Union County courier. [volume] (Elk Point, Union County, D.T. [S.D.]) 187?-1913, 1895-10-31
CRAWFORD EXPLAINS.
Attorney General Crawford has

<htGOfuCy I6ucIHl NFdWlOFu mas maQe
q statement Of his connection with the
Taylor case. 81 make this statement"
said he, with a view of correcting the
false and scurrilous articles which have
appeared in the eastern papers crit
Ching the state authorities, and par
ticulary the courts OF the state and
myself as attorney general for the
manner in which the Taylor case has
been disposed Of
0Now that my connection with the
criminal prosecution of Taylor. so far
at least as the charge for which he is
serving his term is concerned. has, in
all probability reached an end. pro-
pose to speak out in behalf of myself
and OF the state. Every single charge
made against my conduct OF this case
by the editor OF the Sioux Falls Argus
Leader are shown by the records in the
case to be wholly and absolutely false
They are false in fact, and he stands
before tine people of this state com
pletely stultified by the records, and ]
brand him as q cOld-bloOded, shame
less and INSCRIPTIONS liar, who has
thus villifled the state and myself for
purely partisan purposes and to place
few paltry dollars in his pocket as a
newspaper correspondent.
The last insinuation and charge
which rhe makes is that
could have procured an indictmen,
against Taylor, charging him in diff
ferent counts with separate and speci.
flc offenses, consisting of the appropri.
alton Of state money from different
funds, and upon sIch an indictment
that cumulative sentence could have
been imposed, also that I might have
procured several indictments and
seperate convictions.
There is no lawyer, who. in my
judgment, would, with any sincerity,
recognize this claim as having the
slightest foundation. 1t is trivial in
the extreme. Taylor, as custodian oil
the state funds, had the right to hold
them subject to disbursement for public
purposes until it became his duty tc
pay it over to his successor. The ap.
preparation was established by the
fact that he failed to thus pay it over
in the final settlements of his accounts
His books fail to disclose any previous
appropriation.
Persons to whom he loaned none,
testify that they borrowed it from his
bank at Red6eld, and that the loan wal
made by the bank and not by him
His own admissions go to the extern
only Of saying that the money was de
posted in his bank for safe keeping.
and loaned by the bank. The money
while belonging to different funds, be.
longed to one, owner only, the state O
South Dakota. The appropriation. sc
far as any evidence can be procured tt
establish it, was one indivisable &C,
against the property OF the state. con.
stituting but one effedce.
I'm the celebrated Tweed case il
New York, where an attempt was made
to divide the ofYense into go separate
and distinct counts, and where the
court imposed cumulative sentence oil
twelve years imprisonment and fine.
amounting to $l2,5OO, the prisoner
served the limit fixed for punishment
under one Of the counts to-wit: one
at the end of this term was discharged
by the New York court Of appeals upon
habe8s corpus proceedings. The trou.
BILE in the Tayloa case grows out Of the
defect in the law intended to cover it. q
law which stood on the statute books
from 1867 to 1895 without being tested
in the supreme court. Its defect having
escaped the observation. OF the com.
missioner who revised our code.
"The editor OF the Argus Leader.
whi,e posing as the champion of the
people, has INSTRUCTED every sap and
opposed every effort made by the state
officials to vind!cate the laws of the
state In this matter. He could rot
have rendered more valiant service
for the defendant had he received pay
for his services. | shall not make .
martyr. Of him BY prosecuting him fol
libel, at least NOT now, but he is a. libl
Eerty to commence such proceeding
against me at any time he desires.
Remember that cabinet photos are