The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1883-01-11
I WHEGING, ". W&,gANuAEnHIlAss.
REPUBLICAN, CITY TICKET.


ID
Ai1' The Message. - '
The Governor Of West Virginia has mis-
,,ESaanI tbe occasion. Under the misappre-
he66si,o566 Ttllat the meeting Of the chosen
REPRESENTATIVES Of tie people wis gather.
inc q Bourbon Democrats in mass meeting
assembled, lie. has fred stump speech at
the Legislature. His message has all the
defects Of an effort Of that kind=ioosc
handling Of figures, inaccurate statements
Of fact, unwarranted imputation, thick
and.thin defense Of party, Intense partisan
bias.ilna. u lrf,itrsl b a,. .r fs. 80.
The Governor assumes not only that his
marty is under indictment-which assumpr
tiop,is correct--but that his administration
has been arraigned, !, in which he
NAV be said to have anticipated the
day " Of iwSrath-and lie consti-
u.es himself counsel for the defense
The Chief Magistrate Of Common
wealth degradeg his high office when he
carries his partisanship to this point. He
rols his communication TO the Legislature
of any value IL might have rs a State
paper, the essence Of which is loftiness Of
tone and frank, unbiased treatment oil
public affairs. han.'.
We shall have occasion hereafter t"
illustrate this point. Suffice it now to say
that. except as capital for the OPP
position, the Governor has rendered
almost yaldeless TINT part Of his message
which touches the State finances matter OF
the highest Importance. He plants him
self squarely on the ground from which his
party has been driven in confusion
Adopting al Of its errors, condonfng all Of
its offences with respect to the misuse OF the
school fund, he endeayos to explain 1t out
OF situation in which 1t is held as ina
wise. LII.
Beginning with the administration Of
Auditor Boggess, at the close OF which Res
publican responsibility ended, the Cover.
nor endeayoB to show that Republican
administration is responsible for the
misuse OF the school fund-the misuse
OF which by his own party began with its
accession 40 power. The inference from
the message is that the Democratic party
Inherited u school fund deficiency OF SGO,-
600, while, in fact there was not
dollar owing to that fund by the State
when the books were turned over. a state
ment to this effect was made by the Re-
publican Auditor Boggess, January 81,
1871, ii answer to Senate resolution Of
fered by the Hon. Henry G. Davis, and a
Democratic Legislature did no. attempt to
controyert it. The Governor quotes from
the report but his pa5tlissagnsAip cuts short
the quotation, where it seems to serve his
purpose. lie omitsthe statement that appro-
priaiions lin excess of the Auditors
estimates ''included the appropriation Of
100000 for the further construction Of the
hospital at Weston and he does not allow
the Auditor to say through this message, us
he did In his report quoted from; said
school funds have long since been REIN
bursed by subsequent collections Of the
revenue" We submit with respect that
this mutilation OF the record for partisan
purposes is unworthy Of the Governor Of
West Virginia.
Following out the line Of argument de-
signed to place responsibility on a party
which laid It down nearly twelve years ago,
Til. Governor is able TO find justification
for the presentunhappy and unlawful state
Of the finances. One year ago to-day it was
his boast that West Virginia owes no debt.
has no bonds Tor sale, and asks no credit"
Yet THAT same message We were told
that during lhe. year ISsl the State had
borrowed $50, 600 from . bank OF this city,
becauss the revenues did not meet the ap.
propriatiols Of a Democratic Legis.
Iature made in excess Of the est.
males, and :. nov we are told
that during 1852 twas, again necessary TO
borrow moheyon tile States l. o.U-this
time to the amount Of sIlo,OOO $4,000 Of
the III MONEY ;..borowed in 1881 having been
paidsiback with interest, a State which
.'owes no debt, land is not allowed to
contract onel, has,no bounds for sale and
asks no credit owes Wheeling bank
$1,000 on which the interest runs. The
deficiency which has existed ever since"
beginning with Auditor Bennett, who
began with the Democratic admins
tration++is Democratic deficiency,
aad.tHe Governors special pleading can
not make it otherwise appear.
The lSrELLlGE$cRR does not ilatter itself
that titus dealt exclusively with every de-
iectin this remarkable document; we hope
10 reach them on The, instalment plan.