The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1868-12-10

tersIay, he said:
II was unfortunate enough the other
dav TO bring down the ire OF some
of my newspaper friends in this
city because 1 chose in my place to
question ttrNcourSs they had pu rsu ed
right in my representative capacity TO
question the prOprietyB of the course
pursued by the public Journals or this
State. They comment very freely on all
do: and l believe this Is free ooun-
Try where every man has q right to ex-
press his opinions IN a legitimate and
GrntlemanlY way, l said this question
should not be decided under the hue
and cry OF newspapers; and that, too,
when those very papers failed to pre-
scnt the question that Is befose this
House; when they were presenting 10
the public false Issue not made by the
Committee-whicht the Committee new.
er dreamed of making and in doing
50, l have no recollection that they
have ever in a single instance publish
ed the section OF law that they assume
To cciIiciEs as simply providing for
ought to be fair and legitimate
whether In public assemblies or news.
pAperS. l think this House and This
Legislature have shown liberaliry
enough at least to one OF the journals
nj the State to demand at its hands a
Hhh - COM
mltlee OF this Legislature is but a part
OF the Legislature, and they are entitled
al the hands of all public jou rnals aud
that one particularly, at least to II fair
and impartial hearing and not to have
lhelr action misrepresenIed and sent
out TO the country as being what It Is
not"
In these remarks Mr.. Ferguson
makes several mistakes, the chief OF
which is in saying that the section of
the chapter reported by the Committee
for the assessment of railroads had
never been published in the papers,
In the first article that appeared in these
columns on this subject, in our issue
OF November Is, 1865. that section is
remarks. therefore, founded on that
mistaken assumption, fall TO the
ground. We have not sought and do not
wish TO deal with this. question I'M
fairly. We began by printing the whole
proposition OF the Committee, aud our
readers are therefore prepared TO judge
Tor themselves whether our comments
on IL have been inst. So far ms we have
attempted to state the positions of the
friends of that pIOpC sitiOn, we have
tried to d" it correctly. II we have not
succeeded, 1t has NOT been from nuy
wish to misEepreseut iheuI. We are not
able 10 report AID print in extenso the
able md ingenious speeches which Mr..
Ferguson and other advocates OF the
Committees proportion make in its
behalf No more can we print the
speeches on the other side. No news.
paper the size OF ours can or does DO
such a thing. II takes an Immense es.
Enlistment like the Congressional
Globe, with its corps of reporters, its
grea: broadside sheet aud regiment OF
compositions, to do it. We trust our
friend will remember that an hours
speech in a Legislature contains as
much matter, requires as much labor
TO prepare it for the press. aud as much
money to pns IL in type aud on paper,
AS an hours speech in Congress. The
U. s. House of Representatives meets
at IL o'clock and generally ldJuurus al
IA Jour hours session. The House
OF Delegates is now sitting four
hours aud half each day, and
talk. We speak OF this only us
showing that whatever the wishes of
the provincial press" may be in re-
gard TO publishing legislative debates,
It's capacity 10 do it Is of necessity ex-
irenely limited. SOthat if this is what
Mr.. Ferguson means, he is not as fair
towards the press as lie claims II should
be to him. II he or any other friend of
the Committees proposition will pre-
pars his views on the same ut reason
able length, we shall take great pleas
ureiu laying them before our renders, SO
that he may have what he claims, an
Impartial hearing"
We have never thought ofquestion-
ing the right of Mr.. Ferguson or any
one else, sin his representative
capacity" or any other capacity, to
question the ProPriety of the course
pursued by this journal. We agree
with him In the belief that "this is
free country, where every man has II
right TO express his opinions in a
legitimate and gentlemanly way" and
we are perfectly willing that those who
heard Mr.. Ferguson's attack on the
public journals OF the State in the
House last Monday, when he sueered
at them as ''provincial," and at their
editors as "great constitutional
lawyers" shall compare the language
and manner of that attack with any
thing that has appeared in our edito-
rial columns before or since, as it re-
CARDS being Legitimate" or gentle
manly"
Mr.. Ferguson's attempt TO pat Us in
the position of attacking OF Committee
aud the legislature is ingenious but
very unfair. We attack not the Com
mittee but i'll plan. The proposition
reported by the Committee, was ap-
proved by only part fthe Committee.
The whole Committee constituted but
"A small part OF the Legislature. We
have reason to believe "A majority ofIhe
Legislature are opposed to it. We have
certainly not been unfair even TO that
part of the Committee which favored
Mr.. Ferguson's scheme. We oppose
that scheme. not from any wish to in.
jure the B. & o. r. r. or any other that
would DO benefited by it, but because
we believe the principle of taxation for
which we contend Is the constitutional
mode, and the only one that ia Just TO the
people OF the State. We oppose Mr..
Ferguson's plan because we think 1t
wOuld OnnFata upiusrly, IN a,-arv o,t,or