Columbia  Couittt,  j

John  W.  Van  Valkenburgh,  being  duly  sworn,  deposes  and
says,  that  he  resides  in  the  city  and  county  of  Albany,  and  has
for  10  years  last  past.  That  in  the  year  1866  he  was  elected  to
the  State  Legislature  from  the  Second  Assembly  district  of
Columbia  county,  where  he  then  resided,  and  was  again  elected
to  said  Legislature  from  Albany  county  in  1873.
That  he  has  for  th.e  last  20  years  been  personally  acquainted
with  Louis  F.  Payn,  now  United  States  marshal  for  the  southern
district  of  New  York.
That  deponent  has  always  been  a  Democrat,  and  strongly
opposed  to  Mr.  Payn  in  politics,  and  more  especially  so  in  tiie
years  1867  and  1868.
That  since  his  election  in  186i6  he  has  frequented  the  sessions
of  the  Legislature  until  the  present  time.
That  he  was  acting  superintendent  of  the  Albany  and  Susque-
hanna railroad  fromj  1867  to  1872,  and  is  now  president  of"  the
Boston  and  Hoosac  THinnel  Railroad  Company.  That  deponent
was  a  witness  before  the  Erie  railroad  investigating  committee,
oonsiating  of  Senators  Matthew  Hale,  Francis  S.  Thayer  and!
Asher  P.  Nichols,  whose   report,    datedl    March  10,  1869,  is  in


i87

Tolmne  3  of  the  documents  of  tlie  State  Senate  of  the  State  of
New  York  for  the  year  1869  (No.  52).
