Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1886-12-10
Pardon Clerks Duties.-The

n
Washington correspondent Of the Phil
adelphia Press writes to that paper as
follows in regard to Col. A. r. Boteler
and his duties as Pardon Clerk of the
Department Of Justice &C Washington:
SIN front room i'm the Department
Of Justice sits = fine looking Virginia
gentleman, of the old school. Three
score years and ten haye frosted his
hair and beard, but his complexion is
still ruddy. This venerable gentleman
has benevolent face and kind blus eye
which seem to fit him eminently for the
position he holds. He represents that
division Of the Department Of Justice
which deals out mercy. 1t is his duty to
prepare all the papers in the numerous
applications for pardons that come to
the department. every day. The shelves
of his room are lined with neat packets
tied up with red tape. These packets
contain the documents relating to each
case and await the convenience Of the
Attorney General and President, who
usually examine the original documents
as well as the report made by the Pardon
Clerk. Before this official, during
year, troop an army of sad and diston-
solate men, women and children, fathers
and mothers pleading for their sons,
sisters for their brothers, wives with
little children for their husbands. The
kind eye of the old Virginia gentleman
ia often moistened as he listens to the
daily story of woe, but he can do nothing
but make an impartial report. The
tales of the sorrow crime entails upon
the innocent which Mr.. Boteler could
unfold, and of the love and devotion of
near relatives, would make pathetic
reading.
Though constantly in contact with
the sad side Of life, the Pardon Clerk
himself is a cheerful man. was talk
ing with him the other day. In the
applications which come up for pardons
many interesting facts pass under his
observation. From the Southern States
are sent innumerable requests for par
dons for men who have been caught by
the obnoxious internal revenue laws.
These are chiefly poor whites, who fail
TO see the terrible iniquity Of converting
corn that they can not sell, because OF
the high cost Of transporting it to mar
ket, into whiskey which they can sell.
Some of these men bear excellent char
acters and many Of the cases demand
Executive clemency. 1t is curious that
a section of country where the people
suffer so much from the internal reve-
nue. taxes should not be unanimously in
favor of abolishing them. 10 do this
would be real reduction of revenue and
real reduction Of taxation.
1.-The frontier States and territories
make specially Of crimes accompanied
with personal violence. There are
always on hand applications for the par
don or Communication of the sentence OF
murderers. Pardons for men convicted
Of robbing the mails are in constant de-
msnd. Mr.. Botelsr has observed that
majority of those convicted in this class
of crime are young men in their teens.
The increase of these cases makes him
doubt the wisdom of putting young men
whose characters arc uniformed in places
of great responsibility. He estimates
that the excessive use Of liquor is the
cause of the crime in about two-thirds
of all the cases he passes in review"