Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1874-09-18
Information Wanted.

Information Wanted.
Mr.. Albert Constable, who bears the
name Of one Of the most gifted men who
ever lived in Maryland, in a speech deliver
ell by him before the Democratic Congress
is reported 20 have said, that in this State,
almost entirely under Democratic rule,
pilferings were constantly going on and
that we ought to "stop the grabs in the
departments under our own control before
we should ask honest men of the other
party to support our nominees. The same
gentleman also criticised Gov. Groome.
and attributed his course and policy to be
Influenced with a view to his own politi-
cal preferment. These are grave charges
brought by Mr.. Constable against his own
party, and if true, we cannot but admire
the bravery and propriety which actuated
him in thus proclaiming them in Demo
cratic Convention. If such corruption, as
he charges, does exist in our party, he was
right to denounce it, and denounce it when
and where he did. 1t is the duty which
every Democrat owes to his party and its
principles, to expose venality and rascality
in public functionaries whenever known.
Surely he has no right to complain of the
stealing of Radical office-holders when
"pilfering" is being done by those of his
own party. We may expect such things
from the Radical office holder, but we GER
tainly do not look for it in our own friends
and when found, we should not only make
note of it," but gibbet the offender before
public opinion, so that he may be made
an example for all time to come. If our
party has not the bravery and courage to
do this, then certainly, it is unworthy of
the confidence of the people and should
be driven from power. We know nothing
of the charges thus made. We have never
heard whisper of them before, but the
author of them being a delegate to the Con-
vention, which he addressed, member of
the bar of Cecil county, and bearing the
name of an honored sire, we are bound to
presume that, ordinarily, he is good au
thority for what he may say, and especially
when he speaks in quasi official charac-
ter, as he did on this occasion. 1t may be
that the gentleman is incorrectly reported :;
if SO, he should place himself right on the
subject. Ii, on the other hand, he did make
the charges Of ''pilfering" in the depart
ments of our State Government, as men
toned in the Baltimore Sun of the 18th
inst, then we call upon him, in the name
of the Democratic party fthe State, to give
US the facts and names of the persons i'm
plicated, in order that our party may purge
itself of these unworthy members, and that
the people may punish its dishonest ser
wants. Of course it is not to be presumed
that Mr.. Constable would have made grave
charges of this character without kno,ciny
they were true, and therefore he can have
no cause for delay in responding to the
reasonable demand thus made. The
charges are too sweeping and of too much
magnitude, involving not only the personal
honesty of office holders, but the integrity
of the whole party, to be lightly passed
over.
1t has ever been heretofore the boast and
pride of our State that the integrity of her
officers was above suspicion and we have
no reason now for suspecting any of them,
other than these utterances of Mr.. Consta-
BILE. One of the most important depart
ments Of the State, the Treasury, is now
filled by the Hon. Barnes Compton, whom
we, in this county, have often been delight
ed to honor, because of his known honesty
and the other department-that of the
Comptroller-is presided over by Col.
Levin Woolford, whom the people of his
own county for twenty years kept in the
responsible office of Clerk, and whom the
people Of the State thrice elected to his
present position because of his known in
tegrity. These are the two principal ''de-
partments" of the State, and if Mr.. Consta-
BILE knows of any waste or pilfering going
on in either Of these, or Of any other, let
him speak out at once, and give us the
facts and figures.
AS to what is said about the Governor
administering his Office for the purpose
of securing the nomination next time, we
know nothing. If true, it furnishes an
o+bor aroun,ent in favor of the ne-term
system; and in this present instance, we
are inclined to think, that if the Governor
does thus abuse his office for his own ag
grandisenlent, he will find that, like hog
swimming across stream, every effort to
reach his bourne will the more efectually
tend to cut his own throat.
In conclusion, we would say, that we
are now entering upon campaign of the
utmost political importance, not only for