On several occasions Sheriff Agnew has endeavored to mislead public opinion by asserting that "Hesing's paper," in uncovering his delinquencies, follies, and crimes, was merely venting a personal spite, since Hesing had been trying to "run the Sheriff's office" and had been foiled in that attempt. In order to enable the people of this city to form a correct opinion upon this subject, I desire to give them a full and explicit statement of whatever personal relations have existed between me and the Sheriff.

To begin with: I never asked a favor from Agnew in the shape of appointments for any friend of mine for an office under him. The only exception, if it may be called an exception, consisted in this, that, after Peter Hand had been recommended as jailer by a number of prominent citizens of Irish birth, I joined in their recommendation. But I did not, either in that or in any other case, take the iniative in recommending a new appointment.

Later I was informed that the Sheriff was going from bad to worse; that he was scarcely ever sober; that he was a regular visitor of houses of ill-fame on Fourth Avenue; that he was a frequenter of well-known gambling hells; that his 2appointees in the County jail were committing most detestable outrages against decency and discipline, by holding perfect orgies under the very noses of the prisoners. The climax was reached when the Sheriff, having been scarcely six weeks in office, became the recipient of a diamond star to the value of two thousand dollars, the gift of those very disreputable characters, who are the curse and bane of our city. I then publicly exposed the shameful transaction in such terms as it deserved.

What may be less generally known is that the Staats - Zeitung, previous to the last election took a decided stand against the extravagantly high enrolments of the Sheriff's office and its intention to insist upon a vigorous cutting down in that respect was clearly indicated.

There, probably, is to be found the real cause of Agnew's bitter and venomous spite against me. In conclusion I desire to say most emphatically that I have never desired or attempted to "run" or to "control" either the Sheriff's or any other office. That I have been active in the politics of this community is well known; but all my efforts have been confined to the organization of political parties and to the management of political campaigns. They have never been directed to the petty business of finding men for subordinate positions under the 3officers elected by the people. Where my advice has been desired, I have given it, but have never thrust it upon any one. To this assertion every department of our municipal government will bear witness. So would Sheriff Agnew, if the truth were in him.