Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1872-05-10
,JNO. Q. BROWN.
His Speech before the Convention,
Accepting the denomination.

b Mr., President and gentlemen Of tn
Convention: This unanimous expression
of your confidence fills my heart with un
speakable gratitude, because in the con
scientious discharge Of duty. there is moth
ing more agreeable to the public servan
than to have his official acts publicly in
dorsed by the Representatives o
the people. Less than two years ago vol
did me the honor to place me in the
chief Executive chair Of your State. found
myself surrounded with almost innumera
Bile difficulties The finances, of your State
were Frustrated. Your treasury was ex
hausted. No stable and fixed policy had
been inaugurated. The details of the State
Government had not been discussed before
the people and neither the legislative branch
of the government nor the Executive
were certain how the State stood. We
came to administer the affairs of the State
in the midst of all these difficulties. DIFF
iculties almost insurmountable met us at
every step; and in the midst Of these trying
difficulties / have done the best
I could. thank the people
whom You represent for the con-
plimenr of my denomination. thank the
people Of Tennessee for conferring upon
me this unnerited honor. But, gentlemen,
TO say more on this subject would be egot-
istical.
We are now on the eve OF, perhaps, the
most important canvass that has ever
transpired in this country. Certainly Ten
nesseeans have never been called upon to
act on an occasion fraught with greater in
terest to the American people.
For seven yearswe Of the South particu-
larry, have bowed az the foot of power and
asked for constitutional guarantees; we of
the South have been beyond the pale ofLhe
government. When say we have bowed
at the foot of power, begging for constitu-
tional rights, l speak literally the truth.
TIE best men in the lsnd-smen who were
pioneers in establishing the government
Of Tennessee-because Of supposed treason
have been denied the rights which they for
merly enjoyed; men who held the smallest
office within the gift of the people, because
of supposed treason in the late war, have
been denied the right to hold Office or to ex-
ercise the heritage of freemen, and when,
too, they have accepted the situation in good
faith, laid down their arms and bowed at
the foot-stool of power and begged, as sup
plant slaves, to be restored to the rights of
citizenship. The practice has been to deny
this again and again by the present admin
istratiOn, which came into power pledged
by every sacred obligation to restore these
rights. But no, as / have said before, these
rights have been denied and denied again.
In a time of profound peace we have
an army invading the South. The
Of 1,oh 10
have been denied privileges allowed even
to our former slaves. The treasure of the
United States has been expended with
lavish hand, never before known in the ex-
iStency of any nation much less in the an
nails of the American Government. A
proud tyrannical party has seized the reins
of government and with the hand of tyran-
ny has administered it to us and we
have endured it all, not without murmurs,
admit, but we have endured and suffered,
and still endure and suffer, and we have
no hope of relief from that quarter at
least. Unfortunately ours is the flag of the
party that is in the minority although we
have three millions of voters. Year after
year we have taken the census of that par
ty and but defeat and disaster has crowned
our every effort, and to-day, seven years
after we commenced, we are no nearer to
those lost rights than we were at the begin
ming. At the end of seven years we find
ourselves still in the minority and / think
and others think so too, that a brighter day
is now dawning upon us. I and others
think that the day Of de-
liVerance is now at hand. A
large body of the Republican party,
a still larger body at home,
met in Cincinnati and nominated
a ticket and invited its acceptance by all
people; the people of all parties opposed to
the administration in power. Understand
you, as the representatives of the people, de-
clared it is the duty of every patriotic citizen,
opposed to the present administration of
the General Government, to indOrse the
Cincinnati nominees. Whether you have
acted wisely or not, the future will deter
mine. 1t is an experiment fraught with i'm
mense importance. But, gentlemen, 1 believe
you have done right. believe your efforts
will be crowned with success in a manner
never witnessed before in the country
during the last thirty years. 1 don't wish
to be understood as being Jealous advo-
cate of the nominees of the Cincinnati
Convention or that 1 am an sdmirer Of the
gentlemen put upon that ticket; and
want it understood that do not belong to
those who would disorganize the Demo-
cratic party, but, on the contrary,
am in favor of having our
party redouble its vigilance and
perfect its organization in all its purity and
watch all encroachments made upon it; for
in my humble judgment the salvation ofthe
country must be worked out by and through
he Democratic party. Talk to me of the
funeral of the Democratic party. This is
put the cradle and nursery
Of it. To-day the vote has
been sounded, in my humble judgment, for
ticket. / would not surrender a single
would not surrender a man
rom our ranks. On the contrary, believe
he action of this Convention will
our organization in Tennessee,
ind l believe nothing else would have pre-
eryed it, and that if it was not for what |
7ou did to-day that party would have be-
,ome disintegrated. Did the Democratic |
,arty of tennessee, in 1869, when uniting |
With patriotic Republicans under the lead of
be gallant Senter, lose its identity |
II disband its organization? Did
he Democratic party of Virginia, in
he election of Gov. Walker, lose its
IDENTIFY. And again, in Missouri, when
Hratz Brown bore the flag triumphant to
ictory. No, the Democratic party in those
tates, under the prestige of victory, is
tronger than ever before. These are pre-
edents, and safe ones, for our guidance.
was the pioneer IN the expert
lent. And it is eminently proper that she
lould take the lead in the action of the
tates in this grand movement for
ne emancipation of the American
eople from the slavery Of AFRO
ant power and untempered tyranny. This
az may prove the brightest page in her
Olitical history. She has kindled the fire
lat will spread over continent. State af-
r State, following her example, will fall
ito line, until the Watch-fres of the peace
i revolution are kindled upon every noun
in top, and by their light the clans will |
lily, everywhere, to battle. ALI Of us
ave doubted what line of policy was
.st calculated to promote the success
this ticket. Animated by common
sire to promote it, we have only differed
to best means. And l believe your ac-
On, so harmonious, and so nearly unan-
nous, is the result of the wisest counsels.
nd | do not doubt that few weeks will
in practical results, that you
I'VE done right. The nOn-actiOn or hos !!
e expression of State so overwhelming
Democratic as Tennessee might have