National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1881-01-10
Senator Bayard's Memory.

| SOLlS 1lSpuDlCdu piOpooitioii' AhSs "AN
of the purring or cat kind, and, being safe
in the affections of the Democratic papers
they now and then rub against the legs Of
the editors of the neutral and of the semi
Republican papers to secure attention and
caresses from them and their kind. The
reputation gained by these arts gives the
possessors good standing with those non
partisan Republicans who generally fear
their side is wrong any how, and who
require but slight testimony to make
this impression a conviction. When
one of these fair" men becomes over
charged with partisan malignity, ofwhich
some of them carry four times as much
as do their blunt and outspoken fellows,
then he expects a hearing. This Will
oftenest happen in campaign times; then
our extremely scrupulous and fair Demo-
crat, who is the darling of all NANCY and
otherwise politically diseased Republi-
cans, is uncorking great demijohns of
vitriolic wrath and blazing his way on
the stump by the charred regulations he
leaves behind. We find him not only
forgetting himself on the platform and
saying things grossly incompatible with
his reputation for fairness, but then We
find him forgetting that he had SO for
gotten.
These reflections run through our mind
in thinking of the unfortunate speech
made at Dover, Del, in OCTOBER last by
Senator Bayard, and his utter inability
afterward to remember his utterances.
Far be it from us to charge that Senator
with intentional prevarication. We are
bound to believe that, heated with party
zeal and excited by the surroundings, he
uttered words which he could not after
ward remember. To take any other view
would be to charge him with being first
guilty of SANDER and then of falsehood to
escape its consequences
In the speech referred to, Senator Bay
ard was reported as having described
transaction alleged by him to have taken
place in the New York custom-house
The occasion was one where an importing
firm, guilty of frauds upon the Govern
ment, was seeking to mitigate the ex-
treme penalty provided by law for its
criminal practices. Says the reported
speech:
When that interview took place very distin-
guished gentlemen were present, the senior Sena-
tor from New York among others-Mr Conkling.
Also, Mr. Noah Davis, the district attorney; Mr..
Arthur, the collector; Mr.. Jayne, the spy, or spe-
cial agent, they called him. Allwere present Mr..
Boutwell,, the distinguished financer, who was
Secretary of the Treasury, was there also. And
they all stood around this unhappy merchant,
who had given his $4,000 subscription to General
Grant; this president of the Young Mems Chris
tian Association; this member ofthe Union League
and this president of the Chamber of Com
merce. He thought all that would protect him.
Not much! Not much! They took from that
mans pocket in one sum S267, 900 in money, and
they divided it among themselves. [Great laugh
teri Gentlemen, this is no exaggeration or figure
ofSpeech. There it stands upon the record and
want to tell you it is a thing of which have
knowledge and means of knowledge.
Taken to task for this in letter signed
by General Arthur, Senator Conkling
ex-Secretary Boutwell,, and Judge Noah
Davis, Senator Bayard replies thus
Reading for the first time the extract you send
me, it appears to me so grossly inaccurate as to
cause the belief it could not have been written by
an honest person.
He then proceeds to state that he did
denOunce the. mOiety system in general
terms, and the share which went to the
officers in this case, and that he did say:
The senior Senator from New York, Mr. Conkling.
was understood to have received compensation as
their counsel from Messrs Arthur Cornell and
Latin for his services and assistance in the transac
ton. ----- !
THIS left it uncertain ao to what words
of the report Mr.. Bayard, with such
show of indignation, was intending to dis
claim. The extract was, he said, "grossly
inaccurate" but whether the inaccuracies
made it milder or stronger than the orig
inal did not appear to the casual reader.
In Senator Conkling's reply to Senator
Bayards equivocating letter he said:
Thus your response TO plain and warrantable |
inquiry is one which does not meet the inquiry, |
but consists chiefly of allegations far different and
though less injurious, offensive and untrue.
Then Mr.. Bayard responded that he
had never said the things reported, and |
had in his speech only said the things |
admitted in his previous letter. He took
no issue with Mr.. Conkling's declaration |
that the things admitted by him to have |
been said were offensive and untrue" |
To the Washington correspondent of the |
Record, Mr.. Bayard said:
The report did not appear for some days after, |
and had there been stenographer or careful re-
porter present would recede and take his notes |
instead of my memory.
Then came forward the stenographer,
James L. Andem, and made affidavit to |
the correctness of the report in question,
as folloHs:
City Of Washington District of Columbia, S.:
Be it remembered, that on this 24th day of No
vember, a. D. 1880, personally comes before me, C.
5. Bundy, Justice of the Peace of the city of |
Washington, District of Columbia, duly commits
stoned and qualified, J. L. Andem who, being by
me first duly sworn upon the Holy Evangels of Al
mighty God, deposes and says he is a resident of
the city sof Washington, and stenographer, or
shorthand writer, by trade profesSion that he
was in the town of Dover, State of Delaware ON
the 9th day of October A D. 1880,
and heard and reported the speech there delivered
BY Thomas F. Bayard, a Senator of the United
States from the State of Delaware that the fore
going and annexed extract is a true and correct
report of the remarks of the said Thomas F. Bay
lrd, Senator, as aforesaid
JAMES L. ANDEM,
~ Sworn to and subscribed before me the
sr,1 ! day and year aforesaid
sLAL' C. S. BUNDY,
~ Justice of the Peace,
Mr.. Andem is a highly reputable ste
lographer of this city.
Then came citizens of Delaware of high
character in that State and signed GER
tificate declaring that they heard the
speech of Mr.. Bayard, and remembered
we'll its language, and that the published
report above quoted is correct. Among
:hese gentlemen are the following. The