Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1884-04-20
Special Dispdtc6 % The Rs,i,tr.

on politics and proceeded to draw me out
in that way. l do not think that his visit
here wss as much in the interest Of secur-
ing the additional gauger as it was to
obtain some foundation giving him a rea.
son TO resign and make some political capi-
tai out Of it for himself and the rest OF
Mr.. Arthur's opponents"
In reply 10 q question by the reporter,
the Commissioner said: The only object
had in view in talking to Collector Duval
at all was to prevent the expense to the
United States of the assign ment OF an I'm.
necessary gauger to the Hannis distillery
at Martinsburg for merely political pur-
poses and not for business, and ] prefaced
my remarks with the statement in my let.
ter Of the 14th inst. 1t hurts me that
should be so strociously charged in this
matter by q collector of internal Revenue,
when up to this date the affairs OF this office
have been so conducted that the veriest
newspaper scayenger in Washington could
not find anything to base such an accusa'
tion upon"
The Commissioner also added that the
whole thing had many OF
The Ear Marks of n Put-Up Job
and badly put.up one at that. We had
continued the Commissioner, lust finished
making 81 estimate of our appropriation
and had ascertained that il would be neces.
ssry to curtail the expenditure for gaugers,
and as the two gaugers at Marrusourg
have only about fifty barrels day to
gauge, 1 thought that il was necessary to
sppoint a third one, inasmuch as | had
ordered the force Of glugerS in otner dis
tricts reduced"
Chief Clerk Somerville, of the Internal
Revenue bureau, stated TO the REGISTER
representative that the Commissioners In
tsrvisw with General Duyal was very brief;
that Immediately after the departure OF the
Commissioner, DuVsl sgain remarked 10
him that the office was misintormed as To
bis attitude toward the administration.
SomeryilIe saws that ne at once turned thu
conversation, paying no atten ton to Do
yaIs allusion 10 politics and they com
menced TO talk about the gaugers. Somer-
willie explained why they could not give
him another appointment and especially
for political purposes.
Someryi!le in this connection called
DuysTs attention to the fact that he had
two sons in the service under him and said
that that
Ouxht Not 10 be Allowed.
Duval said that he only wished to keep
one of the boys there until he could get him
ready to sendwest and start himfin the sheep
raising business. Whereupon the conVel'
sation turned upon sheep raising and agri-
cultural topics.
Your correspondent asked the Commis-
sioner whether or not Gen. Golf had been
around to urge the appointment Oh any
one for the place. mo, sir" answered the
Commissioner. "The President has inform
ed General Duval through the Secretary OF
the Treasury that he is satisfied that dln
hot intend to say anything that was calcu
Isted TO influence his political preferences
and if that is all the reason he has Tor ten.
dering his resignation he is at liberty IL
he so desires to withdraw IL
The Com missioner sent the FOLLOWING Ie'!
ter m General Duvsl in reply to the one OF
the 18th inst, which has already oeen pup
iished:
A apiey Letter from Commissioners
WASHINGTON, April 10.
Isaac II. Duval, Esq, Collector OF Internal
Revenue, Wheeling w. Va:
srR-Your nots of the 17:h instant hiss
been received. Had you been as careful
TO be accurate in your assertions therein as
YOU were to be Impolite, you would have
seen without difficulty that your state
ment, "Your letter of the 14th instant re-
csived and your charge that my action is
for a political purpose IS aosol9tely
false" was particularly unhappy, mas
nnch as had made no such
charge. Ihad said nothing in nv letter OF
the l4th to which that can refer except one
or the other of the following statements:
First-How your understanding OF the
conversation could have become so utterly
nsryerted. is incomprehensible to me, ex.
cent upon the theory that you have found
it convenient to make it the occasion Tor
the manufacture Of some political CAPITAL
second-I directed Revenue Agent Don
elson to look into the subject (tnat OK the
assignment of another gaugers to the Han
mis- distillery at Martlnsourg) and ne re-
ported verbally that he thong ht 1t was
political movement on your part.
OF course neither OF these ststeme3t'
makes any charge by me. against you.
Your csreiessness in speech in answering
a written communication then before you
is quite apparent on the face or N pager
srd sppesrs striking enough to account
for the pnisstatemsnts in your letter OF the
lqth. when Won spoke Of mere conVersa-
ton which you sllege took place some
days before.
ATendeney 60 he Ohensive
to the Commissioner rather than TO be accl-
rate in what you might say, seems TO have
been your trouble until this obvious teo-
dsncy shall be corrected by cslmer and
iuster mood. Further correspondence up
on the subject would seem to be unnecss-
sary. respectfully,
WALrEE EVANS,
Commissioned.
In conversation with several West Ftr-
Einians 70 day all were unanimous 10 ex
pressing the opinion that it WAS niesiy
concoeted conspiracy in the interest OF
BIsine's candidacy 10. injure President
Arthur.
One Esntlemlu, who il warm psrS>nh
friend OF Mr.. Blsine's, expresses the opln'
ion that Blaine himself had set tbs whole
thing Up. Others belieYs that General