The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-07-13


| HIM Many men on both sides saw him. Mr.
| Payne may have urged him to go on the tribu-
nal Many others did So Mr.. Payne may
/ have said that the House would defear
| the measure if it believed that the tribunal
would cheat the Democracy. That was legiti-
mate as an expression of belief But Mr. Payne
| could not have assumed to have been the agent
| of his party colleagues. They did not appoint
| him or any one to be their agent to fix the
| tribunal or Sax" Judge Davis. Mr. Payne was
not the man to infer or assume such an agency
| He is logical, sagacious unimpulsive and modest
| Such a stopping over" as is ascribed to him
might have been INDUCED in by man of diff
| ferent temperament, but it was not. Any man
who had undertaken work OF capturing David
Davis would have encountered rebuke which
would have been remembered to his dying
day. He was one of the most scrupulous men
to keep himself reticent and uncommitted that
newspaper men, whose business is to and out
things in advance, ever met with, just as be was
one of the most willing OF men to impart intor-
nation when it was right to do so. Let any
surviving Democratic member OF the House OF
1867 be interviewed. thousand dollars can
be safely wagered that not of them will say
Mr.. Payne ever was appointed to the work as
cribed to him. Mr.. Payne will undoubtedly
start off with the denial himself, and with an ut
| ter reputation of the idea that he ever under
| took such work
Several years ago. on summer morning, in
| Saratoga. or the courtyard side balcony OF the
| Grand Union Hotel, David Davis permitted
ltfnSelr guarQeOly TO SPEAK on the SUBJECT Oh
| own attitude toward going on the Electoral Com
| mission, and toward how he would have voted If
| he had gone on it,
| He said up to the time of my election as
| Senator the assumption was general that
might be chosen as the fifth ludge. never was
| responsible for that assumption, and was never
| pleased with the other assumption-that In case
| Invent on the Commission would vote in GER
| tain way. The assumption that would have
| voted the other way would have been just as Of
fape md told
| how would have voted. for did not know my
| self. l kept my mind from coming to conclus-
| ion on purpose. 1t is not difficult to do that if
You have trained yourself to the business"
did not ask him if be had since made up his
mind on the law and the merits of the lapsed
controversy, because his evident desire to place
his own limits upon the subject under considera-
| ton was one to be respected.
He only added: when L was elected Senator
| by the action of members of both parties it be-
| came improper for me to regard myself as ellgl-
| BILE to position in which my action would have
necessarily been in favor of one and against the
| other
| That Is the view Justice Davis took It dis
| poses of the allegation that he had told any
| how he would vote, for he had not determined
the matter for himself I do not think his rea-
son for declining to go on the Commission is
| his own attitude toward q proposed prefer
| ment Any one that had Justice
| Davis gone on the Commission and voted
|
| him of treachery Had he voted for Hayes, the
| Democrats would have charged a bargain and
/ sale on him. He absolutely subtracted himself
| from the controversy Barely two weeks have
| elapsed since his honest life ended, and now he
| is accused of cowardice or falsehood by those
who waited until he is dead to start story that
| he went into a conspiracy to pack tribunal and
prejudice cause-and backed ont on pinch.
| It should. perhaps. be said that this statement
| of Justice Davis was twice printed by me in his
| and wac VII al ad rThara has haan
no waiting until he died to develop the fact that
| he had not prejudiced a case on which he was
| expected to sit The allegations in effect that
| he had done that wicked thing we're deferred
| until his lofty spirit had gone beyond the earth,
| when his denial of the deed was impossible.
| Let me now add that while Mr. Davis reserved
| an expression as to whether he would go on the
! Commission not up to the time of his election
| as Senator. his knowledge of his election end his
| declaration that he would not go on the Commits
| sion were simultaneous He instantly followed
the reception of the information with the an
nouncemeEt that he would not go on the Com
mission. He made that announcement before
the House of Representatives. passed the meas
| ure at ali-over twenty-fonr hours before it
passed the measure. Mr.. Davis was elected
| Senator about midday of Jan. 90 1877. being
| Thursday. The news at once came to Washing
| ton, and he at once said he would accept
| the Office and in the circumstances would
| not on any account 60 on the Electoral
! Commission. The Senate passed. the bill that
|
at Springfield occurred. The bill went to the
House. and the resolution to take the vote on it
at 3 o'clock Friday. the 18th of January, 1877,
| was adopted As said before, Mr.. Daviss re-
| fusal to go on the Commission was then known
| to tho newspaper men; it was known to the
| Supreme Court judges; it should have been
known to the Democratic managers, and doubt
| less was. The House passed the bill! that Fri
| day with that fact known. President Grant
| signed the bill the next Monday. He was to
have signed it Saturday, but it was not en-
crossed in time for him to do SO. unless he put
| off visit to Baltimore He did not put II
off On Monday, after the bill was signed,
| Justices Clifford and Field, Democrats, and
Justices Miller and Strong, Republicans, met.
| in consultation to select the fifth judge They
then officially knew and recognized what they
| had unoficially known before, that Justice
| Davis would not serve and Chief justice Waite
| would not serve. The Republican judges left
the selection of Swayne. Hunt, or Bradley to
| the Democrats, whereupon Justices Clifford and
| Field themselves selected Justice Bradley.
| The result of that ia history. You do not find
| many Democrats recurring to the fact that their
| representatives chose Bradley, but such is the
| case. He may deserve all the drubbing he has
received, but the Democrats chose him, and
every time they strike him they ought also to
| kick themselves.
But am concerned Only with the relation of
/ Mr. Davis to the matter. He declined before
| the bill was passed. To divest himself of the
| whole matter he left Washington while the bill
was under the CONSIDERATION OF the Fresioent,
and he remained away until after the commits
| sion was organized
| David Davis was an honest, brave and patriotic
man None had the temerity to offend public
| opinion and contradict the knowledge Of his
countrymen by attributing baseness to him while
he was alive The effort to defile his grave ap-
| pears to be limited to those who blame him for
| not having made himself permitted himself
| to be made factor in contested presidential
| election. Considering who his assailants are,
| one cannot regard their failure 20 become poten
| tial in the government of this country mis-
fortune to the United States, however great
! their own chagrin may be.
| Mr.. Tilden elected. Mr.. Hayes was de-
| feated. Mr.. Tilden kept out Mr. Hayes
| was put in. The result was reached by a meas
| ure which had the supreme merit of averting
civil war. The wrong infected and the wrong
effected were great. but far greater the gain