Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1889-03-22
Wore Pun win the Grina..one Figure.

We take pleasure in printing IL another
column the letter OF statement of Mr.. 7 +
Wilson u the View York World, IL hiri
he calls u 10 account for what he choose
% regard a. our unjust treatment II tn
World in our exposure u the tal,Ity 4 The
Griudst0ue wool figures. AMI in which b.
states his reason, FIR holding that such a.
injustice was done Ne Ike al opponent
who not only has something 70 say either
in attack or in self defence. but who strikes
out from the shoulder when he say. it, W.
also ike q man who. when be hits back
comes 70 Us u do ii. without heating about
the bush or using some third person or me
dium.
We have to say. - begin with tina; We
shall attempt no defence against the cLars
Is which Mr. Wilson prefers. for We hav~
none 70 make Whatever we have done in
our investigation ami exposure Of the
Grindstone circular fraud. We have done
without coucealment OF evasion. Every
inquiry. whether in person or by letter, ha-
been made in our proper capacity a. a
new spayer man. and the result has been
spread gu, in our columns in plain black
and white. By the record thus made Ne
must either stand or fall.
The only surprise 70 o. i that Nr. Viii
son should consider that The World mas any
grievance against The Phgnix in this mat
ter. All that We have had - 10 with Tne
World in the course II this investigation
can b. told in few wori, 1t has consist
ed first. III asking for copies Of the paper
containing the disputed figures second. IL
asking for their basis or source third, IL
saving il q letter 70 The World Office that
the statements made % u a. n their source
were false and fourth, in publishing a
plain account Of what We had found on,
If This conyict- u # perverting the truti
and misleading our readers ami other new
paper,. we must stand condemned, and
there is no help for u.
With the true newspaper instinct, Mr.
wilson's letter j. written 70 defend The
World rather than himself and the greater
part Of il Is devoted 70 all attempt 70 show
that the fraudulent figures we're not The
Worlds figures. and that The World ws'
not responsible for them. We think h'
makes it clear tina, in the proper sense Of
the word the figures were not he World
until they were brought forward and use
editorially in its weekly edition If Dec. -
in answer 70 a correspondent. II ne ha.
read The Phoenix with more c1mPOsure, b.
would have found that We did not charg'
! F-,- h. So.
ures. but, on the contrary, that We distinct
Is said or implied that The World had no
endorsed the figures at the time Mr. Child
copied them. We said explicitly that the!
were contained in an ordinary press de
snatch printed among the news matter o
the paper :" and What We criticised Mr.
Childs for most severely ws- for taking hi
figures from floating new spaper despatcl
Of unknown authority G,@ ,rih 10 o'te
endorsemeaf." Was this a misleading
statement on our part, made 70 the injur
of The World
We find that our constant allusion' l
the table of wool prices a The World
table consisted Of just one such allusion
with two or three illusions 70 The World
figures" But on this point We make L
excuse. for if the table va, not The World
table after that paper brought it forwar
and used it editorially in its weekly issue O.
Dec. 10, whose table was it Mr.. Willso
grows amusing. and destroys whateye
force there might else be in his charge n he
he declares that the table is quite niue
The Phpnix's table as The Worlds, tha
we are as much responsible for it as Til
World is. and as much under obligation t
furnish the origin Of the figures
Mr. Wilson's peculiarly excitable way q
looking at things finds good illustration
his counts Nos. l and ,, in regard to th
Burlington Free Press and Boston JOurna
A careful reading of the Free Press articl
printed two weeks ago, 70 which ne refer,
shows that it contains not even an intima
ton that The World forged these figure
while our pride in ourselves never led US t
see in what the Boston journal said even
suggestion that We had yaliantly seized Tn
World by the throat, forced it 70 il
marrow bones" and thus eXtorted from
the unwilling confession Of the origin Of tn
figures. Let Mr. Wilson read carefully h
two letters to US, printed three weeks az.
pretending to tell Us where the spurious Il.
ures came from, and then read his lette
confessing that they are altogether wron
and thoroughly Enthusiastically, and see
they do not themselves furnish the 'autl
ority' for this inference. Our only clail
in the premises is the modest one that ou
exposure Of the two false leads given US VT
the means Of the true genesis of these Il.
ures being disclosed.
If anything further needs 70 be said O.
these two counts, it will be found in an al
ticle from the Free Press Of last FRIDAY
elsewhere printed, in which the editor ,
that paper speaks for himself In iustiC
to Mr.. Wilson We must say, that, viii
some Of his letters to US have been Of
rather inhammable nature their languag
has not in any case exceeded that whic
one gentleman may properly use 70 anotht
in the warmth Of controversy.
Before leaving, however, this subject
newspapers which have perverted ii
truth msled their readers and falsely a.
cused the World, We wish TO say that Il
only newspaper which We know Of that hl
deliberately charged The World with r.
sponsibillty for these figures, and persisteu