Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1871-08-20
Col. Baxter's Compliments to the Banner
and Union and American.

efforts of the New York Times to expos
the corruptions of the city government
New York, deserves the hearty commen
dation of every honest man. Don't wear.
Of we'll doing. Corruption is rife every
where; itpervades almost every department
of the Federal, State and Municipal Gov
ernmsnts. 1t is confined to no particula
party or locality. 1t is as prevelant il
| Tennessee as it is in New York, and ha
been practiced by men prominently identi
fled with and conspicuous as leaders 0
both parties.
Prior to the rebellion the people Of Ten
nessee were taxed, for State purposes, at tn,
rate of ten cents on every hundred dollars
worth oftaxable property. With the revenue
derived from this low basis of taxation, the
| currentexpenses of the State and interest or
the public debt were promptly met and paid
| But upon the reorganization of the State
| Government in 1865, new and radica
departure, in relation to the States fin
ances, distinguished the ne,O from the ola
regime. New subjects were sought after
and added to the list previously existing
| the rate increased from ten to SIXTY cents
on every hundred dollars worth of taxable
property, and the aggregate receipts of the
| Treasury, more than trebled. NOthwith'
| standing, the interest on the public debt
has not been paid since January 1859 the
| debt itself has been increased $50, ,O00, 900
public schools have been practically
| abandoned and liabilities for the ordina-
| ry and current expenses of the State Gov
| ernment, amounting to nearly q million
| OF dollars have accumulated in the hands
| of honest creditors and are now being
hawked about and sold in the market at
from seventy.fve to eighty cents on the dol
Tar.
sponSible for this extraordinary and de-
plorable condition of the States finances,
it is plain to every rejecting mind that it
could only arise from profigacy and cor
ruption in the administration Of public af-
fairs. The corruption complained of and
which has so heavily cursed our State
could never have grown into its present
dangerous proportions, in the presence of
courageous, enlightened, efficient and
independent public press. But, unfortun-
atty for the country the press in Tennessee
have not entirely escaped the contamlnat-
ing influences of corruption.
About the assembling of the last Legis-
lature, in October, 1869, combinations were
fomrdd TO control the public printing. The
most powerful of these was that organized
by the proprietors of the Banner and the
Onion and american, under the name and
style of Jones, Purvis d Co." But their
arrangements and expectations were some
what interfered with by the aspirations
and counter combinations of others, who,
too, had claims on the party. Public print
ing was regarded by them as legitimate
public plumber, and they had been kept in
the cold for several years and aOere hungry.
Representatives of the Conservative and
Democratic press were present from every
division of the State, clamoring for a
trar Il
of political experience and party tact to
reconcile and adjust their conflicting
claims. But after maneuvers and counter
maneuvers, the situation was relieved by
Jones, Purvis & Co., who bought up
enough of the rival combinations to ensure
to themselves the coveted prize. One edi
tor from East Tennessee sold the votes of
three members of the Legislature to them
for money which they have since paid. To
another from the Western Division fUe
hundred dollars was paid. How much
farther the bargaining extended the wri-
ter does not know but he has reason for
believing that it involved others besides
the parties referred to.
AS a matter of course every one privy to
such bargains expected the parties Zones,
Purvis & CO.. to indemnify themselves for
the money expended by them in buying
off opposition, in some way not recognized
by law. The prices fixed by law for the
public printing, though liberal, afford no
such margin for profits as to Justify the
payment of large sums of money to get a
competitor out of the way and hence it is
safe to conclude that the parties cOntem-
plated, at the time, other sources of indem
nifty and reimbursement for the money so
by them, than the compensation
prescribed by law; and it is equally true
that man who will, contrary to law and
good morals, expend money to secure to
himself public trust, will not hesitate to
use his position for sinister and illegal pur-
poses.
But / have not time to follow out
this train of thought. BY the means
Jones, Purvis & Co. secured the |
contract for the public printing, under |
which they had about two months since |
drawn eiqhty thousand, t,Uo hundred and |
sirty one dollars, of which am prepared |
to say from personal examination Of |
portion of their accounts and receipts, that |
fifty housand of the eighty thousand so |
drawn by them from the public treasury, |
is fraudulent and ought not to have been |
paid.
This declaration will, l know, create |
some surprise with the people of the State,
but it is nevertheless true. As above stat |
ed, the prices to be paid for public printing |
are prescribed by law, and is to be paid ac-
cording to the amount of composition"
''press work." "paper," binding" &C.,
each item to be charged and paid for sepa-
rately. The charge for composition" is
the same whether the types are set for one
Or for one hundred thousand copies. The
Secretary of State and Comptroller of the
Treasury, are by law authorized and charg-
ed with the duty of auditing accounts for
public printing. But these have no prac-
tical knowledge upon such subjects and
have generally, in the past history of the
State, relied on the honor of the contrac-
tors and paid their accounts, when present.
I'd. without scrutiny and without question.
Such has been their course with the
present contractors. But l charge that the
present contractors have grossly abused
The confidence reposed in them by the of
ficers named, and that they have over
charged in every instance. A few in
stances will illustrate the truth of this
allegation: For lst Heiskells Reports thev
have charged for one million eight hundred
md eighty thousand ems of Composition,
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