The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1871-07-06
THE NEWMAN LETTER

THE NEWMAN LETTER
Sectarianism In Politics Noble Letter
from Senator Harlan.
DAVENPORT, Iowa,
June 30, 1871.
TO the editor Of the Davenport Gazette:
MY DEAR StR,-Allow me to thank you
for copies Of your exchanges, recetved at
my room, this morning, with marked ar
ticles deemed by you Of interest to the
personally, and poss: bly, OF some slight in.
terest to tho public. One Of them, and
brief extracts rpm others vii ash you
The hfst, from the Dubuque Herald
Democrat which appears to have been
published simultaneously in the Chicago
Times (also Democrat,) and several other
papers, IL as follows:
"Wepublish herewith letter which will
be likely to create a sensation among the
Radical politicians of Iowa, as we'll as
State. 1t ia q letter written by Rev. J. P.
Newman, Chaplain Of the Metropolitan
Methodist Episcopal church, Of Washing
ton City. aid addressed to the leading
Methodist clergymen throughout Iowa,
and to few Of the chosen laymen. We
suppress the name of the gentleman TO
whom this letter was addressed, for the
Importance, and more especially as 1t is a
general Autographed letter. addressed to
most of the leading Methodist clergynen.
1t is understood that all the Presiding
Elders in the three Conferences OF the
State. who could be trusted as reliable
Harlan men, or who were not avowedly
opposed to him, were favored with q
| copy:
tcoNFIDENrIAL.]
WARRINGTON, D. c.. April 25, III.
DEAN BRuThER:-As mutual friend, I
| drop you . few earnest words in behalf of
Senator Harlan's relation 10 the United
States Senate. You know the importance
| of early and earnest action. The members
elected to the next Legislature elect the
necessary that the right men be nonifna-
ted, and hence attention must be given to
| the primary meetings.
1 am glad to say to you that Senator
Harlan is regular In his attendance at
church, and his influence Is In the right
stands high with the Administrations, and
has influence with the President, and is
held in high esteem by his fellow Sena-
tors. His speech on San Domingo has
| given hun an elevation few Senators en-
joy. Hoping that you will in all suitable
ways interest yourself for Mr.. Harlan,
am, truly yours, ]. p. NEWMAN.
The following 10 from the Iowa State
Register of the 2sth instant:
The Dubuque papers have the follow
ing tit for tat, In reference TO the so-called
Newman letter: The 7iw es said: Some
wsg with evidently a spice OF malice in
his mirth, has ooncocted circular pur-
porting to having been written by Rev.
States Senate. urging the return OF Mr.,
Harlan to that body. The Heratd has in
some way obtained Possession of that
document. and parades it before the pub.
lie as genuine article. We cannot be.
lieve it would do so knowing it to be .
forgery; but it is evident thut sopsebod,
has been most beautifully sold.' The
Herald replies: The TIMES man knows
that such letter WAS in: existence; he
knows that the Allison men have been fol
q month making great efforts to obtain il
| to use against Harlan, he knows that he
has himself been trying his best to &c,
hold of 1t. he knows that the Herald bea
him in getting it. and that's what's tbs
matter. If he expects to make an add
tional point for Allison by lying about il
now that somebody else has published it
so be it 10
A month since and before leaving
Washington City, at the close of thu
recent Executive Session of the Sen
J ate, l received communication from
a friend at Des Moines, Iowa, stating
that certain friends Of gentlemaI
named as a candidate for tho Unitet
States Senate, were greatly agltatet
about . supposed Autograph letter
purporting to have been written BY
: tho Rev. DR.. Newman, favoring my
, reelection; and, that they wer'
offering one thousand dollars for al
authentic copy, etc. Happening t.
meet the Doctor, handed him thi
letter to read. After its perusal, b.
! requested me to state 10 my frient
, that he { Ncwman) chad sent no sucl
Autograph letter to Iowa, or else
where on that subject, and that M
one had done so for him, or in hi
name, 80 far as he knew and believed
and that he had written no privat,
or confidential letter for which any
one but himself was responsible
that he claimed to be free borr
citizen Of the United States, bavin,
the right in common with all othe
citizens, to entertain and express hi
! opinions of public men and public
measures"
Il But, Mr.. Editor, it is difficult Il
, divine the purpose of the produc
ton of this supposed letter, and it
, simultaneous publication all over the
country, with the accompanying
: sensational discussion.especialIy by
tho Dubuque papers. Why should
the authenticity of such a letter b,
denied and asserted, pro and con, BY
: those selfcoustituted champions7 Il
there anything in it, which any ont
might not say of another to o mutua
friend, if be supposed his statemen,
to be true? Why, on the one hand
inform the public with so much cir
cumstance and assumed surprise
Il that the writer is chaplain Of the
Metropolitan Methodist Episcopal
Church" and assert with apparent
establishment that ''it is understood
that all the Presiding Elders in the
three Conferences of the State who
could be trusted as reliable Harlan
men, or who were not avowedly op
posed to him, were favored with q
copy?" And, why should the other
champion. with such complacent in.
dignation, assert that it must be a
fabrication or forgery, as if genu
inc letter OF the kind would be clear
| ly infamous-unless intended by both
champions as an appeal to the secta
rian prejudice Of all other religious
denominations? Is it not the crop.
ping out in the English press OF
what was commenced in the German
press last winter2 In the early
part OF January just past, Der Dem.
okrat of your city, published articles
inspired from Washington City, ns
it stated, impregnated with the same
views, which l perceive have from
time to time, been continued and
reproduced in other papers of the
State, printed in the German tongue.
These articles ION good authority
from Washington" accuse me OF
various designs, tricks and schemes,
totally unfounded - fabricated by
somebody out of whole cloth,
which if true would have merited
the severest censure. In one of these,
dated January 18th, under the cap
ton "A word to our Colleagues of
the Republican Press" the writer
1 s,,e 81 49, A..