| Show 1 1 alafe ASSESSOR OF THE grann GRAND 17 UNITED ite D STATES 1 lyT eral EBAL REVENUE assessors office D district of utah salt lake city march 21 llo lio editor deseret levs my attention has lust rust been called to sour your local articie article entitled retracted 11 permit meto moto me to say that your information concerning moy toy testimony before bedfor 0 the thoi grand grana jury is entirely erroneous I instated state afo to that body hody that the villainous cupl attack dide made upon me several weeks ago was a private affair and that I 1 did not think it necessary for them to inquire into it I 1 further stated I 1 hoped to be able to meet te the villain and would then settle it I 1 have never attempted to emulate a ridiculous story about about an attempted assa J but in every 12 instance stance whew when asked about it have always given what occurred ed and the reasons as 3 believed roe ron foe for which the attack was made I 1 respectfully JNO P F fil WE received the above letter from dr taggart this morning A As wi will be seen seed it refers toa to a small local ai article fible which appeared eared in yesterdays issue of the tho rap dews aws on the subject of the ridiculous story about an attempted assassination Bassi nation of which dr taggart was the defect object it is not anew a new subject to the public every one ond has heard more or les ies lesaout bout it one evening jowh towards ads the iatter latter part of last january mr jno P taggart ti 8 assessor 0 of f internal revenue for this territory by some means had the sleeve of his coat torn and wad the thi skin akin of his arm abraded oc or broken immediately the report wen gout tout out by telegraph an and written correspondence that an attempt had been made maae by some person or persons to assassinate the assessor of Int internal einai einal revenue for his zeal in attending to the of his office who the author autho of these reports was we do not know but we have lye been credibly inform informed eil ell that before twenty four hours had bad elapsed the reputed victim hau haa told at least two different versions of the torn coat sleeve and the thel wounded arm reo one party hebard if behave been cor con informed that be he had been attacked to another we have heard it stated he said that a blow biow biad had been aimed almed at him with a knife and that in warding it onn his coat and arm were cut again we have heard that thab he acknowledged privately that it was a hoax about his being attacked he bad been playing ngin ng in the post office with a bull pup and the ani animal inal inai had seized him by the arm broken the skin and rent the coat sleeve bleeve and tb that at was all there wa was of it among the cit elt citizens leens liens I 1 mormons cormons Mor mons and non mormons cormons arthe the story of this igat attempted I 1 assassination has been looked cupoli vo an excellent joke we haye have not met a man who bell believed believed eved far for one moment that the aa story ty was wap anything buta but a hoax the we have reason neason to believe belleve been anxious to have it go out that behas been a victim to toom official olai cial zeal iveas it was a cheap way of getting fame how loudly it would speak 1 1 of an of fiddis officers faithfulness to the tho government to have three villains we bei be bet i aleve three was vas the tha number a to kill hill him himbe hambe she I 1 causo cause cam cau of his de determination Wrin r to eieg execute ute ahe the duties of ok his office wIt without holit fear or 09 favor it la Is no nd meant mean thing 9 ef oraman to have harej courage to re repulse I 1 ise ISO the otho attack attach of three armed med desperate villains W assassinate himl himi tew few such euch strength and ana cou rage tage tage such a scene properly described would thrill the readers headers of the thet romances of sylvanus syl Byl vanus cobb tr jr K whether the assessor was anxious t chave the story of the attack credi tedor tedon not not mot the public must ramt judge for itself but iBn x teut tit it looks as if that was the feell feeling ng itro rathe fact that about the ame he erea reached ched the east the le fOlI following dWing article was vas published in the internal bevenue revenue record and hud has never been contra t f ime imm t iaci e vf 1 1 T A time timm th tire mormons cormons seem to bellowing be the example eathem et them not long aby agaby philadelphia i roughs boughs dr john P F taggart ra recently appointed united states assessor for the territory of utah was atta attacked 0 ed b by three ruffians near his bis residence salt lake city and received a severe wound in the arm from froma a knife it was in the night and quite dark at the time but the doctor fortunately say savy sav the principal assailant assail assali apt in time to parry a blow biow intended to be too fatal failing in their atlef attempts apts they then theu nned fled it appears that dr fc bad had offended the saints by bis hia delty fidelity fi deity to the interests of the government and the immediate cau causa of this attack upon his life was an ar assessment he made on their ab so called church property although the mormons cormons have always been lieen in a position ot of almost open hostility to the tho unite d states government still this outrage and that at philadelphia show the some legislation by oong Cong congress relas rejas better calculated than any we have had protect revenue officials official sin in the di discharge of their thein ll 11 we now come egme to the letter Jetter which mr arthas written to us aull ana which appears at atthe the head heda of df this tul at article tible it appears from it that tha behas been summoned before the grand jury and th that thai a it he has his been interrogated b by that body in relation to the attack which it has been said was made cupoli upon him this under the circumstances was eminently proper whether the assessor of ily lil internal revenue put in id