Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-12-18
COMEDY OF ERRORS
ARISING OUT OF THE APPOINTMENT
OF Z. TRACY TOBIN, OF PHILA-
DELPHIA
AS A W. VA. COMMISSIONER
For the International Exposition
and Commercial Congress-The
Fact that there we're Two Broth
suited in a Complicated Mixture,
and a Strange State Of Affairs
Generally.
Special to the Register.

Special to the Register.
CHARLESTON, w. Va, December II.
The two Tobins, of Philadelphia, AND
Gov. Atkinson appear to have reached a
three ply misunderstanding which is
growing to the proportions Of a five-act
comedy of errors. 1t all results from
the similarity of the names of two
brothers who are both lawyers and
have an Office together at No. 906 Wal
nut street, Philadelphia. E. Tracy To-
bin, was fortunate enough to be APP
pointed by Governor Atkinson a West
Virginia commissioner to the Interna-
tional Exposition and the Commercial
Congress in Philadelphia. He was also
fortunate or unfortunate enough to
have a brother by the name of F.
Tracy Tobin. When e. Tracy Tobin
delivered his Philippe against the man
ayers of the Commercial Congress and
the International Exposition, which
was given publicity by the Register and
other papers, it had an effect like the
explosion of a bombshell among the
managers and patrons of the CONNER
cial Congress and the international
Exposition, whereupon the Philadel-
phia Press published what purported to
ha an intnrviam with GovarpOr A+I;p
son in which the Governor was alleg-
ed to have asserted that he was imposed
upon by those who recommended the
appointment of Mr.. Tobin and that had
he known Mr.. Tobin's character he
would not have appointed him. This
provoked two letters from the Tobins
to Governor Atkinson, one from F.
Tracy, roasting the Governor for say
ing that he had appointed him COM
missioner to represent West Virginia
and another from E. Tracy, roasting
the Governor for saying he had been
imposed upon in the recommendation
of Mr.. Tobin. The Governor has writ
ten a letter to each in reply. To Mr..
F. Tracy he disowns the u~tterances in
the Philadelphia Press and makes a
positive denial that he criticised in any
way the West Virginia commissioner.
Referring to the criticisms of the West
Virginia Senators and Representatives
in Congress of his appointment of To-
bin, the Governor says:
Il care not what West Virginia Sena-
tors and Representatives may say rel
alive to my appointment of Mr.. Tobin
because he was not a resident of this
State. l made the appointment upon
my W responsibility and w1rnout con-
sulting them In shape or form. l do
not believe, however, that any West
Virginia Senator or Representative
made the remarks as attributed to him
in the publication which you enclose to
me-"
In his letter to E. Tracy Tobin the
Governor says among other things:
Il appoint you upon the recommended
ton of several good friends of mine
who vouched for your integrity and
ability. You went to work in a very
aggressive manner, and soon satisfied
me that you were a man of business
and that you knew what you were
about. | am sure you have several
letters from me, bearing different dates
in which l thanked you for the splen-
did efforts you were making to present
West Virginia's resources o the atten-
tention of the world through the Phil
adelphia Exposition and International
There is not a word of truth inthe p ub-
LEGATION referred to, so far as it re-
iates to ne. l never said to any one,
much less a West Virginia Congress-
man or Senator, that | was in any way
dissatisfied with what you did as a
representative of this State at the Phil
adelphia Exposition. On the contrary,
| have stated to the newspaper men IN
West Virginia what you were doing
and how much valuable service you had
rendered the State. l again say that
you and Mr.. Hutchinson were the only
representatives out of the ten that l
appointed. who paid attention to their
duty, although all of them are very
prominent men of West Virginia and
are large employers of labor. If I had
enc or two more persons as efficient
as you and Mr.. Hutchinson, West Vir-
GINA would have made quite a display