The Climax-Madisonian. (Richmond, Madison County, Ky.) 1914-1917, 1915-06-30
Wallace Takes A Crack AT
Judge Benton.


trict has quit simmering 1t stopped
this slow gait suddenly last Tuesday
morning. 1t is now a seething caldron,
kissing and running out at the top. 1t
was caused to do this by letter issued
to the Hon. j. NJ. Benton by Hon. C.
C. Wallace, one of the leading members
of the local bar This letter added oil
to the slow fires that had been burning
under the pot, turning the same into a
frey furnace.
Last week many of the citizens of
this city received copies of Judge Ben
tons speech which he delivered at
Winchester as his opening gun in his
campaign for reelection to the high
office of Circuit Judge of this district.
In this little pamphlet was copied an
editorial printed in the Courier-Journal
highly commenting Judge Benton for
his work in the trial of the cases of
Wallace &c at Winchester. The fires
of resentment which had been quietly
memorable trial, were famed into an
inextinguishable holocaust. Hence the
letter In this letter, Mr.. Wallace ex-
presses himself in strong, burning terms,
making clear his great Indignation that
Judge Benton would lug into his can
vass a case tried before him where the
lives of the defendants were placed in
jeopardy and which cases are now
pending in the Kentucky Court of APP
peals from the judgment of conviction
rendered by the Clark Circuit Court.
- That he uses strong, unmistakable Ian
guage to express his feelings is evident
from the letter.
That our readers might have both
sides of this unfortunate controversy,
we give them the offending editorial
and Mr. Wallace's letter.
THE OFFENDING EDITORIAL
"An observer of the recent trial of
Wallace and others at Winchester for
the murder of Houston Underwood at
1lNlHC WllJCo W Il vi bAlC oOell
of the Courier Journal as follows:
Z" The verdict was the greatest good
for Estill county that has ever occurred.
A state of affairs was just forming that,
had an acquittal resulted in this case,
would have made Estill worse off than
Breathit ever was.
The lawlessness which was Just
cropping out in this matter has now
been nipped in the bud and it will have
a most wholesome effect upon the coun-
ty You do not know the situation
but 1 want to tell you that it took
nerve, courage and fearlessness to han
and try the case, The attorneys foI
the Commonwealth did their duty
the jury theirs, but more depended OF
the Judge than anyone else. On the
first day of the trial a Commonwealth
witness had to ask the protection o
the court, as he was being intimidateC
and threatened, and the Judge made i
so warm for the accused intimidator
that he was glad to leave town, anC
this practice was broken up at the very
outset of the trial. This gave the wit
nesses the necessary courage and back
bone to testify when they found tha
the Judge presiding had the courage t.
stand by them
The Courier-Journal knows the stu
alton well enough to set high anC
proper value upon the services of Judg
= Benton, and knows Judge Benton wei
enough to anticipate an impartial trial
fearlessly, yet impartially, conducte'
when such cases are brought to hi
court. Kentucky has had no man up
on the bench who has done more thai
Judge Benton to discourage criminals
He has done his work like workman
and not like grandstand player, bu
no amount of fanfaronade could hav
made his usefulness known to thought
full Kentuckians as it has becom
known through results registered a
Winchesterer in the form of verdicts
and radiating throughout mountai
counties from which assassination case
have come npon change of venue
Assassination, intimidation of vii
nesses, alibi making by subornation c
perjury, and other allied crimes ca
flourish only where local judicial ms
chinery is worthless because of crooked
ness or cowardice. The statement ths
cowardice is rarely the cause is SOM
what dubious compliment that ma
safely be paid to officers of the law
counties where it is possible to secu
the acquittal of murderers by introdu
ing perjury and by frightening trutl
full witnesses into falsehood, silence
flight. Nothing is more important in
programme of reform than to secul
the Indictment and conviction of pc
jurers and suborners of perjury.
this particular, Judge Benton's recol
in the assassination cases from Breat
lit county has been brilliant and h
exercised a far-reaching effect. II
- manner in which alibi-makers are ma
@N ATEXAS WONDER -