Indiana State sentinel. (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1862-02-03

Under this caption the Journal of yesterday
contains long and labored defensc Of Governor
MoRroS in response to circular signed ''JoHS
fAHSEsrocK," in which Bis Exceleney's public
and private character was assailed. as his organ
states, with filthy virulence, and an affectation
oflitcrary polish as remarkable as they were dis
gushing" In connection Herewith thereis a card
from large number OF the officers of the 18th
regiment. in which they pronounce the circular of
FAHSEsrocK as "lying, Infamous and scurrilous, !"
ard charge him with gross immortality and insub-
ordination while in the three months service as
Captain ofone Of the companies of that regiment.
We think the defense of the Governor undignifed,
uncalled for, in bad taste and that it manifests a
sensitiveness which will give character to the cir
attained, if, TO use the classic language Of the
Governor after having first read il, as stated by
his organ. he had let "Mr. F. 90 the devil" And
whyl The Journal, in the defense, states the
best Of reasons why the Governor should have
preserved dignifed silence, satisfied with con
sciousness of his own innocence. They are, first,
because the charges against the Governors
public conduct were falsehoods, refuted twenty
times over" second, chose against his private
character were grossly vile and absurd that
they needed no contradiction" and third, "be-
cause the public in this vicinity understood quite
well the secret of Mr.. FAHsEsrocK' animosity,"
which the Journal says was to black mail or
secure a military appointment from the Gov
ernor. Certainly, these considerations, in
connection with his high position, should
have deferred the Governor, for his own honor
and for that of the State, from making a
personal issue to his official and private nteg
rity with man whom he charges with being in
Auenced by the basest of motives, and as
! utterly unworthy of notice. And the logic of
the Governors apology is equally lame. There
is only one specific denial of the charges of
FAHSEsrocK, and that is from Attorney General
UsHEE, who states that he did not give his writ
ten or verbal opinion that Governor MoRroS could
not, under the Constitution of the State of Ind
ana, hold the offices of Major General and Gov
ernor at the same time. We presume the Gov
ernor will not deny that he took counsel upon
that point from other sources. With this excep-
ton the issue between the Governor and FAHNEs
TocK is one of personal morality and integrity
FAHNEsTocK charges upon the Governor immorali
ty, private nfdeIity and official corruption and the
Governor retorts by endeavoring to dscredit the
revelations of his accuser by charging upon the
latter immortality and infdelity as man and as
an officer. AS the case now stands His
Excallancv aaams IN have the advanta 70
The Governor, by his labored defense
makes the controversy purely personal and
loses the advantage which reticence did give and
would have given him. The defense of the
Louisville Journal, which we copied into our
paper several days ago, and that of the American
of this city, few evenings since, were in much
better taste and far more effective. We think the
Governor has made great mistake in noticing in
any way the "lying, infamous and scurrillous cir
cular'' of FAHSEsrocK. Such personal detrac.
tons never injure public man. but otherwise they
generally have the effect to attach his friends
more warmly to him. As an illustration of this,
we need only cite to the virulent personal abuse
which the Journal, without stint, heaped upon
Governors WRIGHT, WILLARD and HAMMOND,
during their terms of Office, which they thought
beneath them to notice, and all of which fell
harmless at their feet Even WASHINGTON, j EF-
PERSON and JACKSON, in their day, were the sub
jects of malicious and low personal detractons,
but they suffered it n silence. Governor Nor
TON should not have departed from those illustri-
Gus examples
But as this is is personal difficulty between
two Republicans, we have no disposition either to
interfere or take sides IN the family quarrel.