The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1863-09-15

mind Of such politician.
our Question and the Answer of the
Nashville Press
Wo said the other day, in commenting
upon an article of our respected cotem-
porary, the Press, on " Reconstruction,
that that journal held that so soon as
Tennessee shall be reconstructed" the
right of disposing Of slaves will belong
to Tennessee as fully as it did before
the reb, llion;" adding
This brings up a practical question at
once, for disposition. The slaves of Ten
nessee have enlisted and are enlisting in
the Federal army by thousands, and will
continue to enlist for weeks to come. One
full regiment we hear has been org anized
in the suburbs Of Nashville, and the
work Of recruiting goes on actively.
Does tie Press hola that at the close Of tie
mar these enlisted slaves shall be renaandea 10
bondage u Tennessee, Ia the exercise Of her
sovereign J0ily, shall see 1T to enforce her
present SlaUe code
This is not an abstract but very i'm
poriant practical question, which no pub
nc man, especially no public journal, has
any right 10 ignore. 1t must be met
without evasion.
After asking this question some two
or three times, without being able to
elicit an answer from the Press, that
paper at last makes this response, in its
issue of yesterday, which ia so singular
that we must copy it in full:
THE UNION AND WE,
On yesterday, our ntighbor of the
Union referring, as he always does, to
slavery says "This 10 not an abstract,
but very important practical quest m,
which no public man, especially nc pub-
licjournal, has any right TO ignore
The Union then proceeds to poke at
rs question we have already twice
answered. This thing is becoming tire
some, and we feel inclined to be stuck
sullen" under the operation. If our
neighbour, as seems to be the case, feels
irresistibly inn elled to indulge in daily
diarrhea of denuncialion against slave
owners, we pray him to exempt US from
attendance upon the occasion. The
Press is neither the advocate Of slavery
nor "rebel organs" and when our
neighbor wishes to abuse them, we claim
that he shall not make our paper his text
and starting point.
We can tell our neigbbor, what he
don't seem TO know, that emancipation
in Tennessee is likely 10 be popular or
otherwise according to it's terms. If
you should propose 10 . u-slayeholder
"a poor white Tennessean---that his
neighbor's "buck Niger" shall be made
legally his equal in all respects--shall
be authorized 10 "kill his vote" at The
polls, TO swear away his life before a
court and jury, or perhaps to be one of
that court or jury, 10 send his children
to the same school, aud to cit by the side
Of his wife and daughter in church
,ojtt0H referring 10 possibilities still more
o8eaaUe-we doubt it the proposal would
be zealously embraced, ar the proposer find
much comfort IN The Adventure.
In a lcord, the slavery question might be
easily dispo8edof JH fer tie negro question
lohieL must Inevitably follol0 emancipation
Ii our contemporary must agitate the
subject now, he will perhaps render
service to the country, by te ling rs
what is TO be the legal and social status
OF Sambo after emancipation. Ii is
easy 90 oarcel the masters claim by a
mere vote, but you have then only got
to the difficulties. "Think OF that,
Master Brook"
And this is the answer TO our question,
which was called forth by the position
of the Press, on the reserved rights of
Tennessee" which, if.language has any
meaning, involves the SEQ Rights"
doctrine as taught and held by Isham G.
Harris, and that noted trio, Henry, Tot
ten, and Barrow, who sold Tennessee to
the Southern Confederacy. II Tennes-
see holds th reserved right to dispose
Of the slayes within her borders, as she
pleSses, as our contemporary holds; if
this right be now not destroyed, but on
ly interrupted and suspended, as be also
afllrms and finally, if the right of Ten
nessee, when Reconstructed" to dispose
Of the slaves within her b0rde 3, will
belong to her "as entirely" as before the
rebellion, as our cotemporary again af-
firms, what else can follow the carrying
out of these ideas, but a collision be-
tween the State Of Tennessee, aud the
United States Government? The Press
seems to think it has already answered
our question, and complains that we are
annoying it by poking interrogatories at
It, Well hard questions, like Greek fire,
are oiten annoying, but the just rules of
military warfare aud editorial oontro.
versy sanction the uso Of both The
Press must not complain if we ask it
to answer a question which IL
sprung itself The Press is mistaken.
and not very fair when It says we ir-
dulge 10 a daily denuuciadon against
slavo-owners This is wholly erroneous.
We denounce no shareholders except reb-
Ell Shareholders The system, the priuci-
pie, the practice the morality, the rebel
lous tendency Of slavery, we shall de-
nounco fearlessly for in those is the ORR
gin Of our present national oalamities,
and we shall unequivocRlly, at ell times,
Affirm that that cannot Be a loca2 BLESSING |
t0ljcb has pyopei 10 De a National curse. |
Many Of the best men in the land are |