The Portland daily press., 1874-05-22
New York Letter.
The Moiety debate i'm the H0use-SeMator
ConIxling, Judge Davis and the Phelps,
Dodge & Co. affair.

NEW YORK, May N, 1874.
The Congressional debate in the lower house
of Congress on the 10Th, on the moiety ques-
ton, rcmarkabic for d1yei0piuy unCom-
monty interesting specimen of what Touch
stone would call ''the lie circumstantiaL" The
Republican Senator from New York was at
tackled by Mr. Beck of Kentucky for acting as
counsel for the New York Revenue officers.
''There's no proof of that statement" responds
member. 'The clients have not denied it,"
answers back the astute Kcntuckian. Then
followed a narration of the circumstances as
Dodge, which are susceptible of any interpreta-
ton, which the suspicious of the listener may
give to them, and which serve to support all
possible sides and phases of the argument ac-
cording to the light in which they are present.
ed.
Mr.. Davis cuts the W orst figure in this mat
ter. There was some excuse for Mr. Dodge s
introducing the name of Senator Conkling. He
was trying to explain why he was so importu-
nate to settle. 1t wasn't an easy thing to do.
In fact there is something so inherently incom-
prehensible in firm pressing the government
to take default against them for $271, 900 and
failing in that-devoting weeks to oral and
written entreaty to have that sum accepted in
lieu of suit, that there is no wonder Mr..
Dodge felt an urgent need of defending the act
by extraordinary reasoning. Consequently it
was a natural thing for him 10 assign as one of
the motives which made him so eager to
have his money accepted, the sense of
fear, which over-came him when he contempla-
ted the possibility of having the legal acumen
of Senator Conkling arrayed against him. That
was the strongest point of an extremely weak
case. Besides he put it as delicately as he
could. He didn't maintain that there was any
evidence that the Senator aoas acting as coun-
sci but only that he couldn't be entirely sure he
wasn't
But with Judge Davis the case is entirely
different. He either knew that Senator Conk-
ling was at the Custom House by mere acct
dent-it being place he hasn't been inside of
half a dozen times since he entered the Senate
seven years ago-or else he knew nothing what
ever about it. In either case if he felt that
there was any occasion for introducing his
name he should have done so without assuming
that air of hesitation and reluctance which W as
calculated if not designed to convey the inn
preston. that he thought the disclosure was
likely to bring the Senator into reproach. He
threw so much mystery and affectatiOn of
secrecy into the story withholding the name
the first day, and somewhat ostentatiousy
waiting to have it extorted from him the Sec
ond-that when it was finally brought out
there was an opening for one of those repor-
torial parentheses which describe the scene as
[Sensation.] The whole performance smacks
so much of clap-trap and stage effect, that it
becomes little more offensive to good taste on
account of its apparent insincerity and char
latanry.
Judge Davis, 1 am sorry to say. has made
bad showing in all this moiety business. I
regret it the more because he had
made good record on the bench
and is genial, pleasant gentleman. But it
looks very much as if, having got to Washing
ton and found that he had somewhat impaired
his usefulness az witness by having written
aforetime some ugly letters evincing not
merely willingness, but desire, to take
share of the contribution which Phelps, Dodge
& Co. forced on to the government,he began to
realize that he was getting into deep water and
wasn't above trying to turn the tide, little by
ElCdtSI ulluScll III 1hO isOh-
ing for that tempting spoil. There is no
doubt whatever but that the Judge is sensible
by this time of what everybody else knows
perfectly, to wit, that he made great mistake
by obtruding himself into the case on the hear
ing before the Committee of Ways and Means.
In regard to the Senator from New York, he
is in no need of defender Whatever he has
done in this matter, you may depend upon it,
accords completely with the canons of proprie-
W and morality. He is punctilious to the
hghest degree as respects the niceties of official
oonuuce' Everybody who knows him laughs at
sne iuea OF assocating his name with that of
Du'er' VINO does not hesitate to act as counsel
Tor parties who are prosecuting or who are
by the government, according to
the value of the retainer No two men in Con-
gress or out of it could be more dissimi,.r in
their sense of right or modes of thnuobt
Conkling is the Chevalier Bayard of ou, time
and has lofty scorn for any of the rnercenary
arts by which public men get gain at the ex-
pense of reputation.
Come to strip this thing of all its glamour
of romance and fustian and there is lust this