Clarksville chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 186?-1872, 1869-06-19
GARD FROM BROWNLoW.
re rs FOR sENTER AND UNIyER.
r SAL SUFFRAGE.
lie Gives the Democracy n Wipe and
Proposes to Die In the Harpcss.

! find myself called upon, by letter
and through the newspapers, to define
my position on the suffrage question.
now being agitated throughout the
state. | have never held an equivo.
cat position on any great public ques-
ton and L never will. Nor have l
the vanity to suppose that my opin-
ions VIII influence those of any con-
siderable number of men,, on this or
any other question; and / certainly
nave no purpose to dictate to any of
them, how they shall vote at the
coming election. It's from an entire
ly different motive that i shall state
what follows. Ia T.l1iuroH- ItaIi 7
In my judgement, the existing fran
chise law was an absolute necessity
TO prevent the State from being
thrown into anarchy, and to protect
the loyal people thereof from being
subjected to prescription, violence and
murder or exile. On this account and
with this viewI have supported that
measure. If had the power / would
disfranchise, for life, the active lead
ers who brought on and upheld the
rebellion. These bear about the bro
portion to the othernumbers who were
drawn into rebellion--say, as one to
ten. The question arises, then, in
view of the recent decision of the Su-
prene Court, and to which / shall
soon more particularly refer, how can
you discriminate to make the tlisa-
bility fall upon them alone? Would
1t be right or wise to keep thousand
men under disabilities, nine hundred
of whom do not longer require it, for
the sake of one hundred who do !?
The Republican party i'm Tennessee
nave secured the entire judiciary in
the State for eight years to come. and
should the Governor recommend to
the Legislature an alteration of the
Constitution admitting the disfran
chised to the ballot, it will require two
years to accomplish it. The rebel
population of the State will then
have been DISTINGUISHED at least six
wears. Should they then come into
power by welding a majority of the
votes it will be impossible for them
even then, to fill the offices of the
State, with rebels, to its injury, be-
cause OF the fourteenth Amendment
to the United States Constitution.
There is still another view of this
subject | wish to present. The SUI
preme Court of Tennessee, a court of
our own choosing, has recently re-
stored to the ballot, by its late decis-
ion, about twenty thousand rebels.
among whom We're some of the
active leaders of the rebellion, who
had been excluded therefrom by the
franchise law. AL n
We elected Grant upon the platform
of universal suffrage, East Tennessee
alone giving him about twentv-six
thousand majority. In his inaugural
address Grant comes out fair and
square for universal suffrage the re-
construction measures of Congress
all proceed upon the principle of uni
versal suffrage the entire Republi-
can party of the nation and the en-
tire Republican press of the North
are out unequivocally i'm favor of
universal suffrage. Should the Re-
publicans of Tennessee obstinateIv
stand out any longer against the Re
publican party of the nation, and its
entire press, and also against the
President and both Houses of Com
gress, they will simply render them
selves ridiculous i'm the estimation of
all besides themselves.
1t will be seen from the foregoing.
that i'll my judgment the safety OF
the State, the welfare of its peOple
and the protection of loyal citizens
do not demand the perpetuation of
existing disabilities longer than the
time when they can be consti-
tutionally removed.
In conclusion, | have no confidence
in that organization known as the
Democratic party, either North or
South, 1 can never act with that or
ganization, nor support any man for
Office who, | have reason to believe,
will be controlled by it's partisans.-
Indeed, if | desired to bring the devil
out of his lair, and secure his active
corporation with me i'm politics, |
would proclaim myself q Democrat
of the rebel-cOnservative school,
The organization is choke-full of ha-
tired of the United States Govern
ment, and having the fish-like smell
of Estates rights" it is unsavory TO
the nostrils of modern progress
There are but two parties left i'm this
Countrywide diminishing party of
Democracy, that brought about the re-
bellion; and the rapidly growing
party of National Republicans, who
advocate universal suffrage, and the
equal rights ofall, irrespective of birth
place or color. To this party belong,
and with it and my country, propose
to sink or swim, live or die, survive or
perish
w. G.. BROWNLOW.
June II, 1869.