Indiana State sentinel. (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1861-07-17
For the Daily State Seminal
Julian Or Meredith.


For the Daily State Seminal
-f Julian Or Meredith.
wAaurox crr, July 9, 1851.
Nh EpIfol:-As matter Of simple justice to
me, hope you will allow me the use OF your col
umns for brief notice Of an article which ap-
pearec in your issue of the Cd instant. purporting
TO be written by Col. Meredith.
The distinguished Colonel displays an amount
Of wrath and vituperation out of all proportion to
the prOyocation gave him. Ny sole offense was
telling the truth said that he had not. ss pub
licly stated by himself. been appointed Colonel Of
an Indiana regiment. The Colonel does not con
troyert my assertion, and can not ] said also
that be had not been authorised by the President
TO raise regiment. and that he had proceeded to
call and organize one as its Colonel in the alb
sence of any authority for doing The Col
onel in the article referred to- does not deny this
assertion. but attempts to Grade it by saying that
the President wrote TO Gov. Morton requesting
him to accept his (Col. Merediths) regiment As
one of the six called for in previous requistion.
This will not do. The Colonel had no regiment
at that time to be accepted. and since, according
70 his own showing, he was not authorized to
raise one, be must have imposed upon the Presi-
dent by deliberate falsehood. And this he did.
and my witness il the President himself. In an
interview with him to day he told me- in the pres
ence of Hon. G. B. Smith and sundry others, that
Col. Meredith had made him believe he already
had regiment organized and ready for service.
and that SO believing he had written to Gov. Nor
ton allowing the regiment TO be received as one
Al = H. IL r. e. A. L..
full fact in the light of which the voracious Colo
mel now stands revealed. After having procured
. letter to Governor Morton, from the President,
by trickery and false pretense, he now parades
that letter before the public and skulks behind it
! as his defensel This strikes me a. sublimely i'm
pudent, and if | am not much mistaken the Presi-
dent so regards it. He never thought Of giving
the Colonel the command of a regiment, or of
advising the Governor 10 do 30, IS he positively
declares. and it gives me much pleasure to vindi-
cate him against any charge or suspicion of COM
plicity with the Colonel in this dscredtable
transaction.
The billingssate Of the gallant Colonel can
well afford to pass by, rs the dose is SO large and
nauseous as etfectually to destroy its own poison
He is considerably subject to such spasms, which.
however, usually do not last long. i have known
him 10 have one of these rabid spells, and then,
within three days afterwards, introduce me to q
in the cause Of liberty, and your honorcd repre-
sentative in Congress" He has often boosted Of
his supporting me last year, when ! believe / re-
ceiyed majority in Wayne county more than
fifteen hundred larger than he did the year be-
/ fore. have q troublesome apprehension that he
will support me next year, if ] should be candi-
date, and should not be surprised to see him come
to me any day, ~ on former occasions, and with
tears in his eyes ask me to pardon his many po-
litical sins. Such character regard as very
Indifferent antagonist. and did not the public in
terest seem to require it would not notice in any
way his crookedness, knavery, imposture and i'm
pudence. i now hand him over to the fatherly
keeping Of Governor Morton, whose connection
with this business demands brief notice.
The Governor, as 10 well known, has earnestly
desired to crafty the military ambition OF the
Colonel from the very beginning of the war, and
has only been restrained by his total and well
known incompetency. his disgraceful huckstering
for place. and the popular clamor sure to follow
his appointment. When, however, the letter from
the President, already referred to, had been re
ceived by methods have just exposed. and reg
iment organized under color of il. the Governor,
az am informed issued the long coveted com
mission Of Colonel TO his friend, and most evil
IDENTITY intends to throw upon Mr.. Lincoln the n
pleasant part of the responsibility of doing so,
while gratifying his own ardent wishes. This
j game can't be played The sole responsibility
and undivided homo. of this appointment belong
20 the Governor, absolutely. The President had
no hand in it. directly indirectly, and cay 30
on the authority of his own frank and emphatic
words. He spoke Of Col. Meredith's regiment
simply TO designate it as one Of the six to be re-
ceived. and on the supposition that there sos
such regiment organized and in readiness for the
service: and he avoided any attempt 10 dictate. or
even to advise, ~ to who should cammand it.
These are the simple facts, and | trust the Gov
eInor will not hereafter attempt to shirk his
own proper responsibility by cards "to the public
from his unworthy appointees, which il not PEN
ned or prompted by himself are known to me to
be the faithful daguerreotype of his own feelings.
/ This war is q matter of life and death to the
country. Norman, whatever his position, can
safely trihe with IL. 1t is no mere scafolding
on which the favortes OF any one are to climb up
to power at the expense of human life; and the
Governor in giving an important commission 10 q
man well known TO him to be wholly unfit, thus
pering the lives of hundreds Of good men, ha,
assumed q responsibility which he cannot escape
There are men now who will fight under almost
! any commander. or with none, rather than re
main at home, in this crisis; but this affects no
. the matter am considering In so far as Gov
. Morton has discharged his srduous and response
BILE duties worthily honor and cordially com
mend him. but his public acts are legitimate mat
tiers of criticism, and should no. fail to receive j
where he has been unfaithful, aid where espe
cially, an attempt is made to FIX that unfaithful
ness upon others ~. GEO. W. JULIAN