OCR Text |
Show TELEGRPHIC 5CK 'J". The private business of the Western Union lek-gnph corn piny during the late politic! crnpign relating to political matters w;is immense, and that company very naturally deirc to protect tho correapondenco ot it., customers, and it is iu duty bo to do.' If prying eyes can gain ready acceH to the secrets confided to tho telegraph tele-graph and mails few aflaira of business busi-ness or friendship, or even tlm'. weightiest matter of all, love, can proceed safely and jatHfaetorily. Th-whole Th-whole world would be at tho mercy of the postmaster and tho telegraph operator should theie functionaries enjoy en-joy the right of unlocking and retailing retail-ing the secret confided to their knap-in;;. knap-in;;. Of course it is understood that thn-fl can ba no strict privacy in ro gard to telegram? pvjing over thou-ganfls thou-ganfls of miles of wiro within hearing of hundred of operator, and wo can imagine how many driblcta of contraband con-traband ncw- may drop out 'n rout' from tho Atlantic to the I'acific cobhI. lufj .residential complications liavc lod to a d';mnd in b th liomea u' congress upon tho I'llgraph enm-panies enm-panies to produce certain political 7neag3 alleged to havo licon a;it respeotively Hy republicans and demo cruU to New Orleans and to Oregon. Ju tho ono caso is wanted the dm-itch'ia dm-itch'ia fiont or received by Xach A'AwvU'-r, Don Canvron, J. M. A inutidi, rCello;:g, J'arkard find othrr CO-cotipir,Uoni in the work of dnfraud-ing'J'ildfm dnfraud-ing'J'ildfm f-utof the vot'iof Juiiftimf and in the other tho inotngfB ot .1. N. jr, J Wrick, Kngi-no CaMtrly, Win, M. Owinn and otliTs, in regard lo tho deputed ol':';toral Vote of Oregon, one dLpilch epo;ial!y beiitfc cllvl (or, 'vliore.'ho Hum of k'Aff)n ineutioned. rhe information iu regard to tho i Oregon matter is demanded by Sen- ( ator Morton as chairman of tbe elec- J tioiie committeo of the senate, aud , tho Zach Chandler messages are i wanted by Representative Morrison's 1 house committee. Mr. Wm. Orton, 1 president of tho Western Union tele- , graph company, to whom these congressional con-gressional requisitions were directed, 1 has replied that he is not the custodian of tho dispatches of tho Western Union telegraph company, and baa no personal knowledge of them or of their contents. The board of directors also adopted tho following resolutions on tho 22d instant: Resolved, That tbo Western Union Udi'gniph company regards itself hs tbe eonlldontial agent of such of tbo people ol tho United Stiitus as may wbhioem-ploy wbhioem-ploy its agencies for tho transmission of communications by tulograph, and is bound tj roMst by cw.ry lawful means all publication or examination of its records. Hcsulvaly That excepting such messages mes-sages ns may bo desired by tbo sfiidor to bj pres-rvud for ft period not osccsi'iing six months, tbo exueutiva committee U hereby directed to provida in future for such speedy dotructiin of all writton messages as tho ncivssary keeping of all accounts between tlio repoclivo oiticos of thp company will allow, It evolved, Tuat the board of director; hereby approvo tho tic t ion of tlio pxecu-Utu pxecu-Utu coromitteo in removing nil mesiiifio; now on baud from tho cjn'.rol or pos-cession pos-cession of its oilicers. In a communication to Speaker Randall on tho 23 J inataut Mr. Orton saya that the directors of the Western Union telegraph company havo, without any knowledge or participation par-ticipation on his part, taken from hini all pofver and control over the messages now in possession of the company. This action on the part of the telegraph tele-graph company is in direct deduce uf the power and authority claimed by congress iu the premises, and it does not require great penetration to forste the result. Tho directors ot the company have placed themselves individually in contempt of both the senate and the house of representatives representa-tives and will be liable to imprison- nent uutd they comply witn tne demands of congress. However twis worthy may be the motives of company to protect the privacy of their patrons they caunot expect to resist the supreme authority of the national lcgisl ittire in the pursuit of its legitimate functions. The mes-:ages mes-:ages cUed for pertain to matters of public import and are demanded in the interest of public justice. In this i interest aud before such a tribunal, as before a court of justice where the take at issue is that of individual life or honor there is no privileged -uatter which may not he brought to light and scrutinized. In tho caso before congress the national life and honor are at stake, and even the lightning mii:t give up its records, no matter whom they may convict. The facts of the case niu.it be rrached and the responsibility for the attempt to bulldoze the American nation placed where it belong. |