St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1885-01-29
Caught in Their Own Trap.

Caught in Their Own Trap.
The hunting of John P. ST. Johu 10y
the republican party managers, which
in bitterness, meauness, unscrupulOus-
ness and destructive purpose has quite
exceeded any other scandal of the cam
paign, is now brought to full stop.
Evidence is produced which is positive
and decisive to show that the charges
brought against him are lies, and the
only persons who are disgraced by
them are the members of the republi
can national committee who took the
word of disreputable republican poll
tician for proof that ST. John was cor
rupt, and who have confessed that
they contemplated trading on his cor
ruption and buying his treason. The
politician to whom all the lies trace
back is not disgraced only because
nothing can spoil rotten egg.
The case against st. John is briefly
this James +. Legate OF Kansas rep
resented himself to the republican ma
tional committee as the authorized
agent of st. John, and made explicit
proposals from him either to withdraw
from the field or to so act and speak in
his campaign as candidate of the pro-
hibitionists for the presidency, as to
break down the prOhihitory strength
and help Mr.. Blaine. These proposals
it appears were tacitly agreed to. j.
f. ClaTkson, editor of the Des MOineS
(Ia.) Register. and Il member of the re-
publican national committee, has stat
ed that he chad no doubt il would be
right to defeat the democratic party by
this false and treacherOus means, if it
could be done" In support of his as
sertiOn that he represented st. John,
Legate professed to send dispatches
and letters and receive answers from
that person, prOfessed To visit him at
his request, aud to have induced him
to leave Ohio on Il false plea Of sore
throat, and asserted that lie did leave
Ohio in that way, breaking number
of engagements. Legate further al
legged that he persuaded st. John to
write to certain prominent prohibition
lists in Ohio, among then ID. w. Gage
estate organizer" and Prof. w. @.
Frost of Oberlin college, urging them
to vote the republican ticket, and that
in fact st. John did write such letters.
1t has been asserted also that he con
Guided his speech at Oberlin by saying
that every one must see that either
Blaine or Cleveland was sure to be
elected "Blaine represents whsbey
and loyalty Cleveland whiskey and
disloyalty;" and in that juncture he
was ''for whiskey and loyalty every
time"
While against Mr.. st. Johns abso-
lutte and unqualified denial, there has
not been an iota of evidence produced
that st. John had anything to do with
Legate's infamous proposals, and Lee
gate has confessed more than once
that St. John never knew anything
about them,-the circumstantial allie
| cations are every one disprOved i'll a
! series of statements and letters in the
Voice, the able prohibition paper in
| New York. John b. Finch, chairman
of the national prohibition committee.
states that the appointments for st.
John to speak during the campaign
were all made by the committee and
all kept by St. John. The changes
which were made were by the com
mittee, without consulting him, and
the additional appointments iii New
York state were likewise the com
mittee's, and st. John filed them with
ont money and without price. Mr..
! Finch takes occasion to refute another
base charge which the republican or
! gans have made gratuitOusly -with
| out even the evidence of liar like
| Legate-by saying "we did not receive
a cent, either directly or indirectly,
! from either democratic or republican
| committee. Our campaign was run by
| prohibition money, to make prohibi-
! ton national issue" Secretary Jut.
| kins of the prohibition committee
| gives the list of the appointments for
! st. John and the changes in them. ID.
| w. Gage and Prof. Frost write that
! they received DO letters from st. john
urging them to support the republican
ticket. Prof Frost, Rev. w. T. Mills.
! Rev. james Brand, Prof. Ballantine
and others of Oberlin, who heard St.
Johns speech there, declare that he
| did not use the language or express
the sentiment ascribed to him. Chair
man Finch, in another communication,
clinches the advantage of the prOhlbi-
tionists by calling for ClarksOn's books
that it may be known if he did buy
any prohibitiOnists, and what he paid
for them. ave have" he SAYS. "the
republican national committee con
! victed of an attempt to bribe, and we
must now file bill of discovery fol-
all letters. telegra ms, receipts and ac-
counts of disbursements of the nation
nj republican committee" The tables
are turned. Mr.. Clarkson should have
read the legend =
He digged pit, he digged it deep
| He digged ii for his brother,
r.. But for his sin no fell within
The pit he digged for 'tOther.
Springfield Republican.