Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1883-03-10
Tom 0'conner Heb to be Responsible s
PoEk's 0efaicdtfon And Downfall

P0fk S OefdIcQrfO7 ana DOWnT0H
The Nashville correspondent of
the Atlanta Constitution says:
Tom O'Conner, of Knoxville, who
owned National Bank down there
and was the smartest, boldest man
and speculatOr in the State, threw
his grappligg irons into Polk at the
very beginning of his term. He
appears to have done the same with
the Legislature of that year. The
contracts at the State penitentiary
were fat picking and he wanted
them, so he captured great many
men and made a great deal of mon
ey. Col. Folks defaleation began
with Mr.. O'Conner's control of the
Legislature and of prominent men,
and from that day until the flight
he was short in his accounts from
$40, 900 year up to 1925, 900. These
amounts were the minimum, vary
ing many thousand each year up to
to the final dip that increased it to
$368, 900. How did he protect him
selfsO long? The explanation is
easy, they say. When it became
necessary for him to make show
ing of the condition of his office,
O'COnner, with his great financial
resources, would step in and tempo
rarily supply the deficiency, and
when the cloud was over the pecu-
latiou and speculation went on as
before that is, this is the explain
alton you get here on every hand.
A part OF the gossip in relation to
Col. Polk association with O'COn-
ner, is that the latter having him in
his power would often give him
wrong points on Tennessee bonds,
etc, and then supply the stocks or
securities to be sold to Polk, and
thus fleece the unsuspecting treas
urer. 1t is told here AS a fact that
Polk eventually caught O'Conner at
this game, and had lively quarrel
with his Knoxville hacker. The
weaker man however, was in the
hands of the stronger. Polk was
estopped, as the lawyers say from
pleading these facts to friends, and
so the allegence was continued.
While O'COnner lived, Polk was
in no great danger of exposure.
The former was strong enough to
prevent trouble and had had too
much of an interest in the picking
to see his victim get into difficulty
but when O'COnner died the prop
was gone, and retributiOn came
swift and sure. Polk made every
possible turn to save himself before
exposure and ruin reached him, but
although he appropriated Slo9,OOO
in the last four months of his ad-
miniStration, it afforded him no re-
lief, and when the time came for
him to report the condition of his
office to the Legislature he left the
State. Had O'COnner not been
killed, Polk would doubtless have
gone on 10 the end of his term with
out molestatiOn, and perhaps never
would have been exposed. The
men who thus speak OF O'Conner
might not be so free to do SO were
he alive. 1t is easy to make
scapegoat of dead man. Col,
OCOnners friends repel these state
ments and aver that Polk got into
trouble from his own innate cussed-
ness. give you the views as found
here upon the streets and do not
claim to say who is right.
The community is naturally di-
vided as to the measure of his guilt
and punishment. Many think he
has already suffered enough, and
the prevailing sentiment is rather
favorable. Why? Because he bears
name that is very highly respec-
ted in Tennessee. A great many
people as a matter of sentiment
would hesitate to see relative of
the presidents this State has given
to the country consigned to prison.