The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1864-08-31
PEl,SO,NAI.

Il
character, no matter how false they may
Be. A rsfutation, however complete, gives
greater currency to the slsnder, and thus
aeeomplishss one purpose of the Sian
derer.
We cannot expect to handle dirt with
out being defled, bat tbs sometimes una
voidable W y Hfr.1 ~ Y IL 4
A Wheeling LntelHgencer of last week
contains one of the most villianously
false and Indignantly bitter ISLANDERS that
an illiterate and unprincipled scoundrel
could invent. Itis the offspring of one
Nat. Haughton, who was bitterly hostile
toward me during nearly all the time we
were in the regiment together, and who
was engaged in more than one dirty un-
derhanded intrigue against me whilst I
was yet there; but the 6rst open exhibi-
ton of his malignity appears when am
a thousand miles from him, and when the
| means of refuting his libels are nseessa--
rily more difficult to procure. That he
wrote the article we do not claim, for he is
too ignorant to put decsntly together two
sentences; but it is, his dictation, for there
is mot ON that island another devilish
enoughto- to-ihveiitssuch batch Of libels
We're, his the only name to it, all that
would be required in reply would be to
show his unprincipled character, but by
fraud, forgery or some other means he
has attached to 1t the names of several
respectable officers. How these latter
could have ever signed it is wholly unao
countable, as most of the charges they
could have known nothing about, and the
others they know to be villianously
false. .''.''''2
/ Haughton being an abolitionist, and
being in the worst nigger-ridden depart
mont in the army, it is not strange that
three fourths of his TRADE should be po-
litical TO this we will not waste space
I in replying. His first charge is that /
was reprimanded and threatened in the
presence of several officers with dismissal
at Camp Chase for using seditious Ian
guage This charge [ never heard o.
before, and am of opinion that Haughtor
made it at the time the article was writ
ten. But how are we to account for meI
endorsing it, but two of whom were Off
GERS at the time, and, according to thei
own showing, could not have knowr
6, whctherm what they endorsed was true o.
false !? 1 do not believe they ever did it
II But some oil his charges are more foul
and equally false. He states that at the
time Of the battle of Bull Pasture Noun
itain l. was "beastly intoxicated ~ NJ
man whose name IS to the paper was will
Tine at the time, and CANNOT know the
truth or falsehood OF the sharge; but Mr.
tW ". Jordan seas with me, and he vii
Il swear that the charge is wholly ,ytotstiiy
OF course the charge of corardice wa!
rnot 70 be left out of such catalogse.-
The first offence of this character he 10
Gates at Gross Keys. As there are ne
r specifications there is nothing but an cpl
= thet to disprove; but I have enquired o
a number. Of the men who belonged tc
the company, ! commanded at the time
mot one of whom (and who could know
better than they p ever heard of the
charge before, and every one declares i
to be false and siahderous
The charge that ] ran away from the
regiment at Charlottesville Us the mos
astounding fasehood in the batch Nat
Haughten Was the first officer of the regi
ment who left the fight, al VIC afterwards
Etold him, and he did not deny l order
ed the regiment to about face and retreat
Ewhen not more than forty men anC
but two (posslbly three) officers were lef
bin the line. There were no other troops
Eno other officers, generals, staff officers OF
any other, on that part of the field whe,
l gave the order. Capt n ]. Manning
: and Capt. j. w. Bowles were the tw,
J. officers. who were still with the few mel
| lGlI,f du0 oI 4JuSui+ ever ulO OF 0N0
would sign such stuff One of them W,
know will make oath that my statemen
of the affair is strictly correct. Tha
5 after we commenced falling back I wa
fthrown frsin myherse, and separated fron
the regiment (nisht coming on immedi
ately) is true. That my sword slippe,
from the scabbard without my knewledg
o and was lost is true. I am charged witt
tearing off my shoulder straps. hat
u but one on; this oeome loose at one en-,
and next day after the fight took it Of
and put it in my pocket. What poin
5 there is to such charge I am not abl
y to see. SHigF1a. ~ s2 asmsas
l. He next asserts that several officers re
signed because / took command of tn
regiment. 1t is only necessary to stat
in reply to this, that one of the officer
who thsn resigned outranksd me, and
could not possibly have had command