, 1860-06-25
Frank blair to his Constituents.

FF&nR HIa1f 10 Ms Commitments.
10 d. FAep's q tie Fra Oun9rsastona. Ditriz If xi.-
1take the hrst moment altar being sworn in
~ your representative in the present Congress
to intorm you that with ths close Of tbs present
session resign the trust, to submit to Jonr
o1n eufrages, now viudieated by the constitu-
ttonal tribunal against the frauds Of the last
election, / renewed choice. I contested the
seat which Mr. Barret took, not to expel him
and hold it myself in virtue OF the dtcl.ion Of
the representatives. Of the people, but to r. fer
,ihe question Of right gain to those Immediate.
The attitude Which submitted to take 10 ac.
eompiish result just to you. and, believe,
useful to the country, has been to the ouo OF
humi1ation,- Of anxiety, Of expense. of labor.
III is one, most truly declare, l would not Lave
assumed moraly 10 change places With my COM
Petltor. It was my conviction that the execu-
tire power, lnssalled at Washington by fraud.
self BY Tho systematic application of such
means, which induced me to resist ttdm, over
whe'mt1g a. they were, in MY own case.
Mr. Bdchauan inauguTated in his Own elec-
tion The plan Of carrying elections BY fraud, Vi
ton 10 1856, which led .the way 70 hi3 SUCCESS.
was effected By taking the polls in Phifadelphia
by bullies, and undertheir control voting thous-
ands of fraudulent votes on forged naturaliza.
tion papsrs aud other false pretences, These
fActs we're established BY the deeiaion Of an i'm
partial judicial tribunal, which testsa The valid
lty Of tnat election in the case of III. Mann.
cue Of the officers defeated by thosefrauds. and
who ousted his opponent on the proof bf thsm.
The work thus began has teen continued at &c.
lected points erer since, to support the power
thus installed. / shall only allude to I few H.
stances where the haud Of the President wa,
made distinctly visible. His completely with
Calhoun in the Kansas election frauds, to en-.
force the Lecompton Constitution, is made no.
toEious by inuumersble circumstances. but he
established the fact by his own signature. in
his prisate letter to Gov. Walker, nude public
By the Covode Committee. in which be says be
Utah under Harney in Kansas until ufter the
election. They we're kept there, and 1t'oted in
violation Of law, to sustain the Les:ompton
fraud, aud to intimidate the legal voters who
would resist It.
The hand Of the Executive is next aeen in the
attempts made to pack the present Congress- to
support bis system Of corruption. Amost glar-
ing instance is found IN ths election Of a mem
Der tom Michigan to supo[ant Ar. Howard.
The meaus employed signtl;ze the audaeity ~
well rs deprayity Of the Administration. lthad
entered into . contract for the building Of
Custom House at Detroit. The Bonds we're
s,*nsa :.n:. ana delivered; and the contractors
the agtment-took ths job into Its own
n1nos-Sent out an agent, who, ut GREATLY en-.
hsneed coat (exceedlng The contract pr,ce bv
<6,oooo, ,}enPloyed n multitude Of imported en-
R,oyeiss oyi 10 40 Tue work; aud theirs and other
scale against Dir. Howard, who, in bis recent
contest ia recovering his seat in The House. has
exposed the whole Transaction. -:
0f piece with this was the successful man.
agement in which the Presidents hand again
aappea1a. 70 secure the -1eturn Of his peculiar
intimate, AZ; Florence. from Philad slphia. To
9fhh' MS $uHn
constructed 1t the Philadelphia Sayy Yard. As
the election approached the yard wes filled with
supernumerarles from distance. The folfnw
iag letter from Colonel ". c. Patterson ef
Phi'adelpaia, to the President, which VAS sent
BY the President to the Secretary Of the Navv,
with bis endorsement ct the application it con
taincd, sho~s clearly that the public Treasury
Vas used by the CHEF Magistrate to cleo. bis
fuvorites and pollute the ba!lot.box:
D1in s1 venture 10 10 yos fs' tSs * IT,
Q! araEarx ths eotr ct sar Tie Of lie tioop
ssps sSps wes Rfuas ns1 to T. ssbe
which emp"5s la1Ee number Of hxncs At f lime
th1ss hundred aud liatty; ~ben IN ln wo fou hurei
III. managing partners tMr. Msrrek Sen Ing abso-t.
oa i en:eas: r. f
whoare fsvor Of the reeleet Ut Colonal II me-
a e. sags + ssn
er7!ie M ps1s Y. t. KY, a.ctesse . +.
ths ;.coD the result oad, taiEf Be PLACED bs!ond i.
