Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1870-05-25
fcosNuSIcATED.l
A Card from Col. JnO. Baxter.

To the Editors of the Chronicle:
The Knoxville Wig of this morning
has the following special from Nashvile
NASHVILLE, May 16.--The railroad In
vestigating Committee made a lengthy
report on the Mineral Home Railroad.
Mr. Baxter is implicated in frauds upon
the State.
The following Joint resolution was intro
duced to-day, in the Senate by Mr..
Cooper, of Bedford
"ReSOlUed bv he General Assc0abbv of tic
State Of Tennessee, That the Treasurer of
the State is hereby directed to demand
from the Mineral Home Railroad, and
from the Exchange and Deposit Bank at
Knoxville the 100000 in bonds of the
State illegally issued to the President of
the Mineral Home Railroad, and which,
according to the report Ofthe Special Com
mittce on railroads, have been Illegally
sold by the Exchange and Deposit Bank.
And, upon the failure of the officers of the
Mineral Home Railroad, and of the Ex-
change and Deposit Bank, of Knoxville, to
fully account with the Treasurer of the
State for the said, bonds, then, and in that
event the Attorney General of the State is
hereby directed Immediately to institute
legal proceedings for the recovery of the
same in the name of the State of Tennes-
see.
The Press and Herald contains a similar
dispatch with the words "Mr. Baxter is
implicated i'm frauds upon the State" omit
ted.
These dispatches evidently emenated
from the same mind and were forwarded
in furtherance of conspiracy to defame
me; forestall public opinion and divert
public attention from corruptions to be
hereafter developed by the Committee, pro-
vided the high trust confided TO them is
executed with fidelity.
The statement that +" Mr., Baxter is inn
plcated in frauds upon the State, ~ is false.
The Committee Notwithstanding it is well
understood here that a. portion of them
have been bought up by the ecorruptionists,)
| am well assured have made Nc such i'm
putation upon my honor. If theA have,
the imputation is false and nlaueous anI
without the shadow of a foundation al the
evidence adduced before them.
The Exchange and Deposit Bank is Il
! corporation owned and controlled by me.
About October, 1869, Col. j. w. Grayson
and Mr.. Thos. l.. Smyth, the first Presi-
dent and the last a Director of The MINI,
raj Home Railroad Company left with
my Cashier, on special deposit, $4,000 of
State bonds, and hypothecated another
thousand for small loan made TO defray
their expenses. These bonds 40 left with
the Bank remained till in the early part of
| January, when under and in accordance
with resolution of "The Mineral Home
Railroad Company and the request and
instruction of Col. Grayson, its President
they were sent to New York and sold by
the Bank for the Company
The transaction, so far a. this Bank was
concerned, was purely and exclusively
business one. Neither / nor the Bank had
any agency in obtaining the issuance of
these bonds, nor have | or the Bank at any
time had any interest in or connection
with "The Mineral Home Railroad Cpm-
pany," or in the proceeds derived from the
sale of said bonds.
The proceeds of said bonds were placed,
! in the usual way, to the credit of Col.
Grayson, President of the Company, and
| paid as he chose TO draw it. Appliance
remains with the Bank, and / am glad to
| know that it il to be sued COR by the state.
| Courts are the proper forums to insure jus
tice and to expose fraud and corruption.
There both parties can be heard, and have
the right to summon witnesses and exam
| inc and cross-examine them on oath, free
from the political prejudices and corrupt
appliances which too often control Legis-
! lative bodies.
The motive of this insidious assault on
me is meaner than the assault itself. 1t
had an object, but will fail to accomplish
its aim But this is enough for the pre-
sent | will wait until the report of the
Committee is published. When this il
J done [ NAV, Messrs. Editors, with your
permission, have something further to say.
| / have some talent for T" Investigating T"
and may be, and I hope will be,
under the necessity of organizing my
self into an Investigating Committee,
Should be under such q necessity, will
take wide range, and investigate men and
| measures with free and easy pen and in
.doing so win be able TO develop many
new facts, refresh the memories of several
gentlemen in and about Knoxville with
unpleasant recollections and astound the
community with the many glaring and
outrageous frauds perpetrated upon. them
by thecombination of bad men who are
now trying to cover their tracks by Grip
pling me through such assaults.
Respectfully, &C., JNo. BANTER.
KNOXVILLE, TENN, May II, 1870,