Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, IA [i.e. Ind.]) 1839-1854, 1842-07-02
From the Fort Wayne Sentinel.
]. l.. WILLIAMS DEFENCE.
lCONTISUED


following extracts. Ia his letter TO his consiitu
en,s published ia March last, there Is the follow
ing sentence in nlIuson to the report OF the Iu-
vestigating committee:
nIo attempts absolutely TO whItewash, only
o,e solitary case and that one his DictatoriaI
Uiebness Jesse l.. Williams probably the most
firtest and mos, needy subject for The process, Of
the whole batch. Tina, man, hose word IN ref
erence to every thing connected with the man.
apement of the system, has been supreme la W
with the board of internal improvements the
whole engineer corps, and may add the execu,
tive and legislative branches of tho Government,
hold responsible for more mischief than all the
rest of them put together.
Ir his more recent attack published in the Go
shen Democrat Of the l2h Of May, he uses the
following language:
"In examining into tho causes Of the unprece-
dented calamilies which have paraly wed The ener.
ples Of tho State, and blasted all her highest
hopes resulting from measures IN which Mr.. w.
acted so conspicuous part, Nc"
And in tho same paper Of the l0h May, IN
continuation Of his tissue Of mlsrep presentation,
he publishes the following paragraph:
..Turning in disgust from the heBrtless pageant
~ and Of praise, thus pressed into the ser.
wee to swell the triumph OF this retiring 'ChIef,"
| looked back upon the heaps Of ruin which mark
ed the lines of all our public works, and asked, If
these were tho monuments upon which postcrity
was TO read the machless skill Of the hcro OF these
august cerenonlals! There lie buried the hopes
of Indiann, and with them the millions OF treas.
ure which has doomed her posterity to the ,hral-
dom of tribute to foreign capitalists, for many
generations; and her citizens abroad, revlle for
the nf.u,v which furnishes her escutcheon, blush
and hang their heads her Incrt dIble disgrace,
while here we ure marshailiag a "irIumph' for
The "Chief" whose chief merit Is, that he has
been the grand architect OF all these sepulchres
of cur blasted and buried hopes Satisfied that,
however ..creditable to him. 1t might be, perad-
he had ma lie
in" This service, yet it did not rebound much to
the credit Of the guardians OF the public veal, to
bestow upon him this adulation, unqualified, as
il was urdeserved, determined to enter my pro
test, though the hazard OF being denounced as
.'his tnalIgncr," by the trumpeters Of his fame
who in their zeal for lis protection, seem TO have
not one thought care TO bestow upon the rum
ed state. therefore entered the following note
Of dissent" to this part OF the report"
In exhibiting in lis true light the lasting MUS
tee intended To be inflicted by this paragraph, 1t
will be necessary to look with some minute ness
into our public history for several years past
Bearing 10 mind still the truth that with an intel
igent community mere assertion, however posi-
tive does not pass :or proof. shall sustain ev-
cry position taken, by reference TO document and
page. In that respect at least. there viii be Il
striking difference between this communication
aud the letters Of my accuser.
The peoole of the State who have watched mar
rowly the course of their public men, must have
observed, before now, the ef1rs on the part of
certain aspiring politicians, (few IN number am
happy to say who, members OF tho LegIsla-
ture. have taken efficient part in enaciIng and
continuing in force, the laws under which the sys-
of internal Improvement was created and
sustained, now, with more shrewdnesS than
manliness of character, seeking TO screen them
selves from their just responsibility, by raising
most vocIferous hue and cry, somewhat upon the
"stop thief principle. against those whose duty 1t
has teen TO carry out the very laws which these
accusing gentlemen themselves have enacted. -
And this brings TO view the question:, to the
proper division Of responsibility between the au-
thorty which enacts an ImprovIdent law, and the
officer who executes that law. | submit to the
judgment of the public, whether 1t is just that
Mr.. Chamberlain who as member OF the Legs
laure voted for the bill of 1886, and who has
been prominent IN sustaining the system by his
votes. asst as II trdS carried on, as shall present
ly show, should now be permitted by mere force
OF noisy defamation TO cast from himself all
sponslbItv and fix 1t chiefly upon the individual
who served the State IN the capacity of Engineer.
and who, under the laws and usages had the
RICH, even TO suggest his views TO the Legislature,
except upon subjects merely profess Ional. and
whose duty was execute the lazy and the or.
ders of the board OF internal Improvement.
Mr.. Chamberlain says, that every thing
CONNECTED with the system, my word has been
supreme law, &c. In respect to every question
of a merely professional nature, all sucn as the
this remark may he true. should not have held
tho station of Chief Engineer hour. if nv
views IN relation 10 such questions had not been
treated with due respect. But IT the remark. as
seems to be the case, is intended to apply to the
extent of the operations and the number of the
lettings. it is not sustained by the facts 10 this
respect, shall be able TO show before have done
that the condition of the Safe at this time would
have been very different had more weight been
gwen TO the views entertained bv me. and less TO
The views sustained by Mr.. Chamberlain.
Before proceeding further with nv defence. it
VIII be essential. as preliminary, 10 inquire who
u IS that writes the several paragraphs | have /
quoted; and what there in his course upon this |
subject, tina, should eniitle him so peculiarly 10
become the dispenser of blame upon others A :