Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1841-1853, 1852-04-29
INDIANA STATE SENTINEL.
For the Daily Indiana state sentineI.l
Comparing Notes.

NV attention has been called an article under the
caption, copied from the Nsc dibany Tribune, IN
the State Journal OF the 18th inst, which seems to
demand Of me that step aside in Justice myself and
the party 10 which belong, from my usual in
such matters and give il passing notice. will hrst
remark that greatly surprised, after reading the
article from the Tribune to learn thai its author was the
Hon. Milton Gregg who was himself member OF the
Constitutional Convention.
The first item which shall notice is as follows
At the adjournment Of the Convention there were
few accounts remaining over which had not been cert
fed and paid The Journal Of the proceedings not
entirely made up, that it could be deposited in the
Office of the Secretary Of State, required By law To
close up these matters thought il would require
some three or four days.
In the above effort to tell his readers what to do,
and how long would require to close the entire bus
mess Of the Convention, Mr. Gregg is guilty oil gross
disregard Of the facts Of the case he knew them to
exist. II he did not kROU, that, an making statements
like the above and others contained IN ms aruce 'hae
he going farther than the true history OF the case
warranted he might have known if he had evnced as
great zeal, while sworn member oil the Convention
discharge his duty faithfully and keep himself aequaln-
ted with the business Of the body he has determine
ton his article, by misrepresentation, TO make pot
cal capital out OF its action Let here give lew oil
the facts bearing upon this point
When the Convention adjourned no settlement mao
been made with the stenographera very large portion
Of the Of the second volume OF the Debates at that
time being written and was not completed ior
more than two months afterwards. Alter the steno-
grapher had pleed his &bOrs, seven hundred and
ffty copies Of the debates yet to be printed and
bound large portion OF the Convention Journal was,
TOO that time printed, and the printing was yet
to be mpeted, and five hundred copies bound The
Constitution itself not yet enrolled and alter ITS en-
ollment hyfve thousand copies OF 1t, with the adj
dress accompanying it 10 be printed Tor dlstrbu-
ton Added 10 all this there were great many other
mnor but equally important matters to be attended TO-
And aree or four days., in the opinion oil this wise
Editor all the time necessary wind up the BUSH
ness Of the constitutional Convention. may here ap
ply Mr.. Greggs own language. and say Z" Comment
the state Of facts here presented is wholly unnecessa-
Ty-the people will draw their conclusions.
In reply the charge of my having fastened myself
upon the State Treasury and certifying to my ewn ac-
count will cite the reader page $50 of the Conven,
ton Journal, where will be found resolution adopted
without opposition asking the ayes or noes,
continuing the President and Principal Secretary to
wind up the unfinished business of the Convention and
liking their diem pay as contemplated by the statute
providing for the call of a Convention to amend the
Constitution, passed by the Legislature OF lS4S-0O
Now why this resolution passed by the Convention!
For Of the most cogent Of reasons viz II II had
been passed. the Convention must have remained IN
session at least week or ten DAYS longer and at las
have left some person settle and certify
Mr. Gregg charged that the expenses Of the Convention
S675 per day. Admitting tins to be correct, If the
Convention had continued one week longer. the addition
al expense would have been about FOUR THOUSAND
EIGHT HUNDRED DOLLARS, or, about s4, 0OC
more expense to the State than the plan adopted
Again Mr.. Gregg says
eve find him certifying regular per diem allowance
OF four dollars, Sundays included, to VIM. H. English
from the 9Th of October, 1850, to June 18th, 1851 Sc
Now, no man knows better than this Mr.. Gregs
that the pay of the officers continued after the adjourn
mcnt fixed by resolution OF the Convention, which
be found page 952 of its journal That resolu
ton adopted by consent-the editor Of the Tribune
then and there present. failing raise his voice against it
tie could not them however OF course have known how
the Wing editors would be Of capital in the mex
State election II he had doubt the proceedings would
have shown bitter oPpostonl
Further: By reference to page lOI and 600 OF said
will find adj he Of
to prepare and supernend the printing Of the Legsla
tive journal, and contract for and superntend ITS
binding and the binding of the Journal of Debates also
to contract Cor fifty five thousand copies oil the COnslitu
ton and the number Of the address-hve Thousand
of the former to be in the German language.
Mr.. English, the Secretary, being only an officer o.
the Convention, had voice in the adoption OF meas
and power avoid the performance Of the duties
assigned him. He contracted, ordered by the Con-
venton, for the printing OF the Constitution, &C., and
Tor the binding Of all the Journals, and did so inmedi
ately after the adjournment That he did delay the
execution Of the work is shown by the statement Of both
Printer and Binder, which will be found in the appendix
the official report of the Auditor the present Legis-
lature, giving the expenses of the Convention. The
latter says the binding of the Journals of the Cons
tutional Convention finished until the LIST Of
August 1851 and the Secretary ohe Convention dl,rays
urged the completion Of the srOrk at the earliest period
and the done without any unnecessary delay
The work completed then the 1st of August,
ing 73 days after the Adjournment and 43 days (S76
more than Mr.. T. asked received. Mr.. q. says, to
close up these matters il thought il would require
some three or four DAYS" No intelligent gentleman
thought" eay such thing How could the account OF
the printer be closed and certified before the 18th oil
June of the binder before the LIST OF August being
the periods respectively Of the completion of their
work. But the religious punctliossness Of Mr. Gregg %
to be greatly exercised because Mr. English
drew pay for Sundays. In all deberative bodies Of
this kind it is the well settled rule that the
bers and officers are entitled to pay for the phoIe
number Of days. that in this case neither establish
ed new, nor violated an old rule law. The fact
that Mr.. Gregg discovers in this Sunday allowance
Mr.. English gross fraud upon the public Treasury,
and fails to find any thing cupabe in the fact that
certified to his (Greggs) account, Sundays ncluded-to-
gether with not BY Gny fen days that he
home with his family, and attending his private bust
ness, indsputabe evidence that Mr. G. is of that
Of who will strain terribly gnat, while they
will easily take a camel down at a single gulph
With references TO the COMMITTEES on Enrolment, Mr..
Gregg says:
duties assigned to it, confess know not nor do
the journals sufficiently enlghten upon that point"
In making the above statement he either exhibits a
pitabe ignorance, reckless disregard for truth
cannot attribute IT TO gnorance for, upon examining
the journal Of proceedings, find that five minutes
before the Resolution providing for the raising Of the
committee offered, Mr.. Gregg was in his seat
voting. The resolution was introduced by Hon. VIM
NJ Dunn, of Jefferson, Mr. G.'s colleague. IL may be
found on page $50 Of the Convention Journal
The last, and gross oil Mr.. Gregg's charges is
that allowed Mr.. Newman only three dollars for his
vices the committee enrolment, while, for the
same services allowed Mr.. Reed SAP, and Mr.. Owen
S45. The did so, says this sapient editor was
because Mr. Newman a Whig-the other two Dem
OcTafs. The grossness Of statements like this is too
apparent require denial of their truth Its fasity
only equaled by the brazen impotence which enables
Mr. Gregg to draw largely upon the credulIty Of his
readers The truth OF this is that pursued TIE
same course towards Mr. Newman, as did towards