With nau'a respect, VIC. PATTERSON.
This letter was sent to the Secretary of the
Navy BY the President, With his endorsement:
nt TT ;nss;sa fttsr f. cosns
Nary. i n. Ae
Such letter, thus endorsed By the President.
and sent 10 one Of bis subordnates, could not
fal Of its effect; and accordingly the work was
Elven to Mer1isk Sons, oyer the beads Of much
lower bidders, to whom, By the law, it should
have been assigned; and the influence of the;
firm, with its fonr hundred and fifty men
when in full work." secured to Colonel Flo.
renee.
But as Philadelphia is considered the pi,ot
Of the State which IS the pivot Of the Union.
Nr. Buchapan's hand was again put forth to
bring the influence Of the Treasury to assist bis
machinations in that city againt the "People's
party" in later election. It will be seen from
The evidence before the Senate by Preston
King, Chairman Of the Committee Of INQUIRY
into the abuses connected with the contracts
for the Execnttse printing, that the great job
presses in Philadelphia and to organize third
party to divide, ia hope Of defeating the oppo-
sitiou to the Administration.
1t IL shown by the testimony Of the emp1oy-
ees Of the Executive-most reluctant aud partial
wisnesses-that the high tunctionsries Of the
lent charges for this printing. by which S75 900
was paid tor it when only sc. 900 was earned
that the contractor was compelled to divide
these profits and permit the disposition of the
greater part in accordance with arrangements
nude by the officers in the Departments upon
consultation with Mr.. Buchanan, and that these
arrangements provided for the disbursement Of
the gains made on the contract legal and illegal,
to subsidize the presses Buborned in Philadel.
phla, and to furnish means to organize third
party to operate on the elections through its
corrupted managers
The evidence. reported by Mr. King to the
Senate establishes The fact that Il e executive
printing for all the departments was disposed
OF in the sau1e manner; Attorney. General
Black drawing up the private contracts between
the contractors and the recipients Of the 3D.
ministrutlon hounties, who. were engaged by
them to subserve the interests of the g1Vers Of
ne bountY, through the public pFess. withcut
which it was derived. The whole transaction
shows that the officers OF the government to
whom the power OF making contracts for its
benedt is confded, were in collision with the
contractors to cheat the government. and taking
the lions share, with the appreciation of the
the press and carrying ou corrupt intrigues
with party leaders to betray their coniding
part zaus into the false position Of fighting for
IN administration to which they are opposed.
have referred TO these instances Of the in.
terpcsition of the federal Administration to De.
feat the suilrages Of the people By corrupt Goa.
troll OF the polls, and reduce the House of Re-
presentatiscs t. subserviency, to show the mo-
lire Of my resistance and the Importance ofthe
contest from which have emerged. Impressed
with the conviction that the money, the ofical
influence, and the opportunities for organizing
force and fraud which the government puts
within the reach Of the President have all been
e1erted to control the popular elections, and
my own among the rest, l felt it my duty to de-
fend the rights of my constituents, as conferred
on me, in assisting them a9a1nst the formida
Bile and growing sbuses Of Executive power.
consider Mr, Barrett as mere instrument ia the
hands Of the antagonists Of free principles
and The purity Of elections in the st. Lo lis dis
trict.
de did not raise the Democracy. pfostrated
under it's aeeomp plished leader in 1856, By vote
of sir thousand to two thous and, suddenly 1t
the next election to seven thousand, its oppo.
nent still holding not only the voie Of the pre-
vious election, but gain in proportion 10 the
increase Of population It was the power that
marched an army to vo:e IN hansa', that
planted colony around the Custom House ir
Detroit to kill of Mr. Howard in Michigan;
that filed the frigates in the Philadelphia Navy
Yard With seventeen hundred cau!keTs, candle