Municipal Corruption.

Auckland Star, Volume XVIII, Issue 69, 23 March 1887, Page 3

Municipal Corruption.

All England is to-day diseasing the i-sue of the case of municipal Jbribery at Salford, Lancashire, with special interest because, although it is often charged that the whole governing system from the War and Navy down to th 6 veetr> is honeycombed with fraud, this is the first time it has got into Court. Hunter, who ia the Gas Engineer of the Corporation, was recently charged by a coal merchant, named Lever, in a letter to the Mayor and Aldermen, with exacting commiasions of from 25 to 35 cents a ton on all the great amount of coal he bought. Hunter brought a charge of criminal libel, the effect of which was to prevent Lever from testifying in his own behalf. The four days' trial developed the facts that practically all the coal merchants in Lancashire had known fnr years that Hunter was thus plundering the trade, that the Alderman had seen him spending £5,000 on an income of £800, and investing £2.000 in a single enterprise without ever asking a question, and that the practice was a common one among like officials in other corporations. The Judge changed sharply against Hunter, specially blaming him for closing Lever's mouth by a criminal instead of a civil action. Tho jury acquitted Lever umicl loud cheer? from a crowded court, which the jiidge was [jowerlest> to prevent. Lever was followed out ai:d cheered in the streets ol aJancheotti1 by a great timing. U'hsu hi, reached his home in Bov.dou, ho was make the object of a popular demonstration by bmdsof fcratemen, delegations, etc., although the result of tho trial had only been known an hour or so. Numerous trials will follow, and, perhaps, lead to general inquiry. If they do, the state of things revealed will rival affairs disclosed in New York,