The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1868-02-19
q Card.

Editor of the Register:
Your issue of this morning asks for
and then proceeds to state " some par
ticuIars concerning the circulation in
this State of MortOn's last speech as a
Radical campaign document" accom-
panied bv some inSinuationS that are
scarcely warranted by the facts, and of
course would not have been made had
those facts been within your knowledge.
As the copies of the speech referred to
were procured aud distributed by my
self, you will not object to my furnish
ing you and your readers with the de-
sired "particulars."
l. :" Is it true that the State printer
printed the dOcumentl" 1t is true that
the State printer, who does printing for
good many others thar the State,
learning that we were about TO
send to Cincinnati for number of
copies of Mocton's speech, offered to
and did print the speech ut exactly
the same price we were to have paid in
Cincinnati. That price was paid him,
not as State printer, but as a private
job printer, on receipt of the speeches.
2. "On what principle do Radicals
justify the expenditure of public money
for their party purposes ~ The money
for those speeches was, in every in
stance, paid ont Of the pockets of those
who obtained them, and not one cent of
it was in any sense pnblic money.
3. "It is also claimed that the pages
paid by the State to wait upon the Leg
islaturc' prepared the document for dis
tribution." 1t is extremely probable
that the pages in waiting upon the
Legislature, prepare for distribution"
whatever the members want prepared,
and hitherto it. has Not been supposed to
be anyhUdy'S business what page may
do for a member. | know that the
pages daily prepare for distribution
copies of the WHEELING DAILY REGIS
TER.
4. "Who paid the postage for the dis
tributon Of that precious production :
The Radical members of the LcgIsla-
tHre sent it to their constituents in
quantities. Just prior to its publica-
ton they voted themselves ten dollars
each to buy postage stamps" Not
merely the Radical members but the
whole House, Democrats included,
voted, not ten dollars each for them
selves 10 buy postage stamps rs yOu say,
bat voted that tho Scrgeant-at-ArmS
| furnish each of the members with post
are stamps to that amaHnt. What par
ticular stamps were placed on what
particular documents, neither you, !
nor anybody but the members who
used them can tell.
The Sergeant-at Arms informs me,
l.; I,,A1-g g1, 4t,,f
cratic member of the House promptly
drew his full quota Of stamps, while at
least some Of the Radicals and those
who subscribed most literally for Nor
tons speech have not drawn a single
cents worth, and consequently must
have paid for the distribution of the
speeches out of their own pockets, sim
pie as such an act must appear in Dem
ocratic eyes, What use the Democrat
ic members made sf their stamps it has
not been considered interesting to in
quire, until your request for "some
particulars" The result of that in
ouiry, now made, is that the
Democratic stamps have not been
invariably applied to the distribution
ofthe documents intended by the House,
that some of them have been applied to
the distribution of of the WHEELING
DAILY REGISTER, and that Others have
not been applied at all. In one instance
a Democratic member would probably
have purchased some of Morton's speech
es and applied some of his stamps to
their distribution, had not the mad
vertent laugh of a Radical bystasder
warned the confiding Conservative that
all wasn't just right, and he took time
to consider.
;. What q remarkable coincidence
that the Radical majority should vote
the members ten dollars per head, and
that Morton's speech shOuld shortly
thereafter turn up for distribution"
There is a still more remarkable co.
incidence about the matter, and that
is that the resolution for the payment
of postage was passed on January 23.
1863. one day before Senator Morton
made his speech on January oath This
argues either Radical spirit Of
prophecy or a still more ''sweetly sug-
gestive combination than even the
Imagination Of the REGISTER has been
yet ab}s 10 picture.
Respectfully,
WILLIAM =. HUBBARD
Clerks Office. HOHse n Delegates, Feb
rudry l., lS63.