The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-01-09
the preamble and resolution, so as to strike
out the preamble and make it read:

That the Attorney General be, and hereby is
instructed to inform the Senate what in
structlons, If any, the department of justice
mas given to s. n. Chambers, district attorney
Tor the district of Indiana. on the subject of
the arrest of W. w. Dudley or his exemption
from arrest; and by what authority of law any
such instructions have been given, and that
copies of all such correspondence be trans
mltted to the Senate.
he expressed, sarcastically, his admira-
tlon or and concurrence in the beautiful
tribute of the senator from Indiana to the
value of political morality. He also gave
his adhesion to Voorhees, denunciation Of
political immortality. If Dudley had done
the thing imputed to him he had certainly
committed tf not a crime against the
that class of public morality which
the senator had SO beautifully described,
and which, as he said, was so essential to
the safety and perpetuity of republican in
stltutfons. Still, it was possible that the
so-called Dudley letter had been forged or
SO altered as to make an innocent, morally
innocent, political letter appear to be a
morally guilty one. There were instances
OF such political forgeries about the time of
presidential elections, such as the Morey
letter; but he was glad the leaders Of the
Democratic party had apparently reformed
Laughter in the galleries. and that
now, at least, on the anniversary
of the battle of New Orleans
there was some evidence of allegiance to the
principles OF the only real democrat he had
ever heard of-Gen. jackson. Laughter. !
NEGLECTED LIBEL SUITS.
Mr.. VOorhees-If the Dudley letter is a
forgery, why is it that he has not brought
his libel suits against New York papers to
trial, and why is it that he has skulked and
cowed and hid himself in exile for the last
twelve months or more?
Mr.. Edmunds-I do not know that Dudley
is skulking or hiding anywhere, and do
not believe it. l do not know that he has
any libel suits pending in New York. If he
has, suppose he knows how to take care of
them.
Mr. Voorhees, say here, in hearing of
the New York press and its agents. that
every possible effort has been made to get
dudley in his own person in the state of
New York to prosecute his own libel suits;
that all such efforts have failed. and that
Judge Lawrence the other day denied the
motion of Dudley's lawyers, because Dud-
ley, he said, kept himself outside of the
limits of the state.
Mr.. Edmunds-Judge Lawrence may be
right or may be wrong. | do not know;
but if Dudley has any libel suits, and does
not prosecute them, the defendants are en-
titled to have them dismissed.
SHIFTING RESPONSIBILITY.
Mr. Edmunds argued that this Dudley
letter, if it was genuine, constituted an
offense against the laws of Indiana, and
asked where were all the democratic dis
trict attorneys Of that state, and why all
this delay on their part to institute proceed
ings. He intimated that United States
District Attorney Sellers, who preceded the
present incumbent, had resigned to escape
the necessity Of taking some action on the
Dudley letter.
ANOTHER LETTER.
Mr.. Edmunds intimated that the Dudley
letter might have been suggested by or
initiated from one which had been sent ont
by Mr.. Whitaker of Martinsville, Ind.
chairman of the democratic county com
mittee, on Sept. Z, 1888, and which was
recently published in an editorial in the
Terre Haute EcpreSS-a paper published,
he believed, in the town of the senator's
(Voorhees) residence. The Dudley letter
seemed to be child or twin sister of the
Whitaker letter, which he sent to the
clerks desk and had read. The letter uses
precisely similar expressions to those in the
Dudley letter as to supplying lists of doubt
full voters, describes them as ''hoatersn, and
directs that they shall be closely looked
after and none of them allowed to escape.
The reading of the letter was received
WIN louo laughter In Uhe galleries.
MAY BE A FORGERY.
Mr.. Edmunds continued: Now this
Whitaker letter may be a forgery; do
not know. l do not vouch for it. 1t is pos
sible that the editor of the Terre Haute
EnpresS invented it; but it's likeness to the
so-called Dudley letter is so perfect and
peculiar that should be bound to say, If
were juror, that the man who wrote on
Sept. Z, 1888, wrote the Dudley letter and
palmed it off as letter from the national
republican committee.
Mr.. Edmunds then touched upon recent
political scandals in Indiana, and closed by
hoping that the Senate would not stop until
corruption and dishonesty at elections
should have been utterly cast away.
Mr.. VOORHEES, replied that he had never
before heard of the Whitaker letter, and
did not believe it had ever existed
AT the close Of the discussion Mr.. Ed
munds' amendment was agreed to by
party vote-31 yeas to "a nays-and the
resolution, as thus amended, was adopted,
Mr. VOORHEES, remarking that he would find
some way to ascertain the judgment of the
law department on the action Of its subor-
dinate.
After the disposal of some routine matters
the Senate proceeded to consideration of
executive business, and at $40 o'clock ad-