Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1878-10-31
PECKSNIFF.

disclosures OF corruption In South Caro-
lima and Florida than the ruin they
have wrought to regulations that were
Once thought fair, and the disgrace
with which they have covered men
who move in society where dishonor
is regarded as the worst of misfOrtunes.
The detection Of John f. Coyle and
Smith NJ. Weed in the act of bribery
caused no great surprise to the public,
and perhaps no great anguish to the
culprits themselves. But when the
offence is fastened upon Manton Mar
Die, who has been accustomed to asso-
ciate with gentlemen, and upon some
inmate of the household of the candi-
date who for five years has vaunted his
labOrs in political reform as his chief
- claim to the first magistracy of the Ma
ton, We find ourselves wondering
whether public virtue is extinct in this
unfortunate country, and truth and
sincerity are lost virtues. Such an un-
yelling of meanness, false pretenee and
swindlIng is bitter encouragement to
those who are trying to improve our
political methods, and could not fsiI
to have bad effect upon the morality
of the average office seeking class were
not the accompanying exhibition of
pOcrisy-fortunately perhaps-sO re-
pulsive. OF bold rascality we are in
clined to be too tolerant; but Ameri-
cans have no patience with Maw-
worm.
Six weeks ago some malevolent spi-
rit put it into the head of Manton Mar.
BILE TO write letter to the newspapers
on the electoral controversy. Why he
should have been insane enough to
broach that fatal sui ject, knowing that
he trod upon torpedOes, is a question
that he himself is probably puzzled to
answer. He began his letter by pro-
tossing desire TO dispel the prevalent
suspicion that Mr.. Tilden might have
become the President il fact except for
sOme net or omission of bis OWn"-a
profession which certainly looks gro
tesque enough in the light which The
| Tribune has recently shed upon the
"acts and OMISSIONS" for which Messrs.
Tilden ami Marblahsve cOparceny of
responsibility. Could he not have con-
fined himself to his set purpose of wins
dicating Mr.. Tilden's policy, with re-
spect to the Electoral Commission, and
venting his dislike of Hewitt? Was it
needfal that he should fill this long
screcd with theatrical outcries against
his own sins, and professions of civic
virtue sure to recOil upon his head with
crushing force whenever the exposure
came? What demon impelled him to
denOunce the 'fiagitious compIot," Of
Republican "visiting statesmen" and
to accuse them of "working out the
primary part and fraudulent ground
work" of a conspiracy to subOrn Can
vassing BOards-what cruel destiny
drove him to accuse the friends of Pres
ident Hayes of "heaping up and ce-
menting in debauchment and dishOn-
or" plot to purchase votes, and then
spread this amazing letter before the
world just as the written evidence of
Mr.. Marbles own proposition to buy
the Florida Returning Board fell into
the hands of The Tribune? "rO hear
NOyes defend the Alachui frauds and
fOrgeries before the Florida Board"
wrote Mr.. Marble in his published
manifesto, would have given that
canting hypOcrite Pecksniff himself a
moral vomit." "Pr rJposit. ou received"
wrote Mr.. Marble in his secret tele-
gram, "either giving vote of one Re-
publican of Board or his concurrence
in Court action preventing elecsO:s'
vote from being Cast, for half hundr, d
best United States documents" "A
few thousand dollars" says the put lie
letter, land the whole atrOciOn5 con-
Spiracy would have been hursted Ike
a puff-ball and blown away in dust.
But j apologize for the Suggest on. l
apologize to Gov. rilden for c.InfIn,It-
ing his character with the morally IL
possible" "PropOsitiOn arce JtaSi,'
telegraphed Pelton to Marote IN cipi,, T,
''if done only once"
"Fhe signal and peculiar marx Of
Gov. Tilden's plan," continued lie
Letter ON the Electoral mission,
was this: his absolute trust in moral
forces, his entire faith in the p"npiA,
their volitions and their power. (. uiu
him of all men was faith in the peUile
lue; and whoever can believe that at
asst he trusted vainly, that at last ne
would have appealed against the cUn-
;piracy to the public conscience az
he peoples strength in vain, must h.s-
Orehand confess the sh4mel5SS crCrt
hat this Republic is rotten at the
,ore." How his sentences seemed 10
.lOw with the heat of honest anger!
But it Was sham. When Mr.: Marh.e
wrote those phrases he knew that thy
we're hot true. II was the agent
hrough whom the def, ated candidate
or the Presidency negotiated the bri-
very of Florida; he probably knew t
he schemes of corruption which W,
pushed at the saH,e time in Oth'r
states; if he did not know, he could
hardly help suspeeIing them VIII II
le threw the most scOrnful epithets
Ould command at ''the t.eputized gO-
,etweens AMI real principals in tie
rime of reversing h actual returns"
low was it that he did not reflect upon
he danger of the discovery-then so
lose at hand-which would exhibit
loses MantOn Marble himself in tie
haracter of deputiZed gO-between iu
ri,ne? When he affected To be shock
d at the suspicious action of the FlUri-
a Returning Board in "hoiding back
s action till the last of the tWenty-nine
avs" is it possible that the man did
ot blush in h privacy of his study
5 he recalled the exciting incidents of
he cIlsing scene IN Tallahassee, when
ction waited upon the decision Of
frmaercy Park; when Paris telegraph
d: "Marble says plan sent you Satur-
ay must be acted upon immediately
hen the plot was brought to a stald
ecause Fox and Moses had both been
idding for the same vote, and the ar
xer of acceptance, proposition ac-
,pted If done only once" was bungled
| transmission ald had to be repeatede
N. Y. Tribune.
It is as clear as mud that the Trib-
ne forged those dispatches AMI manu-
ctured the keys TO unlock tn 'ir
esning. They never could have
,en sent from South Carolina or Flor