Year: 1878




feelings towards me and with an
artiul dissimulation that would do
credit to Iago, claimed to have acted
only from conviction of painful du-
tv. This report was summarily set
aside upon the recommendation Of
the Attorney General of the United
States by the Secretary of the Inter-.
or, when the unfair, malicious and ex
parte character Of the investigation
was ascertained. A trial DE NOVA
was awarded when all the testimony
was carefully scanned and thorough
lv considered by the Commissioners
Of the General Land Office and AS.
| sistan, Attorn' General Smith, act.
ing as special referees, and the result
was my complete vindication, and
my continuance in the office of Sec
retary for two years longer and un.
til after expiration of my full term.
BY the Presidents own order the en-
Iistment was cancelled as the al.
legged desertion without any qualif,
cation or the imposition of any civil
disabilities, the circumstance being
deemed by the President and the
Secretary Of War as affording ample
justification of the act. The charge
of not being a citizen was also salts.
factorily disproven and subsequently
at the request of trends, whose mo
tlves and integrity cannot be ques.
toned for one moment, and for the
purpose of setting at rest any con-
troversy concerning the same, ] made
full proof OF my residence and other
qualifications and thereupon was ju.
dicially declared to be citizen by a
court of competent jurisdiction. The
charge of corruption in Office was so
utterly false and groundless as to
elicit severe comments by the Com
missioner of the General Land Office,
who acted as referee, upon the flimsy
character of the hearsay testimony,
upon which Vineyards report was
predicated. For four long years have
quietly suffered from the crying in
justice and the false imputations,
which the malice Of Wingard sought
to perpetuate by his charges of Off
cial corruption, without making pub
lie these facts, which involved re-
Election upon his integrity and hon
esty of purpose. | did this, because
about the same time, by some feat of
political legerdemain, he was ap-
pointed to judicial Office and was
taught to respect the ermine, if not
the form which it covers. But when
through his agency, his report upon
which the stamp of disproval had
been set by his superiors in Wash
ington, is exhumed and paradsd in
the public prints as a document i'm.
porting the verify of a judgment, and
when he, especially when in his cups,
seeks every occasion to malign me
and cast obloquy on my name to the
sorrow of my family, forbearance
ceases to be virtue and l stand
ready at any time to measure per-
sonal records with him-here as we'll
as in PENNSYLVANIA.


The foregoing comprises all the
offenses, which have ever been
charged against me during all of the
years ofmy residence in the Territory.
During that time l filed the Office of
Probate Judge and that of Prosecu
ting Attorney for seven successive
years, besides being a member for
several terms Of both houses of the
Legislative Assembly and President
of the Council and Secretary of the
Territory for over four years, besides
having been employed to conduct as
an Attorney over two thousand cases
in the different courts of this Terri
tory. | am not aware, that in any of
these various relations, | have ever
been accused Of doing a personal
wrong to any man; of any other vi
olation of law, civil or moral; of any
misuse of trust, betrayal of coni-
dence or faithfulness to any public
or private obligation. Whom have |
DETAINED? Whom defrauded? Whom
wronged in any business transaction
or whose enmity have incurred in
any private relation? Let my as
sailants answer!


| cannot close this letter without
alluding briefly to n. H. Bloomfield,
Prosecuting Attorney and a candi.
date for reelection. who in his inor.
dinate greed for office and in his ut
ter disregard for truth and the most
palpable obligations, which gratitude
imposes, has been mainly instrument
tai by the use of the most disreput
able means in setting in motion the
/ II