The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1884-10-09

produced In the recent instaiimsnt OF letters Is
OF Importance. IL IL letter TO FISHER which Mr..
anxious TO have Mr. Blame feel kindly toward
him and Fisher. an anxiety he would not have
shown or felt II he had believed that they had
under their control over Mr.. Blaines signature
proof OF his Official corruption.
HOW BLAINE WAS swINDLED.
q. Under an arrangement distinct from the
in the contract for building the road. but prob
ably in anticipation OF 1t, and quite likely with
desire TO show one OF the channels In which
he could be useful, Mr. Blaine received from
Fisher and Caldwell, the contractors for build
ing the Fort Smith Road, q considerable amount
OF its securities He returned TO them the pre-
else percentage OF value which they were glad
to receive from every one else. This was only
small percentage OF the face value. Mr. Blame
sold TO friends In Maine considerable amount
OF these securities.
His sales were made on varying terms, but
uniformly involved the payment TO Fisher anu
Caldwell of the precise percentage which tney
siderable apparent profit by selling TO friends
on terms more favorable to himself than Fisher
and Caldwell were willing TO sell TO him ms
profits consisting chiefly in the securities OF the
road. He Gems to have regarded himself as
buying FROM Fisher both the securities ne re-
tanned and those sold to friends, but In fact tne
contracts assumed the form OF sales by llalne
on commission, and the payment TO him OF the
securities az his compensation In the result
Fisher and Caldwell secured better terms than
they did on those sold TO the general pubic, 1or
they held back the secul tiles promised him until
they had greatly fallen In value, and, finally. on
a settlement, withheld from him nearly third
OF the entire amount. In other words, by the
original agreement, Mr.. Blaine was to get no
special advantage. and in the result he was to
be treated worse than others. Mr. Blaine REL
erence. in his letters, To the generous nature OF
Mr. Fishers offer to him had no reference 10 this
arrangement under which he sold securities, but
referred, the letters clearly show, to the prop
osition that he should become interested as q
partner in the contract to build the road.
NAN OF HIS WORD.
& When the Fort Smith project proved unfor-
tunate Mr.. Blaine, even when not bound by his
agreements so TO do. took back the securities he
had sold, and through this honorable conduct,
and the defaults of those who claimed to be his
greatly embarrassed pecuniarily. Both the new
and the old letter s-but especially the former
show that Mr.. Blaine was willing TO make al
most any sacrifice to keep his word to his
friends and to pay the obligations he had as
sumed. Though freely denounced on the
strength OF the letters as liar, they show that
he was emphatically a man of his word.
THE ILLUSION CONCERNING HIS GREAT WEALTH.
3. The letters, both new and old, show that
after Mr.. Blaine had served ten years In Con-
gress during all of which time he had been
prominent and influential and during much OF
which time he had been Speaker, and when this
service had occurred during the entire period
OF war and the years OF corrupt opportunities
which followed tin spite of these opportuni-
ties, Mr.. Blaine was in 1870, 1871, aud 1872 not
only not wealthy. but was in such moderate cir
cumstances that even with the securities he
earned and received tor selling the Fort Smith
bonds, he was wholly unable to pay an accom-
mediation liability. of $4,000 which he had in
Cured purely to oblge Fisher, and which the
latter cruelty repudiates.
HIS CRITICS CHARMING INCONSISTENCIES.
Q. Some of the expressions used by Mr.. Blaine
in Congress and in his letters describing the
arrangement under which he sold the securities
OF the road to friends and became possessed or
others himself were not strictly accurate in
describing the original form OF the transactions.
They were correct in describing the results at
the time he spoke and wrote They were,
moreover, strictly proper in meeting the charges
against which he was defending himself. He
was meeting the charge that, owing to his OFF,
cial position, he had obtained securities on bet
ter terms than were obtained by other and pri-
vate persons. He asserted that he had not done
so, and this assertion was true. Even Fisher
and Mulligan swore twas true.
In other words, his action was not open TO
criticism. The language he used in describing
and defending his act on has been criticised,
but as we think with more plausibility than
Justice This criticism has come most earnestly
from those who boldly assert that a want OF
chastity is consistent with the possession OF
all the qualities which ennoble human nature
and dignity human life and make human prog
ress possible" These people seem to think
want of accuracy of language, want OF veracity
IL you choose-though we do not admit its ex-
istence in this case--ls a greater offense than
want Of chastity. We do not.
THE TRUTH ABOUT NORTHERN PACIFIC
10. AS to the charge relating 20 the Northern
Pacific Railroad, the facts are simple. Mr..
Blaine supposed he could obtain an interest OF
a one hundred and ninety-second part in that
road for 5000. As the company was likely
TO need legislation in Congress ne refused to
take it himself or to have any interest in it.
He proposed to Fisher that he ami his friend,
Josiah Atkins, should take IL. They agreed TO
do so, and Paid to Mr.. Blaine $4,000 with
turned out, unable to secure it, though con-
stantly believing that he should soon do so. At
ter delay OF h OK tS a. ne Te9ss. OF
est Mr.. Fisher ana Mr.. Atkins both swore that
Mr.. Blaine always refused TO have any interest
In this Northern Pacific business, and that
they were confident he never did have any such
interest.
In 1871 or 1872, after Mr.. Fisher became en-
barrassed, and after a controversy had arisen
between him and Mr.. Blaine, the former
sought to have the latter pay back the $25, 900,
and leave o her matters between them unset
tied As there was $4,000 due Mr.. Blaine on
account of the money he had raised for Fisher
and the road, and as Mr.. Fisher owed Mr..
Blaine large amount of securities, the latter
persistently refused to settle by itself the mat
ter which would benefit Fisher, but persist
emily urged full settlement. which he finally
obtained at the expense OF considerable con-
cession.
THAT NATIONAL BANK.
IL. The new letters show that Mr. Blaine Of
fered and exerted his influence TO secure for his
friends the right TO establish national bank
at Little Rock. Every one knows that, at a
time when national banking capital was limited,
and by law distributed in arbitrary proportions
to the different States, the right to establish
bank was much sought after. At that time we
do not believe there was Senator or member
of Congress who did not repeatedly use his
influence in favor of applicants of that sort 1t
was just as much matter OF course IL was
for Senators and members of Congress to seek
TO secure positions tor constituents and friends
AN UNAVOIDABLE INFERENCE.
II. Mr.. Blaine Is criticised for sending to Mr.
Fisher, in 1876. draft OF letter, to be signed
by him, explaining Mr.. Blaine's relations to the
Fort Smith Road. We have already referred to
criticisms upon some of Mr.. Blaines express
sions, as used in these and other letters. IL
seems to us that after the evidence which Mr.
Blaine had had that Fisher was not, TO say the
least entirely friendly to him, he would not
have sought this letter IL he had intended to
ask Fisher to say anything which was not the
truth. Moreover, IL Fisher had felt tn at an i'm
proper request had been made of him, why,
when few weeks later, he ties flied before the
Congressional committee. did he make no refer
ence to it, III he felt insulted by request TO
sign a lie-as our Democratic friends now claim
why did he not find IL out till the Democratic
committee told him of 1t eight years later?
THE REAL sUPPREssIoNIsTs,
IL. The charge that Mr.. Blaine had received
payment from Caldwell of $1,000 on &C cunt of
the Joan of S25, 900, and that he suppressed that
tact, and collected that amount over again, il
made plausible only by quoting two letters in
which he says he had received that amount, and
by deliberately suppressing later letter, in
which he says that Caldwell has since written
m at ha 10 IN no hat