Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1857-04-21
WASHINGTON NEWS AND GOSSIP


certainly gave rise to intense excitement among
he quidnuncs of this city They could think |
,r talk of nothing else for week. In the mean
time those around as who know of what baseless
stuff most of the Washington-corresponden
mares nests are concocted, thrusting their
tongues in their cheeks, quietly awaited the
termination of the affair, in the full conviction
that it would eventuate Us it has done accord
ing 10 Mr.. Herrick's explanation published in
the Herald of Saturday last, from which we
quote as follows:
the author of q in Corner, find that very ex-
traordinary exceptions taken to it, and all
sorts OF intimations thrown out, and among them
that the Hon. MIR. Gwin endorsed me and the ar.
ticle. This is not a justifiable assumption. Hon.
more.
"The allusion to the Indiana election was only
from rumor, and had no idea of my friends from
that State taking 1t up with the earnestness that
am Informed they do.
:" AS to the supposed theory suggested relating
10 the competition Of the Second Auditor with the
passage Of certain claims through the treasury. I
hear friends of the late Auditor and present As
sistant Secretary of the Treasury allege that ne
did not pass upon or favor those alluded to. II
that be so, then il Is susceptible Of proof and ex
PLANTATION. i stated the simple fact that he was
by law charged with the supervision of Indian
accounts. &c. after they left the Indian Depart
ment. The natural presumption would be that
the claims alluded to passed through the Audit
or's office. This was my understanding.
The whole exposition of these claims, in
Donaldson, Upper street, has created much
excitement in some quarters, and / am not only
charged with the authorship of my own, but
even with that of my co-cOrrespondent. You
can put that right, you know that only one is
mine; nor did know of the existence Of the
other until il appeared i'm the Herald. Respect
fully, &c, GEORGE n. HERRICK.
'.Note by the Editor.-Mr. Herrick had nothing
to do with Mr. DOnaldson's letter, and knew not
of its existence till published"
As will be perceived from Mr.. Herrick's own
statement above, his charges of fraud, collision
to rob the Treasury, &C., &c, against Secretary
Cobb, the Assistant Secretary, and other gen.
tlemen of spotless character, turns out to have
been made of whole cloth-to be based only on
his own suspicious; be being VIGOROUSLY suspi-
cious in the turn of his mind to an extent that
has rendered him, for years past ridiculous
here, to use no harsher expression. We have
no disposition to add to the modification which
he must feel at the result of his foolish attempt
to get up a newspaper wonder at the expense of
gentlemen of character, under the shield of an
anonymous signature. That he richly deserves
the odium among all right thinking persons
which he has earned. we presume no man
doubts lie has, therefore, fairly forfeited all
sympathy on the part of the right-minded, and
stands before the public in his subsequent let
ter quoted above, self-convicted of having most
griaSously sandered honorable and honest men
Those gentlemen require no defence after the
appearance Of this second letter of his, which
cOnfesses, in most unmistakable language. that
he is utterly unable even to attempt to prove
his aspersions upon them by adducing any tes-
timOny to that end whatever.
We have no doubt that his original letter as
thus explained, will serve a good end, in the
way Of opening the eyes Of the world to the
true character of nine-tenths of the aspersions
upon Government functionaries written from
this city for the distant press; not one in fifty of
them being nearer the truth than Mr.. Herricks
"Q-in-a-corner' Observations leveled at Messrs.
Cobb and Clayton.
We commend to the reader the following
brief commentary upon the exploit of Mr.. H.,
which we find in the Boston Post, as disposinp
OF the subject in very few words indeed, and
with truth and justice:
The exposure Of the attempt Of a man named
HeT1ck, committee clerk at Washington, to
MI
his assistant, Mr.. CLAYTON through an anonv,nnms
communication to the New York Herald, i1tjma
ing disposition to favor Galphinism By these
gehneHen mas developed scheme, to calumni-
ale the present administration as unprincipled as
any plot ever concocted by personal malignity or
party desperation. Mr.. Cobb, whose biSh sense
OF personal honor, and whose official Integrity.
are not only pure, but beyond suspicion has
nothing to apprehend from hidden or omen as
sauant; hence, the result Of Mr.. Herrick's attack
mas only been to PROSTATE himself MI CLAYTON,
q xxxkx<~
are too well known and too generally acknowT
edged to be successfully hawked at by anv g q in
corner" or out of a corner, and the sorry figure
MS enemy makes, in the present instance will be
significant warning to those of the same nv who
may be waiting to try their fortunes in the same
line. ~
-, rhe fiction, invented to injure the officers of
tne treasury Department, aros, from the fact Of
the allowance OF the claim Of Hon Richard w
thompson, Of Indiana, against the Menominee
mo amounting TO $40 900 The money was
Que from the Indians, and the case was refereed
by the secretary Of the Treasury to Attorney CEN
erai Black, who decided that the law reouired the
payments, and that the accounting officers could
not 90 behind it,
COScIsELY SrArED.-The Charleston Mer.
cnry argues that under tariff on imported
manufactures, such as the South takes from the
North, the idea that there exists re,inrocal
free trade between the States of the Union is q
chlmera. Its statement of the question is q
powerful one, indeed. We ask for it the calm
consideration Of all the Stars readers. 1t is
as follows. Viz:
The North has free trade with the South that
Is, she imports and receives from the Soutb its
RIodncuons, without paying any duties on them
, <ne Soutn does not receive the productions of
the North with similar exception On the con-
traiy the Custom House duties levied on similar
articles coming into the United States from abroad
enable the Northern producer or MANUFACTURED no
levy from - Southern people like exaction. in
.he increased prices he obtains for his produc-
LONE LIONS ne mas, on the one hand, prohibition by
custom House duties, to exclude the foreign COM
modify; and on the other hand, free trade with
me south The South, properly speaking, has
no Tree trade at all. Whether her people purchase
the foreign commodities with the duties on II
or the Northern commodity enhanced in prices
IN consequence OF the duty, makes no diff
ference They consume burdsned commodities
and their trade is fettered. The whole trade he
tween the North and the South is one-sided II
is tsue that there are no Custom Houses on the
boz ders OF the States, exacting duties on com,no