The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1885-04-08
Rsplls. 70 s.na.9s a,lns;. An.v.. Z. !. a 20.

SENATOR MORRIS
Replies TO Senator Byrne's Answer 10 . For.
mer Letter.
10 Ne Editor Of DC Iatslligaer.
sIR:-1 have an unpleasant duty to
perform. For many yean have known
Senator Ben. Byrne, Of Kanawba county,
and have loved him. During the late SEES.
sion Of the Legislature i received much
credit for the :tathsrly care / exercised
over him. II is needless 10 say that / saved
him from much folly. He is an impulsiye,
warm.hearted gentleman, and his exuber-
ance Of spirits leads him, when uncontrol-
led, to do things he must regret in his
calmer and more considerate moments
Il he ever has any. Even when he
sat near me, in spite Of my restrain.
ing influence he frequently broke
out in some wild, wierd freak that
panied me In my heart Of hearts. In
parting from him / had dark forebodings
Tor his future. felt he would in q mo
ment Of rashness do something which
would disgrace us both. My worst antic-
ipations have been realized. In the IN
rELLIGGNcgR OF March 30th Senator Byrne
has an article, in which he comes out
boldly in defense OF the Mason bill, and
Is so ambiguous as to tryto reply to my
article Of March cath. lam unutterably
sad, but It is my unpleasant duty to ami.
hilate the gifted and aristocratic Senator
from Kanawha. Duty and the dinner
table are two things from which I never
shrink.
The distinguished Senator was always
CHASTITY when he attempted lsyity on the
floor OF the chamber In which he sat. In
spite Of all friendly protests he would
sometimes try to be funny. 1twas time
Of excruciadng agony for all the rest Of US.
The Senator, at such times, was grand,
gloomy and peculiar. His newspaper
effort must be intended to be in the game
line. He supposes 1t to be huger joke
than usual. Il is-of his kind. grant
that 1t Is a fair specimen Of his humor, but
pen can not tell how solemnly sorrowful
am to see him expose himself TO the gen.
eral public.
So far as argument Is concerned, Senator
Byrne's article Is reply 10 itself. will
w u!ui tue IunlCe W say tuat ae 10 uetct
anything else than fair in his methods.
So he honestly contrasts the law in exist
ence with sections four and five OF Senate |
Bill 1l9, which latter still claim, with all |
the light Of the giant intellect Of the Sena-
tor from Ksnawha streaming on me, was
intended as an engine Of oppression. The
point where the Senator misses It, Is in his |
application. He takes an erroneous
view Of the matter. The changes
proposed In the law warrant
the very position L occupy in
this connection. Sections four and five
Of the Mason bill are intended to give the
Auditor more power, and 10 make the
penalty moreseverei II an assessor should
disobey his orders. The penalty Is remo-
val from office for refusing to obey the
mandate Of the tax king. Senator Byrne
may consider this small matter but / do
not. i knew exactly what l was about
when I made this point and an examina-
ton Of my former article will show that I
dwelt with emphasis on the extraordinary
penalty Of removing an assessor from Of
ice for disobeying the Auditor.
But there Is deeper significance 10 the
odious sections. What wereSthe circum-
stances surrounding the relation Of the
Auditor with the assessors OF the State ?
By authority Of the Governor, the Auditor
had decided statute unconstitutional,
never held so by any court Of the State,
and the two had set themselves up as q
legislative body and declared that articles
should be assessed by virtue OF their en-
actment provision for doing which
was found in no act Of any legis-
lature Of West Virginia. These
fare the damned spots that will not ont"
l again here repeat the declaration, and ]
defy the Senator from Kanawha, or any
one else TO disproye II, that never in thel
history OF this or the mother State, was
there a precedent for this unparalleled and
improper course. Gentlemen may close
their eyes to this, but when they open
them, the same state of facts will still
exist. tits In truth, so written, Never,
until the time to which refer, had the
attempt been made to SO torture the mean
ing ofthe statute, authorizing the Audi
tor to issue instructions, and Senator
Byrne must know this as well as I know 1t.
Now with all Of thia staring US In the
face, with all the changes on assessment
being atill rung from one end OF the State
TO the other, here was O bill introduced
providing for still stronger penalties
against an assessor for disobeying the or
ders OF the Auditor. 1fthis was not in
intended to make the bill an engine Of OPP
preston, pray what WA It intended for .
II there had been any trouble between
any auditor and any assessor in the State,
on;any other point than supplemental as:
sessment, do not know when It wac.
Therefore the only Intention was 10 In
crease and strengthen the authority and
power Of the Governor and Auditor in
this very connection. II Is nonsense to
suppose that II was intended for anything
else,
senator Ryrne, himself very well I'M.
derstood the significance Of these two Sec
tons at the time that Senate Bill 119 was
under consideration, and he seems af-
aicted with tho sane inability "a Femem.
Der, which 1 and troubling other pema.
cratic Senator'S. Twas he who said, when
an amendment 10 rob these sections OF
their evil and Of their sting was being
discussed that he did not at the time OF
their action approve the rfrY peculiar
conss Of the Ge}ernef and Auditor but
sipes they had done what they did, and
their proceedings were things q the past,
he proposed 10 vote 10 sustain them. A
DELIGHTFUL time IN the afternoon 1t Is to
come In now and deny the Significance oil
the matter. You are o little bit too late,
Senator Byrne.
Again, the deeper meaning Of re-enact-
| ing these sections, in stronger shape, Is