Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1857-10-24

| II Is said Of gentleman who was candidate some
where and made speeches to his neighhors and con-
stituenis, as candidates often do; that be spoke
to them once on this wise, citizens look away
yonder upon the bosom Of the mighty deep and there
you will the sails of gallant magnificent ship
aud she is coming, BIT, 54, 6if And look little
further the other side and you will see another
ship with her sails filed with the swelling breeze
aad she is coming 6i6, 6!f, blfi But look little
further horizon and you will see another
ship and she is coming 6W 6lf, 6W!' ''But said
one amongst the crowd, :. 1 don't see any point in
that" g Ny good sir" said the candidate, sthere
is no point-t am only trying to work thire feel
ings."
Such, Mr. Speaker, it seems to me have been the
character Of some efforts in this debate But now
| | do not want to work upon any mans feelings.
have made these remorks as briefly as l could, for
the purpose of allowing other an opportunity to
express their views.
The only question here is Is our proposition right
In itself? Is it right is i constitutional expedient
and proper and will it subserve the interests of the
State and Of the South fr this Legislature TO go in
to the proposed eection If not we ought not 10 do
it. This is the ground occupy ground
which viii beg leave 70 illustrate by reading an
extract from speech BY Judge Brien, delivered
| here in the session OF 1878 He believed the
Legislature to be fully Competent TO go into an
| election of Senator eighteen months in advance Of
| the vacancy
And who voted and &C ted With Judge Brien, in the
/ election then had? / tac here, sir the names Of
Barrow, Topp and GESfRY-the very head and
front of all Americanisin-- 9,ctng voting, speaking
for this doctrine in 1885 at the time Mr.. Foster
was elected Thus il - sir, that we have been
| charged with inconsstt NY, and wrong in occupy
ing the same position shaE Mr. Gentry occupied in
1878 | stand upon ti4o;sostioI he occupied, aud
of course the charge oil IS nsistency cannot be ap
| piled to me by those T2SSsupported Mr. GENTRY In
! 1855 ~
MIR RICHARDSON. : Speaker: do not feel
altogether willing that ISse vote should be taken
without saying few wCsEs ON the question myself
| hold position on thi question little different,
perhaps, from that of 500 of the friends by whom
| [ am surrounded. l BIZ e no disposition at all to
make political capital b. Of this election and
shall speak exactly W5M 1 think, honestly and
briefly.
have no doubt at alE that this Legislature have
the constitutional poweISto elect United States
Senator for the conSnenein the 4Ih of March,
1859. have no doubt SPOUT it whatever; although
! in this may differ frons some Of my friends. do
not know, however, that any have taken the broad
ground that the Legislature have not this power
under the constitution: / rather think they have
not. l recollect, however, very well, that in 1887
the time when Judge Brien made the remarks read
by the gentleman from Lincoln the Democratic
party took ground against it. If am not very
much Mistaken the editor of the organ of the Dem
ocratic party in this place denounced the position of
Judge Brien, and pronounced that speech weak
aad fimsy thing.
believe, sir, that the other party would, here
tofore, have pursued the same course which the Dem
cratic party wish 10 pursue, if they had not
been afraid for it is well known, that when Foster
was elected by them upon this principle, at the
next session-the session of 1889, the Democrats
had large majority on joint ballot. 1t was suppo-
sed that the wings had injured themselves by the
election of Foster, and that it capital for the
Democrats; and since that time both prrties have
been afrrid to venture that way. have been in
the Legislature several times since, and know that
in 1851, proposition was submitted TO elect Sen
ator in advance and voted down by large ms jori-
ty of the wing party. Moreover there were gentle
men of the wing party, and are uoW, who honestly
believed such an election to be impolitic and unnec
esssry. 1 cannot see, however, any constitutional
difficulty
As for the constitution of Tennessee, the clause
read here by gentlemen only refers to State officers
do not suppose any gentleman believes 1t has any
reference to Federal officers. But TO this sec
ton Of the constitution Of the United States, which
says, " And if any vacancy happen by resignation
or otherwise" &c.-vacancies happen in three
ways either by resignation, death, expiration of
term do not know that you could have a vaoan-
cy in any ether way. am not certain that va
cancy could happen, as suggested by my fried from
Cannon, (Mr st john supposing the I" otherwise"
might refer to the where man loses his intel
lect and becomes coHpOs naeHtis. l imagine it
does not; for all recoliect that when Col Benton
blown up the Princeton Gen. jackson ever
afterwards doubted the soundness of his mind but
that did not produce vacancy.
