Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1872-09-14
pOIit5cnIScou

Political contests IN this and in other coun-
tries are apt TO be more or less disgraced by
slanderous personalities. The presidential can
vass now going on is no exception to the
general rule. Perhaps personal attacks are not
more frequent in it than in similar struggles in
former years, but they are certainly morelfre-
quent than they ought TO be. The fact that the
most malignant and prolific libeller ever con-
neeted with the American press controls one Of
the New York newspapers, accounts for this in
part. Most of the atrocious ISLANDERS against
the president aud his friends first see the hight
in that newspaper. They are copied daily in
other journals, whose editors, not base enough
to invent such falsehoods, willingly give them
circulation, hypocriticaly protesting the
while, that they are not credible,
pretending to grieve that they have obtained
currency, yet repeating them day alter day, and
insisting that the Yilest scandals, originating
with a man notorious for his INSCRIPTIONS ma
Lightly, deserve a thorough refutatiOn from
men whose character no one has ever before
ventured to assail. "Barrels and barrels of
tears" if we may believe those journals, have
been shed by the editors of the Springfield Re-
,
they pretended to regard as the wreck of Mr..
Wilson's and Mr.. BoutwelPs regulations, while
they were themselves doing their worst to de-
stroy those regulations by circulating the most
infamous caIumnies.
The latest invention Of this kind, which the
Greeley organs in New York and elsewhere are
daily repeating, originated in the usual place.
1t is TO the effect that in a certain suit now pend
ing in Pennsylvania, one McComb produces a
letter and memorandum, purporting to have
been written by Cakes Ames, in which that
gentleman makes some statements and sugges-
tons, construed to mean, though they are sus-
ceptible OF a quite different Interpretation, that
he contemplated distributing a large number OF
shares Of stock in the Credit MobIlier" among
members Of congress- with the object Of secur-
ing their influence to promote his financial
schemes, or 10 prevent uniavorable legislation.
Among the persons whom, according 10 this story,
Mr.. Ames intended to bride, were Mr. Speaker
Blaine, Messrs. Wilson, Dawes, Boutwell, and
Elliot Of Massachusetts, Mr. ColiaX Of Indiana
Messrs. Sehofed and Kelley of Pennsylvania
These gentlemen arc urged to come forward and
deny this story, explain all about Messrs. Ames
and McComb's transactions, and prove them
selves not to have been purchased among the
material Of the Union Pacific railroad; a modest
request, truly! since all that the most sinister
Interpretation Of the evidence tends 10 prove is
that Mr.. Ames once prolessed to contemplate
attempting TO bride them.
Whether there is a shred of evidence to serve
as pretext for this calumny we do not know,
but we do know that its original appearance in
the New York Sun affords a violent presump-
ton that ii is utterly false. That newspaper is
quite capable Of inyentiug the whole story, the
suit, court, parties and all, TO serve its malice
and mendacity We know further that each Of
the gentlemen named has earned the right. by
years Of honorable and useful public service,
not TO be assailed in this way at the suggestion
Of a professional slanderer, nor to be called
upon 10 plrge himself until at least plausi-
bic case is made out against him. But
this AcComb story is too improbable to put
anybody on hls defence. According to it the
capital Of the Credit Molier consisted of SO 900
shares of the par value Of 500 each, but which
were worth at that time in McCombs opinion
between $500 aud $1,000 per share: he held his
own at the latter figure. or these 5000 shares,
Mr.. Ames' memorandum proposed to distribute
as brides no less than 10000 to protect his inter.
est in the remaining GO0O Such disproportion-
ate bribery is not credible on better authority
than that Of the Sun or It's McComb Moreover,
the amount assigned to Mr.. Wilson was 2OOO
shares, worth at McComb's estimate two
mlions Of dollars Is there a man
IN massachusetts where Mr. Wilson is as
wen known as anybody in the state. who be.
heYes that our senator has or ever bad proneytv
to the amount Of three million dollar. mr. tbe
half Of ID, or the twentieth part Of ,bat2 ria
same question may be asked in regard IN NJ
Boutwell, with equal confidence. We know,
everybody knows, that the story is not only
untrue, but utterly absurd there Is not M
least occasion for the persons accused TO contra
diet it. To do so would be as foolish as io
Henry Ward Beecher to formally deny the oh
scene calumnles Of Mrs. Woodruff.
Although these libels will have little efIec
upon the persons whom they are meant to ia
iure. they arenot altogether harmless, and III
journal which gives currency TO them and other
like them does great wrong to its readers an
" society. Il no adequate defence to say tina