Clarksville chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 186?-1872, 1869-05-08

lcOnUrOlllng the mad passions OF me
, engendered by the civil strife, 1 az
cepted the Office. / remained upo
the bench until February, 1868, an
how l discharged that duty the pee
pie of Tennessee must decide. Man,
and grave questions We're before us
involving the life, liberty, propert,
and rights of the citizens. Under tn
powers delegated by the convention
was the question of franchise. Thi
was brought before the court. AS
citizen, l opposed the passage of tn
stringent franchise law. AS q judqe
with its policy l had nothing to do
Believing the people, i'm their sove
reign capacity, had the right to de
termine the elective franchise-I $,
held. AS Il citizen, am now in ia
vor of extending the elective fran
chise to all. l so expressed mysel
In the fall of 1868, before the Legisla.
ture. Believing, as conscientiousl,
do, that that alone can bring peace t.
our State, and advance its material
interest. After / had made this sol
emn and public declaration, Governor
Brownlow re-appointed me to the DO
sition l now hold, and / honestly be-
lieve that nine-tenths of the people
are in favor of equal rights to all
but political intriguers, for their own
private ends, seek to keep the people
thus enthralled. They know full
well 1t is against the cardinal princi-
pies Of the Republican party-tara-
tfon and representation 90 hand in
hand, and without it no party can
sustain itself.
At the last term of the Supreme
Court at Nashville, Judge Smith and
myself, in o case from GAINESVILLE, in
which a bill had been filed to enjoin
the collection of q school tax, where
the Legislature had, by provisions of
the act of the nth of March, 1868,
Sec. IA, delegated to the sub.district
directors the rightto levy q tax, and
submit 1t to the voters-thlt was done
In that. district. We were of opinion,
upon due consideration of the ques-
tions involved, the power delegated
by the Legislature was unconstitu-
tional, and therefore void that the
right to levey q tax is an act of sover-
eighty, and the power can only be
delegated where it is warranted by
the constitution. The Supreme Court
of this State, in 1892 at which time
Judges Green, Catron and White
were presiding-names that have re-
fiected honor upon the judicial history
of the Statehood the Legislature had
no power to delegate the right to levy
a tax. The convention that met i'm
1884, to form the constitution, APP
proved the decision by giving the
power to counties and incorporated
towns, to levy taxes, and from that
time to the present it has been set.
tied question in Tennessee. l could
not have faced an honest Tennessee
lawyer and have held otherwise. 1t
Is true my friend, Judge Andrews,
but that was in conse.
quence Of his Northern education and
want of adaptation to our system of
This decision gave serious offense
to the Superintendent of Public In
Tile oIuve. The voun-
ty Superintendent, regulated by
their grand head at the capital, were
brought into requisition and force to
have us overthrOwn in the conven-
ton. Combinations We're thus
and the result is thus before
the people-Smith and l went over
board. A tax amounting to $1,000 a
year had been levied in the sub-dis-
trict at Clarksville-a large sum to
pass through few hands, not TO edu-
expenses. The County Superintend-
ent for that county receives salary
Of about 5000. This is taken from the
school fund. The levying of this tax
was the entering wedge-the begin
ming of system that would have OPP
pressed the people with onerous taxes;
thousands of dollars would have pass
ed through their hands. The action
of Smith and myself had given them
great offense, in declaring they had
no power to levy the tax. l am as
much i'm favor Of common schools as
any man in the State; but am I'M
willing, by any act ofmine unless am
by positive law to do so, to
permit the levy of taxes in addition
to the enormous burdens now upon
the people, and take from them their
hard earnings and give it to strangers
who are fattening upon our sub
stance.
The salaries paid the Superintend-
ents would greatly increase the COM
mon school fund. They are wholly
The citizens of Ten
manage and control the common
schools of the counties and districts
without n Superintendent with fat
salary. 1t was done before the war
and can be done again. Let the in
telligent men of each race, according
to the scholastic population, have
charge of the common schools. Let
them be separated and distinct, and
we would soon have n system in
which all would have the benefits Of
a common education.
My views upon the various ques-
tions before the country have ever
been Influenced by what / supposed
to be the best interests of the people
of the State. / am no partisan and
If / We're / should be unfit for thepo-
sition l now occupy. When martial
law was declared, rs the friend of
Gen. Cooper and the Governor, I be-
lieved that my counsels would have
some influence-though 1t was be-
You'd the pale of my offfce-to pre-
vent, as conceived, revolution In the
State. l gave them my opinion,
Z" that In times Of peace no power ex-
listed to declare martial law; and If
men Were tried, they, the Governor,
Gen. Cooper, and the officers engaged,
would ultimately he held amena-
ble."
Twas induced 10 do this, fearing a
revolution would follow, as l was sat
isfied from my knowledge of Tennes-
seeans, and the high legal talent of
the State, that the State government
would he brought into antagonism
with the Federal government, and
the citizens OF the State, and its ma
and L am gratificd to believe had
some influence in producing the re-
suits that followed.
n A. l. n Il. A