New Mexico state record. (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1914-19??, 1916-10-13
THE BRAzEN MCDONALD

Was partially pdlu OH WIFI interest 1rOn the
funds of the state Agricultural College. The
bank from which the contribution was made
was rotten at the time it dropped the money
in the Democratic slush fund. 1t becme stead
lily more and more rotten-until in January
1914 it was disclosed to Governor McDonald's
bank examiner, Howell Earnest, and by him
disclosed to the Governor, that the banks cap
ital was impaird $50 per cent-that it was
hopelessly insolvent.
The bank remained open. Nothing was
done to warn depositors. With the knowl-
edge of Governor Mcdonald, his two appoin-
tees and political h%enchmen, Paxton and Lie
wellyn, regents of the State Agricultural COL
lege, continued to deposit the college funds in
the rotten bank.-Remember that the cam
paign contribution note was there and that it
was being paid off with interest from the col
lege funds. Had the graft rotted bank been
able to stand up a little longer the whole of
this gift to the cause of McDonald's political
fortunes would have been paid off with school
funds.
But even with the sustaining power OF.
$4,000 of State Agricultural College money
this institution could not stand. In spite of the
slleltering silence of the constituted authori-
ties and lawful guardians of the public the
bank failed. About six hundred depositors
lost in the crash. Morgan Llewellyn, one of
McDonald's regents and treasurer of the Col
lege, in spite Of the fact that he got $4,000
on his personal notes and a salary of $50 a
month in exchange for depositing the College
funds with banker Smith, still seems to have
been the only one of the Democratic official
crew, from Governor Mcdonald down, who
took any steps to protect in any way the pub
lie money entrusted to their care. He did
furnish a surety company bond and the state
may recover the College deposit-all the in
terest thereon is gone for good.
1t is not ~unatural that the people should
demand Of Governor Mcdonald an %explana-
ton of the facts in this bank scandal. The
people have made their demand and they have
made it so strongly that Mcdonald has been
forced to abandon the policy of silence which
he has sustained ever since his own officials,
including his bank examiner, convicted him
by testimony on the witness stand, of thorough
knowledge of the facts surrounding Banker
Smith and his ~piratical banking institution at
Las Cruces.
1t is significant of the character of Gov
eFnor Mcdonald that he has had the brazen
effrontery to attempt the explanation which
the people have forced from HMM the town
where the scandal occurred; where the inno-
cent, trusting depositors lost their money;
where the sorely wronged State Agricultural
College is located. Mcdonald and his poll
teal adviser Gillie Otero, who in his time as
Governor was not without the effrontery to
attempt to bluff through a situation that was
beyond explanation, reasoned that Tor the Gov
ernor to go to Las Cruces, where the tragedy
occurred and tHara nttafr1Dt t1e exclamation
would leave in the public mind the impress
sion of fearless courage" And it did re-
quire nerve of a kind to do this thing. 1t
required the kind of nerve that is ruthless.
Mcdonald has made his explanation which
does not explain. 1t has been shown to him
and to the state that the explanation, ~unsatis-
factory as it has been to the public at large,
is yet more unsatisfactory to the people of
Las Cruces and the Mesilla Valley, who lost
their money because they were not told that
the bank used as a depository for New Mex
leo public funds, was a rotten bank. These
people have not been slow TO show their re-
sentiment at McDonald's nerve"
No one doubts the kind of nerve" that
is possessed by Governor Mcdonald. He has
shown it throughout his term as Governor.
He showed it in the use he made of the execr-
i've OllCc power 10 pc!sCCuie d ucicloelSSo
woman, his neighbor in his home county, and
his effort to drive her out OF the cattle bus
mess because his own private interests would
be benefited by removing her from his vici-
nifty. |,
He showed it in the undoubtedly clever con-
%vention trick by which he forced himself onto
the Demacrtic Ticket for Lieutenant Governor .
after his party had refused to renominate him, ,
and thereby forced an unwilling party to I'm {
dertake the defense of his official record. =
Governor Mcdonald has been able to con- =
vince the people of New Mexico of the brazen =
of his nerve. He has done little -
more since he took the stump in this campaign q
in defense of his own record, and as the cham -
pion of Gillie Otero against whose record as +
Governor of the Territory of New Mexico -
the Democratic party once found it necessary .,
to protest with charges such as have never :,
or since Otero's time been brought r.
against any Governor of New Mexico. y
1t is a precious, an admirable team, this II
Mel Donald Otero pair who are now tripping i
through New Mexico hopefully exploiting :