The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1871-01-26

his mental ability, good sense, and com
mon honesty placed him very far beyond
you, who had assailed him with a false
charge of felonious robbery. You do not
see the Justice of this comparison, and you
think that if / had not been a mere law.
yer, having "little acquaintance or asso-
citation with statesmen" might have en-
tertained a different notion. Although ]
consider nv calling to be as reputable as
any that ycu ever followed either before
or after you took up the trads of politi
clan, you may make what deduction You
please on that account from the value
my judgment; but you must not interfere
with my undcubted right to believe (as ]
10 most devoutly) that it would take
great many Wilson's to make one Thomp-
son. .|-s.. re...i. OIL.
THE TRUTH ABOUT FLOYD.
1t was not to be expected that Governor
Floyd would escape your maledictions.-
No public man ever provoked such .
storm of popular wrath as he did. The
President, who had trusted him. withdrew
his confidence, drove him from his coun-
s is, and ordered him to be indicted for
malversation in Office. His colleagues left
him to his fate, and there was nobody IN
ali this land to take his port. He had
some qualities which commanded the re-
spect Of folks like you as long as he lived
and moved among you. But absent, un-
friended, defenceless, dead-fallen IN a
'ost cause an6 buried in an obscure grave
he was the very man of all others, in or
out of the world. whon your magnanim-
ity would prompt you to attack. But
why did you not charge ham with miscon-
duct IN the financial management OF his
department? That might have provoked
comparison between him and Cameron,
much to the disadvantage of the latter,
whom you wished to court, fatter, and
whitewash. Therefore you preferred to
take up the exploded charge of sending
guns and munitions to the south for the
use of the secessionists in the war Your
first paper had nothing in it on this sub
ject except the bald assertion, and l was
content with naked denial. But in youl
last you come back with a more extended
averment, and produce what you seem u,
suppose will be taken as evidence by al
asst some of our readers. Let US look
at it. U.-
A committee was appointed by the
house of representatives IN January 1861
to ascertain how the public arms distrihu
ted during the year 1860 had been dispos-
ed of. Mr.. Floyd was not present a. the
Investigation he had not friend on the
committee it was organized to convict
MIN if it could. 1t reported the evidence
but gave no Judgment eliminating hin
with the offence you accuse him OF. Or
the contrary, the opinion was expresse
by the chairman that the charges Were
founded in ''rumor speculation and mis-
spprehensioneh But you take mp the re-
ported evidence and try to make ont &
case which the committee did not MAKE
out by carefully suppressing all the princi
pal facts and mIsstatlng the others.
Your charge of fraudulently sendlnS
arms to the south cannot be true of tht
heavy cannon made at Pittsburgh for tn,
forts in Louisiana and Texas, becaus,
they renot sent at all. Floyd, gave al
order to ship them on the goth of Decem
ber, 1860 but it was revoked by tn
President before gun was started. 1t is
Of course, possible that Floyd, in making
the order. acte,t in bad faith but there i
no aroOf of that. On the contrary, Colo
mel Maynadier, an honest as well as
sharp man, and a most vigilant officer
lswho knew all the facts of the case, ant
Understood Floyds attitude with regard L
saeession and union as well as anybody il
The whole country, cheerfully set abou
the business OF carrying out the order
though it was not in writing, and testi6e'
that he had no suspicion of any imprope
! object or motive in it. In fact and in truth
Floyd was not. in sentiment or in action,
1ecessfUnist until after he saw that tn
breach between himself and the Presiden
which originated IN other matters, was il
reparable. Up to the time when he &c
notice that he must resign, he was steadi
ly opposed to the southern movement
and the bitterest enemies he had were tn
leading men of that section. Colon,
Maynadier says that "he was regarde
, throughout the country as strong advC
, cate of the Union and opponent Of sece.
SION" and he adds as a confirmation
/, this, that che had recently published ov,
; his own signature in Richmond paper
letter on this subject, which gained hi
; high credit in the north for his boldness
!. rebukipg the pernicious views of many
!. his own stateS' After he found the who
4 administfation against him, he was drive
& by stress Of necessity into the ranks of Il
: party which he had previously opposed.
DISTRIBUTED ACCORDING TO LAW.
? The great and important fact to whiC
the resolution of tie house directed al
= confined the attention of the committe
and which is made perfectly clear by Il
evidence, you do not refer to at all, b
5 keep it carefully out of sight from begil
: mug to; end of your statement. III
question was and is, whether the secreta,
II of war under the Buchanan administr
y = did at any time subsequent to the first
d January, 1860. treacherously dispose
Ie guns and munitions for the purpose
Ie giving to the south an advantage in q
war which the leaders in that section i
Is tended to make against the Federal go
Z ernment. This was the 'rnmor, speerl
q ton, and misapprehensionA to which {
y chirman of the committee alluded Il
le is substantially what the partizanz neA
.e papers and um orators have assert
y and re-asserted over and over again, un
ot thousands of persons in every part of t
10 country have been made to believe it u
is what Yen meant bv your first artic
iu and what you persist in and re affirm
20 your last. Now examine the facts. The
Ill was a law aimost coevaf with ethe Cover
" ment for the distribution of arIas amo
! the different states according to their rt
reseutation in congress, for the use
is their militia Under this law the or
Ie nance bureau. without any special orr
lie. from the head of the department., gave
ne each state that, applied for it her pro
N. quota Of muskets and rifles of the b
Oh pattern and make provided for the regu
IL army; During the year 1850 the mum
as of -nuSkets co. distributed was exaC
NO 8,433. of which the southern states rece
.ai ed 2,09f, while the northern states {
he nearly three times that pnmbeF to3N
ne $3.50 Some 1ong-range rides Of the
We my calibre were distributed. The age
,Fy gate number amounted to ,728, and G
ey all went to northern states except Z
M about half enough for one regiment ,wh
oil were divided between Virginia, Kentuc
Oh Tennessee, North Carolina. Mississil
his and Louisiana f:the either ststes Of
ciel south receiving none Why did you C
civ ceaI these facts You knew them,
or yon could not. help but see their st
in. relevancy and great importance
,ch II haps you did 4Sdt kpUY that the sttppTe
IN peri is as bad a. the s1ggestio fGESi,
tu- thought it fair to make ont d GRIM
I to charge against ! dead rebel by keel
M back as muen of the truth aas did not
our your purpose. 3. ~ 5-s y b.i
f.e.g