Milton Berry and E. W. Huggins to Beriah Magoffin

KYR-0001-020-0258.xml

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Accession Number

KYR-0001-020-0258

Document Genre

Petition

Repository

Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives

Collection

Office of the Governor, Beriah Magoffin: Governor's Official Correspondence File, Petitions for Pardons and Remissions, 1859-1862

Item Location

MG17-229 to MG17-230

Place of Creation

Monroe County, Kentucky

Date of Creation

5 October 1860

Dates Mentioned

1859-12-16

1856

1860-04

1860-10

1860-10-05

1860-04-17

1860-12-22

Milton Berry and E. W. Huggins to Beriah Magoffin, 5 October 1860, Office of the Governor, Beriah Magoffin: Governor's Official Correspondence File, Petitions for Pardons and Remissions, 1859-1862, MG17-229 to MG17-230, Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives, Frankfort, KY. Accessed via the Civil War Governors of Kentucky Digital Documentary Edition, discovery.civilwargovernors.org/document/KYR-0001-020-0258, (accessed May 16, 2024).

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State of Kentucky Monroe County Sct.
To His Excellency, the Gov'r of Kentucky.

Your petitoners Ed. alias Edw^d W. Huggins and Milton Berry, state that they are citizens of the town of Tompkinsville in the County & State aforesaid, & that oin the 16^th of December last having Entered into partnership to keep a tavern in said town, they applied to the trustees thereof for tavern license, the Exclusive privilege to grant or not to grant which, had been vested in said trustees by an act of the Legislature -- see session acts of 1856 page 234 -- sec. G.. They state that they made all the proof required by law before said trustees upon said application to authroize the granting of tavern license -- The said trustees did not however grant them license, but agreed to leave the question open until the 4^th monday in said month, to be decided by Noah Smith or some other lawyer, with the right of appealing to Judge Graham, & to the Court of Appeals -- They further state that on said 4^th Monday in Dec^r said Trustees met, & said Smith being present, gave his decision in favor of the granting of said license. Whereupon said Trustees ^made an order^ granting tavern license to these petitioners upon their paying Five hundred Dollars -- all of which will more fully appear from an attested copy of the record of said proceedings of said Trustees, which is made part hereof --

Now your petitioners state that said charge of $500^x for said license was intended by said trustees as a prohibition of the granting of said license, and they well know these defendants could not in justice afford to pay
one fifth of said sum -- They did, however, offer to pay & tendered to said Trustees the sum of $70^x for said license, which was more than had ever before been exacted by said town authority for Tavern license. They further state that upon said 4^th ~~day~~ ^monday^ of December it being County Court day for said County these petitioners were informed that the Judge of said Court believed he had authority to grant Tavern license. whereupon they applied to said Court and obtained Tavern license to keep a tavern in said town, under and by authority of which they have ever since been keeping a tavern, and the only one, kept in said town; & in connexion therewith have been retailing spirits, in a part of said tavern house, being advised they had a right so to do. an attested copy of said license is herewith filed.

They state that at the last April term of the Equity & Criminal Court for said County, separate indictments were found against these defendants for keeping a tipling house, and at the ins^l Oct. term of said Court a verdict, & judgment was obtained by the Com'wlth against your petitioner Huggins for $60^x & costs & against your petitioner Berry for $20^x & costs for selling by retail under said County Court license in said tavern. They state that said tavern license constitute their only defense for retailing spirits as aforesaid, & that they are advised there is no chance of reversing said judgments by taking them to the Court of appeals --

They state that having made all the proof required by law including the necessity for a tavern in said town, where there was none, as will appear form the record of said Trustees -- And as it is manifest said Trustees abused the discretion & authority intended to be vested in them by said act -- sec 18^th Ben. Mon. City of Lou. vs Kean &c page 16. -- in refusing your petitioners license. And as these petitioners done all they could to avoid violationg the laws of the land -- and are left without remedy Except by resorting to the mercy of your Excellency in whom our constitution has wereby lodged the power of Executiove clemency to be Exercised for relief of hard and oppressive cases, Such as these petitioners now complain of -- wherefore they ^pray your Excellency^ to remit said fines, at least all Except the Com'wlth's atty's portions thereof & the costs -- Oct. 5. 1860.+ ^+ They state by way of conection that a new set of trustees being Elected they applied for an obtained license of the 17^th of April last. for which they paid $50^x an attested copy of which is herewith presented.^

Milton Berry
E, W, Huggins

We the undersigned ctizens of Monroe County believing that the foregoing cases of Ed. Huggins & Milton Berry, require the interposition of Executive clemency, unite in the prayer of the foregoing petition

W. S Maxey M, Barr
U T Buckner
A B Batts one of the Bar.
L E havlin
Lindsey D Buckner
G W Jackson [Jr]

W F Evansyn
Isaiah Fitzgerald
J, L, A, J, Duncan
W. P. Witcher one of the trustees
James, B, Thomas
J. H. Bevill one of the trustees

Monroe C Ct
Huggins & Berry
To } Pet.
Gov. of Kentucky
Respite 12 mos
B M
$60 } E W. Huggins Tipling
$20 } M. Berry Tipling
Iss^d Dec 22^d 1860

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