Birmingham state herald., 1897-06-01
RANDOLPH COMPROMISE sHs f5
 Gov. Jones Attempts to Defend N His Action. rg HE PLEADS THE BABY ACT s+~ - sN Says He Believed the Shortage Due Not to. N \, Dishonesty But to the ''Panc" ann N Loose Bookkeeping"

! .sAfontgomery Advertiser.
 ',asse The arraignment of ex~Governors Jones iland Oates by Gov. Johnston and those !. Associated with him in I.he compromise ssof the Randolph defalcation was quite sssilrprlse to the public. This was increased stMhen yesterdays Birmingham StateHer- sSald, in seemingly inspired artcls, maoe ! tffurther attack On those gel.Llemen anu | Ieontended that they were undeniably lia- ,sDle to the state for part Of the loss. An LA dve rtiser representative asked Gov. iJones for his views about the matter. He ' said that he was out of politics now and Seengaged in the practice of his profession 3.but he did not hesitate 10 speak out, ana said:
 g9lN "Yes, I have read tfle report. l have i dlot seen the State Herald. l do rot care tito correct it's palpable perversion of m@ r apti. ude in seeking to influence GOV. s,Dates. I thought at first to write the ! Governor direct, and later, if necessa Ey. ;egiving i1hie correspondence to the puplcf ..as more becoming con-roversdes,pe petWeen : gentlemen who have occupied ms hlgn kstation. That editorial puts that out or Asthe question. It is evident from fihe toiae of that editorial and its reference to g1V- ing people something else to talk aDoui, . that il is only prearanged step Tn tnt t-DrORr3Inme to eI1pHldSlZe III liC PaSt'N mind the condemnation which the ofncfai paper was designed to convey and 70 fur- 'ther a political end by avowing as a req son for a compromise, which should nave been put on other grounds, that the fair ure to immedia tely impeach the defaultr : ing judge was the cause of the greater part of the deficit and such great wrong on the part of the state to the bondsmen as on that ground alone justified the conn promise. I therefore feel at liberty to speak of the matt:r to you.
 'Yes, it is an extraordinary state paper. 1t Is the first time in the history of that high office, where an incumbent has de- sMberately placed on record his condlmna- tion of che adminis, rative acts Of his pre- fecessors of a matter not even political in It's nature, without extending to them
 the scant courtesy, 10 say nothing of tine commonest dictates of justice, of notice of the investigation and the offer of op- portunity to be heard before condemf1ing them. The governors experience in or fee, if he did noi. realize 1t before, has doubtless taught him that the ac;s of high officials are frequently condemned without just founda tion; and all the rra- iditions of iuhat great office should have ifaug'ht him that 1t is an unjust and an 'iunseemly thing for governor to pass Judgment of condemnation upon official acts and yet deny all opportunity of de- fense. 7 Two ex-governlors were arraigned in that report, and the signtrs of it knew that both were dn the ci.y, and would gladly have responded to any summons. Why was neither of them notified of the investigation, which It s1ems was turned into a political court-martial of the ab- sent? Had the governor or either of his associates extended even the ordinary courtesy to ei.her of his predecessors,
 they would have been spared the mis-
 take of placing the compromise upon grounds, which are not tenable in law or fact, and the just suspicion of selecting and announcing as he reason for an act of state, a theory which, if it did not fit the facts, would at least disparage former officials. 3z . : Whether the compromise was right and just on other grounds l am not dis posed to question; but do know that the chief bondSman and his son were both conferred with by me before I went out of office and they ccrrcurred in the belief that 1T was best for them, and the public interest, that som= time should be given the defaulting judge to pay up the six thousand and odd dollars of which Aud itor Purifoy made official report to me some three or four weeks before Gov. Oaies was inaugurated. None of us knew or believed that :he shortage was due to any pecuniary dishonesty; and though we knew the habits of the judge we then be- zlieved that the deficiency was due to ip- diligence for licenss moneys during dhe hard year preceding, and loose bookkeep- ing. It was the desire of the chief bonds- men then that an opportunity be given the judge to get up the money, which lcould be done in the future fees of the office 70 secure those who might advance ihe money. It was believed that im- peachmsnt proceedings then would in- sure certain loss to the bondsmen and to the state, by causing the loss of the office and ihe opportunity by earning fees to replace the shortage; and the bondsman .who would have had the brunt to bear was anxious that the time be extended. !. 1T knew that friends of the bondsmen called on Gov. Oates to induce him to ask me to foregO the order of impeach- nlent which it was known would be is- sued before my retirement; and to induce him to grant more time The bondsmen ee9te inly knew that had given the judge until Dec. to make good his account; and it is passing strange, when papers hostile to Gov. oates had commented npon his extending the time. if the bonds men did not know what Gov Oates had done in the matter, or if they were op- posed to giving the time, or wanted the judge impeached, that they did not indi- cate it in some way The anxiety of two executives to take no step which would impenil the interests of the public or the bondsmen, and of which the bonds- men were cognizant and approved, can- not be set up in any court of law or con- science, as wrongs on the part of the state, which should relieve the bonds men. The attempt to put the compro- mise on such grounds,s in view of easily known facts, is not ecreditable to the good judgment of the governor or his asso- ciates.
 Tt Is easy after the event to state what should have been dore. The defaulting judge paid up his shortage at the time promised Gov. Oates. It turned out that he did so by absorbing other revenues for that purpose. Had he been im- peached against the wishes of his bonds men, on Nov. 6, when his shortage was officially reported, the loss would prob ably have been about as much as actu- ally occurred. Much of. the increased shortage was due to defaults which had happened before, but had not been dis covered in November, 1894. The exten- sion of time did not materially increase the real deficit as finally ascertained.
 Tt is only an ignoramus who con tends that the impeachment provided by the revenue law makes 1t mandatory in law or morals upon the governor to i'm peach whenever an officer is reported for