The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1897-09-01
Mr., SMITH MAKES REPLY
NE CONSIDERS JUDGE CLARKS STRlC-
TUREs UNFOUNDED.
Mis- Version of How He Came to See Mr.
Rivers and Senator Butler Coming from
Judge CIarks Home.

To the Editor: The portion OF JUICY
Clark's card in reference to myseiI, which
anpeared in your paper of TINS daoe -
SO erroneous and unjust to me pna'
am constrained to set forth the lacts Dc
they are and l trust you Will 90 HE Tue
Kindness to publish them:
While INV wife and | were sitting on
our front porch last Tuesday night De-
trUoen and $50 p. m., Mr.. haverS
rode nm on his wheel and, coming INTO
nv yard asked if Judge Clark Hved
.here Nv wife directed him to Judge
Clort,s house, where he went, leaving
h;s wheel in front of my gate. After re-
u-,o;ning there about a half or three quar-
+ors of an hour he came out ana roue
off. Mr. Rivers being Deputy Sherln' 1
Thought he had gone to see Judge ozark
on some matter connected with !uolciai
nroceeding. l did not connect ms visi,
in any may with Senator Butter. soon
after he left my wife and Went III the
house and l went into the Datn rooii
for n minute. While there my wife Call
Cd me and said there was some one ut
the front door. / told her to tell MIN
from the window that l would be there
rerv soon. which she did, and told me on
returning that it was some one ENDURING
for Judge Clark's, and that she had
directed him there: neither she nor
lxnew who it was. I remarked then that
There must be some excitemen up town
fas It was about ten o'clock p. M, when
the second visitor camel and that l was
going ont and find out, if possible, what
Il was. so I went out on the front SIDE
walk. and waited for the visitor to Judge
Clark to come out so that L might ask
him what the matter was. After ABOUT
20 minutes he came out and on walking
mn and accosting him l was surprised
to see it was Senator Butler. l asked
him what the excitement was and he said
anothing at ALL" and went on, l then,
after thinking it over, telephoned Mr..
Daniels Of the News and Observer that
there must be something OF interest ana
excitement going on and told him OF the
visitors. and he, am Informed, sent
Mr.. Merritt local editor, to ask Senator
Butler about it, and he could not be
found Mr.. Smith is correct in this.
His message was Immediately disposed
of as any other news message would
have been treated and no further thought
or mention was given to it.-Edi-
tori I telephoned for this purpose
only, and not simply to announce the Sen
ator's visit. The next day / mentioned
the matter up town to several people not
with any "evil intention" as to any one.
These are the facts from a participant
in them. and now as to Judge CLARK S
statement of them-whieh I copy here:
"Mr. Rivers, one of Mr.. Buffers en-
pIoyes called at my house seeking the
Senator. who. he said, had left the office
mentioning that he would call at my
house. Finding he was not there. Mr..
Rivers left Soon after Senator Butler
came. Never having been at my house
before Though I had once in
vited him to meet Chief jus
tice Faircloth and the court to
teal he knocked next door at the resi-
dence Of Mr.. e. Chambers Smith who
had retired. The servant directed him to
my house. He desired some information
which could not give him and he left
in about ten minutes. There was no
one at my house at the time except the
family and two young gentlemen who
were calling. Mr.. e. Chambers Smith
in the meantime had gone out partially
dressed and stood behind his gate post till
Senator Butler passed. AS he had once
gone to Washington to see the Senator
and spent some days in some intimacy
with him I suppose he wished to use
the opportunity to renew the acquain-
tance, but did not understand his haste
in not dressing nor his getting behind
the gate post, though this last may have
been accidental. He reported the Sem
ator's visit to my house. possibly with
out any evil intentions. 1t has been said
that he got out of his bath upon tele-
phone message from railroad official
to watch if Senator Butler called at my
house. But the character Of both gen.
tlemen satisfies me that this is hardly
possible"
Judge Clark makes this state
mental but the two conclnd-
ing paragraphs, on his own
ponsibility-(though l cannot un-
saw me at ally and not on information,
30 / must treat them as arising from
him. A comparison of them with my
statement, which / can verify in every
particular, will show how untrue they
are, but will answer them specifically.
/. I had not retired but was fully
dressed when Senator Butler called at
my house and also when saw him on
the street, except that / had probably
taken off my collar and cravat early in
the evening as is my custom in hot
weather This probably was the shock
to the Senator's sensibilities-(for must
assume that he conveyed the information
to the Judge. as no one else saw me)
2. No servant directed the Senator to
the Judges house, but my wife did.
g. did not get behind any gate post
What motive could have had for doing
so? Did the visitor intend to dodge? Was
he ashamed to he seen? I did not know
who he was, and only wanted to see him
to find out the cause Of what consider
ed the unusual late visits to the Judge.
Possibly the Judge has hidden behind
more gates posts and much larger ones
mine are only three feet high and five
inches square-than have, though it
may have been accidental.
4. Any association may have had