Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1857-07-01
SPEECH
bsbivHshf Ii osafaEvtttt fUNt 16TA, 1897, By
HON. A. o. P. NICHOLSON.
Published By request Of q numssp of Ctizsns.
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ment He assumes that the entire amount of the
public domain is about twelve hundred millions of
acres, and hence that upon fair division, Tennes-
see would be entitled TO about thirty millions He
does not undertake to say, however, how many hun
dreds Of millions of thiE quality utterly worth
less made up Of rocky mountains, sterile hills and
arid deserts He does not undertake to estimate the
| annual proceeds Of this immense domain If divided
out amongst the States and thrown upon the market
He does not ph0sophise upon the necessity Of emf
grafton to the public lands in order TO obtain for
them any price whatever; but adheres 10 the Know
Nothing policy ofdiscouraging foreign immigration
and Of consequence advocates policy calculated
diminish the chances of realizing speedy sales of
the public lands. He does not inform us that ,,r-
| der the present system of administering the lands
with all the appliances rescrted to for encouraging
emigration the great west the nett proceeds of the
land sales cannot amount, average annually to
/ more than from three to five millions Of dollars He
does not go into the calculation and show that up-
on fair distribution of the proceeds the annual
| amount coming TO Tennessee would fall below two
hundred thousand dollars. Nor does he run out the
calculation and the division and show that the share
| that would come to each individual of the State
would be about ten cents. This mode of enlighten-
ing the people and exhibiting the practical working
of his object did not suit Mr.. Haiton He chose to
| deal in round numbers, and millions at that, and
| with domain eff thirty millions of acres belonging
to the State, he proceeded to portray in vivid colors
| the wonderful benefits of this rich treasure Mr.
N. proceeded to read from Mr.. Hatton's speech as
| follows:
| by this apportonment, Tennessee would be en-
titled t9ftAi billions of acres, which Mr. Hatton
| argued mi to have for the purpose of paying
| her DEBT ddcating her children, and paying the.
| current expenses of Government-the salari .
judges legislators &C. In support OF Mr.. Hatt6iYs
peculiar views, he quoted n paragraph from Gen1
Jaekson's fourth annual message to Congress
| "Our bonds are falling due, and where else
but TO the public lands we to look for the means
| of their payment"
| Mr.. Hatton concluded his argument on this SUBJ
ject by repeating that he did care in what shape
we got the lands whether in land warrants the land
Itself, its proceeds 1t would, in his judgement,
be the means of relieving the people from taxation
| and enable the State to prosecute more extended
works of internal improvements
Mr.. N. said, when he first read this speech he was
| forcibly reminded Of that passage in Holy Writ in
which it is recorded that the devil took our Savior
/ up into very high mountain, showed him all the
kingdoms of the world, and said to him Z" All these
things will give thee, if thou wilt fall down and
| worship me-" Mr.. n. would not say of Mr.. Hat
toms proposition, what blunt preacher once said
| by way OF comment on this passage of Holy Writ,
that the old rascal hadn't foot of land to give-
but he would say that Mr. Hatton had about as much
chance to give to the people of Tennessee thirty
millions of land the devil had to give all
the kingdoms of the world to Saviour But sup
pose, said MIR. N, he can succeed in getting for
4suucoccc d 5HdEo Vi prOceeUS, Win mat he
proposes TO pay all our State debts amounting as
he understood, to about thirteen millions of dollars
to educate our children to relieve us from further
taxation, by paying all the expenses of the State
| Government and still have enough to prosecute
| further works of internal improvements all
this is about to be accomplished by an annual dis
tribution of ten cents head If the votes of the
old line Wings or Democrats can be got for such
consideration, they will certainly be DIRT cheap!
But, said Mr.. N, there is a view Of this subject,
as suggested by Mr.. Hstton, and by the convention
that nominated him, which ought arrest the ser-
GUS attention of every voter in the State In Mr.
Hattons speech it is said that Tennessee ought to
have her share the public lands for the purpose
of paying her debts" Also that sour bonds are now
falling due, and where else but to the public lands
are we to look for the means of their payment and
further, that ait would, in his Judgment, be the
means of relieving the people from taxation" He
found in the platform of the opposition this resou
ton:
'' ResolOed, That Tennessee in her insulated DO
ston, heretofore omitted among the ayorites in the
distribution Of the public lands with her load of
debt incurred for the development of her resources
has deep stake in that policy which shall do her
justice, and supply the means of saving the people
from taxation"
What other impressions could these declarations
make but that Tennessee is groaning under load of
debt, that her bonds about falling DUE that she
has means of payment except BY resorting to
the great nducement TO vote the opposition ticket is
that the people may avoid a resort to taxation to
pay their debts. What impressions would such
statements as these, made by the convention of a
party which claims to be able to carry the election
by the chosen representative of that party as its
candidate for Governor, make upon the credit of
the State? We have on hand various rail road en-
terprises, which depend for upon the credit
loaned to the companies by the State The bonds
of the State are to be issued and sold at par to car
IL i
diton, is here given, is it reasonable to expect
that capitalists will make investments in Tennessee
bonds, except at ruinous rates of discount? The
fact is that the bonds of the State have recently
gone down from one hundred to eighty-six Is this
to be wondered at when such gloomy accounts of our
financial condition are sent forth? We know that |
these statements made for political effect at
home to brighten the people, who have the taxes to
pay, into the support of party which promises to |
pay the State debt out of the Federal Treasury: but
the misfortune is that the capitalists those money
is wanted for bonds, more easily frightened
than the people who understand the object of their
political leaders Capitalists are told that our debts
are already so heavy that we cannot pay them with
out resort TO taxation, unless the proceeds of the
lands are distributed Capitalists know that Mr.
Bell himself, has hope at an early period of get
ting the proceeds distributed Capitalists have an
instructive aversion to riskng their money on tn. |
contingency of a resort to taxation. What the con-
venton and its candidate for Governor have said il
well calculated to affect inuriously the credit of the
State.
Mr.. N. said that, whilst he believed that the dec
laration of the opposition leaders alluded to- ought
be regarded The strongest proof that they were
not entitled to the confidence of the people, he was
not prepared to admit that our financial condition
was as gloomy and threatening as represented by
them. According to his understanding of our con-
tion, the proper debt of the State was about four
millions of dollars all of which was provided for
by means belonging to the State. He understood
hat of late years the state had gone largely into
he policy of loaning its credit to railroad comma
MES, and, in pursuance of this policy, that she had
oaned our bonds endorsed the bonds of indiyid-
lal companies to amount now equal to about eight
Millions of dollars, and that, under existing laws
his amount liable to be increased to double it's
present sum- If he was correctly informed, in car
ying out this new financial policy, the State has
equred satisfactory security, in the way of liens
md mortgages, for the payment of all the interest
md principal of the bonds loaned or endorsed He
lid not stop to criticse this system of fnanciering
II to enquire whether opponents are responsible
or it or not. He was speaking of present con-
ition, and was not arraigning those who have :
dopted the policy of lending the credit ofthe State
lie had not doubted that the debt proper of the
tate as well as its liability endorser or guaran-
1r of railroad companies, amply secured He
id not now doubt the entire suicency of the means
nd the securities provided for these debts and a-
ilities. He could very well see, however, that these
ecurities, however ample at present and when ia t
en- might be rendered unavailable by the existence