Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1873-03-07

! Ou q HaH Win MS ears and nose slltI
laughter. There was no precedent in
TINS country for the position taken by the
committee, and there was no precedent in
England except in the Wilkes case, and the
record IN this case had been expunged.
They had been told that they must purify
the House. How long was it since that ne
ceSsIty Tor purltcatiOn had come upon them
| Ihey had sat with these two men many
years and had got only four DAYS more to
slt with them. They were no worse now
than they had been five years ago on the
finding of the committee If they had not
been contaminated up to this time he
thought that they were likely to escape for
four days more, and if they had been con-
taminated putting them out would not stop
the virus. Laughter They had been
told by his eloquent colleague (Banks) to-
day, that the Credit MObilier was every-
where; that it was pervading the House
and influencing them, except, he supposed,
five or ten good men would have
saved GOmorrah but there were only
five to save this House. Laughter. The
case OF Mr.. Bowen had been spoken of big
amist, who had done it before their very
eyes, and yet the House allowed him to sit
IN the House, in danger of concentrating
every married man among them. Laugh
ter. lie cited also the case Of the Cali
fornia member who murdered a waiter at
Willards' Hotel, and the case of Daniel f.
Sickles, who, while a member, shot down
Barton Key, and neither had been expelled.
And who was Oakes Ames? \ mechanic
! Of Massachusetts, shOvel-maker of Massa-
chusetts; man who had carved out for
tune which might satisfy the ambition OF
any man, and who risked that fortune in
order to connect the Atlantic and Pacific
with a rod Of iron. Up to this time that
man had led a blameless life lie could 90
to his home now with prouder record than
that Of many who had accused him. On
the statement of his accusCrs Oakes Ames
was an honest man, and on the statement
Of everybody he was an honest man. Was
there man in the House who did not
believe Oakes Ames an honest and truthful
man? Who was there that did not believe
every word he Said2 Not the committee.
lie had kept his debit and credit account in
his simple blacksmith way, but with as
much accuracy as it would be kept in the
first counting house Of the land. Here then
was an honest man, u truthful man, a
patriotic man. and they were asked to expel
him lest other members might be contami-
mated with his honesty. his truth and patri-
otism. Laughter and applause His style
of bribery was themOst peculiar one he ever
heard Of He reckoned interest on his
bribe and haggled about the percentage Of
interest. lie bribed a man, and asked him
interest ON the hribe. Laughter The
hammer fell, but the time was extended
forty minutes and Butler went on: What
Oakcs Ames had exactly done was this He
had said to members. This stock Is yalu-
able. think we have arranged it - that
it will be valuable if we are left alone, if
nobody is allowed to levy blackmail on US
and therefore | want YOU % have such a
little mOdicum of interest in it a. that You
viii prick up your ears whenever the Union
Pacific railroad Is mentioned" " Was that
hribe3 What We're these gentlemen u
do2 Ii had been found expressly that there
was nothing asked by Oakes Ames Of them.
To get them to take the bribe he had to
guarantee 10 per cent interest on the bribe.
Who ever heard of -uch hribe as that
before and he had redeemed his guaran-
tee afterwards, because Oake- Ames was as
good as his word. II every man connected
with the matter had stood where Oakes
AmeS stood. with Gods truth. this storm
would have blown over and would hardly
have made a ripple on the political surface
There was not a man present who did not
know that the truth was that the men in
the canvass got shaky, and incauti0usly
denied it. Laughter ON the democratic
side.
Mr. Bingham risingl-I dii not deny it
and did not get Shaky. Continued
laughter
llr. Butler-I am iuculpating nobody,
but | say what has troubled the public
conscience of the right, true-thinking men
of the country Is not the Credit Alohilier
stock, but the lies that have been told about
it laughter and applauSel /, and because You
la- frr|
want to get rid of him. More laughter.
He had no more idea of bribery than he had
of lying. These records do not belong to
him. Thank God he told the truth. That
Is the kind Of men we raise in MasSachu-
sets. Laughter. ! am endeavOring to
roll back the tide Of intamy thrown on the
old man. The outside world thinks he Is
MephiStOpheles lie has been compared to
Satan, but he was only To be compared to
Satan before he fell You know him-a
simple-hearted, kind-hcarted. broad heart
ed, benevolent old man; and yet the press,
that damnable engine Of SANDER and libel.
has lbelled him, all over the country, until
that honest man 5 name has become a by
word and a rcproach. And the newspapers
tell Us what we shall DO under the circum-
stances How did this Credit Mobilier
matter get out2 \ newspaper reporter
stole the document and sold it to a newspa-
per which published it. Il began with the
receiving of stolen goods Let the press
expel that member, and then We Will listen
to its suggestions. | am not to be fright
ened. thank Heaven for one thing, If no
m0re-that | am man whom God made,
and not whom the newspapers made.
Laughter am here to-day 10 try 10 roll
back this tide of inlamy, and let the House
understand, and the country understand,
what this old man has done. The head
and front Of his offending hath that extent,
no more" He never denied to anybody.
You may send him from this House dis
graced-no, not much diSgraced. lie goes
away a truth-loving, truth-tellins man
before his God. and an honest man before
the people. Thank God, You cannot dis
grace him Men with that character can
not be disgraced. There Is not Il man Of
YOU. who. If Oakes Ames We're 10 be driven
ont, would not be glad to take his hand aS
the hand of an honest man and let me tell
my eloquent colleague Banks, who spoke
with tears in his eyes of the duty which his
conscience imposed on him, that those Will
not be the last tears shed by him if he does
harm 70 a hair Of Oakes Amess head. That
mans case Is in your hands. Fellow mem
bers, You are to deal with him as You wish
to be dealt by in that last day, when God
judges all men and who shall 20 unwhipt
if every act of his life was brought against
him without the power of Investigation or
excuse? Oakes Ames thought that he was
doing right lie is pure man to-day.
Leaving the ease of Mr.. Ames and pas
sing 10 that of Mr.. Brooks, he stated the
fact to be that the committee had found no
wrong in Mr.. BroOkss having the first 100
shares of Credit Mobilier stock, because he
got it before he was a government director.
1t was the last 50 shares that the COMMITTEES
condemned him on, but that 80 shares was
right which was attached to the 100 shares,
except that the time when he had a right to
subscribe it had passed. Brooks. however,
insisted either for himself or Nelson, he
(Butler) did not care which, that he had
a right to those 30 shares. That might
be extortion on the part of Mr. Brooks, il it
had been conceded out of fear of him as a
government director, but that was the
queerest way of getting Il bribe he had ever
known. Bribery was what the House was
to vote on. Instead of bribery it was extor-
ton. The most remarkable thing was the
bribee extOrting the bribe from the briber,
holding back as long as he could and calling
board of directors to see if he could keep
the brlbee from getting the bribe. Laugh
ter. Who ever has heard of that before
He thought he had heard of every phrase of
criminal law, but he never heard Of such a
thing before.
The hammer again fell and Butler took
his seat. His speech was listened to with
the closest attention and was frequently in
terrupted with laughter and applause.
Mr.. Shellabarger, of Ohio, replied in a
close, logical argument to the objections of
Mr.. Butler and others. that the House had
no right Of expulsion for acts done before
the election. Hestated the position contend
ed for on the other side to be an iron rule of
law, by which it is ordained that in no case
shall either house of Congress ever make in
quiry into any act in the life of any member.
who may come into either body, touching
fact in his life that ante-dates by minute
of time the date when he received the suf-
frages of the constituent body. That posi-
tion he assailed by logic, by law. and by
Drecedent He referred IN Mr RrtIar' -