circulation the stories which are told fold or not makes but ittie uttie ittle difference 1 I tiley tey I 1 are in cardula tio nand he was the proper person to interrogate respecting tho the nor gor or falej ty of them this thia community has haa a grave charge made against it it is said that the people of salt lake take city offended at the tha Assessor assessors ls fidelity to the tile interests of the government have prompted adhn an attack upon him with intent to murder him 7 it is a charge of ea serious a it nature involving not only the character and reputation of the community but of eief every indi individual in la twel the that th it could kotrbe ignored butac we may credit the Ap assessor sesso of internal intern at revenues letter he stated tot toi the grand jury that the attack attach made upon him was eik a private affair y 1 and a nd further farther that he mar mark we the words odid rf not think it necessary foria hem to enquire into ftp thai he 11 hope bope fo able ib 6 meeta leet leeb mhd villains fond ond wd would tien taen settle U f now row either the Aies ales assessor sor sot of internal revenue has haa got hot given us the giac language he used on tha that occa ocea occasion slob I 1 or the grand jury signally failed in dolog its duty we can not think that t any grand jury would look to an assessor of internal for instructions as to what was ned necessary essary for its members to inquire into and what was not that has not beeri the custom in the bast past and we can not that it Is at the present ay ao we understand the law it was the duty of he grand jury to ask john P taggart any questions that might be necessary to elicit the whole truth upon this subject and such an evasion as that 1 I did not think it necessary for them to enquire into it should not have been tolerated for a moment these questions every witness a aa we under understand stand the law is fi bound to answer provided they do not 0 implicate criminally himself and if a witness refuse to testify it is the duty of the prosecuting 0 filcer officer to bring the ahe witness before the court and compel an answer to the questions propounded or in case of refusal the witness be committed for contempt until he shall abide the order of the court the questions that were feces spry ears eary to propound to the assessor adesso of internal revenue we can scarcely imagine would gdula implicate him he therefore according to his hla own own showing atoo stood 4 in hi defiance of the thet grand jury and aud virtually sald said thab that ib was none of its had been wen do nehe intended to settle that matheron mst mat teron tenon hib bis own account he addin bretter hi J 1 I farther further stated I 1 hoped to be abye tol to toj meet the villains and would then ettle settle i it arwe aibe by iby are aro wa aeto to understand that this model officer jike this thib mentor this 1144 ph harlies ardsee of whose foul soul 14 laii shocked at the wiek wIck wickedness eane edne 83 w which h ich pre utah the crI crl criada daes which are ard commit committed ted tOd here and who in the excess of his zeal tor tod for foi these things to ba b chece d rushed off 16 washington td lift up Ms hb voice in id testimony again against atheni the tho on territories that thal thai thad hei he contemplates private revenge thijs twp Is the only construction that can be put u upon on the language of his letter if ge he made this statement as he himself says he did to th the a grand jury it be icamen the duty of the prosecuting certo bring him before the court or for the purpose of entering into bonds to kee ree keep keer the peace We know Vo not where ghere th or bas enu acquired his hia ideas pf af settling wrongs bal bat in this thia country his bli and ad othra statements to the tha contrary standing the mode be hei suggests in set bet 1 biln giat gilt privately is i not permitted we have had one private settlement al 4 ready the theodius odium of which attempts have been made to fasten this community wedo we do not want if another iother auch duch ruch such casa case ease dc was i decoyed decayed from bis his bed hed ed in the night alid and was stricken down this was a case ease where some man or men settled thel their r own real or imaginary wrongs we re peat that we wet do not want a repetition of such an occurrence mr taggart arthas ha no ido right were wera he ten times as important an ail officer as he be is j in a country where the do courts arts are open to spy say bay especially to a grand sud dud jury that he hoped to he able abie to meet the villains lains sand and would mould then settle beitle it in behalf ortho of tha community and in the name of an outraged public we demand that john johei P taggart assessor of Inte internal nisi nihl revenue be summoned be the jhb curyto jury to answer the necessary questions 0 o elear clear up tip this case he says mys ili ill iii in his letter wat that in every in instance I 1 when asked about it he has always given what hat occurred and abol the reasons as he ho for which the attack was made mild e he 1 I SQ from III hi own statement evidently know the ivi vii i VI villains ll 11 this should come cobie to light if it is 19 a private qu quarrel ayrel atrel ic let iet t us know linow it if he were really attacked by three villains and nd lie be knows t them h em and the reasons for which the at attack ack was made mado let the public know that t h at we have weltered under aids this charge long iong ing enough the grand jury jurs and t the e prosecuting sec officer owe to the public ethe the complete investigation of this case and I 1 especially 18 it due dueth tb good order and the sanctity of the thelah th elaw java that johnr john sohn R taggart ga rt Asies assessor sor soc of internal re revenue venue either give I 1 up hi his ls avowed intent of meeting the Vil vii lalus and an th khem them em 1 or enter into hords bonds ld liged the peace e 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