The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1849-09-22

letter contains this order sent TO Col Childs by Mr.
| Lay, in the of Major General butleI. Inc
order seems TO have been entirely ioIgoteh py ooi,
| Childs Without insisting upon this, however, 1
merely establish here that these letters do not IN
any way affect the affrnations OF NJ Port.
| [ will say the same of a voluminous paper con
itarv Court assembled at Puebla the 9th of May,
ls48 The decision of this court which establishes
the ownership of NJ Domercq, is utterly foreign to
our claim, our claim Is not against the right OF
| M Domercq to the ownership of the tobacco, but
| il is simply demand for Naturalization for the
losses sustained by NJ Port, in consequence of the
| violent seizure of that property from him
come at last, Mr. Secretary of State, to two doc
ulnents, the only ones which could have led you TO
refuse admit the claim presented 10 you by me.
These two letters from Col. Chds to the Secre-
tary of War, the one dated February %, lS4s, the
other February %, lS49. These two letters agree
well enough with each other; they both impute
fraudulent maneuvres 10 NJ Port, and accuse him
of colusion with NJ. Wengierski, the secretary and
interpreter of Col. Childs.
This accusation, sir, is of such character that
it should not be made on light grounds. If Col.
Childs furnish the proof of what he advances as
fact, he ought TO do So or rather he should have
done so the day when he ventured TO appear as
an accuser. The very words of the deposition
made by Col. Childs on the 18th of November, lS47
before the military of Puebla, deserve to be
here quoted: 'The witness is of opinion, says the
deposition ''that NJ Port in collision with his
secretary; that they had criminal understand
| Will each W speculate toDdCCO, 10
the injury of the first purchaser, Domercq. His
for this opinion is that so large quantity
of tobacco could not have been sold in Puebla
without the fact being known TO all the tobacco
dealers Col. Childs's secretary died short time
after the sale made by the Quartermaster. Col.
Childs has every reason to believe that his
tary was to receive two dollars per bale from the
last purchaser, NJ. Port, and he has been informed
that thousand dollars due To the estate OF
Wengierski by M. Port, which he had not thought
proper collect before the termination of the
| at PuebIa."
| Now. what do we find in this evidence? Two al
| legations. That nj. Port has been guilty of col
fusion with the secretary of Col. Chids. 2. That,
| in consequence Of speculations made in concert
with NJ. Wengierski, M Port owes the latter per-
| son 81 600.
In order TO establish the fact of collision Colonel
| Childs reasons thus: The sale made to M. Domercq
public, and it is therefore, impossible that all
the tobacco dealers at Puebla should not have been
| informed Of it.
To this reasoning ! have five objections TO offer:
| L. NJ Port is not tobacco dealer. 2. NJ Port was
| absent from Puebla on the Goth of May, lS47, the
| day on which the sale of the tobacco ordered
| by Major Gen Worth; he also absent on the
| 18th of May, when the sale was made by Captain
Allen to MIR. Hargous; and he was moreover absent
on the 18th of June, when the tobacco sold and
| delivered to nj. Domercq. M. Port thus might
well have been ignorant of the two sales made by
order of Gen. Worth. 3. NJ Port affirms that he
never had any private relations with M. Wengier-
| ski, and no proof is brought against this afhrma-
ton. 4. NJ Port, who returned to Puebla in the be-
ginning of August, and who, since that time,
dered more than one service to the American army,
quilted Puebla again on the 10th of September,
1877 and did not return until the 18th of October,
lS47. The sale Of the tobacco was advertised on the
10th of October the day after M. Ports return, and
| he could, therefore, have had only few hours to
| enter into any arrangements as TO this sale with
Col. Childss secretary. 5. One of the documents
which you sir sent to me the 18th of March, the
letter from Capt Webster to the Secretary of War,
dated February %, lsi9 proves that Col. Childss
secretary, Nj. Wengierski, addressed Capt. Web
ster, and declared to him that he would himself pur
chase the tobacco at S22 the bale M. Port bought
it at S24 and there could, in consequence, have
been collision between NJ Port and Col. Childs's
secretary, because they were both bidders and the
one overbid the other. II is not easy to discover
what could have been the object of such a
neuvre in the case in question
To Colonel Chlds's second allegation that M. Port
owed s 900 20 Nj. Wengierski, at the time of the
death of the latter, answer, in Nj. Ports name
| by formal denial; and Col. Childs is summoned
to demand that sum of NJ. Port, provided that he
| can establish the Indebtedness of Nj. Port TO NJ.
| Wengierski,
Such, Mr.. Secretary, are, on the hand, the
allegations of Col. Childs and on the other, the
| answers which make to them,
Allow me, sir, IN concluding, TO remark upon
| the strangeness of the position assumed by Col.
| Childs The Legation of France cannot and will
| not make itself the echo of the reports, more or
less well founded, which have been rrentwith
gard Col Childs's conduct in this affair; will
II press certain facts imputed against him, which
il would be perhaps easier 10 prove than he could
prove the charges brought by himself. The Lega
ton of France has no concern with these allega
tons, Invested of proof, against the honor Of
whose good faith should not be questioned, II
would, however, be very easy at any time 10 ge
rid of contract and to put down just claims i
nothing more were necessary for the purpose thar
10 reply 70 the claimant by insult and defamation
venture, Mr.. Secretary of State, TO hope, Will,
pray you again TO examine this case, that YOU
1 t1ySl from tho Government Of the Tnitef
States a determination more favorable than tina
which you have announced in your letter Of the
2sth of March, 1919.
, Accept, sir, / pray you, the assurances Of ny
! | very high consideration
GUILLAUME TELL PoUSSIN.