Daily press and Dakotaian. [volume] (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1875-1880, 1877-10-13

pristy, you inform mo 70 whom you solo
our territorial warrants, at What price, and
If You soldlhem ~ low q q cent. WHY
yoa were induced thus to sacrifice them.
Vesy respectfully. &
john l.. PrNntxaroN.
Govsrnor.
In reply the following was received:
Fl. MADnoN, Iowa, Aug. 8, ~.
Hen. Jek. Z. Pe~~ington, Governor, d. r.
Hosktos, d. T..
My Dean SlR-Your letter Of July q
came while I was absent from home, and
hasten 10 answer. I wrote sometime since
to the territorial treasurer asking whatswar'
rants were worth and he referred my letter
to several men, who offered MT so cents fol
them. negotiated what I had to NJ. Grigs-
by, of Sioux Falls, at that price, as it was ell
was offered BY any one. The warrants fol
the next bill I shall send directly to you
and let you negotiage the same for me, ~ ]
am convinced that you can do as we'll, If NOT
better, for me than any one else can.
I am sir, yours respectfully,
SETH HI. Craig,
Warden.
In reply to this the governor offered to
do what he could for Mr.. Craig and sugges-
ted that he send his warrants to the LIST Ma.
tional bank, Of this city, and let the bank
dispose Of them. The next letter We find
on file in the governors Office is the one in
which was enclosed the warrants referred to
in Nh. Craig's previous letter. We give it
entire:
FIT. MADISON, Iowa, Sept. 10. 1877
Gov. JOHN l.. PENNINGTON, Yankton D. T.
Ny Dear Sir.-In accordance with the
kind uffer contained in your letter of the
18th ult., [ enclose two Dakota territorial
warrants, of the following numbers and
amounts. to you for you to negotiate for
me at the best prices you Can obtain:
No. cls, date Aug. "a. 1877, f"r............ 1891. 2s
si7sa.4s
I trust you will attend 10 this matter rs
soon as convenient, and for the same I am
under many obligations.
am, sir very truly yours.
SETH H. CRAIG.
By H. CLAY STUART, Warden.
Clerk.
The foregoing letter might place the gov
ernor under the suspicion Of the editor of
the Paragraph, but for the following en-
dorsement which the president Of the 1st
National bank has placed upon that docu-
ment:
The within mentioned warrants were
handed us by Gov. John L. Pennington, for
which I RENTED currency for them to Seth
II. Craig, Esq, warden, Fl Madison, Iowa,
Sept. 28th, 1877, at the rate of IS cents,
amounting to S1,515.10, and I consider this
the best market price for them at hat time.
J.. G. McVAY,
President 1st National Bank.
Yankton, Oct. 10, 1877.
This includes the record on the books
and letter files of the executive office, and
in it We find nothing to s%ubstantiate the
charge of the Paragraph. On the contra.
ry. We discover a desire on the part Of Gov.
Pennington to protect the public credit and
to insist that the paper of the territory he
not deprecated by the operations Of greedy
spectators. The Paragraph in its article
charges that Dakota criminals have been
kept at Fl. Madison at ~exorbitant prices,
when they might have been moved tn some
cheaper prison. The records show that for
the past two or three years Gov. Penning-
ton hiss been making endeayors to find a
cheaper place of imprisonment for Dakota
criminals, but that western prison. keepers
positively refused to receive them at any
price, as they had not room for their &C
commodation. Finally. however, he sue
ceeded in making q satisfactory arrange
ment with the Detroit house of correction,
and our criminals are there maintained at
n half the previous cost. For this
act Of .eoonomy he is publicly as.
sailed; his motive misconstrued and
odium is cast upon him by a Newspaper
whose editor figures in the correspondence
above given as one Of the purchasers Of Fort
Madison prison warrants. We can see
nothing in the history Of this warrant tran
saction which duplicates Gov. Pennington
in any wrong doing. If the Paragraph has
any specific charges to make, let it out with
them, and not build up suspicion upon
pointless and unsubstantiated assertions
against the highest official in the territory.
What we want is proof, and unless that is
given the attacks of the Paragraph should
possess not a feathers weight against the
good name Of the governor of Dakota.
MEAT MARKET.