The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-07-30
BUTLER or

''AAA ~ WV .NSN ~
Congress were in the habit of selling the
cadetships in their gift, a perfect howl of vir-
tuous indignation went up from the House
of Representatives. An investigation was
ordered in hot haste, and General Logan, the
rival of General B.. F.. Butler as champion in
vestigator, in his capacity of chairman of the
Committee on Military Affairs took the mat
ter in charge, and made so much noise over
it that every one expected astounding revela-
tons of corruption and the prompt expo
sure and punishment of the guilty members.
Our readers all know what the ~ipvesti-
cation amounted to = the guilt of
the South Carolina carpet-bagger
Whittemore was proved, and he was
allowed to resign SO as to escape punishment;
and the Honorable" Roderick r. Butler, of
Tennessee, who was also convicted, was
merely censured by a vote of the House, as
the two-thirds vote required for his expulsion
could not be obtained. With the exposure of
the two culprits above named the whole
matter was allowed to drop, although the
finger of suspicion pointed plainly to a num-
Der of other members. The reason assigned
for the l~eniency displayed towards White
more and Butler was that they claimed to
have used the money obtained from the sale
of their cadetships for political purposes, in
furtherance of the interests of the Republican
party, instead of putting it into their own
pockets. 1t is a significant indication of the
low standard of morality in Congress that
this plea was considered sufficient; and
although the House refused to readmit Whit
temore, the consistency of its action was not
- lha nfcsI xnIl;n ~ ion
of the fact that it permitted Butler of Ten
nessee to retain his seat.
Although Mr.. Butler failed to get his
deserts on the occasion referred to, it seems
likely that he will come to grief on a charge
of even more serious character than that of
selling cadetships. His offense this time is
alleged to be the forgery of a pension check
for an amount between -four and five hundred
dollars, and, as our readers will see by re-
ferring to q statement of the case on our
third page, the charge is brought home to
him in such a manner that there can scarcely
be a doubt of his guilt. If Congress had
cognizance of such a case as this, the plea
that the money was used for advancing the
interests of Republicanism in Tennessee might
be advanced and accepted as an all-suficient
excuse for the crime, but, Fortunately, MIR.
Butler will this time be called upon to answer
in a court of law, and there is a promising
prospect that he will be punished according
to his deserts by a conviction and a sentence
to the penitentiary. This man Butler, like
many other of the scamps who now
profess to be the representative
~Ioyalists of the South, is one of
those cunning politicians who always con-
trive to belong to the winning party. In the
early days of the Rebellion he was a Rebel,
but he was shrewd enough not to commit
himself SO deeply that he could not make a
change if it should be desirable to do SO, and
when he saw plainly that the Government was
sure to win he became an ardent loyalist. He
was rewarded for his disinterested patriotism
byan election to the State Senate, an appoint
ment as a Circuit Court Judge, and by being
twice elected to Congress. 1t is no wonde
that reconstruction has been difficult when
such men as this have been the chief repre-
tatiyes of loyalty in the Rebel States, and it is
not possible to contemplate the project of
Mr.. Butler winding up his career in the peni-
tentiary-where he ought to have been long
ago-without a certain degree of satisfaction.
THIS morning the Press published a mill
tary map of the theatre of war for the benefit
of its subscribers, which will be appreciated
by all who wish to follow the movements OF
the French and Prussian armies. The MAJ
gives all the railroads, the rivers, and the
principal cities and towns between Paris
Berlin, and Vienna, with plainly markeC
boundaries of the different countries. 1t i
decidadlv iha beat war Mao that has vet bS6l
/. issued by any newspaper in the country.