The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1852-10-18

Senator Meriwether.
Mr.. MERIwETHE has authorized the Louis
Vile Times to make statement in reply to
our structures upon his Senatorial career. The
Times starts with two assertions in his behalf:
"lst. 1t is false that Mr.. Meriwether has ever
asked or obtained committee to investigate the
pay accounts, or any other accounts Of General
Scott, or any other person or persons whatever,
as stated by the Republic; and the journals Of the
Senate will prove the falsshood.
"2d. 1t is positively false that Mr.. Meriwether
ever made any report relative to General Scotts &C
counts, as charged by the Republic; and the jour
mails will show the falsehood.
The Times, following in the wake of the
Union, takes advantage of verbal inaccuracy
to deny what it knows to be substantially true.
Mr.. MERIwErHER did not move for a COM
mittee, but he moved for "the pay accounts"
and though not formally presented as the report
ola committee, they were presented in COM
plance with Mr.. RIwETHER's call, and in
the form which that call dictated. The jour
nails of the Senate, to which he appeals, prove
that on the 18th of August he submitted the
following resolution, which was agreed to on
the l4th:
"Resolued, That the President of the United States
be requested to inform the Senate what amount Of
public money has been paid to General Winfield
Scott and General Franklin Pierce respectively
from the time of their first entrance into the public
service up to the present date Distinguishing be-
tween regular and extra compensation also for
what said amounts paid; whether for pay
proper, rations, forage, horses mileage, transpor
tation. servants, quarters, fuel, medical attend
ance, or Communication for any Of the preceding
items. Also that he inform the Senate what amount
Of extra compensation has been claimed by either,
the items of each and every such claim when first
presented, and when and by whom allowed or re-
iected, and the official given at the time
for such allowance or rejection; and whether any
item or items, claim claims. once disallowed,
were subsequently presented for payment; and, If
30, how often, and when, and if subsequently al
lowed or paid, by whom and when, and the amounts
thereof and the reasons for such allowance, and
the amounts thereof. And that he also inform the
Senate whether either of the above named generals
has received from the public treasury pay emou-
ments for discharging the duties of more than one
office employment at the came time; and, if 30,
what Offices or employments, and the amount of
such pay and emoluments, and the time when paid;
and whether any claim or claims have been pre-
scented for the discharge of the duties OF two more
Offices employments at the same time, by either
of them, and disallowed; and, if so, by whom dis
allowed, when, and for what reasons then given.
nd that he also inform the Senate whether either
of the above.named generals have ever, under
color Of charging for per centage, or for extra
compensation, or for any other reason or reasons,
or in any manner form, applied to his own
use, or retained in his hands any of the public
funds of property, without authority of law; and
If 30, when, and the amount or value thereof; and
whether the amount thus applied or retained or
any part thereof, has been repaid to the Uni.
ted States; and, if 30, what amount, and when SO
repaid; and whether any amount of public money
property, which has ever come to the hands or
possession of either of them, remains unaccounted
for; and, if 30, in whose hands, and how much"
This, then, was the precise shape in which
Mr.. MERlwETHER couched his attack upon
General ScoTT; and we find in the resolution
itself the amplest justification for our remark
that that attack was as mean" "unjust,"
and ungenerous" as " the rankest partisan
ship could make it," Mr.. MERIwErHER is
entitled to all the benefit that the change of a
word can give to him but we cannot see that
the substitution Of resolution" for report'
can relieve him in any noticeable degree from
the unpleasant position he now occupies before
the country. The idea conveyed by his move
ment remains the same. 1t was partisan in its
origin, and was at the time deprecated wher-
ever the most reckless partisanship does not
prevail.
On the subject OF the mileage the Times
still speaking with the delegated authority Of
Mr.. MERIwETHER-is more explicit. 1t says:
Gas to the charge relative to Mr.. Meriwether's
mileage. the facts stand simply thus A few days
after taking his seat the Secretary of the Senate
called upon Mr.. Meriwether and inquired as to the
distance he had travelled. Mr.. M. asked the Sec.
rotary what had been usually charged by Sem
ators from Kentucky, and the reply was various
amounts, depending upon the route travelled !;
that there was no rule laid down, but each SEN
ator stated the distance for himself But the Sec
rotary concluded by informing Mr.. M. that the
House of Representatives had a committee whose
duty it was to fix the mileage Of it's members, and
probably Mr.. M might get some information from
this source by which to fix the distance. Mr.. Me-
riwether then addressed the following note to the
Clerk Of the House of Representatives
"'Please to send me the number of miles ella i'm ed
by and allowed to Colonel Marshall, of Kentucky
BY the Committee on Mileage. n,,
"'Clerk fR.'
"This note was returned in few hours with the
following endorsement upon it, and the original
is now in the possession of Mr.. Meriwether:
"Colonel Marshall was allowed per ,O94 miles
each way.
"Mr. Meriwether then deducted the dista n ce from
Newcastle, the residence of Colonel Marshall, to
Louisville, and added the distance which he (Mr
M had to travel to get to Louisville, and handed
the result to the Secretary of the Senate; and from
this his mileage accounts were ma de up, he fur
nishcd none other. Whether the mileage stated
to have been charged by Messrs. Clay nd Under
wood be correctly stated by the Republic, Mr.. NJ
has no means at hand of determining; but he pre-
sumes that, inasmuch as the residue of the Repub-
lies article Is made up of a tissue Of falsehoods
which the journals of the Senate will prove to be
such, this also will prove to be of like character
An editor who would state a falsehood when the
oflcial record was at hand to correct him, woulc