Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1871-04-21
DIsGRACEFUL.
Scene I'm the House of Representa-
tives AT Washington.


WASHINGTON, April ~.
House.-Mr. Butler, of Massachusetts,
asked the unanimous consent to make
a personal explanation Of fifteen min
utes.
Mr.. Arthur objected.
Mr.. Butler moved to suspend the rules
in order that he might make personal
explanation; yeas, ll8; nays, %.
Mr.. Butler proceeded to address the
House in reference to the scene IN the
Senate between himself and Mr.. Davis
of Kentucky. Assuming thatif Mr.. Da-
Wis own description of the occurrence
be true, Mr.. Butler submitted to the
candid judgment of the House If he
had not in the affair played the part OF
a courteous gentleman, and in which the
blackguard Davis was shielded from the
responsibilities for what he said by his
age and by his Senatorial toga, and thus
shielded and protected, he had injected
the effluvia Of his revenge after a most
heightened manner of chiyalry. He
(Butler) had for nearly nine years suf-
fered from assaults and charges of hav-
ing appropriated, for his own use, small
amounts of money in Louisiana, and
now he would answer them once fer all.
He had captured and levied assessments
on rebels in Louisiana to the amount of
nearly three million dollars, and he had
charged himself with the amount on the
books of the department. Those books
had been open for nine years, and even
the detectives had never said he had not
fully accounted for the amount. Re
ferrinu to the investigation last session
into the management of the National
ASYLUM. he accused Mr.. Farnsworth of
having published in the Globe speech
not delivered, highly slanderous speech
10 him (Butler). BY that, the gentleman
had put himself outside Of the bounds OF
civilized warfare, and he would never
henceforth consider that gentleman
tongue or pen a SANDER upon anybody,
certainly not himself
Mr. Farnsworth said that it was too
late in the day for that gentleman to put
on airs and profess the rule of non-lnter-
course. He trusted that his Earns
worth 81 age had nothing to do with such
non-intercourse as was suggested by him
in reference to the Senator from Ken
tueky. Laughter If the Committee
had required the Treasurer OF the Ma
tional Asylum (Butler) to produce his
hank book, it would show that he had
constantly on hand some hundred to one
hundred and fifty thousand dollars OF
Government money, which he kept in
his own l,rivate bank, in his own name
and with which he speeulated.
Mr. Butler claimed that such language
was out Of order.
The Sneaker sustained the point.
Mr.. Farnsworth spoke Of the sale tC
the Asylum of property at Hampton
owned by Mr.. Butler, but transferred e
his brot6er-in-law, Hildreth, to cover a.p
pearances. That transaction and th'
testimony given by Mr.. Butler befor'
the Committee on Military Affairs woulC
convict him (Butler) Of embezzlemen
and perjury before any petty jury in thu
United States.
, Mr.. Butler read from the report Of tn
{ committee generating him from tn
charge of any misconduct, and, undel
that report. branded as false and calum
nious everything said against him. Their
we're twelve OF fifteen gentlemen IN th'
I House to whom ne hau shoMh lnt prop
+ erty which he had sold the Nationa
Asylum, and every man who ever saw
would admit that in that transaction h
+ had given twenty-five thousand dollar
e to the disabled soldiers.
8 Mr.. Farnsworth-Mr. Butler swore i
the investigation that he did net sell il
? his brother-in-law sold it, Laughter.
, Mr.. Butler - Oh, pshawl pshaw
y Laughter That was one Of the cheat
: In the statement. 1t was put into III
hands Of my brother-in-law as securit
for money which be had lent me.
r Mr.. FarnsWorth-Your brother-in-la'
: swore he did not lend you any monel
y Laughter
Mr.. Butler-I cannot have any col
troversy with that man, whom l woul
A not believe under oath. Laughter an
hammering from the Speakers gayel
Referring to witness who swore again.
:. him in the investigation, he said one
!. them was q runaway marine deserte