The New York herald., 1879-02-01
WASHINGTON-
FROM OUR REGULAR CORRESPONDENT.

FROM OUR REGULAR CORRESPONDENT.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 81. 1872
THE HUNToN-ALExANDER DIFFICULTY BEFORE
THE GRAND JURY OF THE DISTINGUISHES
MoNY OF MR.. ALEXANDER REGARDING THE
ALLEGED CHALLENGE.
Mr.. Columbus Alexander appeared to-day, by invi-
taton before the Grand Jury of the District and gave
testimony relative to the charge that General Epps
Hunton. member of Congress from the Eighth Vir-
ginia district. sent him challenge on the 10th of
July last to engage in mortal combat. Tho
announcement that Mr.. Alexander would bo
present to-day caused a full attendance of the
jurors and throughout the taking of Mr. Alexanderv
testimony the strictest attention was given.
Mr.. Alexander began by giving the history of the
unpleasantness between himself and the General.
which grew out of statement alleged to have been
made by General Hunton that Mr.. Alexander IA
vorable to the passage by Congress of the act ito
provide for the revision and correction of
sessments for special improvements in ths
District of Columbia" He next read and
submitted all the correspondence between him.
self and the General and narrated the part
Captain Sheppard, General Hunton's friend took in
bearing of the letters from the General to Mr..
Alexander. He dwelt particularly upon the alleged
letter of challenge. follows:-
ALEXANDRIA, Va, July 10. 1873.
COLUMBUS ALEXANDER ESQ.,
SIR addressed you a letter giving you op.
portunity. of which you should have avaled your
self. to correct an error into which supposed
you had fallen. Instead of doing this
you have replied Extensively through the
press and been guilty of such illusions my friend,
Captain Sheppard, as Justify the apprehension that
you would avail yourself of the police of the District
to subject any friend of mine under certain
circumstances. 1 thus constrained to resort to
the mail the only safe method of communicating
with you. Relying your declaration in your Sec
"A n
indicate some place beyond the reach of the District
police. where demand for the reparation which vir
gnians accord in such cases be made upon you.
To be sure that you receive this send it regis
tered letter. An addressed to this place
EPPA HUNToN
He also placed in evidence card from Captain
Shepperd, expressing the Captains regrets that he
had not received to the above letter. and
informing Mr.. Alexander that he (Sheppard) could be
found at the st. Mark Hotel in this city. and the
poster issued by General Hunton and circulated in
this city and Alexandria, in which the General ad-
mitted that he had sent Mr. Alexander challenge.
and stated that he sent the challenge registered
letter to prevent his friend Sheppard from being
placed in position liable to send him to the Peni-
tentiary and that Hunton) took all responsible.
ties on himself.
On the conclusion of the reading of the
spondence &C., Mr.. Wilson, the foreman of the jury.
asked Mr. Alexander If the Of the Revised Statutes
relative to sending accepting challenge applied
to this District and to this Mr. Alexander
piled that he was satisfied that it did. discussion
followed. and Mr.. Alexander submitted article
from the HERALD of December 81, last. containing
the law the subject. This rather surprised the
jurymen, and some of them remarked that they had
never read tho law before.
The foreman took charge of the case and the
papers belonging to it, and at his request Mr.. Alex
ander submitted the following names of witnesses
for whom subpenas will be issued this evening"
Captain j. NJ. Stewart, postmaster House OF Repre-
senatives. who indorsed the registered letter
tanning the challenge; +. E. Sheppard, the Generals
friend; FE Alexander. who obtained the registered
letter from the Post Office. and J. f. Dyer, who
Hunton's posters circulated in the hotels here.
WORK ON PUBLIC BU1LDINGs-MR. MULLER's
RESOLUTION TO PROVIDE FOR BETTER sYs-
TEN.
The joint resolution introduced by Mr.. Muller, Of
New York, and referred to the Committee on Educa-
tion and Labor, asking the President to appoint
board to examine into and report better
system of doing work on public buildings. will
be favorably reported by that committee
when it is called. The resolution proposes
that the President convene q board COM
posed of the Commissioner Of Public Buildings
and Grounds the Architect of the Capitol the Super
vsing Architect of the Treasury and the Engineer
Commissioner of the District of Columbia, to make
thorough examination of the subject of doing work
government public buildings and report whether
a more equitable system could not be established by
doing the labor and mechanical work by what is
known as "day's work" Numerous complaints
having been made against the present system of
doing work public buildings and fortifcations by
contract the committee believe that the government
would be benefited if the works carried on di-
recty under the supervision of government officials