Daily Democrat and news. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1859-1864, 1860-06-29

Nook 3 rsspousi Elitv."
II "a.
Questiou-Is this . correct copy Of .
casd you published in the .Union !"
WAsHlNGTos UNIos, Dec. IL, 1858.
"A CARD-My attention has been
called to paragraph in letter to the
New York Times Of the 9th instant, in
vague aud general iessos, tbpt the Presl-
dent had caused certain money, justly
due to s,me individual, TO be used tor
electioncering purposes. With this &C.
cu.a,ion my owl name has been so gen
orally used in conversation that l feel
constrained, publicly aud empha.icsly,
10 deoy ali knowledge or belief OF ANY
fact which, eau warrant IT, and to de-.
clare that President Buchanan never
did antho rize, advise, or request me, dir
ectly or Indirectly, to use either my Own
money or that Of any other person for
any purpose like that mentioned in the
paragraph referred TO, or in any manner
affecting any public election.
c. WESDKLL."
Answer-1 presume it is.
The statement Of account furnished
BY Wendell to Mr.. Baker shows that
his object 10 Withholding from Rice The
share due under their contract for print
ing the blanks was to secure for himself
a larger portion Of the profits than had
been stipulated between them. To &C
complish that, he was willing to divide
one.half OF kicc's share with Severns.
The foregoing confession shows that
this was suggested by himself, and fol
the express purpose Of securing more
Of "the profits"
The Presidents positive denial that
he had ''giveu any direction" for tho
payment of any portion to the argus is
also proven by Mr.. Baker.
Wendell was examined many times
by the Committee. An illustration o.
what credit is due to him upon any sub
iect concerning which he Ia ~ testified is
furnished by comparison Ct some o.
his statements in respect to the distr'bu
ton of the money arising from the print
ing Of the Post Office blanks to sustain
the argus and the Pennsylvanian.
Comparison Of WesdeiTs Statsments
March 22d.-Question. By whom was thu
arrangement made to take care of these pa
pers (the 4ryus aud the Pennsylvan'ans)
Z! Answer. l, was done by authority Of thu
President Record, p.ge4
April 5,h.--Qaeslion. That arrangement
1.-THE payment to Severns. Of the Arg"1 va
dictated by whom?
Rxy ho ara hat ho ~ osp
Question. By what powers?
Answer. BY the President and the Post
master General, one or the other of them; on
acting at the instigation Of the other. a. ",
all inf. rred.-Record, page 49,.
May lett suggested the stoppage Of tn,
paymtn Mt to the Pennsylvdnian on my opn v,ii
ton, believing that the money was throw
away. l stopped it. / suggested it to tn,
President and without his direction stonpet
it, He did not direct this stoppage.
What did Was Of my own volitl0n.-Record
page l2l.
Similar conflict may be found i,
Wendell's statements upon every sub
ject concerning which he was exam
med.
We have here on three different OK
animal us, three conflicting accounts 0
the same transaction. On the 22nd o
f March Wendell svore positively and un
equivocally that the arrangement b,
, which a portion of the money which
, under their contrsct was payable b,
Wendell to Rice, Of the R,snsylvania,s
was withheld from Rice and paid Il
/ Severn', Of the argus, for the supper
, Of that paper, by authority of the Pres
ident. Two weeks afterwards he s.or
that it was done by the dictation Of tn
President, or Of the Postmaster Genera
tone or the other Of them" Fou
weeks later he confessed that it wa,
done by his own suggestion, that it wa
not directed by the President, that wba
he had d,ue soas Of his Gown volition.
10 comment upon such testimony wer,
waste Of time, and yet this witness
VAS eight times examined by the Com
mittee in order to eliminate the Presi
dent, and yet his stories dis6gure larg
} portion of the record.
As to the second point, the charc
against the Administration was an i'm
puted attempt to buy the services O
John W. Forney, editor Of a newspape
in Philadelphia, and this purchase Va.
to be made by using the public printing
patronage for that purpse. 1t was al
legged that the Attorney General prom
ised the printing Of the Post Offic,
blanks to Forney upon the condition
mentioned.
AL this was entirely and completed,
! beyond the range Of any inquiry tha
the committee we're to make. The under
signed made no opposition thereto, les
his motives might have been misiuter
pre.ed.
David Webster, of Philadelphia, wa
called to prove the charge, and be de
tailed private conversation which b.
had with the Attorney General abou
two years ago. 1t was manifest that h.
himself did not regard anything in tina
conversation 10 any degree disrepu:abI
or improper, Tor he said, on his oath
that nothing occurred which Judg
Black would wish to conceal.--( Testi
mopy Lee. Con. p. l27.) The only thin.
which he said, falib:e to his memory il
which even partisan malice could dis
tort into evil, was = statement that tn,
Attorney Genersl had promised tn.
public printing to Forney on conditio,
that he would not betray the party t,
which he then lrDfessed to belong. Blu
tins statement OF Mr.. Webster, not at al
l 4