Cleveland daily leader. [volume] ([Cleveland, Ohio]) 1865-1873, 1866-07-06
General BIerce and Jndge spaIding.

General Bieree and Judge SpaIding.
The revelation of the fact that Judge
Spalding is playing a double game on the
Equalization of Bounties bill-voting for
it 10 gain soldier votes and privately de-
nouncing it as thoroughly bad-is Great
ing something of sensation among the
Spaiding men. The people are quick to
perceive the duplicity ofthe maneuvre, and
they argue that if man can play a
double game on one measure he can on all.
If Mr.. Spalding can vote in favor of the
bill for the Equalization of Bounties, and
privately deneunce it, he may do thesame
in regard TO the Civil Rights Bill. The
letter to General Bierce, the substance of
which We have printed, might, with very
few changes, be made to apply to other
bills than that in regard TO which it was
written. Imagine it running thus:
my Dear President: don't blame you
/ for swearing at me about my vote on the
| Civil Rights bill. In my Judgment and in
that OF two-thirds of the House the bill
was a bad one But Dick Parsons and his
friends are bringing the radical influence
TO bear against me, and my only salvation
was 10 vote for the bill"
Such letter could as easily have been
written as the one to which reference has
been made 1t might satify the President.
We doubt if it could satisfy the people of
this District.
slit birds autter The Spalding-
Senter clique are badly q demoralized" by
this bomb in their camp. They are max
ing a great bluster over the matter. The
Herald charges the Parsons men with
theft and forgery at once, and General
Bierce rushes into print with letter to
which, we are sorry, for his sake, to see
his name attached. We print it in an
other column. 1t is its own best answer
Its insinuations and chsrges-some of
which he could not have known to be true,
many of which are false-are made i'm
potent for i'll by the temper in which they
are uttered. His denial of the substantial
truth of the statement in regard to Judge
Spalding's letter to him is disposed of by
the afidavits of n. W. Goodhue and J..
]. Hall If more to the same tenor are
needed there are other leading citizens of
Akron, to whom this letter has been read
or its contents stated by General Bierce,
who will swear that its substance was as
given by these gentlemen. We suspect
that General Bieree will hardly care to
face the battery of proofs, and will find
some loophole by which to escape from
his dilemma. 1t will be observed that he
has left an avenue of escape. While he
denounces the statement as q forgery, he
is very careful to not say in what the for
gerry consists. Now we challenge Judge
Spslding, Gen. Bierce or any other Spald-
ing man TO produce that letter or a copy
tiere9f, and, we wager that the statements
in the Summit Jou7nal regarding it will
prove to be substantially correct.
One thing more. General Bierce says
parsons was here on Friday, the day be-
fore the pretended letter was published,
and IS, undoubtedly, argus We can
make a short shrift of that story. We
have authority for stating that Mr.. Par
sons teds not TIE a'tther of The letter signed
"Argus," nersr saO 1t until it 'Oas pab-
lished and does not knolO its author at this
time.
We think our readers will agree with
us that General Bierce would have done
himself and Mr.. Spalding better service
by remaining silent.