Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1872-02-21

ne lhougn 'ulscretlon the better part OF
yalor," and skulked. Whipping Union
soldiers was q different sort of pastime
from whipping slaves, as the most cour-
ageous overseer thought twice before
fighting game in which the opposite
party held as good a hand as he.
! returned to my home with Burnside's
army, and when at last the voice of the
loyal people of Tennessee could he heard
through the ballot-box, they gave me a
refuge y in the gubernatorial chair of
that state. was not put there by Con-
gress and the President After the eXpira-
ton of my term of service the same peo-
pie reelected me to a second gubernatorial
term by over fifty-two thousand majority,
and before the expiration of that term the
Legislature sent me to this " refuge"
There were some extraordinary ex-
| penses, but very necessary ones, which
! the State had to incur during my admins
| tration, resulting from the destruction of
State property by the rebels. Among the
first of my duties was to rebuild. the
! penitentiary, q large portion of which the
! Democracy had burnt down in 1864, per-
haps from a desire TO have the
This was adding to the States in
debtedness, but should not be charged to
my account. The State lunatic asylum
was dilapidated, and its splendid grounds
and valuable farm property of hundreds
of acres run down. These had TO be rem
| IL
erected to provide for the coored insane,
no provision having been made for them
before. The school fund had been appro-
priated to purposes of treason. r..
All over the State rebellion had done its
baleful work of destruction. The asylum
for the deaf and dumb children of the state
had been occupied as a hospital, its furni-
ture destroyed andnproperty injured, and
| appropriations for its support and repairing
had to be made Railroads were worn out,
their rolling stock destroyed and run south;
bridges destroyed depots demolished, and
was compelled to rebuild; and he who
charges that in anything did was ami
mated by other than sincere desire to
serve my State or that 1 had an itching
palm, or that one cent of the peoples mon
ey, other than my limited salary, was ap-
propriated to my own uses, is, without
qualification, an unmitigated lias.
My enemies, and l have plenty of them,
as my country has, in Tennessee, will tell
the member from Kentucky that his state
ment is not true. If he reads the Demo-
cratic newspapers of Tennessee he would
long since have learned that his own party
do not believe me to have been corrupt in
office. The most influential newspapers of
the State which supported Seymour and
Blair have vindlcated me from any impu-
tation upon my personal or official integ-
rity. Differing widely from me upon the
policy of my administration, they have
- | HeNeTlHeleSS uODG ne lllt ,luSIlCt W uNIuiO
, me of any official malfeasance or personal
dishonesty. 1t is further gratifying to me
to state that such has been my treatment
at the hands of the Democratic press gen.
orally in Tennessee since the bitterness of
local conficthas ceased, while many PROM
inent leaders Of that party have paid me n
like tribute. ] avail Rlyself of this Oppor-
tunity, for ! may never have another, to
thank them for this, and to express my
grateful Acknowledgements for what | be-
lieve TO be their just appreciation of my
character in that respect.
OF course my administration in Tonnes
see did not escape without personal mo-
; tives of self-interest being ascribed to me /;
but as l had no reason to shun the broad
light of day upon all my acts, invited in
yestigation, and had the good fortune to
3 be vindicated by my political antagonists.
: A Democratic committee of the Legisla-
: ture, which looked into my administration
/, of affairs with thehope of finding some de-
D linquency which would give them tri-
} umph over me, reported that they could
{ find nothing. was charged with person.
al motives in the suit Of The State Us. Will
f liam H Ballew Ct al, from which was
vindicated by the decision of the supreme
court of Tennessee, composed exclusively
, of my political opponents, and the record
, is there for any to peruse who wish.
Here the Senator goes into an elaborate
defense of the financial part of his admin
| istration familiar TO our readers. He con-
T cludes as follows:
His declaration that l am loathed and
execrated by the people of my State is as
false as hell for it Is the solace of my de-
. cliniDg days that they bring me every day
| renewed evidences of the good will and
kindly appreciation of my fellow-citizens
of Tennessee. The asperities of the war
are not yet over, and doubtless share in
, the hatred which unrepentant rebels still
manifest toward Union men, but am
, sustained by good conscience and unfalt-
) ering trust in divine goodness, and can
/ stand that.
My public acts are already part of the
history of my State and country, and l
, submit them to the honest Judgment of
posterity. As for my rude assaiapt, as
Daniel Webster once said OF a o@ntempti~
al leave him leave him in the worst
, of all possible company / leayeh him with
, himselfp ats4 -r
..s ..a. Great Revival,
: ks bBb. lathe