COLUMBUS, November 23, 1869.
DEAR H——:—I have been absent or busy moving these last days or I would have said a word in reply to yours of the 10th. I published the article* in the Journal. No reflection was of course intended on you in particular. The general practice you evidently regard just as I do, and I am sure there is no misunderstanding on your part of my motives. I regard you as a man whose soundness of judgment and integrity of purpose in such a case may be implicitly relied on; and the point was made clearer to my mind than it can be to the public.
Cincinnati.
Private.
* The article read:—"An illustration of the thoughtlessness with which good men sign important petitions occurred at the governor's office a few days ago. A petition for the pardon of a convict numerously signed was presented to Governor Hayes. Among the signers was a gentleman known to the governor to be a man of integrity and good sense. The gentleman was written to and asked what he knew or could learn as to the merits of the case. A few days afterwards the governor received a reply, marked 'private', in which the writer said: 'I signed the petition for his pardon presented to me by his wife. My tenderness of heart in the case overcame my judgment. As no good would be accomplished by his pardon, I fully investigated the case. I could obtain no redeeming quality in the convict from those familiar with him. He is represented by all as a very dangerous person to run at large, and from reports he is a natural thief and would, no doubt, continue his former career if pardoned.’"
SOURCE: Charles Richard Williams, editor, Diary and Letters of Rutherford Birchard Hayes, Volume 3, p. 73-4
No comments:
Post a Comment