Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1870-05-08
EskE UNITED STATES mARsRAI.-
SEEEP.
Present status OF tfae Case.

Present Status OF tfae Case.
During the last few days there has beenl
talk and excitement in and
)ut of official circles in regard to the re-
nov1 of certain ineumbents in this city.
The removal OF Mr.. blackburn, who has
Tor so short time filed theofiice of United
States Marshal, and the announcement Of
his successor created no small degree Of
surprise in certain circles, especially as Mr..
b. had not been an incumbent sufficiently
to develop any official delinquencies, even
if he had been disposed. At the visit of
Mr.. Evans to Mr.. Harrison, in Giles coun-
ty, on Friday, the latter assured the former
that his (Harrison's) appointment to the
Office was entirely unexpected and unlocked
for ON his part, and indicated that in the
full light of the circumstances he would
probably not accept. The allegations upon
which the plea for MIR. BIS removal
was based it appears, grew out
of transactions of which we know
nothing, said to have transplred |
some years since during the war. As
refutation of these allegations, Mr.. Black
burn Yesterday wrote to Gen. w. Is. Stokes
in Washington. The following is copy
of the letter, which will be read with III
terest: -o
UNITED STATES MARsHALs OFFICE, NASH
VILE. May Z, 1S70.-Gen. w. b. Stokes,
NJ. c., Washington, d. C.-Dear General
| / have deemed it best to write to you, CIV
ing full and complete history of the claim
transactions of Hartford and French, In
which / am implicated, and it seems to be
| the sufferer In the year 1867 received
| from o. C. French five thousand dollars
worth of vouchers, ! being in Nashville at
the time. / Immediately took the train for
Washington for the purpose of collecting
them. When / arrived at Washington
presented the claims to Quartermaster
| General El1in, who examined them and
pronounced them all o. K, and said that
| they would be paid in few days. l could
| not wait until they could be paid, but
sought claim agent, and found that one
/ B. d. Hyam was considered one of tie
safest and best in the city. l found him
| and showed him the claims and he and
myself went to see Gen. Ekin, who pro-
nounced them good and said that they
would be paid in short time. Thereupon
Hyam advanced me $4,000. I then re-
turned home, and some time afterwards
| Hyam sent the vouchers back to me with
the 4th of July blank attached to each one,
requesting that l have new claims made
out under act of July 4, 1864. / at once
called on some of the parties, when they
assured me they had never made out any
such claims or authorized any one else to
do so. This was the first intimation that L
had that the vouchers were forged. L I'M
mediately took the train and went to Wash
ington, called on Gen. Ekin, stated the
| whole affair to him and gave him up the
| vouchers, and promised him that l would
return home and would assist him In the
Investigation of the forgeries, and show
| him who the parties were. This l did (;
for in a short time F. D. Lyons, Govern
ment detective, visited my town, and
IL did assist him in getting the
evidence, which, if he reported correctly,
settles the whole affair, showing that o. c.
French and F. A. Hanford, were the guilty
parties and that 1 was not directly OF. IN
| directly interested in or party to the
forgeries. You can refer to the affidavit Of
liz. D. Lyons sent to you day or so ago,
and see if he does not exonerate me.
When l ascertained that the vouchers
were forged 1 called on Hyam who had
! already advanced me some funds, and told
him that l had turned the vouchers Ovel
to Gen. Ekin, and have since paid him OF
the money he advanced me one thousand
dollars. and given him my note for the
{ balance which he claimed that | owed
him. say fifteen hundred dollars
one thousand being the balance due that
he had advanced me, and i've hundred
dollars due him as interest and attorney S
fees which he claimed Consequently YOU
will see that never received one dollar
nor attempted to collect one dollar upon
: | the forged vouchers, but in truth and in
5 | fact was the cause of the detection. Now
does il not seem hard that l have to suffer
, | for being honest, and that, too, after hav.
ing sold every particle of property that
had. changed my residence to Nashville.
broke MP Housekeeping, sold and disposed
! of everything, and paid off my debts will
proceeds OF my property, not even sparlnG
myself one-sixtb of what l would be al
lowed as exempt by law from my creditors
: l took charge of the Office about the 18th
| dav of March last. and for the manner with
which have discharged the duties thereof
3 refer you by permission to the Hon
Conally f. Trigg, Judge of the United
States District Court, E. Il. Campbell
| Clerk United States Circuit Court, Z
| McPhail Smith, United States Distric
| Attorney for this District, and to the mem
bers Of the Nashville Bar, and the citizen
generally.
. In conclusion may not ask, why is i
:. that the Government has dealt so sum
! marily with me, and why am not allowe'
= to have my case investigated? furthe
: beg you to call upon those who have tn
authority, and ask them to give me hear
4 ing, and not to cripple and ruin me 70
| nothing. General, my case is in you
hands. l am ready and want and beg al
! Investigation, open, free and thorough, an,
if l am not guilty ask an acquittal, an,
also ask that be allowed to retain m
place as United States Marshal for TIL
District.
am, General, your obd't and humbl
servant, Jos. IL. BLACKBURN.
e The case of Mr.. Blackburn, we learn, /
= being reconsidered by the authorities a
+ | Washington, and dispatches we are assure
we're received yesterday to the effect tina
there would be no change sat present,
at all. Letters were also received by Mr
? Blackburn from Gen. Stokes, the tenor {
: which indicated that the subject of Col
BIaekburn's removal ard suppression
predetermined So the matter stands a
| present.