Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1915-10-08
Continued from last week

IA idNAS VI liSu doo, o'H1o w.
shade of forest trees. Circling the
town in an embrace of quiet beauty
rose the Kentucky river hills.
Turning in to the gate of the state
house enclosure, a man, who seemed
to be an easterner by the cut OF his
clothes, walked slowly up the brick
walk, and passed around the fountain
at the front Of the capitol. His steps
carried him direct to the main en-
trance of the administration building,
and, having paused a moment In the
rotunda, he entered the secretary's Of
fee of the executive suite, and asked
for an interview with the governor.
Have you an appointment" the sec
Rotary asked.
The visitor shook his head. Serb
bling a brief note on a slip of paper, he
inclosed 1t in an envelope and handed
it to his questioner.
You must pardon my seeming mys'
teriousness," he said, but if you let
me send in that note / think the gov
ernor will see me-"
Once more the secretary studied his
man with a slightly puzzled air, then
nodded and went through the door that
gave admission to the executives Of
flee.
His e~xcellency opened the envelope
and his face showed an expression of
surprise. He raised his brows question
ingly. :
"Roughlooking sort?" he inquired.
"Mountaineer?"
NO, sir. New Yorker would be my
guess. Is there anything suspicious?"
81 guess not" The governor laughed.
I'Rather extraordinary note, but send
him in"
Through his eastern window the
governor gazed off across the hills of
South Frankfort, to the ribbon of river
that came down from the troublesome
hills. Then, hearing a movement at his
back, he turned, and his eyes took in
a well-dressed figure with confidence
inspiring features.
He picked up the slip from his desk
and, for a moment, stood comparing
the name and the messageN with the
man who had sent them In. There
seemed to be in his mind some irrecons
cilable contradiction between the two.
With a slightly frowning seriousness
the executive suggested:
This note a y that you are Samsoa
South and that you want to see me
with reference to a pardon. Whose
pardon is it, Mr.. South"
my own, sir"
The governor raised his brows
slightly.
your pardon for what? The news
papers do not even report that you
have yet been indicted" He shaded the
word yet" with a slight emphasis.
ct think l have been indicted within
the past day or two. I'm not sure my
self"
The governor continued to stare.
The impression he had formed of the
Wildcat from press dispatches was
warning with the pleasing personal
presence of this visitor. Then his fore
head wrinkled under his black hair and
his lips drew themselves sternly.
you have come to me too soon, sir"
he said CURLY. The pardoning power
is a thing to be most cautiously used
at all times. and certainly lever until
the courts have acted. A case not yet
adjudicated cannot address itself to ex-
ecutive ~clemency."
Samson nodded.
quite true" he admitted. "If l an.
nounced that ! had come on the matter
of a pardon, it was largely that | had
to state some business and that
seemed the briefest way of putting it"
Then there is something else?"
yes. If 1t were only a plea for
clemency l should expect the matter
to be chiefly important to myself. In
point of fact, / hope to make 1t equally
interesting to you. Whether you give
me q pardon In a fashion which vio-
lates all precedent, or whether ! sur
render myself and go back to a trial
which will be merely a form of assas-
sination rests entirely with you, sir.
You will not find me i~nsistent-"
Then Samson launched into the
story of his desires and the details of
conditions which outside influences
had been powerless to remedy-be-
cause they were outside influences.
Some man of sufficient yigor and COM
lprehension, acting from the center of
disturbance, must be armed with the
power to undertake the housekeeping,
and for a while must do work that
would not be pretty. AS far as he was
personally concerned. a pardon after
trial would be a matter of purely AGA
Idemic interest. He could not expect
to survive a trial. He was at present
able to hold the Souths in leash. If
the governor was not Of that mind he
was now ready to surrender himself
and permit matters to take their
course.
And now, Mr.. South" suggested
the governor. after a half-hour of alb