The question then seems to be this Whether it !
would be in the power of the Governor of the State
Of Tennessee TO appoint Senator to fill vacancy
occasioned by expiration Of term. Good arguments
perhaps, might be presented both sides of this
question.
Now, the probability is that there would be in the
present reason for the Governor to make an
hana ! ia hahl of hall
have no called session, and the vacancy occurring
in March, 1859, the Legislature meeting the first OF
Oatober, following, could fill it before the regular
meeting Of Congress on the first Monday n Deem
Der. Still, as l said before, am not certain but /
that the constitution of the United States does
fer that power upon the Governor II rather seems
me that such construction would be a clear one.
This, therefore, in my judgment, is a good reason
for Directing to the election Although | can 4
see no constitutional obstacle in the way of this i
Legislature making the election yet am opposed to
it, because do not believe there any necessity for
it, and for the further reason that our Democratic
friends are pursuing course in this matter which
they have repudiated heretofore
1t does seem to me that of the arguments Of Il
the gentleman from Lincoln are calculated to make
false impression. profess to be one of those old
line wings. have never gone so far some of my
friends in politics; heard the know nothing
ritual read; nor have seen of their blue
books If any can claim to be WING, am that 1
man; and for the soulof me- cannot see how man I
who has been wing can be now in the Democratic 4
party. l have been always opposed to the Demo
cratic party l commenced my political career in
opposition to the pretensions of Martin Van Buren,
to the Presidency. l was boy when | began to
make political speeches. and l told my friends that
he would not do-that he was a tricky horse and
would slip his bride And, sir, what do you think
Henry Clay would say if he could rise from the
dead and hear these friends eulogse him upon this
floor, who hunted down his fair name and fame
whilst he lived and followed him like blood-hounds
20 the gravel Although have not joined the Anne
rican party have continued to act with them in
opposition to the Democratic party. The Demo-
cratic party have not changed their principles They
profess in their latest publications still to stand up
on the same platform. Nevertheless, it is plain
that my friend from Lincoln Mr. Davidson) being |
once whg either he has changed and gone over 4
to the Democratic party, or they have changed and
gone over to him. | have always understood that
there was gulf impossible, politically, between
the two great parties in this countryside whg and
Democratic parties Still believe it is right for
man to change his opinions when he is convinced
that he has been wrong.
Mr. K. did notunderstand that the wing party was
dead DisorganizatOn of party was no reason for
forsaking principles. Believing wing principles to
conserve this government, he couli not renounce
them. For that reason he never could act with the
democratic party. To leave party because there ]
we're bad men in it, not wise either in politics
or in the church. If you have bad members, turn
them out.
Unlike his friend from Lincoln, he was not in IA
yor Of an unrestricted balot-box
Mr. DAVIDSON wished to be understood as in ia. l
Vor of unrestricted action at the ballot-box
Mr. RICHARDSON. | receive the explanation
and agree with him. he is right
He referred TO the history the passage of the act
Of l843, requiring the Senatorial cleo ion to be held
within 80 days OF the commencement of the session.
&C., which was Whig rule-framed in part by his
OWN hand. He pointed out democratic members now
n the House who did not leave the hall in 134l He
that the Hon Mr.. Nicholson, one of the
democratic aspirsnts to the SenatOrship, made
speeches against the expediency and ty of an
election under circumstances like the present; and
reason for the heterogeneous of The other
lay
Amongst the principal reasons why he was OPP G
posed electipg at this time the refusal ofthe
candidates to answer those interrOgatories Were
hey not important questions? What was the reason
# refusal to answer He imagined the reason was ?
hat they did not agree with the gentleman already
leced upon those questions. Was it not important