Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1919-03-26
ATTORNEY CLARK TELLS LEGiS.
lATlvE COMMITTEES OF
PARDON HISTORY.
DENIES PAYING MONEY
TO GOVERNOR HARDING
Closely Questioned by Counsel Byers
Regarding Financial Transactions
and Disposition Of Funds Received
From William Rathbun-Es hibits
Roll Of $3.50 in Bills.

Des Moines March 2i.-Gcurge CLARK
| Ida Grove attorney who obtained Err
! nest Rathbun. pardon from Governor
| Harding, underwent a sriIling cross
| examination 1T the hands Of IA. w.
Byers, special counsel IN the Rathbuu
| pardon investigation, before the house
Judiciary committee yesterday after
noon, aud again Went over the entire
story as presented by hlm OF the par
don TRANSACTION.
Clark totluNyd Thad Smell. another
OF the Ida county legal coterie. who
Mas on the stind all yesterday morn =
Ing, when he vas cross { MANNED upon
| the meeting "l,h Governor Harding at
Chicago. 49, T.r
The days testimony brought out no
information Us 10 Governor Harding :
part in the transaction which WAS not
already known. Smell maintained tina {
the meeting With Governor Harding in
Chicago, was purely a coincidence, and
said that no money hal passed from
him 10 the governor.
Clark also specifically denied that
the governor mad received any money
from him.
Clark Produces $3.50 Roll.
The cross Examination, OF Clark con-
corning his financial transactions about
the time he received the Rathbun
$4,000 fee brought out one marked in
consistency with his testimony before
the rand,jGry.
Before the jury CLARK had testified
10 giving his Wife $3.50, and the general
trend OF the testimony was that she
had expended this money on shop
ping tour 10 Sioux City
When examined Yesterday afternoon,
however, he sprang a considerable sur
prise by exhibiting roll 10 the COM
mittee big enough to choke a horse,
i and declaring that this was the 5 81
he had given Mrs. Clark in October,
and which she had kept ever since.
He said he had given her the money
for "a special purpose, and when
pressed for an answer as TO just what
| this special purpose was, said that she
| had been considering the purchase OF
some oriental rugs, a player piano, or
trading in her old automobile for new
| one but had not decided upon what
she wished TO 90 with the money.
He reviewed his story of the sl,3S5
! check to Thad Smell, of the $1,000 paid
to Ed Campbell, another Ida county
lawyer and OF the $500 he accounts
| for as having been paid to his brother
| to take up an. old note.
An Unpleasant Halt Hour.
His most severe grilling was received
| in connection with the application for
! the pardon, made to Governor Harding
| In this application he stated that young
I Rathbun had never before been II
trouble, and that the family bore d
| good reputation in the community.
| This statement was bald lie, was
| ii not?" Byers asked him.
| Clark attempted 10 defend his state
| ment of chara cter, and ran into VOL
! lev Of questions which gave him a most
! unpleasant half hour.
Byers showed that Clark had acted
az the attorney for William Rathoun
Jr. a brother of the convicted rapLst-
in a seduction case, and had also de-
Tended him IN bootlegging count
| Clark declared that the family had
borne good reputation before the
| time of the pardon affair, but intimat-
ed that they mad fallen from grace
! since.
! But the most telling point brought
| out in this connection concerned grand
| Jury testimony which was presented
when Rathbun was first indicted for
rape.
Did you not know at the time you
| presented your application to Governor
Harding that there was evidence TO