The Semi-weekly leader. (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1905-1941, 1908-07-25

transcribed by the stenOgrapheT
lin order to give every member an
opportunity to study it in detail,
so that no one could claim that d
hasty opinion had been formed by
any one. Though this action on
the part of the board would keep
me and my family and friends 10
suspense for more than month,
when there we're at stake my
reputation and character and hon
or, dearer to me and to my wife
and children than life itself, yet
in order that there might be no
ground for an appeal from this
decision, | consented to the delay.
Though the board by unanimous
resolution asked the press and
public to suspend discussion and
judgment until the findings of the
board should be made known, and
though / and my friends have OBJ
served this request. yet under the
advice of w. 9. Wellborn, brother
of Capt. WeIlborn, whom the War
Department condemned upon sew
en- separate and distinct counts,
certain papers of the State have
been filled with all kinds of abuse,
highly colored distortions and
misrepresentation. In this way
those fighting me sought to poison
the public mind and to forestall
public judgment that should be
based upon facts and all the facts.
Now / want to appeal to a fair
minded public.
Am | and the interest of this
Institution to suffer for observing
the request of the board, and for
dealing fairly and justly in this
matter! was it fair to condemn me
without hearingy appeal to
the press of Mississippi to be as
fair and generous in giving pub,
licity to my side. of the contro-
versy now, as some of the papers
have been in the past IN dealing
with those opposed to me and to
the college.
[ will send out tomorrow a
summary of my brief, and ask
of the public a careful study of
the facts in the case there. pre-
sented. Should it not carry some
weight and mean something to
the people of Mississippi that the
board of trustees, composed of
fourteen of the most distinguish
ed citizens of our commonwealth,
who heard every charge and every
rumor, and who heard all the tes-
timony from beginning to end.
after seven days and seven nights
in almost continuous session,
should by an almost unanimous
vote exenerate me from every
charge, and after thorough
knowledge of conditions here at
the college voted by almost the
same majority to continue my SER
vices as president of the institu
tion2
/ was glad that the board itself
called attention to the fact that
the composition of its member
ship represented the administra-
tions of both Governor Vardaman
and Governor Noel, for this has
given me an opportunity to say
that / have been strongly support
ed in this fight by appointees of
both of these honOred and distin-
guished Mississippians. These
facts should carry additional
weight and that the strength of
my position here is not based on
political influence. The opposi-
tion to my exoneration was reach
ed in only one count out of six
teen and there was only that many
against me in few others.
When it came to the question of
extending my services with the
institution, I was supported by
the Governor of the State, the
State Superintendent of Educa-
tion and by two appointees of
Governor Noel and by six ap-
pointees of Governor Vardaman.
This surely should be enough to
carry conviction to all and to put
a stop to further calumnv. i
plead for the sake of the college
and the great work of education
as we'll as for myself, that this de-
cision of the board be reported as
the conclusion of the whole matter.
| am led to make this special plea
by a rumor that is being circulated
on the campus today to the effect
that the Wellborns are to keep
this fight up and to make an APP
peal to the alumni of this institn-
tion | know they will not give
them aid or sympathy in such
move.
The Wellborns appealed from
the decision of the president to
the board of trustees last January.
The board of trustees approved
the action of the president. They
appealed from the decision of the
board to the War Department at
Washington. The War Depart
ment condemned Capt. Wellborn
in more severe terms than the
president and the board of trustees
ever condemned him. He appeal
ed from the decision of the War
Department to the committee Of
the legislature on colleges and un-
iversities. They refused to hear
him. He appealed again to the
board for an investigation Of the
president upon specific charges,
saying that ysince the War De-
partment investigated Capt. Well