The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1908-10-15

Democratic speaker could have the
eRrQntery. under the circumsta nees,
to make that claim IN an attempt to
impose upon the credullty Of the peo-
pie. Such statement Is nothing
more than, a gratuftous insult TO the
fnteiHgenee of the least Informed OF
West Virginia audiences. The
grosser. charges that Senator Elhfns
and other Republican leaders expect
to be benehciaries under any settle
ment Of the debt that may be made
can be dismissed as ordinary Demo
cratic hapdoodle. to which we have
been accustomed, but the vicious mis-
representation that nothing Is beirs
done to protect that states interest In
the suit before the supreme court by
the Repu blican administration is
such plain disregard for the truth
that few quotations from the record
are all that are necessary to stamp
these Democratic statements with the
short. but uglier word as fundament-
al and information lies.
In the first printed volume of the
record OF the suit.Sit Will be found
that the legislature of the session of
1907 passed an act directing the at
the cause, and authorized the board
of public works to employ such attor-
neys and agents to assist the attorney
general as might be necessary.
In pursuance of that author
ity the board engaged the SER
vices of such eminent men in their
vocation as the Hon John G. Car
Isle, secretary of the treasury under!
President Cleveland, the law firm of
Molohan, McClintic and Matthews. of
Charleston, and the Hon. Chas, Ed
gar Hogg, of Morgantown. Does
that look like nothing Is being done
to defend the interests OF the state?''
The progress of the suit has been
as rapid as possible, and Ex-United
States Senator John C. Spooner has
been added to the distinguished coun-I
sci of the state. The work of the
legal advisers of the state has been
such that the suit Is in a fair way
for settlement. In June of this year
the Hon. Chas. e. Littlefield, of
Maine, was appointed by the supreme
court as special master under a de-
cree entered May 4. The hearing
before the master will begin at Rich
mond, Va, November 8. 1908, just
six days after the present general
election shall have been held.
The contention of the present Re
ublican administration, and theI
counsel for this state is that West
Virginia owes nothing and will have
nothing to pay, and the highest court
in the land is the proper place to i
settle the question and forever end
the controversy From the time the
Republicans came into power In 1897
the contention that we owed nothing
to Old Virginia was made promfn-
ent, and the first governor under this !
new rule of progress and prosperity.
the Hon. G. w. Atkinson, in his first
message to the legislature went fur-s
ther by claiming that Virginia on a |
strict accounting would be found to
be indebted to West Virginia. /
What is the record of the Demo-
cratic party on this question? Dur
ing the twenty-six years It was in
power all it did towards adjusting
this matter was the appointment of
a commission on the recommendation
of Governor Stevenson, a Republican. |
On this commission was the late
Jonathan NJ. Bennett, the father of
the present Democratic candidate for
governor He was chairman of that
commission, and as such RECOMMENDED
ed that the taxpayers of this state
pay Virginia nearly 100000, or to |
give the exact figures, $953,36O.23.
OF course those negotiations with the
old state failed of any result. After
that for % years they never passed /
a resolution or did anything in the
way of adjusting matters. This is |
Il plain statement of facts, and is |
given in the hope that t may over
take some of the Misrepresentation
and falsehoods uttered by the Demo- !
cratic speakers, who know better but
are desperate in their tactics in the
hope OF Democratic success on No
vember 3: In this, however, they
VIII fail, just as they have done in |
previous Quadrennial campaigns.