The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1898-09-12
PRESIDENT KILGO'S DEFENSE
Masterul Review of the Evidence at the Investigation OF
Judge Carks Charges.

Mr.. President, and Gentlemen of the
Board of Trustees of Trinity college:
Trinity College has had a very event
full history. Born AS it was, in a log
school house, with q young country lad
at the head of it, it has passed through
all the stages of our educational sys-
tenn, has fought all of the conflicts
which belong to Southern colleges, has
overcome in the great strife of a half
century, and it stands today the best
endowed college in the South Atlantic
States, and in the Southern Methods,
church. No man can review the his
tory of Trinity without being thorough.
ly impressed with the great warfar,
which has been waged upon this insti
tuition through all these years The,
noble founder of the college was at.
tackled in private and in public, was op-
posed at every point, and it is the YER
dict of his friends today that the heels
of his enemies crushed his heart into
the grave. Following in his footprints
came the Young, scholarly, vigorous
noble and true John F. Crowen: and
whatever people may say about Dr.
CTOWell, so long as two bricks stand
,One on top of another in the CrOwel
Science Hail. there will be a monument
at Trinity Park to the sincerity Of that
man : eiIOrtS and the purity of his love.
And 50, sir the defendant, John G.
KngO, entered upon your work at your
solicitation; he came to YOUR State a
stranger, and YOU and he began to-
Eether strangers. He does not think
that there is one of you who questions
the energy with which he has tOiled,
If you question even the policy which
he has pursued. In a very short while
this same attack, following the same
line OF historical succession, begins
upon this new and strange president of
Trinity College. In patience he bore
it, and tOiled on. He went into no news
paper squabbles, he had no controversy
with men, till at last il was veTy evil
dent to his mind that the patience Of
Trinity College through all these years
had been misinterpreted, and men re-
garded it as cowardice and felt dis
posed to run over the college whenever
and wherever they chose. Then he de-
termined that so long as he should
stand at the head OF this institution,
holding high regard for her past his
tory, and as guardian OF the hundreds
of it's graduates and the thousands of
its undergraduates. and the sensitive
nature of the young men gathered
about him, he would defend her name
against the onslaught of any man liv-
ing. He invited no hight, but in his
heart of hearts determined to be de-
famed no longer: then, when, to his
surprise, in your Board, member ap-
pointed guardian, not only Of the in
stitutiOn, but of the character of every
employee in this institution, should so
far forget his high and sacred reSpOn-
sibility in the matter, as not only to
falsely interpret the motive which de-
fendant had in his work, but also to
regard this work irreverently as to re-
tail and SlandeT the defendants plans
to his damage and to the damage of
the institution, that came to the de-
fendant as the most fearful shock that
ever broke in his young life. This is said
by waV of explaining TO your Board
why the defense determined to pursue
this matter, and why he demanded Of
your Board that you should either free
this college of a trickster, or else vim
dicate his character against these
charges.
Now, Sirs, this case falls into three
great divisions: The first refers to the
charges, as to whether they have been
supported by the testimony; the next
refers to the history of the case in or
der to show the animus of the attack;
and the third refers to the ultimate
purpose Of the attack. 1t is under these
three lines that the representative of
the defense will discuss the case and
will leave the decision of it with you.
The defendant wishes to say now that
ne is perfectly willing for you TO sit
on this case. We do not conceive that
God could lnhict a severer calamity
and greater Injustice upon the universe
than to wind up it's history without a
universal judgment, at which every
man shall stand and God shall testify
as to him. And whatever shall be the
verdict of this hour, this much is true,
at last and the truth will be known.
Now the first charge concerns the re-
latiOn of the defendant TO this Board.
Judge Clark would have YOU believe
that he had in his possession evidence
to establish his original charges, and
that the defendant Intentionally evad-
ed it. We read from Judge Clark's let
ter TO President SOuthgate: If your
committee wanted information could
have given it to them" That is not a
promise to find something, but it states
clearly, the grammatical tense makes
it state clearly, that he had it then
and could have given it to them; but
saws that he President KilgO, did not
intend that they should have it. In
another paragraph of his letter he says,
speaking Of this evidence, That was
the last thing DR.. KilgO intended L
should have a chance to do" Now,
gentlemen, the prosecution doesn't Of
fer one word of testimony on this
charge. Where is the evidence to prove
it? It must be proven or disproven by
the facts in the history Of the case, and
so we ask you to review this charge.
If you go back to the original cOrre-
spOndence between President Kilgo and
Judge Clark you will find that he stated
to Judge Clark in his last letter that
he would place this correspondence
DeIOre YOUR Board. Judge Clark re-
ceived, or was sent, the ordinary notice
OF the Board meeting, Just as every
other member Of the Board. There is
no evidence that Judge Clark was sick
at the time of your Board meeting and
could not attend; there is no evidence
that his business duties prevented him
from attending, but he was not here;
nor can he say, nor can the prosecu-
tiOn say. that finding he would not be
here, President KilgO took advantage
of his absence and put this correspond
ence before you. A year before he had
said plainly, "This matter will go be-
fore the Board at the first opportunity
and that was the first. Where is there
an element Of evasion IN that kind of
procedure? This Board knows whether
in the presentation of that correspond
ence the defendant intended to evade
any matter in connection with it,
whether they had full information from
him, whether they were forced to look
after certain letters which he might
have kept back. The Board remembers
quite we'll how openly and frankly he
rose to question of personal privilege,
and laid that correspondence in the
hands Of the Board and never had
3ught else to do with If