Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1880-04-17
KNOX IMPALED.
The Martin County Chickens Come Home
to ROOSt.

to RooSt.
Martin County Sentinel.
Henry M. Knox shows up in worse and
more ridiculous light as public explainer
than he does as public examiner. Under the
head of "Falsehood Exposed-The Editor of
the Fairmont Sentinel Cornered,'' he pub
fishes communication in which he attempts
by misstatements and suhterfuges to convey
the idea that he has done his duty and his
whole duty in the matter of the Martin
county treasury defalcation. He exhumes
an old musty letter book and begins:
Having proven from my letter-book that
the deficit in the Martin county treasury was
reported to the governor on April 80, 1879,
twelve days after it was discovered (the inter
mediate time having been given the treasurer
that he might compare my figures with his
books) the Sentinel echoes the GLOBES extraor-
binary change of 'front.'" etc.
Now, then, Knox visited Fairmont on the
18th day of April, and made quasi exami-
nation of the treasurer's books. He made
the discovery that Hackett was defaulter to
the tune of over 81, 200-in other words, he
had stolen that amount of Martin county's
money. Then was the time when Samuel
Hackett should have been suspended from
Office, and Knox is to blame for not having
it done. But instead of doing this, &C
cording to his own admissions, he gra
ciously grants the defaulter twelve
days in which to compare figures
before he mentions the matter to the Gever-
nor. Compare fgures!" If the public ex-
aminer understands his business he should
have known whether Hackett was defaulter
without having to submit the figures to the
defaulter himself for approval. That won
derful letter book is great source of COM
fort to Knox and he again quotes:
''My letter-book is a very conclusive and un-
impeachable witness to the correctness of these
wild statements. Pages 247-8-9 contain the copy
of q letter written by me officially to the board
of commissioners of Martin county, and dated
April 18th (the day before my report was trans
mitted to the Governor) in which gave in the
plainest language the information of Mr..
Hackett's defalcation; and, after stating that
had given Mr.. 81. time to demur to the correct
ness of my figures the letter adds: Not hav-
ing heard from him | must assume that he adj
mits the figures to be correct, and have inform
ed him that I have written you of the facts,
that your board may see that he at once makes
up to the treasury the amount due to it,"
In the above it will be seen that Mr.. Knox
admits in the "plainest language" that he
was knowing to Hackett's defalcation and
that he had given Hackett time to ''demur,"
but it seems the treasurer had no "demnr' to
put in, and so the public examiner instead
of having him promptly kicked
out of the Office that he had robbed,
simply writes the county commissioners to
"see that he at once makes up to the
treasury. the amount due ito From that
time on the dafalcation continued to increase
and Hackett continued to carry the money
bags until the county was out $4.226.44.
Knox in the meantime had been appealed to
time and time again to come down and as
sist in Strengthening ont the complications.
But he had important calls" in other direc-
tons, and we were left to suffer the penalty
of his derelictions.
Had there never been public examiner
Martin county would be thousands of
dollars better off to-day. The bondsmen,
after Knox's examination, felt safe and Sc
cure, and meas ures of protection which they
had in view were abandoned. Knox carried
the idea to our people that Hackett was
Gall right" In conversation with the editor
of the Sentinel, at the time of his visit to
Fairmont, he used substantially these words:
"Hackett's books are in better condition
than are majority of the treasurers' in the
State''
Mr.. Knox in his effort to "corner the edi-
tor of the Sentinel' has weakened his own
case. In the same letter in which he denies
giving Hackett time, he admits giving him
time. He don't dare to say that he recon-
mended the governor to suspend Hackett,
and he makes no explanation of his failure
to come to the assistance of the board of
audit when called upon so to do. If the
public examiner has any further desire to
"corner the editor of the Sentinel'' We ad-
wise him to slay on MnDuff." We still have
q few facts in our possession which We can
support by documentary evidence that will
not materially help his case.
Charles G. Fairman has been confirmed
nAnr,d -. a<,eAr