believe me guilty?" I said, "No; I do not." He said, "Anybody who goes upon the stand who has taken assignments of contracts and carried them out is going to be more or less smirched all over the country; people will make no distinction and my character will be blackened; I do not think you ought to put me in such a position." He came to see me two or three times about it. Finally I told him that I wanted to get at the books. He at first said there were no regular books kept, but finally admitted that there were books in which his other accounts were kept, in which certain entries were made relating to that business. I told him if he did not furnish the books so that I might inspect them privately I would put him on the stand and call upon him then to produce them. He said his books contained a great many other things that he did not want to have get out. I told him we did not have any right to examine any

thing but the particular pages of the books which related to this matter, and the court would not permit us to do so, even if we were disposed to attempt it. He was very angry at my efforts to get him to go upou the stand, and said he had accounts of some political contributions that he thought the Democrats might like to get access to.

By Mr. MILLIKEN:

Q. Access to the money, or to the fact that contributions were made! -A. I think he had in his mind the question of access to the fact; I do not suppose anybody wanted access to the money.

By the CHAIRMAN:

Q. Did he object to Mr. Merrick seeing the papers?-A. No, sir; I do not think he did. He said he did not want this exposure made, and finally it was agreed that I should examine his books in the presence of a clerk of his. I then went to Mr. Merrick to see whether I had better agree to this arrangement.

By Mr. FYAN:

Q. Who was the clerk ?-A. I do not remember his name. It will be very easy to ascertain. I say "clerk"; it was somebody he had there. I told him myself that he had better have somebody there. This arrangement was entered into with the consent of Mr. Merrick. Before that examination was made, however, the fact developed itself that it would be necessary to put Mr. Bosler on the stand to prove the receipt, or the non-receipt of certain letters for the purpose of admitting secondary evidence upon that subject. That led to a delay, and the thing was off. I again subpoenaed him, fearing that the first subpoena, owing to the negotiations being carried on after its issuance, might not hold good. I therefore had him again subpoenaed. The result was that he brought his books from Carlisle. The first time he brought them, he did not bring the stubs of his check books. I went to his room, and went over his books. His accounts of his receipts and disbursements of the combination were kept in a book not as large as an ordinary journal, or ledger, rather-a thin book. There were various things in it. The entries had been made from time to time along apparently, and then at the end there had been a good many bunched. Those books can be gotten, if the committee desires them. At least I have been told they are still in the possession of Mr. Bosler's estate. Down at the end of the page were some entries that were written nearer together than the lines. Then there had been a settlement with Mr. Dorsey. That settlement had taken place within two or three months of that time, and it had resulted, I think, in showing a balance of $10,000 or $12,000 profit up to that time. I looked over the entries, and I found an entry of $2,500 paid to A. M. Gibson. I asked Mr. Bosler what that was. Bosler declared that he had not promised to explain anything. I had reserved all the while the right to put him on the stand if the examination was not satisfactory. I said, "Very well, then; if you are not disposed to explain I will have to put you on the stand." He then said that was money. I think he said he paid that in two items to Mr. Gibson. I think he said he paid it himself. I asked him what he paid it for. His reply was, "You know." I said, "I do not know, except I know you are not one of those men who pay something for nothing." I asked him again; he said, "You know." Then I persisted. I said, "What did you pay that money for?" He said, "You know." I said, "What was it for?" He said, "I paid it for information, you know."

I said, "A. M. Gibson had been Government counsel, and you paid it to him for information?" He said, "Yes."

By Mr. FYAN:

Q. What was the date of that payment ?-A. My recollection is that he said it was after Gibson ceased to be counsel for the Government. I ́ think to those closing items there was no date on the book. They had been put into the book at the time of the settlement between him and Dorsey. I think he told me they were paid in two items, and in that preceding summer. That is my recollection, but I may be wrong about it.

By Mr. MILLIKEN:

Q. Was the information communicated by Gibson communicated while Gibson was in the service of the Government?-A. No, sir; I think not.

By Mr. STEWART:

Q. It was information gained while he was in the service of the Government-A. Mr. Bosler did not explain that.

Q. Have you any doubt about it?-A. No, sir; none whatever. You will bear in mind that this is charged up to the expenses of the star-route contracts.

By Mr. FYAN:

Q. Then Bosler was paying out the money to Dorsey & Company? -A. The books showed an arrangement under which Bosler, who took up the contracts-I will not say the books showed it but the arrangement in point of fact was that Mr. Bosler was to make advances at a certain rate of interest, and then the profits were to be divided.

