The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1876-08-19
mr.. SHELBY M. CULL0M.

| Hon. L. NJ. IIaines, of the Chicago Legal
Advertiser, and Speaker of the last House OF
Representatives OF Illinois, thus pays his re.
spects to Mr.. Shelby Cullom in the Lega! Id
rertjser for August:
MIR. CULLOM.
Mr. Shelby NJ. Culom, the candidate Of the
politicians of Illinois for Governor, has writ
ten and caused to be printed pamphlet of
16 pages, which he has entitled A Sketch Of
his Personal and Political Career. Mr. Cul-
lon has sent US two copies of this Sketch"
The second one sent has paragraph mark
ed which reads as follows: " He Mr.. Gull
lom) was again the unanimous choice of the
Republicans for speaker, but the Democrats
and Independents combined, being IN the ma
iorty, effected q fusion and the results were
the election of L. NJ. Haines, speaker, and the
scandalous scenes which disgraced that body
and the State
In the first place, there were no disgrace
iul scenes al all in that body TO which he re-
terS; and in the second place, the only at.
tempts at any such results were mstigated by
Mr. Clllom himself, as a retaliation for his
defeat Mr. Cullom, at the instigation Of
Dave Phillips, sought, by every means IN his
power during the entire session, to create
oIdLudlOuo SICutS hhNi, IA poSoioiS, plSoh
up TIE session. With the assistance of Phil
lips newspaper he was succeeding very well
In his own opinion, until some OF his official
misconduct was brought to light, wherein he,
as speaker, certified to pay the clerk of the
House to the amount of several thousand dol
lars for time when the House was not in ses-
sion at all, and to which the clerk was no
more entitled than a man who had never
held the office. He then begged of Speaker
Haines to intercede for him, and if possible
save him from the disgrace of exposure, and
pretending sickness, absented himself from
the House most of the balance of the session
and now, as if to add to his offense, he pro-
claims a libel upon the good name of the
State, of which he asks to be made governor,
by assailing the integrity Of its General AS
sembly. He would have the world believe,
taking his assertion for truth, that the State
of Illinois had become disgraced by the con-
duct of its representatives in the legislature,
and Is not n fit place for respectable and
peacable citizens to immigrate to. This is
not simply political question, it is a matter
of business and concerns every citizen and
tax payer in the State as SUCH not as parti-
SAN out as citizen. The question is put to
them in the most pointed aspect Is man
who has no higher appreciation OF propriety
and common decency than this, independent
of his official misconduct, as shown by the
record, who, in the hope of gaming a few
blinded partlZan votes, thus wantonly assalls
the good name ofhis State by m attack upon
the integrity of its institutions, "a proper per-
son TO be placed at the head of the proud
commonwealth of Illinois as its chief execu.
tive. Whoever wishes information as to Mr..
Culom's official misconduct, will find the
facts set forth by reference TO the journal OF
the House of Representatives at its last ses-
sion.
At page CTS of the House Journal, 1875,
will be found the following facts That there
was paid to the clerk OF the House. on the
certificate of Mr.. CullOm, Speaker the sum
OF Si,3j3, as follows: for services from Jan.
s, 1873, to May 6, 1878, while the House was
n session, S714; for services from Jan. 6,
1874, to March 81, 1874, while the House was
in session, $50, at SO day; total, 81 ,224
and for the balance of the two years endn u
Jan. 4, 1875, while the House was not in SEES.
sion, the sum of S3,l3S. Total amount S4,.
3G2 being paid OFT of the peoples treasury,
3,l3S for services not rendered. Do the poo
pie want any more of that kind of admins
tratIon of their affairs? Can they afford to'l
have their money squandered IN this way
Let tax payers answer. No wonder Mr.. Cul-
lon and Dave Phillips think the last session
of the Legislature disgraced the State. Iii
showed up this plundering of the peoples
treasury.