The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1898-04-13
TRIED TO TAKE 1T BACK
THE GOVERNOR WOULDN'T LET
HIM DO IT.
HIS PLACE DECLARED VACANT
A Successor May be Appointed at Any Time,
And Then May Come Lawsuit
win John Graham be
the Man -?

Governor Russell has accepted Mr.
Caldwells resignation. and now there
is good ground for believing that the
courts will soon have another Railroad
Commissioner case.
This time. as last winter, it will be
an old Commissioner in office trying TO
stay and new appointee doing his
best to get him out.
Then it was l.. c. Caldwell trying to
GUST j. w. Wilson. Now the prospects
are that it will be John w. Graham
seeking to displace l.. c. Caldwell.
Strange freaks of Fate are these.
The former case was to test the con-
stitutionality of the law giving the Gov
ernor power to turn out Il commissioner
for cause and appoint his successor.
This case. If it ever materialiZes will
be to determine whether or not an Of
fetal can publicly tender his resignation
and then. before it is accepted or re-
jected privately withdraw it.
For that is just what Mr.. Caldwell
has done But the Governor not re
cognizing the withdrawal. has accepted
the resignation and declared the office
vacant, as the following correspodno-
ence, given out yesterday at the EXecu-
tive office, shows.
In Mr.. Caldwell's letter of March
Both, which he read before the Rail-
road Commission, the concluding para
graph is as follows
Your Excellency has been kind TO
me, and | assure you of my continued
respect. but fearing you will not con-
cur with me in the course | take, and
desiring not to embarrass You, my re-
signation is at your disposal"
The resignation thus placed at the
Governors disposal was held up by him
for consideration.
Three days afterwards Mr.. Caldwell
sent to the Governor IL letter in which
he SAID he withdrew the tender of his
resignation. This letter from Mr.. Cald-
well was marked Private but the
Governor did not observe that it was
SO marked, and it was not called ~
his attention until after the correspond
ence was all over. 1t contained the with
drawal of the tender of his resignation.
Whether a public official can officially
tender his resignation in a public let
ter and then Withdraw it in a private
letter, or indeed whether he can with
draw it at all without the consent of
the public officer to whom it is di-
To this private letter. the Governor.
without noticing that it was marked
Private" sent the following reply:
Raleigh. n. c.. April 3, 1898.
Il. G.. Caldwell, ESQ.,,
.'Statesville, y. c.:
''Sir:-Your letter received yesterday.
You speak of your tender of your
resignation as Railroad Commissioner
and say that inasmuch as You have had
no intimation from me as to my inten-
ton either to accept or decline your
tender of resignation, you infer thar
your services are to be continued in the
office, and therefore you Withdraw the
tender Il treated your letter as q ten
der Iof your Vesignation, and so re-
ferred to it and designated it in my re-
marks before the Commission in your
presence, and TO this you did not denur.
In your letter which is now before
me you treat It the same way, and re-
fer to it as a tender of your resigna
ton. / do not think it is fair, or right
or proper for YOU to in anyway change
the status or position as you fixed it in
your deter. | have not decided to ac~
cept your resignation or not / did not
want to be hasty or to treat You with
any degree of harshness, such as might
have been involved in the instant ac-
ceptance of your resignation. You GER
tainly ought not to take advantage OF
my moderation, and of the consideration
and indulgence which were extended to
you. / hope, therefore, that You will
withdraw the expression contained in
your last letter to the effect that you
withdraw the tender and that You
will not disturb the status as fixed by
- Ia4fa xx,l,ify paa1
to tine Commission.
''In any point of view your letter
placed your resignation at my dis
posal, which, whether tender OF re-
signation or not, was a distinct pledge
to me and to the public that you would
tender your resignation if requested by
me. No amount of pressure will cause
ne to act in this matter without due
consideration or without regard to
your feelings, or regard to the public
interests
Very truly yours,
(Signed.) ID. l.. RUSSELL"
TO the above letter Mr.. Caldwell
made NO reply. The Governor then
wrote him the following letter:
Raleigh, n. c., April ., 1898.
Il. G. Caldwell, Esq.
''Statesville. n. c.:
'iSir: In your letter of March Both,
1898, you notified me that your resigna-
ton as Railroad Commissioner was ut
my disposal. This was treated by me
and by you as an unconditional tender
of your resignation. ] am not willing
to admit tnat you could withdraw the
tender without my consent. ! therefore
notify you that your resignation is ac-
cepted and that the office is vacant
ut ought to be. however, imma terial
whether the office is or is not vacant
in law. because you gave to me and to
the people of the State in your letter OF
March Both, 1898, the distinct assur-
ance that your resignation was mt my
disposal This. if it with what follow
ed did not amount to a resignation, was
at the least a distinct pledge to the
public and to the Governor that you
would formally resign if so requested by
the Governor.
Relying on that pledge and without
waving any right to treat the office
as vacant and to appoint u successor,