Q. Bosler was a partner ?—A. Yes, sir; he became a partner in one

sense.

Q. As you understood, these conspirators were paying this money to Gibson-A. I understood it that those were Dorsey's accounts. This was only Dorsey's interest in the routes which had been separated from Vaile's and others. Dorsey had become assignee of all the interests in the routes except those of Minor and Vaile. He became the owner of J. W. Dorsey's routes; had become the owner of Peck's. Vaile and Minor had taken their interests, and separated them. This was the account with Dorsey, and Dorsey, in the settlement, had paid one-half of the expenses of this amount paid to Gibson, and that was charged in the these star-route cases.

By Mr. FYAN :

Q. Who paid the other half?-A. Bosler paid the other half; in the sense that the aggregate expenses were first to be paid, and then the profits were to be divided.

In the same account further on-I think it was further on, though I am not sure of that--but right on the same page, at all events, there appeared an item of $4,000 or $5,000 paid to Cole. I am certain it was not as small an amount as $2,500.

Q. Do you mean Mr. Cole, the partner of Mr. Cook ?-A. Yes sir. His initials were given. I have forgotten what those initials were. I asked Mr. Bosler what that was. He said he did not pay that. That was paid by Dorsey. I told him he knew what it was. He said he did not know, except what Dorsey told him. I asked him what it was. said, in substance, that when he and Mr. Dorsey were settling, Dorsey brought in some memorandum; and among other memoranda showed me, was this payment to Cole. He said at the time of the settlement he

He

and Dorsey were not on entirely amicable terms. That is, their relations were a little strained, and he objected to this item.

By the CHAIRMAN:

Q. Who objected -A. Bosler. He objected to having it put into this account. He was obliged to pay half of these items. Bosler feigned ignorance of who Cole was, and asked Dorsey. Dorsey said, "You know perfectly well who he is. He is Cook's partner." He said he remarked to him, "Why did you pay this amount to him?" He said "No matter, I paid it for the benefit of the interest."

Q. Did Cole perform any legal service?-A. Mr. Cole had been in the first trial as counsel for Rerdell.

Q. Did he appear in court?-A. Yes, sir; as counsel for Rerdell. He appeared on the record, and he got Rerdell to make an affidavit, which the published proceedings show, Judge Wylie denounced as perjury, and charged counsel with having substantially gotten his client to commit perjury; there was a general row. It was an affidavit in which Rerdell undertook to state what occurred in the grand jury room when I was there. It was an effort to attack the right of the assistant district attorney, representing the district attorney, to go before the grand jury. The proceedings are all published.

By Mr. FYAN:

Q. You have told us what Bosler told Dorsey; what did he tell you!A. I saw Bosler. He told me that he had told that to Dorsey. He did not tell me when this service was rendered. I do not think the books showed when the payment was made to Cole. He did not tell me for what services it was rendered, or anything about it. He simply said Dorsey told him it was for the benefit of the interest. I think Mr. Cole did not appear for Rerdell, or anybody in the case after the first trial. That is my recollection.

By the CHAIRMAN:

Q. When interrupted you were going on to state something about Mr. Gibson not having acted properly as Government counsel.-A. Yes, sir; I was led to believe that his action in regard to the Black Canyon route was not consistent with his position as Government counsel. There had been various things along which led me to think he was not acting as he should act in view of his relation to the Government. There was an earlier matter which I cannot undertake to go into here, which led me to believe that Mr. Spencer and Mr. Gibson, and somebody else were concerned in an improper arrangement as early as the time of Mr. MacVeagh's administration as Attorney-General. There was a claim which it had been confidentially arranged should be referred to Mr. Gibson for investigation. It came out incidentally afterwards that Mr. Spencer had gotten information of that fact, and then, when a change was made in the matter of the reference and it did not go to Mr. Gibson, that fact was treated as preventing the carrying out of similar schemes.

Q. What claim was that?-A. I do not remember in detail what it was; it was some post-office claim.

Q. When was that?-A. I did not hear of it until after I came into the cases, but I think the transaction must have been at or about the time I came into the cases; it may have been a little later.

Q. I do not understand the force of the suggestion.-A. The point is that the matter was to be referred to Mr. Gibson to investigate. It appeared that the matter to be so referred was in the hands of parties out