National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1876-05-01

10 the letter OF GeneTal JaChsOn, Win
the circumstances es they really occurred"
contradicts or inyalidates something
some statement or averment-in the
Radical press Of this city, respecting the
letter Of General jackson. But in what?
Turn to the NATIONAL RErUBLIcAN of
March "a, 1876, and contrast Wise's with
its history of the matter. No fact or state
ment is contradicted or weakened. But
Henry A. Wise, with all the old hostility
still ranking, urges one or two additional
facts. which make our points even
stronger. He stated that Jackson's Ad-
ministration had come into power as
"reform Administration, but that when
its maladministration and crimes had be-
come 'tnotorious" or, as Wise now puts
it, when its intrigue, corruption and
abuse of power had been so successful
'tas to elect" as his successor 1.-THE jackall
(Martin Van BUREN, of the hour" it de
MED, resisted and defeated all inyestiga-
ton. all inquiry Is not that the burden
Of Wise's letter to Garnet? Indeed, IN
our article of March "a we enforce these
facts by quotation from Wise's speech Of
1889, in which he declares, addressing
James E. Polk, the Democratic Speaker
of the House: "You repealed inquiry, re-
"fused interrogatories, Frustrated and post
"poned resolutions, encouraged contumacy
Gin witnesses, and resisted investigation in
"every FORM" both under the Garland
and Wise committees. Does not Henry
A, in the Capital, confirm all that's His
picture Of the old Hero" is capitalists
description Of the fiery ''pugnacity"
of jackson, shsking "the mace Of despot-
ism" at the House and its committees
"By the eternal, will take the response
"bility T. But what satisfaction" or
"comfoIt" DR.. Garnett. in his manifest pur-
pose, can derive from Mr.. Wise's letter is
inexp!icabie. Besides, in sueering at
Radicalism, he forgets, or thinks the
world has forgotten, that the Jackson
Democracy were then the Radical party
of the nstion-''Slam. Bang & Co. with
the notorious Fanny Wright" its high
priestess, in New York, and her infdel
crew, profaniDg the Sabbath with their
orgies, and bespattering with filth all and
everything holy and pure!
But there is one passage in Henry A
letter which may be misunderstood by the
present reader. although probably literally
true. He says
"Thc address or direction of letter TO me
by General jackson, as printed and pub
lSIeG, is NOT fTHe copy Of hts original. See
that, if it can be found, and you will find
y y.
Of his bad spelling and OF his underscoring
with the emphasis of passion. According
to my recollection the latter part Of the
address was '0f the abuses and corruptions
Of the executive departments charged
Mr. Wise could not let that pass. What
he means is, the version authorized by
General Jackson. and printed and pub
lished" in the Globe of February 4, 1887,
and from which we copied, sis not true
copy Of the original" sent to him by Jack
son. Spy" the Washington correspond
ent Of the New York Courier and IN
quirer, in January, 1887, describes the
original as follows:
''The letter addressed to Mr.. Wise have
said is a curious document. 1t is so. From
its tenor, it appears TO speak to him as chair
man of the committee. as Representative OF
the House, ami as private person. The COM
mittee, am informed, have permitted Mr..
Wise to take copy OF il, and to do with it as
he pleases. III have not mistaken his charac-
ter, he will handle the greatest and the best
without mittens. No official answer has yet
been ordered"
That the Globe denounces as "garbled
and falsified," as ''garbled and misrepre-
sented," and prints "true copies of the
papers in question" 1t handles Mr.. Wise
without mittens." Hence we felt it but
just and fair to give the old "hero" the
benefit of his cooler revision, and quoted
from his authorized edition in the Globe.
But Mr.. Wise is at issue with the life
long history of the Democracy in his de-
clarat;on that sit (the letter. was one of
the most imprudent and unwise acts of his
public life;" that "0ld Hickory was shoot
ing Parthian arrow-was just going out
of Office, and that "that letter was not the
least cause Of the crushing defeat of his sue
cessor :" Mr.. Wise, too, knows better. Its
Napoleonic vim or dash-its independence
and manhood-added to its popularity. 1t
was the frightful consequences of its reck-
less financial measures, under which, 'in
1881, one thousand finaDciers, merchants,
manufacturers and ship-owners broke
down in New York in less than three
"weeks, and forty thousand more through
"out the country-failures TO the amount
''of $500, 600, O00''-universal bankruptcy,
and the ruin for years of the business and
commerce of she nation, and the conse-
quent suffering and want of all ranks aud
classes, that "caused the crushing defeat
Gin 1910 of his successor" None know
that better than Mr.. Wise. He accordingly
throws in the above as special plea-a
justification or apoiogy-tor the disgusting
and Infamous abuses of investigation by the
present House, and which really have no
parallel in history since the corrupt prac-
tees of decaying Rome, when emperors
like Domitian, Caligula and Nero encour-
aged the informer or spy, the periurer or
false witness, as parts of the machinery of
Government, unless it be in the reign of
the Stuarts, when Titus, Oates, Tongue
and Kirby, by the boldest perjury, swore
away the lives Of the most illustrious in
the kingdom, caused the confscation of
their estates and the beggary of their fami-
lies
Besides, Jackson's letter contains nothing
new; Its principles had long been the set
tied doctrine of the party, which con-
tinued the cardinal tenets of the faith up
TO the last hour Of its long misrule. Let
US quote again one extract and give brief
history Of this party doctrine. 1t is as fol-
lows
CATER The reiterated charges you have
made, it was to have been expected that you
would have been prepared to reduce them to
specifications, and that the committee would
then proceed TO investigate the matters
alleged; hut, instead OF this, you resort to
generalities even more vague than your origi-
nal accusations, and in open violation of the
Constitution, and of that well established and
wise maxim, That all men are presumed to
he innocent until proven guilty according to
the established rules of law you request my
self and the heads of the Departments to be-
come our own aocusers, and to furnish the