Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1872-05-24
"THAT YOUNG MANI"
Congressman COburn Goes for the Tri.
bune, its Correspondent, and for
Horace Greeley.
A Laughable "Spar," during which Co
burn Becomes the Laughing
Stock Of the House.

WASHINGTON, May 23.-In the House
of Representatives to-day Mr.. COburn
offered an amendment to the appropria-
ton bill to pay twelve hundred dollars
| for a transcript of the Buell. cOurt-martial
proceedings, and in connection with It
/ spoke of his having taken ground in the
Military Committee not to take the
verbal testimony as to the contents of
/ the missing record. For that reason, he
! said, hired slanderer in the New York
| Tribune had stated that he [CObuTnl
was opposed to the admission of the tes-
timOny of the reporter of that court.
Such statement was utterly and absO-
lutely and totally false. A hired slam
derer had said that he [Coburn] was
compelled, by vote of the committee,
to send for that reporter Ben Pitmanl.
That was false. There had been no
vote of the committee on the subject.
Immediately on his finding out that
Pitn1an had possession of the notes of
that court, he had sent for him, without |
the request of anybody, without any
action of the committee. He wished |
therefore, to brand as utterly and abom-
inably false the report published by the |
hired slanderer who occupied a seat in |
the reporters gallery, and who had once |
been clerk of the military commission. !
From day to day during the examina-
ton in the committee falsehOods had /
been uttered, and his only object now in
making this statement was to show that |
the committee as well as himself had |
been in favor of getting at the truth in
the matter.
Mr.. Townsend New York; asked /
why that clerk had been discharged.
Mr.. Coburn replied that he had been |
discharged for various reasons. One was, |
because he was not in harmony with |
a majority of The committee; another, /
that he was a poor clerk, and that he /
had kept no minutes of the committee. !
Mr.. Brooks remarked that that had /
not been found out until after the Gin |
cinnati Convention. Laughter.
Mr.. COburn replied that he had not |
found it out before. Laugher. There |
was another reason for his discharge. /
The New York Tribune, some days be- |
fore Mr.. Greeley discontinued to act as
its editor, had charged that he [Coburnl |
had been guilty of a gross violation of
the rules of the civil service because he |
had discharged an old and faithful .
clerk. He had not, in point of fact, dis |
charged an old and faithful clerk, but a .
young man, a good young man, Mr.. |
st. Clair, brother-in-law Of the clerk, |
who got two dollars a day for his SER
vices, while the clerk got six dollars. |
That was a specimen of Greeley's civil |
service reform. He wanted it so under
stood
A member-How was that?
Mr.. COburn-This young man was
clerk of the clerk.
Mr. Maynard-Do I understand that
the clerk farmed out his office?
Mr.. Coburn-I do not know about that.
am stating the facts. You may call it
farming out, or employing a deputy, or
else.
Mr.. Garfield said he had not intended
saying anything on the subject, as he
had been instructed by the Committee
on Appropriations to assent to it, but he
felt compelled, as matter of justice to
the gentleman concerned, Mr. Small
ley, to say, that for a period of
two years under the Craftsmanship
of General Schenck, and for the two
years that he, Garfield, was Chairman
Of the committee, that gentleman had
always been a faithful, Intelligent and
honorable clerk, and he had never be-
fore heard anything to the cOntTary.'I :
A few DAYS since, and shortly after the ;
seemed to have been discovered all at /,
once that that gentleman was an un-
faithful and inefficient clerk, and he was {
given notice to quit. He did not believe :
that this was quite the way to transact ]
public matters, and he did not believe /;
it was quite so wise for the Republican :
party to begin to cut off heads on an :
occasion of this sort. If that was the !
TCOburn'sl view of proprie- {
ty, he might have his opinion; he, TGar-
field had his.
Mr.. Hay illinois,, a memmer of the
Committee on Military Affairs, bore his {
testimony to the fidelity, ability and /
worth of the clerk.
Mr.. Coburn remarked that he had de- {
sired, in as fair and kind a manner as j
possible, to let this man OFF [laughterl,
but his object was defeated. The mat
-er was made public. He asked any one 6
TO look at the records of the court and {
say whether it had faithful and eff
;ient clerk.
Mr.. Dawes-When did you discover
hat?
Mr.. Coburn-Sometime since. Laugh
.er. He made no personal attack
IN the character, or integrity, or
standing of this young man, but
ne would simply say that, in business {
point of view, he was worthless as a {
;lerk. He had spent most of his time )
Is reporter for the Tribune on the floor !
If the House and in the galleries. Gree l
ey had said the paper could afford to t
)ay him as much as Congress could.
But that was Just where the shoe pinch I
ID, and that was why, day after day 8
md week after week, himself and his {
were slandered. The Tribune
lad now to pay a man full pay for a {
ull days work. That was civil service i
eform. He supposed it was according
o the rule that every employer should ]
'ay full days pay for a full days {
work. T
The amount offered by Mr.. Coburn {
Vas arrnpd to I