The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1880-02-16
AN INDIANA SENSATION.
Lieut.. Governor Gray Makes
Some Explanations,
And Charges the Enquirer's JayhawkeI
With Attempt at Blackmail.
UNION CITY, February IA, 1880.

UNION CITY, February H. 1880
Special Correspondence of the Star.
Learning that the friends of Lieutenant Gov
ernor Isaac p. Gray, Of Indiana, were very indig-
nant about the charges contained in the Jay
hawker letter Of last Tuesday. your correspondent
s,ught Governor Gray in his law-of1ce here, and
with very few prelminaries proceeded to inter-
view him as follows
"Dd you read Jayhawkers communication in
| the Enquirer OF last Tuesday, which is particu.
laly severe your action ct the time of the adop
ton of the resolution ratifying the Fifteenth
| Amendment by the Indiana State Senator
Colonel G.-"Yes have read 1t, and it con-
tains as many falschoods as could well be put to-
gether in so many lines Lieutenant Gov
| ernor Cumback did not leave the man
agement of the passage of the resolution
ratifyng the Fifteenth Amendment to me nor did
he say a W. lrd TO me about it. Cumback presided
entirely during the passage of the resolution rati-
flying the Fifteenth Amendment l was not in
the chair at any time wh le 1t was pending. 1t
WIS passed on the 18th day of May. 1869. did not
occupy the chair until the 17th the last day of the
session. Did not procure Senator Hooper to intro
duce any resolution or to call up any Had moth
ing whatever to do with making up the record.
Never suggested or moved to add any Senator's
name to the roll or record, nor did move or sng-
gest to put any Senator down as present but not
voting. The assertion that l had the roll to show
that Senators Bradley and Denbo voted when
they were not in the house Is an unqualified false
hood. Several Senators were on the hU0r refusing
to answer to their names, claiming they Lad re-
| as the Governor had not notified the Senate Of
| their resignations the Senate could not know
| whether they had resigned or not Senator
| Church suggested that they be put Iwn as pres
| h,,t ucfu Of off rod tha
oluton staring who were present and not voting
The mistake the Senators made was In coming on
the floor Of the Senate before the Governor had
| notified the Senate of their res gnations. l. at
that time, construed the Constitution Of the State
as requiring thirty-four Senators to constitute q
quorum, and 50 commended. as will be sc seen by
my remarks on page 235 BREWER Reports Special
Session. 1863 1--WE here give them copied verbatim):
Mr.. Gray-"I do not intend 10 make speech,
because this question has been discussed here at
length. and l do not suppose that anyth ng
III ght say will change the minds OF Senators. l
lOOK upOn this as rave que>tiOn. l will 60 as
ton. except when it comes in conflict with my
oath. and that must be allowed TO judge for
myself. must keep this in view, that for eigh-
teen years we have required twenty
Because we consider that the Senate consists "f
| fifty members. And the idea IN my mind was
that tine Constitution required it, because when u
, II receives twentys six vot s, If every Senator
was in his seat. it could not be feated, and
therefore fl, cts the will of majority OF the
people of the Stale. | h Id that the Constitution
| acts upon the p esumptlOn that the people will
elect Representatives, and when the law says the
Senate shall consist of fifty members the pre-
sumption of the Constitution is that the people
will elect fifty. now. If IA majority of the mem.
bers present are to constitute quorum, we must
surrender the principle that 1t takes twenty-six
vates to pass bill, otherwise We might have a
quorum 10 consist of less tnan twenty-six votes,
| md thatW Wnuld a a uuuhlp in dn hro oi.
ness. shall cons der that the Senate consists of
the number of members fixed by law-ffty-and
that the Constitution means two-thirds Of that
constitutes u quorum to do business Without
going further into the argument l shall vote
against the resolution. l shall vote against 1t
because know that 1t islntended to lead To some
thing ese-that this Senate is to 20 on aud enact
legislation, and Can not consider any act or bill
| passed with only thirty-tWo members present. as
| legal and constitutional"
The Colonel continued: II occupied the chair
on the 17th, the last day of the session. Governor
| Cumback having gone home. AS is always the
case OH the last day of the session ], as presiding
off, er signed the concurrent and joint resolutions
presented to me, among them the joint resolutions
ratifying the Fifteenth Amendment 1t did not
REQUIRE Governor Bakers signature.
Il am willing to be bound by any record I may
have made. ANY person may see the part taken
by every Senator, and all that was said and done
from the time the Fifteenth Amendment came
into the Senate TIL its final passage by reading the
Brev er Reports Special Session, 1869, commenc ng
page 22, which also shows Jayhawktr's state
ments to be maliciously false NY remarks which
you have inserted were made on the resolution
OF nator Be lumy to make thirtytwo const tute
senators a quorum. The resolution is to be
found at the bottom of page 2'3 BREWER Reports
| Rep.-"Well Colonel, how d, you account for
the misrepresentation Of Jayhawker?
| Col I.-"O don't know, unless it Is because
| I have refused to subsdize him. He has made
applications to me for money, saying he would
write me up and make me Governor Of Indiana.
Here is a letter received by me from him some
time ago asking for SIS. paid no attention to it,
as did not propose to try to get the nomination
| In that way"
| Here the original letter was exhibited, and we
| give of 1t a true copy: -.....
"DEAR COLONEL: You can do me a service II
you will, which is 10 send me SIS That amount
just now will be worth millions to me, and will
reciprocate when can.
Ibid you see press opinions printed to-day?
"Your friend, J. H. WooDARD,
"B0x 43, indianapolis"
T.