Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1869-02-25
A Manly Letter.

VIZ NANJ IA A~L~Nt
wrote letter on the 29th ult.,
to one of his political friends in
Sbelbyville, in which some very
plain truths are told about Par
son Brownlow and his followers
in the Tennessee Legislature
The letter was not intended for
publication, but as the views it
expresses are SO we'll calculated
to subserve the interests of peace
and good government, the gentle
man to whom it was addressed
consented to its appearance in the
Nashville Banner, where we find
1T:
/ 1t has been notifying to me
1 that selfish men land their name
is legion) attribute my late pub
'ilication to a lust for office. These
men, judgingothers by themselves,
and wholly unable to understand
how any one can be actuatedby dis
interested motives, believe me to
: be bidding for some Office. My
, motives are two-fold: First, and
: principally, to point out and give
Impetus, if possibible, to true ma
tional principles in the Republican
partyin this State; and, secondly, to
: point out and protest against those
S usurpations which are rapidly
: causing the State Government to
degenerate into a miserable des-
potism-hoping to justify my
friends in the support they have
given me. The responsibility of
:, such step was great, as you may
!. have observed. Mere dissent to
. the official acts of the Governor
is pronounced by the Knoxville
{ Wing as "treason against man.
= kind"
b l desire no office. Idesire only
to be allowed to plead for the res.
torationof peace and the admins.
|, tration of the Constitution, the
g repeal of the obnoxious laws, and
the faithful enforcement of all the
. laws until they may be regularly
II repealed.
|. In speaking of the existing ad
II ministration l have used strong Ian
. guage. | do not thereby intend
to be understood as questioning
. the validity and excellency of oul
IS present State government. l be
d lieve it to be as legal and as much
d entitled to our obligations as be-
q fore the war. In Short that it is
as legitimate as the government
= of England or New York, and is
l. excellent in form. The Franchise
e Law, in its perpetual and uncon.
Q ditional features, and the machine
. Try of that law, is all that / condemn
: in our form Of government The
: great evil is not in the spirit of the
l. government, butin the usurpations
of the Executive Department, and
the passage Of partisan and class
laws calculated to irritate and In.
e flame instead of to heal and i'm
9 prove the decentralization of the
. country in lis social relations.
The most fearful feature in our
! affairs is that militia is considered
s the panacea for all social evils
: Militia are intended by the constu.
: ton to quell instruction and rebel
lion, but individual cases of MUIR
der, howevever frequent, do not
/: amount to instruction nor rebel
: lion. We have a simple lawsuit
4 decided in the city of Nashville by
4 the use of militia. 1t will take
e but a step more to introduce this
t agency III the collection of debts
e and the assessment of damages,
> and as a means of carrying cleo
tions. | am amazed at the silence
: with which the people submit to
y these wrongs. When the Governor,
, a little over year ago, in a well
considered State paper, announced
. his determination to appoint all
' the officers of the State or not,
!, as he deemed proper, | expected
to hear one unanimous protest
from all parties and from the Gen
e eraI Government. But instead
/ of that he was quietly elected to
: the United States Senate, 1t is
!, true this assumed power has since
been exercised only III the cases of
Judges and Acknowledgment and
a few county officers, but never
theless poa0er IS assumed; and sub
; mitted to and operates a complete
J change of the Government from
republic to a despotism.
Al n 4