Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1863-03-04


Darr-olemeus correspondence, most people
supposed that the very extreme of farcical
pretensiou had been exploded. That cor
respoudeuce was the laughing stock and
fidieule of the town wherever it was dis
cussed, SO far as we ever heard of it. But
we submit that to day we give a specimen
of fustisn that reaches point beyond the
Darr. Clemens correspondence. We mean
the letter of James H.'McNecheu to one of
the editors of this paper. We copy i: from
the Pre's of yesterday.
1t will be remembered that on Saturday
last this letter was formally announced as
forthcoming, and the writer pledged him
self that it would contain ia piece of Sc.
cret history" that would "make honest peo-
pie stare OF else his "nsme Was not James
II. McAiecEen." The question then is just
this: Do "houest people stare2" II SO,
do they stare at James q. McMechen or at
his iisclosure2 We.call, the attention of
every reader to the letter,
The letter carries with it such an obvi-
Gus farcical failure that we at first thought
that VIC would simply publish it under an
appropriate heading and let it go and make
its own fun for our readers. The exhibit
tiOn which the writer makes Of himself can
not be made more ridiculous by comment
than it can be without comment. We pur-
pose, however, to make a very few re.
marks upon it. Seriously we believe
the writer to be "possessed of a
mind diseased" To-day is not the
first time We ever thought so. There was
always manifest to US, in very much that he
wrote, want Of ballast-a tendency to fly
Off-a predisposition to a certain jerkiness
OF mental actlon-that made him a very
unreliable and dangerous and often trou.
blesome newspaper correspondent. These
were the faults that we used to detect in
Mr.. MOMeOhsu's articles when he was blaz.
ing away, day after day, to the right and
to the left, through our columns
Previous to the appearance of the arti-
Gle of to-day, We puzzled our thoughts not
little to remember any possible thing
that We ever could have said to Mr.. Nc
Mechen that by any rational Interpretation
could "make honest people stare" If we
had been called to die or recall something,
wo could not have remembered an express
sion. Therefore it was that we, in Mon
days paper, called upon him to come out
with his revelations.
We knew that, unless he went to
work and deliberately manufactured some
pretended conversation, there was nothing
ever said between us that might not with
perfect propriety, so far as any principle
was concerned, have been said before alarge
assemblage of people. The Circumstance
referred to by SIR. McMechen was simply
this: A relative of his informed one of
the proprietors of this paper, as a piece of
strange news, that Mr. McMechen had
turned against the Zatelligeacer, and was
berating it around among people with
whom he talked.
Attic suggestion of that proprietor the
writer of this article dropped note to Mr
M'Iechen in order to ascertain what his
grievance was-in other words simply and
only to know whether any one employed in
carrying or collecting for the paper had in
suited or in any way misused him. That
was tho purpose Of the note. 1t was sent
in pursuance of long practice of the pro-
prietOrs OF the EnteIiigencer towards all per.
sons with whom any of their agents or em-
ployees ever bad q Misunderstanding which
seemed to have two sides to it, as soon as
the person to whom Mr.. M'Mechen refers
learned that nothing had occurred between
him aud any one connected with the paper
no did not ask him to give his reasons for
speaking disparagingly of it. Mr.. M,Neoh-
ems tone made manifest in very few sen.
tences what was ailing him. He was treat.
cd politely aud the conversation that en-.
sued Was of his own suggestion aud in re-
spouse to thoughts thrown out by himself,
and when all told amounted to just the eou-
Vsrsation that prevailsthe country over be-.
tween those who stand firm and fast by the
Eoyerumentand those who have apostali1ed
and gone OF into sympathy with those in
rebellion against the government. This Is
the whole story not only as VIC tell it, but,
for that matter, a. Ar. M'Mechen himself
tells It In to-dey's paper he is no doubt
correct in saying that We eOmplinsated
some Of his articles, and for the very reason
assigned to him In the conversation. we
did think highly Of many of them. They
were ven Writtsu-hAd . ringing ear
nsstness aud SnerVe" about them-an nm.
compromising and unconditional Unionat-
tttude about them, that We very much
relished and admired, ofeourse we made
no offensive reference nor reference at All
70 such communications as We had cen.
dsanSd or rejected. We profess to know
andto respect the amenities aud propris-
Ties Of social Intercourse. 1t was not
necessary for us to refer to such articles nor