Page:Federal Reporter, 1st Series, Volume 2.djvu/762

 UNITED STATES V. SACU. 756 �This was an indictment, under section 5440 of the Eevised Statutes, for eonspiracy against the government. One Lewis had died at Hoboken, devising the greater part of his estate to his executors, in trust, to be applied by them to the reduc- tion of the national debt incurred in the war with the rebel- lion. Jane H. Lewis had filed a caveat to the will contain- ing this devise, and had adduced a large mass of testimony to prove that she was the widow of the testator. This testi- mony was subsequently shown to be false, and the alleged widow eventually filed a formai renunciation of her claim. The defendants were thereupon indicted for conspiracy. Jane H. Lewis pleaded guilty, and was used as a witness for the prosecution. �Mr. Hoffman, for A. J. Park. Mr. Mayo, for Facia, AUison and others. Mr. Keasbey, U. S. Dist. att'y, for United States. Nixon, D. J., (charging jury.) The indictment in this case is found under section 5440 of the Eevised Statutes of the United States. That section provides "that if two or more persons conspire either to commit any offence against the United States, or to def raud the United States in any manner or for any pur- pose, and one or more of such parties do any act to efifect the object of the conspiracy, ail the parties to such conspiracy shall be liable to a penalty," etc. �The offence, you perceive, consists in two or more persons conspiring to defraud the government in any manner what- ever, in a case where one or more parties to the conspiracy shall do any act to effect the object — that is, to effect the fraud. It need not be successful. It may faU short of the actual commission of the fraud. Merely agreeing or combin- ing together to commit the fraud is sufficient to constitute the offence, without any loss to the government, if any one of the parties has taken a step towards its execution. The section is very sweeping in its terms, and was doubtless intended to meet the party to the fraud against the government on the very threshold of the perpetration of his crime, and to ren- der him. liable to its penalties before the oonsummation of the fraud. ����