The Rock Island Argus and daily union., 1922-12-20
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||fBLAIEI|oRE


~ for $4,000 each were filed
. circuit court this morning BY /
1sft D. Blakemore, $500 Sew
syenue, against three tri-city
spsrs. Declarations setting
he cause for action appeared
1t The Argus. the Davenport
- and the Moline. Dispatch.
D tree newspapers separately
6aarged with having printed
1e1coe articles against Blake
The notice of the suit
1T The Argus was filed by
o1more nearly three weeks ago.
his action against the Times
y the Dispatch developed today
y the dling Of the declarations.
1lakemore IL q Rock Island at
|Uney. On Nov. % the defendant
gspaDers published an article
ing OF q charge Of blackmail
einst Blakemore which George
! Smith Of Geneseo had revealed
H. S. M0sher, chief Of the state
|aestigatOrs. The information
- furnished the newspapers by
J. Mosher, who related the story
4 Mr.. Smiths statements against
Dlakemore. The article reported
that Blakemore was alleged to
have attempted to exact a payment
of 1920 from SIN. tn under threat
lhat failure to comply would re-
lit in the use OF the columns OF
he Rock Island News to expose
he Texas-Eureka Oil company, of
which Smith was one OF the prin-
OPAL promoters.
+ This article is the basis upon
bhich Biakemore's claims OF libel
sre made against the three news
papers. although against. The Ar
gus it appears as only one of four
counts. Blakemore alleges that he
sas libeled by The Argus by arti-
eles and editorials which appeared
after the publishing of the original
artfcle in which he is mentioned as
the person against whom Smiths
Iharges were directed, and each OF
3ese are presented as a count
leainst the defendant.
q His Own Attorney.
While the praecipe for summons
y the suit against The Argus,
which was filed Dec. 4, shows Os-
ur B. ELAN, Missouri attorney,
y the attorney for Blakemore, the
tsclarations in all three cases pre-
nnt BlakemOre as his own attOr-
ney. Attorney Elan has previous
h announced in The Argus that he
vas never retained as lakemore's
attorney to prosecute the libel suit,
and even though asked would not
y In position to accept because
Of pressing matters occupying his
attention in the supreme court of
Missouri. Although Blakemore
now appears as his own attorney,
Il Is rumored that he is negotiating
for the services of a Chicago law
yer. BlakemOre's own standing in
'the legal profession is questioned
BY Attorney General Edward J.
Brnndage in disbarment proceed
ings which were filed y the Iii.
oois supreme court Monday of this
week. The disbarment proceed
tngs against Blakemore are based
Substantially upon his alleged
blackmail dealings with Smith at
the matter appeared in print.
In Bad With Neighbors.
! Quoting extracts from the declar-
alton against The Argus, Blake.
more says the alleged libelous ar.
ticles tended to bring him into
Dablic scandal, infamy and dis
trace with and amongst his neigh.
bors and other good and worthy
citizens. and to cause it to be be.
heved by those neighbors and citi-
sens that he, the plaintiff, had beer
guilty of the criminal offense OF
hhckmail and extortion and of ex-
torting or attempting to extort
money or other valuable property
elects or things, from another
citizen of said state"