Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1855-12-21
EVENING STAR.
HOW DUNN Is DONE
Editorial Correspondence Of the N Y Tribune
WASHINGTON. Dec IL. 1855

/
morning by a speech of about an hour whereof
| the Tribune and its criticisms on his refusal 70
vote for the anti Nebraska candidate for
| Speaker formed the text. / vas not In the
| Capitol when he commenced, but have since
| asked at least twenty members whether he
made out any color of self-justifcstion, and
the universal reply is that he did nothing of
the kind. l cannot learn that he even pre-
tended to deny the truth of my statements
| with regard to his course; but ne said that l
| only told half the truth. That was SO. let
| him off very easy, because some Of his col
leagues hoped that be might yet come to him
self and fulfil the high trust which he urgently
| solicited and has SO shamefully betrayed.
will now proceed to state the lciole truth with
regard to his course, according TO the best
| lights L have been able to obtain. 1t is as
| follows:
At the election in his district last ear, John
| A. Hendricks, anti-Nebraska Democrat
was regularly nominated as the Republican or
anti ebrasks candidate for Speaker. Mr.
Dunn was dissatisfied with this nomination,
| bolted, and came out stump candidate against
it. He had once before represented the Dis
| trict, had many friends in it, is a good stump
er, and it soon became evident that, should
| he and Mr.. Hendricks both persist in running,
| the Nebraska candidate would beat them
| both. Mr.. Hendricks, therefore, after listen
| ing to an anti-N Nebraska speech from Mr.
Dunn, took occasion to say that, Mr.. Dunn's
| views appearing to be identical with his own,
| there was no reason why both should run, and
he (Hendricks) withdrew from the canvass in
favor Of Mr.. Dunn. And thus was Mr.. Dunn
| elected, expressly, unequivocally, as the anti
Nebraska or Republican candidate.
So chosen, Mr.. Dunn came here and pro-
| fessed to act, and cordially sympathize with
his anti-Nebraska colleagues. With them he
voted steadily for Nr Campbell until Mr..
| Campbell withdrew from the contest, and then
he UOted repeatedly for Mr. Banks! Next
morning he fell away, and has since voted as
| stragglingly as possible-eyery time for some
| one who stood no possible chance of being
| chosen. Why he has acted in this way do
not know; but believe he is one of the XIX
| or thereabouts who wanted Banks dropped af-
| ter little, then Pennington taken up and
! served in the same way, and so on, until all
the old members OF any prominence should
have been tined in succession. The ball, you
| see, thus batted about must ultimately rest
SOmewhsre; and why not with the Hon. George
| q. Dunn! give this as my hypothesis only;
| IT you find one more plausible In Mr.. Dunn's
| speech, just substitute il for this, and if you
add that he is an g. off OK" generally, you may
be near the truth
Mr.. Dunn at first pretended that he was
inpeiled to his course by indignation at the
treatment Of Mr.. L. d. Campbell who voted
| steadily for Banks. Then he complained,
(after he had voted repeatedly for Banks)
that MIR. u. was not the unbiased choice Of the
anu-N Nebraska men; let there be a nominating
caucUs and a candidate fairly selected, and he
would support that candidate. At length.
| more to humor him than for any other pur-
pose, caucus tcaS duly called and held. and
Mr. Dunn attended and made speech. Hay-
| ing finished, he took his hat and bolted, with
out waiting to hear what others might suggest
| or to vote at the ballot for speaker which re-
| suited In the nomination Of Mr. Banks, not
| only by fve-sixths OF those present tut 6y a
| clear majority Of all the aUolced altt-Ne-
| 6raskG men IN tile House.
Yet, though thus concluded by his own vol
unteered pledge, Mr. Dunn coolly repudiates
| it, and persists in voting steadily to Keep the
| House disOrganized and in chaos, and let the
border rufhans work their will upon the Free
State men of Kansas. And now this unhappy
| suicide seems to think that have dispatched
| him, when il is nobody but himself, If Ju-
| das lscariot has been made exemplary and
| Benedict Arnold rendered by comparison a pa
triOt, the credit or blame belongs in no part to
| me, but solely 10 the Honorable Geo g Dunn
| Utterly unable to defend himself, the un-
happy victim turned upon me, and seemed to
think that he could whitewash his own repu-
| tation by blackening mine And how, BY
| reviving that poor old exploded slander about
| the Congressional Books. By piecing together
L.
House was in Committee on the Deficiency bill,
Qo45,) was said to have voted once (by rails
| ing In my seat under misapprehension Of the
question: for the item TO pay for supplying new
| members with certain books ordered at the
preceding session; and 2. That in a conversa-
| ton with Mr.. Hudson, out Of the House, L
fully admitted the prOpriety Of distributing the
Revised Treaties, and other such documents
OF the United States TO the several Congress
Districts-on which DR.. Edwards, Of Ohio at
tempted to make out case against me on the
floor six years ago.
cannot see what ground there is for further
misapprehension in the premises. The books
| had been ordered at the former session of that
Congress, when / was not a member. Of
course, they were to be paid for-there was no
escape from that. But had just been made
target of general assault for my exposure of
the mileage swindle, so I did not choose to
place myself in position where cavilers
would say, "Yes, you can be virtuous on
mileage, because little Of it comes to you any
how; but when it comes to books you vote
yourself library as freely as any one." So
L had decided and declared that would not
vote for the book item in the deficiency bill.
Yet, after three or four votes had been taken
by rising, one day in committee of the Whole,
my next neighbor, Mr.. d. Rumsey, of Bath,
N. T., (who is still living,) said to me exult-
lngly, "Fhere! you have voted for the books
after ALL" | told him (what he very we'll
knew that if had, certainly did not mean
to, and did not understand the question and
took care to vote against this item on coming
out Of Committee. But the joke was good
one; Mr.. Rumseytold it to others; and when
this was nicely pinned en- to the fact that, in
a conversation with Mr.. Hudson, 1 admitted
that certain books already indicated ought to
be made generally accessible by some form of
public distribution, my personal enemies were
able to make ont a plausible case.
L had no conversation with Mr.. Hudson as
to how had voted or should vote; but did
say, and now repeat that the Revised Stat
utes and certain national records ought to be
so distributed by Congress that all should
know where to find them when needed. And
further said that | did not know where TO find
these records at that time in the city of New
York, though Congress had distributed several
hundred sets to that city Noso anybody who
wants them may find my set in the library of
the Common Council, and Mr.. Brooks's in
that of the Free Academy; but where any
of the others are cannot even guess. And
L here express my hope that Congress will
never vote anofhar dnIIor for hnal-s u,t;I -