Sanford's Desperate Game

Last Saturday's Issue of the Detroit Freo Press liiul a letter frora oneQeo. W. Slone, i dlscbarged olerk from the auditor general'a office, tehearslng in Sanford'a peculiar style, a lot of already exploded hlseboods, besJdee making the gpeclflc charge tliat Auditor General Stevens had unlawfnHy purchased Hmls for sale at s;iid HUdttOT general's ollicc. Meeting Ml'. Stevens the editor of the Coriuun questioned liim upon tlio artlde and its Charges. Mr. Stevens replied that " as to the charges respecting ïppointments in my office, the tiuth has already been told by the republican papers, aud the statements made by Stone are such palpable falsehoods a.s to need little atteation. As to the speeüic charge made against me, 1 wUb to state that l never have purchased auy land, either diiectly or ndirectly, or made any apilications in my own name." And handintr out a blank appllcation, he eoutioaed: "I have, however, for tlio seconimodation of frieiuls who liave written to me at the office, made out scoies of tbese blanks. and handed thein in." Batd blank read as folio ws : "Hou. Auditor General : Sir.- Application is bere made to purchase, or pay taxcs, on the followlng list of liinds in the natue of of . Ainount liauded you berewitb $ . W. C. Stevens, Langlug. These applkations as we understand ib are for people who caunot be present personally, and so send their inoney directly to the office with which to pay the taxes on their lands. As to the applicatlona cited by Mr. Stone, Mr. Stevens said he could not remember them particulaily, froin the great number which had been handed in, but he was goinjï to Lansiug that day (Moüday) and wnulü look them up. lle l'urther stated that he was not iu Lansing at the time mentloned in the article, having left;there the Friday previous to Oet. lst, rcturning during the afternoon or eveniug of that date. Still lurtlier, that he does not know or never knew a man by the name of Charles H. Palmer, with whom he is charged with being iu collusion. The animus of the whole article is ipparent. Jt is the dying kick of a rooster who has lost his head by sneaking into a neighbor's galden. Aided and abetted by one who wants office awful bad - fo estrcmely bad that he left the republican party because he was unsuecessful in geting it. But, he will find that in officeseeking as iu any legitímate businese, ' lionesty is the best policy." Lies and falsehood's will not take hiui through. In a letter from Maj. Steven?, published in to-day's Free Press, the followiug sentence occurs : " The records of the office are open to inspectiou at all timer, and 1 court the fullest investigation.'?