Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1882-12-22
GRAVE CHARGES
Brought Against the Governor Of Ken
tucky-OFer Fifteen Hundred
Criminals PardOned
And $4,000, goo in Fines Said to Have
Been RENTED During His
Term Of Office.

LOUISVILLE, December 21.-Facts have
been unearthei during the past several days
which, to say the least, show the governor
and secretary OF state of Kentucky to have
been guilty of a willful disree ard of the
laws OF the State, il not of absolute con.
spiracy to defeat the action OF the Legislature
and shield themselves from the exposure of
official wreng-doins. Gov. Blackburn has
made himself notorious by his free and
indiscriminate use of the pardoniDg power,
by his remission of gambling fines, and by
other abuses of his Office. These misdeeds
were SO clearly brought before the Legis-
lature and the public last winter that when
the Republicans. introduced a resolution
calling upon the governor for a record Of the
fines RENTED and Pardons granted by him,
there were not enough Democrats who dared
vote against it TO 5efeat 1t, IA spite of the
fact that the governor and all bis family
were on the floor of the House working
against the resolution. So it was passed,
and the secretary of state was instructed to
prepare the records. A month passed by,
and the report was not forthcoming. When
questioned about the delay, the secretary
said it involved 80 much work that il would
take weeks to finish it. Finally, on the last
day aRd during the last hours of the session,
the report was brought in and laid on the
Speakers table, too late for consideration
1t, of course, went over as unfinished bust
legislative record. After the House had adj
journed reporters requested to be allowed to
copy the document, and were put off till
evening. Then everybody left the chamber,
the papers being left on the Speakers table.
When evening came they had disappeared,
and it was claimed that they had been stolen,
as no clew TO their whereabouts was obtain
able. The matter, OF course, was dropped.
A correspondent was put on the track of
Al. IL
by whom they were taken. A man named
Mcdonald, who has charge OF the Frankfort
Yeoman Office, where all the State printing
is done, went into the hall of Repre-
sentatives, and seeing the papers lying there,
took them to the governors office and handed
them to him. He took them, looked at
them, and with the remark, They're id
trash and ought to be burned" threw them
on the floor BY the fireplace. Afterward Nc
Donald, thinking they might be of import
ance, took them TO State Treasurer Tate, and
he locked them up in the vault, where it is
supposed they are now. Meanwhile the
record was printed, and at the end of the
volume reference was made 10 the resolu-
ton, and the record was referred to as APP
pearing in the second volume. That volume
has never been printed and, Mcdonald says,
never will be. II is known that Gov. Black
burn, during his administration, has par
doned more than 1900 criminals, and has
RENTED fines amounting to more than S.
000,O 900, besides granting respites on other
fines amounting to about 100000
more. In view of these facts the
governor has always been hostile to
any investigation, and when a news
paper correspondent made bold to ask to
examine the records last spring, his excel
lency, meeting the reporter on the street, at
tempted 10 knock him down with his cane,
saying: G. you, I'll teach you 10 med
die in my affairs! I'll break your =
headr' 1t is certain that the governor, Sec
rotary of state and state treasurer have been
aware of the whereabouts of the papers all
summer, and yet they have claimed they
were stolen, and have thus cheated the peo-
pie out of the report to which, under the
laws of the State, they are entitled.