The weekly Minnesotian. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1852-1858, 1855-09-22

ceiver, informs Mr.. Marshall that no sue
instructions had been received, while Nj
Phelps, the Register, according to his ow
admission, informs another gentleman inter
ested, that they had been received! It.i
due to-, Mr.. Graham to say here, that MI
Phelps informs us, verbally, that he [Gra
ham] did not know the instructions were il
the office. This, however, is no business o
ours sMr. Nai1hall was denied access to th,
instructions blythe Red Wing Land Office, whil
his friend-a presdmed Rice man--had i'm
parted to him few hours afterwards q knowl
edge Of their existence in the office. Blu
keep your eye on the dates for another pur
pose: The Red Wing Sentinel, the organ o
the Red Wing Land Office, only condescendl
to let the instructions see the light, on tn
fifteenth Of September WEEKS after ths
charge of suppression was publicly made il
Red Wing! And to clinch the charge o
"sculduggery,"' we have the additional fac
to state, that Mr.. Phelps further admits tc
us in conversation, that the instructions ser
receicad during the week ending on Saturday
September lst-the day that Mr. Wilkinson
made the change land consequently previous
to the time the charge was made, and pre-
vious, of course, to Mr.. Graham's denial Of
their existence in the Office. .a,.rT
Well, from all the facts adduced, it appears
that we have,only written Phelps "'in place
of Graham" in one instance. Strike out
Phelps and insert Graham, and our charges
stand good against the. Red Wing Land
Office. We do. this with pleasure, and also
give Mr.. Graham the benefit Of Mr.. Phelps
verbal statement that he fGrahaml did not
know the instructions had been received.
We are then forced to come to the following
final judgment: #
We have convicted the Red Wing Land
officers of having the instructions in their
safe at the time the charge was made, and
that on that same day Mr. Phelps suggested
to settler that it was best not to say much
about the fact.
After all his grand flourish about our
making false accusations against his official
integrity. Mr.. Phelps, it is true, has cleared
himself of the allegation that Re impaired
Che information to Mr.. Marshall about the
instructions not ha@ii}}g been received, but
then in doing this he fixes the charge upon
his brother officer, Mr.. Graham But our
other allegation, that he did not wish the
fact generally known that the instructions
were in his possession, he has doubly proved
by his own testimony and scts: 1st, he eau
toned his supposed political friend, the
settler upon the Half Breed Tract, against
making any excitement u about the matter
I'd, he withheld the instructions from publ
cation for ta0o aoeeks after Mr.. Wilkinson had
offered the presumption that they would be
suppressed till after the election, and then
publishes them only after they are thorough
ly " smoked out"
We declare in conclusion, that we have no
disposition whatever to do injustice to Mr..
Phelps, Mr.. Graham, or any other political
opponent 1t would have been better for all
concerned, had Mr.. Phelps acted openly at
the start, and given his instructions to the
public at once through the channel Of the
Press course which he has been compelled
TO pursue after keeping them in manuscript
for more than two weeks. This course
would have cleared him and his Office from
all suspicion in the premises. It would have
been another act Of candor and fairness had
he informed Mr.. Wilkinson, in a conyersa-
ton which they two had after the speaking
was over, chat he had the instructions, and
that they were open to every body. But he
did nothing of the kind and by this very
negligence, whether designed or not, he laid
himself liable to the strongest possible sus-
picions of political trickery. His declaration
that those interested could be eventually
benefited by full or even partial suppress
sion of the instructions, is too absurd and
ridiculous to receive serious attention at the
hands of any sensible man. 1t smacks too
strongly of the old Ricc-Indian trading poll
tical tactics to make a favorable impression
upon the voters of the Half Breed Tract, or
any other portion of the intelligent voters
of Minnesota at this time.
And finally, we submit in all candor, if we
were not fully justifiable by the facts and
circumstances before. us at the time, in ella
borating in the style and manner we did
upon Mr.. Wilkinson's remarks and the acts
of the Red Wing Land officers, which trans
pired the same day? We except, of course,
the fact that Mr.. Graham, the Receiver, in
stead of Mr.. Phelps, the Register, should
have been named as Mr.. Marshall's infor-
.mant. Beyond this point, Mr. Phelps case
is most lamely made out; and this one mis-
take of ours, it strikes us, is matter Of
very small consequences to those who are
the real parties interested-the settlers.
We have only to add, in justice to Mr.
Marshall, that he was absent at the time oul
article was written. Upon his return, and
before he knew that Mr.. Phelps had laid his
grievances before the public, he signifed his
wish that we should correct the error into
which we had fallen in naming Mr.. Phelps
instead of Mr.. Graham.
The McDoNoUGH EsTATE.-The Common
Councils of Baltimore and New Orleans
are taking steps to effect partition and sale
I Il IL -