Morning journal and courier., 1886-07-23
FORTY.NINTH CONGRESS-.
WASHINGTON, July %, 1886.

Morton, a voluntary nurse during the war
 were passed.
 House bill for the relief of settlers and pur
 chasers of land in Nebraska and Kansas l (which turned out to be railroad lands) was
 discussed briefly, but went over, as did also
 the Senate bill authorizing the Postmaster
 General to lease premises for the use of first,
 second and third class postofices. Fourteen
 other pension bills were passed, including
 one granting $50 per week to the widow of
 Sergeant Plunkett of Massachusetts, also a
 bill for the relief of J. F. Wilbur for work
 done on the New York postoffice. Bills for public buildings at Clarksburg, w. Va,
 Springfield, Mo, Lynn, Mass, and Nebraska
 City, Neb., were passed.
 l MT. Hale, from the conference committee
 on the naval appropriation bill, submitted 8
 report which was agreed to. He stated that
 this disposed of the naval bill.
 | MT. Hale gave notice that to morrow he
 would call up the deficiency appropriation
 bill and ask the Senate to continue it's con-
 sideration until passed unless the Appropria-
 tions committee pressed the bill
 MT. Allison said he would press the sun
 dry civil bill soon as the Payne case was l disposed of
 The Senate then at 12:30 resumed consi-
 iteration of the Payne case. MT. Teller resum- I ed his speech in support of the views of him.
 self and Senators Evarts and Logan-that an l investigation should not be instituted. As | to the argument of MT. Hoar that MT. Payne | had not been candidate until immediately before the caucus, MT. Teller said no lawyer | would be permitted to present such an argu- ! ment in court. As to MT. Hoar's proposition l that respectable Ohio Democrats affirm that | the rooms of Mr. Payne's managers were like | banking houses, MT. Teller denied that there l was any evidence that any prominent Demo l crat of Ohio would so affirm. More than one l newspaper man had confessed, 'I do not | know personally Of any facts; nor do I know | of any body who does." MT. Teller said if | there was any evidence of corruption it was l withheld from the committee.
 l Mr George-Has an examination of the l testimony convinced you that there was an | absence of any improper use of moneyl MT. Teller am satisfied that there is no l proof of corruption of members of the legis- | lature. I did not inquire as to what may
 have been done during the campaign. I con
 fine myself to the question submitted to the l committee.
 MT. Sherman said he rose to perform the | most disagreeable duty of his life. He had | never had occasion to bring before the Senate | the politics of Ohio as distinguished from
 national politics. He would do it now in | no spirit of unkindness. He had always | known his colleague an honored citizen. He l should not have occasion to arraign | him. The evidence showed that whatever | corruption had occurred no knowledge of it was brought to his colleague. He believed that if the investigation were granted his col | wished to say, also, to Senators Logan, Ev- arts and Teller that he had sympathy with the criticisms upon those Senators. He did not think the newspaper extracts yesterday read showed reflection upon their | motives Every public man is arraigned by ! the newspapers. He believed from his own knowledge and from the papers sent to him that there was a profound conviction in the minds of the great leader of the people of Ohio that in the election of his colleague there had been gross frauds. Whether or not sufficient evidence had been laid before the Senate it was for the Senate to say. But certainly sufficient had been sent here to put the Senate on it's inquiry. He had hoped his colleague would have seen his way to demand an investiga ton and no doubt investigation would have exculpated his colleague, but he suppos- ed his colleague had felt that while free from blame he ought not to compel an investiga- tion by which others might be affected. MT Logan-If other persons have violated the law it is the duty of Ohio to prosecute them for it.
 MT. Sherman-I intend to come to that The controversy is whether enough mem- bers of the Ohio legislature have been cor rupted to poison this election. The Senator asks why we have indicted men if they have committed crimes. I reply we have sent more men to the penitentiary for ofenses against the franchises within three years than Illinois has done and she has done mo- bly,.
 Mr. Logan-You have not sent any in this case?
 MT. Sherman-Where would we find a bill of indictment This is the first time it urged in the Senate that 1t should not itself examine into the conduct of an election.
 MT. Logan-Indictments should be found by the grand jury at Columbus.
 MT. Sherman-Would my friend Say that nho against a member unless the accused has first been convicted before jury3
 MT. Logan-No, you say your colleague is not guilty but others guilty. If so is it not the duty of your State to prosecute them2 Senate the judge.
 MT. Logan-Exactly.
 Mr. Sherman-ls not that opinion worth somethinga
 MT. Logan-No one denies it, but if the | Senator criticises men for quoting newsps- pers the same criticism applies to him.
 MT. Sherman-I do not criticise him. I l think that injustice was done to him by MT. l Halstead, but he has attacked everybody. | He has attacked Grant and the Senator from 1 Illinois and myself. But is it the petition of | Murat Halstead the Senate is asked to act | upon2 No, sir, Nearly every one of the pc titioners is a warm friend of the Senator | from Illinois.
 Mr. Logan have no one complaint to make about these editors and have not made any complaint about them. But it is mere request. They do not furnish any evidence. | They do not give the name of any man who knows anything on the subject. They do | not present any facts, but merely request | that the Senate shall do something.
 Mr. Sherman-I have merely presented it to show that this is not narrow feeling 1 easily smothered and that the refusal to in- l vestigate will not extinguish it. It must | have been very strong feeling that induced | General Kennedy to write that letter to the | Senator from Illinois which was read yester l day, his comrade and friend. It must have | been a strong feeling that would induce | General Kennedy, a man of character and | conscience and honor and courage, to state | these things to the fellow soldier and friend. | That is an evidence of the strong feeling that | prevails and the very editorials which my | friend read also an evidence of that l strong feeling. You cannot move great masses of men, you cannot move half the population of great State unless there is something fearful behind it. It is not the arguments and attacks of the papers that are behind this movement It is their fear, I might almost say convic- tion, that the most sacred right of represent ation has been tempered with by corruption. Referring to MT. Teller's remark as to the res olutions of the editors, MT. Sherman said the Senate can never put itself so high that the petition of the humblest citizen must not be received by it. His friend from Illinois had feared he was going to read newspaper ex- | tracts.
 Mir. Logan (interrupting)-I want the Sen ator to keep within proper bounds Why does he say that's He can read the Bible if | he wants to.
 MT. Sherman-I knaw f can without asking the Senator's consent. But I do not propose to. They are here l in this public document-and are not one ehalf of the utteranees made hy the Dem | ocratio newspapers after the election. They
 uniformly pronounced the election an act of | corruption. It is said they were Pendleton
 papers, but I have a letter from 8 man who will command the respect of the Senate and
 of the people-Allen G. Thurman. He was asked his opinion and he uses these words.
 ''I have nothing against either of the candi-
 dates. My personal relations with each of
 them have been always friendly and pleas ant. But there is something that shook me
 in the idea of men like Pepdleton and Ward being defeated by the combination against l them of personal hatred and overgrown 1 wealth." I ask you is this party contest