Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1865-05-31
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A Card from President Buchanan.


To the, Editor Of the ". Tribune: '',f %
SLR--In courtesy l ought to thank you,
| as i do sincerely, for your offered use of
| The Tribune for ''any explanation, comment
or disclaimer" of the acts of my Admins
tration during the last six months OF, its
existence. This kind offer should be cor
daily accepted; but admonished by adj
vancing years, of which you give me warn
ing, some time since compiled history of
| it during this period, chiefly from the pro-
| ceedings of Congress and other official and
| reliable documents, too long for publication
in The Tribune. This has not been published
hitherto, because of my reluctance, for sew
eral reasons, to obtrude myself upon public
attention during the prosecution of the war
now happily terminated in the suppression
of the Rebellion. 10 g uj
| Though we have been "life-long political
opponents" as you truly observe, have
for many years been constant reader of
The Tribune. This have done to obtain a
knowledge of the principles and policy OF
the Republican party from their ablest and
most influential eXpounder, and one who,
while contending against political Oppo-
nents, has had the candor and courage to
present to the public the Democratic propo-
sitions and principles he assailed. would,
therefore, put it to yourself whether it was
quite compatible with this character to as
sumo that my contradiction of an article!in in
another journal, relating to matters of fact
dating as far back as the Cincinnati Con-
vention of June, 1856, had been intended as
defense of the acts of an Administration
which did not come into existence until
nine months afterward, and thereupon to
pronounce the conclusion "that Mr.. Bu-
chanan's letter has not vindcated Mr.. Bu-.
chanan's career.n
Mr.. Buchanan has carefully refrained for
four long years from any attempt to vindi-
cate his "career" as President, except so
far as this was forced upon him in his con-
troversy with Gen. Scott; and this course
lie shall still continue to pursue until the
publication of his historical sketch. In
deed, his recent letter to the editor of The
NeW York Post would never have been
written had the editor republished from his
files the old article as published nearly nine
years before (though never known to Mr..
B. until few days ago., with any COM
ments he might have thought proper.
That of which Mr.. Buchanan now COM
plains is, that the new article, though os-
tensib'y based upon the old, presents a
statement of facts essentially different, in
most important particular, from the origi-
nal; and this, too, with the evident object
of iniuring his character. This change
consists in substituting for the name of Col.
Black who t1dS a Delegate to the Cincinnati
Convention, that of Judge Black who oCaS
not, and at the same time referring to the
fact that 1.-The Judge was afterward AttOr-
ney General under Mr.. Buchanan"
Whence this radical change, if not to
bring home to Mr.. Buchanan completely
| in the infamous pledge which the last arti-
| Gle falsely, but in express terms, attributes
| to Judge Black? Had the facts stated in
this article, on the authority of the editor
Of The Post, remained without contradic-
| tion, they would have been taken for grant
| ed by the public, to the lasting and serious
injury OF Jne reputation DUth of Judge
Black and Mr.. Buchanan.
1t is but justice to the memory of brave
and lamented officer to repeat that, in his
ardent and impassioned remarks before the
Convention, evidently, without previous
preparation, there is not the least color for
attributing to Col. Black a pledge which
would have been serious imputation upon
the fair fame of man without fear and
without reproach.
Yours, very respectfully,
JAMES BUCHANAN.
WHEATLAND, near Lancaster, May %, '65.
AS Mr. Buchanan has not seen fit to COM
ment on the new points made in our form
erarticle, we deem it but fair to say no more.
Ed '-