Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1884-05-08
UNITED STATES SENATE,
WASHINGTON. Aorii %.

UNITED STATES SENATE,
WASHINGTON, Aprii 2S.
DEAR SIR: | have read yOuI letter In
defense OF Mr.. Blaine i'll the Sunday GTI.
Uune, and also the editorial Ot the Fri
bune thereon, in which you Say Senator
Edmuuds was understood To have a block
of Burlington & MlSsuuri secuI ltirS; and
Senator Edmunus acquired these inter
ests in the Burlington Il Missouri ruad
when they were both IN the Senate.
They both supported the bill to restore
the land grants to their Toad" THESE
statements, taken i'll connection with
the rest of your letter, evidently mean
that at the time of the legislation refer
red to, was in some way interested in
that road or its securities, and the edit
OTial in the Tribune sta tes it eXg ressly
as being your statement of that thing.
Both yourself and the Tribune are total
" mistaken. l have hunted up what
suppose to be the joint resolution to
which you refer. being Senate joint res
olution No. 20, first section, FOrty-frst
Congress, of which | had no recollection
whatever before, but see on looking at
the Congressional Globe of that time
that / did make single remark on the
subject of the House amendment, which
remark | commend 10 your careful con
SideTation. | had not at that time, and
never had before, any ownership, or in
terest in any bond or stock of that road,
OF any other out of the State of Vermont,
and never expected to have, and had no
more connection with the passage of a
Joint resolution than you had. and knew
7
nothing at alD excepting what may be
inferred from my remark on the House
amendment. More than three months
afterwards and on the 18th of July, 1869,
found on looking at my old books
subscribed for 1876 shares of stock ard
5000 bones of the Burlington 4 Missouri
River Railroad Company in Nebraska,
which. assume, was the road in some
way affected by the legislation referred
to. | paid in cash the same price that
all other subscribers did, and held the
stock for several years, when l sold it
in the Boston market at the market
price and no more, abd then afterwards
bought more of the bonds of the same
company, " hich | still hold.
This is the whole story. and | give
YOU my authority To verify it by an ex
animation of the books of the company
in Boston, or an examination of my
books, or both. 1t is of some consequence
among men who intend to be truthful,
as do not doubt you do, to be somewhat
accurate in making statements about the
acts aud doings of other people. If you
or anybody else wish to know ANYTHING
concerning nv business. or other trans
actions at any time, shall be happy to
put you in possessiun of the precise in
formation, SD ynu will be certain what
you say j. true. | am neither willing
nor deSiious To he either candida or
President, which every rybudv wro has
ever sp Dken or written TO me upon the
subject knows, but as natu. ally ike L.
stand well IN the eStinIa inn of nv fei
low citizens, | dislike to be accused
either of corruption, bias. srlfshness, or
acting on public questions in which |
have private interest, when such accu-
>atiunS are untrue. Respectfully yours,
GEORGE +. EDMUNDS.
Hon. William Walter Phelps, House of
Representatives.