New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-09-14
THE "PECKr MYSTERY.

THE "PECKr MYSTERY.
What most bothers the average observer OF
o,,ront political events at the present moment
is Tho question. "What is really the matter
Nth Peck? Mr.. f. Ellery Anderson says
no has been lying, and that gentleman Is clmo-
inc M his back with a mandamus ana o'her
processes TO compel him to furnish information
t, IN nroof of the charge. In an aihdavlt recltine
tho difficulties he has encountered In his enoll
70 compel "Pecli~ to disgorge all he knows, Mr'
| Anderson saws the reason why he IL SO not aoouV
if is that "Pecll" made false statement Il"
his report-to wit, the following
| ,,mos, ,rrnmorble inquiries made OF this
| -, ,v tho great writer's upon economic subjects
49, ,ooa,rs Of thought and discussion In our puiptS'
| NJ, the rostrllm. and through the puohc PRESS 'o
| o,ablc data and statistics benrlng upon 'hs Fei!
! rrnortnnt subject. And IT was by reason ol 'ni7
| ,,ua,lon no les, than with view TO es'abSh 'hc
truth or falsity OF the premises taken by inc TWO
ot noutica parties OF the country that the under
| -, r,anr decided TO make the subject Of the
g., -, tho tariff on labor and wages" one OF special
| investigations
Now whether the falsehood consists in the
assertion that the inquiries were ihhuihcr,
abler or that they came from " great wri'erS'
or that they called for reliable data" OF
| that il was by reason of this SITUATION thau
| tho subject was made " one OF speclal ihVeSu-
cation y Mr.. Anderson fails specifically to state.
lie does say, however, that 1.-THE conclusions
| stotod nv the Commissioner in the said summary
are based upon the ex parte returns mace by
| nor.ons whose names are unknown, and VINO
arc directly interested in establishing by such
rcturns \ state Of facts favorable to their own
| interests" Their names being unknown the
inquiry naturally arises how Mr. Anderson Is
able 10 swear that they " are directly interested
IN establishing by such returns state OF iac'S
| favorable 10 their own interests. III looks
very much as if he had made his affidavit not
npon actual knowledge but upon the a>sump-
,ion tha, his theories and prcconccptionS were
40 solid and substantial, 80 absolute and ifre
sutablc. that Whatever seemed to conflict WIN
| ,hcn was necessarily fallacious, and probably
wickcdly and malciouSy false some people
| do have that sort of fondneSs for their own
oninions still. there are not many "ho' even
| N the heat Of controversy. are Wiling 20 S'ahu
nm and swear that everything in conflict win
| ,to,r notions is a lic and that everybody who
.ots mn hostile facts and figures is liar. For
tho main inference from this affidavit Is that
not only Peck" but everybody who furnished
him nj, figures and facts. has lied. ms
- = rather sweeping charge But Mr. Ander-
son proposes 10 prove il whenever ne geoS a'
| the name. If the five or six thousand business
mon who furnished the data on which Peck
made his report.
The oucer feature about this whole bust
| moss. however j. the absence so far as can be
discovered Of any adequate motive on the part
| e "pecir II j. a singular circumstance that
mn ono has charged MIN with having been
hribed The effect Of his report IS favorable
| 20 the Republicans. but it does not appear, nor
has (, been anywhere intimated that any re
n,blicon nromjnent or obscure. knew anything
| about the report until it was made public
| There was an attempt TO connect senator I'M
with Il, but il failed The Senator proved an
| llib Indeed. if, as has been announced ne
intend, 20 take the stump for Cleveland why
.hould he advise or connive at the publication
If an official report, the effect OF when Is
| ,lai,lv damaging 10 Clevclands cause? The
| ,bolo business i, confusing. Here is Peck
| b;,rsolf-an appointce Of Cleveland and sup
| n,rtino him in the present canyass-charged
| with consuming against him. and with acting
urdor the advice of Senator Hill, who is about
| 70 take the stump for Cleveland. Here too
arc the special friends and worshppcrs of Cleve
land charging one with falsehood and the other
with treachery and getting ready to prove tha'
| five or six thousand business men III various
narts of the state, whose names are not known
much less their politcs-arc con'piratorS ana
| liars and all this at time when every man
lack of them is asscverating that the party
il harmonious and everything is serene. II this
i harmony what, in the name of goodness.
| ,vo,ld be the situation if there was disScnson
| As for "pcck," we congratulate him upon
| having. by some sort Of miracle, escaped the
charge of bribery and corruption we sympa-
| thizc with him in his natural and pralsew0rthy
,enuenance TO violating the confidence of the
men who trusted his promise to withhold their
names when they answered his inquiries; and
vet. from a purely political point of view we
| .bould not be sorry If the courts established
the principle contended for by Mr. Ellery An
dcrson and his associates, that all the docu-
ments IN q public Office must be open to IN
sncction. and none Of them are private. II
would be of very great assistance to the honest
voters Of this State in pursuing certain lnycsu-
cations connected with the proceedings OF the
democratic State officers and Legislature last
winter.
| TTTECaI md INHTMAN