The Asheville citizen. [volume] (Asheville, N.C.) 1885-1889, 1886-05-02
A CARD DFR0aE mn. PEAR
SON.
HIS REPLY TO GEN. JONES' LAST
CARD.
To the Public.

it.
: This controversy was commenced by
an attack against me by Gen'l- Johnstont
Jones in public meeting when 1 bad
no chance to reply.
4 / thereafter published statement o.
facts, to which Genl Jones replied in {
card in which he made againstme dis
tfnct charge of ceRardice. The facts.are
E;ts follows. ssss+, 81. eted 10 the Eaeisia,
fLure With-el instructions from my
Iconstitrenys u bend every energy to
fo ce tb, con. Dir ton of the Spartanburg
and AsLeviiie. Raitsoad. This wss tlit.
peran,u!n5 iss1,e' = tie cam paign, and to
i its consummatlo.l devoted my tune and
means. My course on this question and
| particularly my coursein New York city
where I had gone to gain information
1 about this Railroad. provoked the vic :
| lent displeasure of Mr.. r. Y. AcAden
President of the road, and caused him to
publirh in a Charlotte newspaper i severe
criticism against me. On the 4th oil
March 1885, Lieut. Gov. Robinson, aftt l
long and hot fight on u Railroad bill
asked me on the floor of the House IN
debate why had not noticed the news
paper criticism above referred to.
| replied instantly without calling Mr..
McAden's name, II regarded that arti-
Gle as unworthy of my notice." within
| hall an hour after this remark Mr.. Nc
Alden made a violent assault upon me the
| particulars of which are notorious. Be-
fore my blood had time to dry upon the
pavements of Raleigh, l wrote a chal-
Ienge to Mr.. McAden and asked my COL
league to bear it and TO aid me; he de-
cIined, saying the challenge was couched
in language too strong. l asked him to
correct it and to put it in proper form;
| he declined. then asked him to tele,
graph for Capt Francis Randolph Cur
tbs with the view. of asking him to Sec
ond me. In the mean time Gen. Jones
went up to the House and refused to vote
for n,y Vindicotion, asking to be excused
from voting on the ground of deIicacy.
The next step is told in Capt. Curtis
memorandum as follows:
NORTH CAROLINA,
| ADJUTAET GENERALS DEPARTMENT,
Asheville, N. c., March %, '85.
| MyDear Pearson:-As you placed the
| decision as to your course in the McAden
affair in the hands of Messrs. A w. Hay
wood, Calderon Carlisle and:myself, /
deem it best to send you a memo
random of our action in the matter, and
of the advice We gave you, to use in any
manner you may think fit.
After careful consideration of the
case, we decided that no middle course
could be adopted. AS there was differ
ence of opinion as to what should be
done, and as Mr.. Carlisle was not a North
Caroliniau, We decided to ask the opin-
ion OF some older man, whose position in
the State, and whose known courage
would MAKE his judgment of weight, that
we should advise you from North Caro-
lima standpoint.
This we did, and after a full discussion
of the circumstances, he agreed with us
that there could be no middle course;
and we, in the full sense of the response
bility of having your honor in our keep
ing, decided, and advised you, that from
the nature of the assault, and the very
different positions held by the parties in
the community, you should, as man of
honor, choose the alternative of letting
the matter drop, and ignoring the man
and the assault.
Very truly yours,
+. RANDOLPH CURTIS.
Richmond Pearson, Esq.
The gentleman above referred to as
advising this course, was DR.. Eugene
Grissom.
Tne motive for this course plainly
stared was the suspicion that Mr. McAden
might pursue the course which has been
reserved now for General Jones, to-Wit:
to make show of fight, receive conf
Dental communication, refuse to return
it to its author and then call for his dis
franchisementi
He abandoned me in the anguish which
0T1l1 honor N no,Jxydx io NTyca md
ed and unavenged and comes back home
to the people who elected US both, and
publicly proclaims that "have yielded
my reputation for courage"
[ am strongly opposed to duelling, and
I know that the world would unanim-
Eously applaud General Jenes for declin
ing to fight duel on the sbroad ground
iofprinciple."
Why then did he not say so when he
first received a note (which he under
stood to be challenge to fight duel?"
Why did he not return the paper with
u prompt and manly avowal of his
religious and constitutional convictions !?
Why does he still refuse to return that
note?
For three days and nights he made
such show of fight that it could not occur
to even his own second that he had any
6CfupttS dShIuSL uu0lAuX
Why did he employ second at all
A discriminating public can judge.
General Jones states in his letter in so
many words, "Mr. Gudger refusing to
accede to your new demand brought back
your original challenge"
If this demand was ever a challenge it
could only be so construed when Mr.
Gudger announced that all "amicable"
adjustment was impossible, and at this
precise juncture General Jones declares
that Mr.. Gudger brought it to him.
Thus Mr.. Gudger bore the challenge
and General Jones volunteers the evi
dence to disfranchise his own second,
and General Jones stands as common
informer against both friend and antag
onist.
This master stroke completes the
story of jealousy, ingratitude and
revenge.
General Johnston Jones is manwhose
ancestors have been gentlemen and gem
tlewomen; his name has been distin-
guished in this State and has heretofore
been free from any stain of eowardice or
falsehood. He has been my social equal
and my political colleague, and is now
the Commanding General of the brave
men who constitute the State Guard of
North Carolina, and as such his utter
ances are entitled to attention.
He makes deliberate and public
charge of cowardice, and whatever pious
people or progressive moralists may say,
the day has not yet come in North Caro-
lima v hen man can live under such q
charge unrefuttd and be respected.
That which men call honor win sac