Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1864-09-29

OF his Adm inis misunderstanding Dis
cIOsures-Paine Reports Only TO Lin
.coln-AbolitiOn Member of Congress
Involved. gss
No army. officer has been, of late, so pop
ular with Abolitionists and Abolition pa
pers as General PAINE, commanding the
Western District of Kentucky. He trans
ported numberof families from Kentucky
to Canada under negro guard, and all the
Abolition prints rejoiced, and pulled him
as vigorous General and good officer-the
ne plus ultra of heroes and patriots. When
he took command in Kentucky, cores
name will doubtless be found now among
those possessing plenty of greenbacks, an
nounced that the secesh and sympathizers
of Western Kentucky would be compelled
to dry up, and added several mysterious
hints which are new fully explained. The
following is record of infamy which
should tinge every Americans cheek with
shame. We copy from The Louisville Jour
nal of Tuesday, the 9th September:
Sometime ago Col. Craddocll, of the Ken
tncky service, was called by business into
the District of Western Kentucky, then
commanded by Brig. Gen. Il. A. Paine.
The Colonel found the people completely
| cowed, not daring to utter word, when
every day their most sacred rights, by mill
| tary force, were flagrantly violated. BY
close observation he became convinced that
Gen. Paine and his subordinates were ex-
ercising the iron rule of dcspots, were per-
scouting and robbing the people under var-
Gus flimsy pretexts, and that the worst cor
ruption prevailed in his office and charac-
terized all his official acts. Being convinced
of these facts, he sought Maj. Gen. Bur-
bridge, at his headquarters in Lexington,
and fully stated the case to him. The Cen
eral was 10th to believe that crimes so enor-
nous as represented by Col. Craddock could
be openly practiced by man clothed with
the authority and honor of an officer of the
United States Government; but, on the
solemn assurance of the truth of the state
ment, he concluded to appoint commits
sion to investigate the case. On the 9th of
September an order was made detailing
Gen. s. S. Fry and Col. Brown as COM
mission to proceed Ito Paducah and fully
investigate the conduct of Gen. Paine while
in command of the Western District of Ken
lucky. Col. Craddock was appointed to ac-
company the commission and assist them
in their labors. just before the arrival of
Gen. Fry at Paducah, Gen. Paine was
relieved of his command by Gen. Mere
dith. Paine was ordered to remain at
his headquarters and meet all charges
that might be preferred against him be-
fore the commission. This he refused to
do. When Gen. Fry and his associates ar
rived, they found that Gen. Paine had fled
to Illinois, where he is still absent without
authority. All of his subordinate officers
also took "French leave" knowing that
their conduct would not bear investigation.
Gen. Fry found it very difficult to COM
mence operations, as the main parties were
absent, and the clerks and orderlies with
whom they had surrounded themselves,
and possessing knowledge of their trans
actions, had been previously sent out of the
district. The citizens were SO completely
cowed that they would not open their lips
with one word of complaint against the
policy pursued by General Paine. Acting
on the authority of Generals Meredith and
Fry, Col. Craddock publicly proclaimed the
object of the commission in visiting Padu-
cab, and assured the people that, if they
would come forward and testify to facts
they should receive full protection from all
the parties who might be implicated by
their statements. This had the desired eff
feet. Gen. Fry was received with the great
est enthusiasm. All of the evidence taken
before the body is in the form of afidavits,
and the record is quite voluminous. 1t was
found that Gen. Paine had exercised the
most arbitrary WILL and that the worst cor
ruption prevailed in his Office. Citizens had
been arrested and thrown into prison with
out a show of trial. and no record of sim
orIo bo rora f,raforrad acyoinct fhnn1 nnul1 ha
found among any of the official papers in
the office. Prisoners were executed with
out hearing, and often without any def
mite charge being preferred against them.
FOrty-three grdues, said to be those of executed
prisoners, were counted at Pddlcdh. Among
this number were two men, named Nolin
and Taylor, of well-kn0wn loyalty, who
by some act offended the General in power,
and tragic death was their doom.
To show the manner in which the execu-
tions were made, we have statement from
the evidence given by Hiram r. Enoch,
Quartermaster of the 132d regiment Illinois
volunteer infantry. He says that he heard
of four citizens being executed without
shadow of trial-Kesterton Taylor, Ma
they, and Hess. Colonel McChesney, COM
and acting under the instructions of
Gen. Paine, told him, about the 1st of Sep
tember, 1854, that he had shot seven men at
Mayfeld, and had one more in the guard
house that he intended to execute the next
day. He said that he gave them no trial,
and boasted that one of the prisoners was
shot and covered up in his grave in forty
five minutes from the time that he was first
reported by scout at his headquarters.
The whole Of Gen. Paine's official career in
the District of Western Kentucky was
marked by the coarsest brutality, calculat-
ed to exasperate the people and send re-
cruits to the rebel army. He would order
citizens to his headquarters, and, without
provocation, would abuse them, applying
the most offensive terms to them, such as
id rebels, id scoundrels, &c. o
The people of Paducah were driven from
their homes without any just cause, and
their houses turned over to negro families
for occupation. Gen. Prince, commanding
at Smthlaud, states that forty-two of the
citizens of Paducah passed down the river
on boats under orders of Punishment be-
yond the Federal lines by order of General
| Paine. The property of these families was
confiscated by Paine's officials, as 1t
was said, for the benefit of the Govern
ment. Two old widow ladies, their hair
silvered by more than sixty winters,
| for no Just cause, were torn from their COM
| Portable homes, and sent to Canada under
guard of q file of negro soldiers. The peo-
| Die were swindled in the most outrageous
manner. Gen. Paine's rule was absolute.
| A Trade Agent was appointed, not by the
Secretary Of the Treasury, but by the self
4 n. H. IL 49,