Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1880-06-26
WHOLE NO. 2,326.

: with Mr.. Ames to take ten share
of the credit mobilier stock, but dil
/ not pay for the same. Mr.. Anne
received the so per cent. dividenG
in bonds, sold them for 81 per cent.
! and also received the 60 per cent
cash dividend, which altogethe
! with the price of the stock and in
terest left balance of 329 dollars
This sum was paid over to Mr.. Gar
field by check on the sergeant-at
arms. Mr.. Ames received all the
subsequent dividends, and the com
mittee do not find that since the
payment of 329 dollars there has
been any communication between
Mr.. Ames and Mr.. Garfield on the
subject until the investigation be.
gam"
The committee in their long re-
port explained how the credit mo-
bilier was but little better than an
outright conversion of the property
given by the government to the
Union Pacific road into private
purses. Touching the action of
those who handled the stock the re-
port says:
sit ought also to be observed that
those gentlemen who surrendered
their stock to Mr.. Ames before
| there was any public excitement
upon the subject do not profess to
have done so upon any idea of inn
propriety in holding it, but for rea-
sons affecting the value and securi-
| ty of the investment. But the
committee believe that they must
have felt that there was something
so out of the ordinary course ofbus-
mess in the extraordinary divi-
dends they were receiving as to
renden the investment itself sus-
picious, and that this was one of the
motives of their action.
The only criticism the committee
feel compelled to make on the ac-
tion of these members in taking
this stock is that they were not suf-
ficiently careful in ascertaining
what they were getting, and that in
their judgment the assurance of
good investment was all the assur-
ance they needed. We commend
to them and to all men the letter of
the venerable Senator Bayard in re-
spOnse to an offer of some of this
stock"
This letter is in response to a note
from Mr.. McComb, bluntly offering
the stock to Senator James a, Bay
ard, who wrote in reply:
WASHINGTON, Jan. IA, 1868.
My Der ir:-I received this
evening your letter of this date in
forming me that Mr.. Ames, of Mass !
achusetts, had 81 900 or $4,000 of
stock in the credit mobilier for me. |
My son, Tnow Senator Thomas f. |
Bayard ] in a letter which received |
this morning, informed me of your
short conversation with him, and |
that it was to your friendly feeling |
that / was indebted for the subscrip- /
ton to what you tell me is a good |
thing am, however, utterly in
the dark as to the nature and object |
of this corporation. and you will |
oblige me if you will give my son
as much information as you have in
relation to them. | do not know |
Mr.. Ames personally, and must
wait, of course, until he addresses
me on the subject. / take it for
granted that the corporation has no
to make to congress on
which / shall be called to act of
ficially, as / could not consistently
with my views of duty vote upon
question in which / have pecuni-
airy interest. Whether ! become
the owner of this stock or not, / am
obliged to you for your intention to
benefit me. AS / must, of course,
pay for any stock / get, please let
my son have full information as to
its prospective value. Your COM
consider, as you have
confidential except as to
him, and he and | are almost one
person. Yours, very truly,
lt .ia. JAMES A. BAYARD."
"H. S. McComb, Esq" .H
A feature of the case is the haste
which Gen. Garfield made in hurry
ing to see Oakes Ames, in writing to
him a letter. Ostensibly referring to
the return of a petty loanand in get
ting an Endorsement which should
make it appear thatthe whole trans
action was a matter of a loan.
Mr.. Garfield, In his first statement
to tile committee, explained hiss
need of a loan by saying that a trip
to Europe had somewhat impover>
ished him. The trip, as it after+
wards appeared, did not occur until
after the credit mObilier transac-
tions, so that while it was very we'll
as an explanation of a loan at a
later date, it went for nothing if the
loan was not loan but one of the
incidents of an earlier and different
On Feb. 10, with the report and
all the evidence before it, the New
York Times thus spoke of its pres
ent candidate for the presidency:
'tOf the members referred to,
Messrs. Kelley and Garfield present
4 most distressing figure, Their
in the credit mobilier
affair is complicated by the most
contradictions of testi-
mony which the committee do not
to unravel. The only
comment on their cases is
that had they taken a perfectly up
right course in the matter and re-
fused to have anything to do with
the stock no occasion for contradic-
tion could have arisen."