Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1882-12-18

/ "AAA AASuAo VI UHlo IiOuS6 Is HGrGON III
structed to investigate said allegations OF
any other matter or thing pertinent
to the same, that said committee be
and the same is hereby authorized to send
for persons and papers, administer oaths.
and examine witnesses, and as speedily as
may be, report the testimony so taken to
this house, with its recommends alton by
bill or otherwise.
The object of this resolution is no secret
here. 1t is believed that the main purpose
to serve is to bring about an investigation
of the charges made by Jay Hubbell
against Dr.. Bell, the collector at
Detroit. Hubbell charges
that Bell is under fixed salary paid him
by the Canada Southern, Great Western
and Grand Trunk railroads, which, to-
gether with his salary from the govern
ment, and the fees arising from the sales
of manifest and other blanks, bring the in
ccme up to about $4,000 per annum.
Last summer these charges were preferred
against Bell, and the secretary ordered two
special inspectors to Dstroit to investigate
them. This report, which was never made
public, was presented to Acting Secretary
French, who ruled that upon the
information in the report of the inspectors
he saw nothing to condemn. Rumors have
since been current that the report was not
as full as the developments justified: hence
the re-investigation.by the ways and means
committee. At the time the charges were
made against Bell, he excused himself by
saying he was paid the salary by the roads
to see that they conformed strictly with
the law. This is regarded by Hubbell as
a rather lame excuse. Hubbell says that
1ar. Bell cannot possibly deny the charges
against him. Bell is known to Be one of
ferry's most active supporter in the state.
and Hubbell says that he (BelD pursued
him reientlessly during the last campaign
because of the charges preferred against
him last summer. Hubbell says the COM
mittee will not be able to take up the in
vestigaiton till the tariff report is disposed
of. and that as he expects to be in Michi-
gan during the recess and the early part
of January, he cannot give his attention
to it, but that subcommittee will
thoroughly sift the whole matter.
A friend of Senator Ferry was heard to
remark to-day that he regarded it as part
of the programme to get Terry's active
friends out of the state just about the time
of the senatorial election. Hubbell said
to-day that while he was in the campaign
he did not pretend to reply to all the
charges that Bell, Gavitt and others of
Ferry's friends made against him, but that
now he should meet them on their own
ground, and if he was pushed to do SO he
would be prepared with ammuni-
ton that would surprise the people
of Michigan. 1t is well known fact that
an effort was made last fall to have VIM.
A. Gavitt transferred to some other state
on the ground that he was in Michigan in
terfering with the selection of members G f
the legislature in Ferry's interest. TIE
secretary of the treasury gave the matter
some attention, but Ferry's strength was
greater than Hubbell's in this case. and
Gavitt was left, Hubbell says, to pursue
his efforts to pledge members of the legis-
lature for Ferry. Hubbell says the best
men of the state who supported
Ferry last fall in having Gavitt
retained are now anxious to
have him removed. He denies that the
investigation has any bearing upon the
senatorial contest, but he believes it is
intended solely to purify and clear out the
custom house, at Detroit, which is said to
be run by a man under salary of several
corporations, doing large business with
the custom house. The resolution is very
broad in its termes, and it is thought
Special Agent Gavitt too will be called upon
to state to the committee what he knows
about Michigan affairs.
THE NEXT HOUSE.
According to a list of representatives
elect prepared by Clerk Mcpherson, of the
house of representatives there will be in
the next house 191 Democrats, 119 Repub-
licans, two Greenbackers, five Independents
and six Readjusters, giving the Democrats
a majority of ffty-nine over all. There
are now two vacancies caused by the deaths
of Updegraff, of Ohio, and Heron, of
Louisiana. One of these will be filed by a
Democrat, and the other by a Republican,
SO that the Democratic majority will remain
at fifty mine when the house is full. The
five members classed as Independents are
Finerty, of Illinois, Lyman, of Massachu-
setts, Chalmers, of Mississippi, Yorke, of
North Carolina, and Ochiltree, of Texas.
The two Greenbackers are calamity"
Weller, of Iowa, andi Brumm, of Pennsyl-
vania. The six Readjusters are all from
Virginia. It will be seen by this that for
statistical purposes at least Mr.. McPher-
son regards Chalmers as having been
elected from the Second Mis- SIS
sippi district instead of Manning. There
is contest in this case as to whether the
name of Manning or Chambers shall be
placed on the roll. Mcpherson is careful
to say that in making up this table he has
not intended to foreclose that case, but has
simply put Chalmbers' name on the list be-
cause the official vote of the district shows
that he received a majority. Senator
Kellogg has received dispatch stating
that two Democrats of Assumption parish,
Louisiana, have beed indicted by the grand
jury for abandoning ballot box. The
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