Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1845-11-13
For the Green Mountain Freeman.
J. HOIcomb and his Wing Voice.

uAN hNNNN NNNNJ E1
ously demands their exposure;-and in no case is this
principle more applicable than to those who, by the
suffrage of their fellow men, or by their O,On setting up
occupy the responsible station of teachers, and editors
of public journals. Under these considerations, | have
concluded to furnish you with "the facts in the case"
in relation to the course pursued byJ Hocomb, editor
of the Voice of Freedom, (which, by the way, | sup
pose means, Voice to publish and Freedom to abuse
opponents personally; but in all other cases the "Voice"
to be "mum' at the discretion of the editor.
In the month of September last, an article appeared
in the Freeman under the head of Brandon election"
exposing some of the means used by the wings to car
ry the election of their candidate for representative
Mr.. Holcomb saw fit, in his "Voice," of the 25th of the
same month to notice it by copying one short paragraph
and making sundry comments in connection with a
scurrilous attack on r. V. Marsh, whom he assumed
to be the writer. Under the circumstances l felt call
ed on to reply; and accordingly handed in a reply on
the 29th, which he neglected to publish, or even to no
tice in his paper. On the 18th of October [ addressed
him the following note.
Mr.. Holcomb: SIR.-It has now been two full weeks
since | first handed in a reply to your comments on an
article IN the Freeman under the head of "Brandon
election" | deemed, as a matter of justice, that you
insert the article in the Voice, or give your reasons
therein for not doing it.
Yours, &c.
This note he returned with the verbal answer that
he should not do either. l therefore enclose the reply
to you, and if you think it worth the space, | should
like to have you publish it in the Freeman.
Yours, for the cause.
To the editor Of the Voice Of Freedom.
SIR:-You have been so very wise as to notice me
in your last "Voice," in connection with a Billingsgate
blast on R.. V. Marsh, under the head of " Brandon
election consider myself at liberty to propose a few
words for the next "Voice" to speak to the same peo-
pie. You quote one paragraph from my article in the
Freeman, force a construction to it, and then think you
have a "man of straw" so large and loose that you can
tear him all to pieces. | will admit that you are an a.
dept at such feats of glory; but let us look at your sue
cess at this time. By the way, | would observe that a
construction, giving a different meaning from what the
writer expresses himself, is good evidence that such
might have been the meaning, agreeably to the facts
in the case for it never would answer to alter a writ
er's meaning and then accuse hin of talsehood. If you
had published the whole article, your readers would
have known how large a portion of the statements in
the paragraph you quoted would have thus been estab-
lished but as you did not, and probably will not, |
would refer your readers to your own denials. And
1st What fraud, falsehood and deception were a.
mong some of the causes which gave the election to
E. N. Briggs?" Your denial is not there; | have look
ed your columns through with special reference to that
point, and Go not fndi it. 2nd. "illegal voting" "The
Liberty party had their due share of the Board that de-
cided such questions" "And as he, R. V. Marsh is
a lawyer, he knows there is a legal remedy for lille
gal voting" This is all you have said about it in the
shape of denial; and what does it amount to? Not a
denial. Sd. "Profusely treating with rum and brandy"
Now see your denial. "Mr. Bartlett says, no one or
dered liquor to be furnished in the way the five starred
man would represent, in his article to the Freeman"
Now, what does your denial amount to? 1t was order
ed, but not in the way" What way? "Profusely."
By whom? "No one" says Mr.. Bartlett. Very well. 1
will take your own version of the matter. "SOme of
wings in the village" told Mr.. Bartlett, the nearest In
keeper, to furnish refreshments to such as wished, at
the expense of those in the village" Here you have
the whole admission. 18th. Diminishing suppers gratis"
No denial, but fully admitted 9Th. "With the addi-
ton of many loco %votes.'" And how do you deny it?
By asking Scan any one say it was not a very brave
and bright chap that brought so many rational ideas in
to so small a compass" and acknowledge that there is
rot n Y,o;or,t,,. oc r,b,C. ,o+o.e - 4o,,o WopJorH, II
Scan any one say it was not a very brave and bright
chap" and | might add, wise editor too, that clustered
through nearly a column, endeavoring to refute one
short paragraph, and burst deny nothing. A parallel
occurrence, in miniature to "the mountain that labored
and brought forth a mouse" Is it not a virtual ad-
mission of the correctness of my whole article in the
Freeman.
"But to the facts in the case" One of your facts.
ar. V. Marsh, and some other men who voted the Lib
erty ticket, you have no doubt, previous to election
day, made four times the effort that both the other par
ties did to secure the election of their Candidates.
When you made that statement, if you meant to be
honest, | think you must have had a telescope, or some
optical instrument, that when you looked at the efforts
ofLiberty men you looked through the way that would
magnify a mole hill into a mountain, but when you
looked at the efforts of the other parties, the wings es-
pecially, you changed ends with the instrument, which
would make a mountain appear like mole hill. lean
account for your statement no other way. 1t does
seem that an editor, with his eyes open. must have
known better. One leading wing boasted, two days
after election, that he spent three days previous to the
day of election, in efforts to secure the election of E.
N. Briggs, and that he was not alone in his efEorts.-
Who is the Liberty man that made four times as much
effort--say, spent twelve days in electioneering-or
even as much time as this wing? Another of your
" facts" "The question of temperance was not up"
Just as though the question of a mans moral character
must be down when the wings say SO, and up, when
they will it. So it seems you would have it Well
that is a legitimate child of whigism-that he became
nearly full grown in 1914 when questions relative to
Henry Claws moral character must be down any how.