Bristol news. [volume] (Bristol, Va. & Tenn.) 1867-189?, 1872-12-17
TUESDAY, DECEMBER II, 1872.
AN EXPOSURE.

ties which still live in Tennessee,
as historic relics of the era of vul-
garity inaugurated by VIM. G.
Brownlow. We had hoped that
a better era had dawned upon the
Tennessee Press. That if an
inadvertent wrong had been done
it would be quite sufficient to rest
upon the charitable belief, that
though a gentleman could err, he
could not resist the delicate protest
Of his conscience against its muir
der at his own hand. We shall not
resort to that dialect Of the fish
market which has become OBJ
solete in those ranks where the
HERALD AND TRIBUNE does not cir
culate. Nor shall we speak in the
language which it would seem
best to understand. Our business
is with the public, and it shall be
to show, that the Editors of that
paper are incapable of aspiring to
that delicate standard of honor,
which unloads its conscience of an
error, as soon as perceived.
In our issue of Nov. 18th, we
stated that "Judge Gillen waters
had refused to hold his Court, in
either Johnson, Carter or Sullivan.
A more scnseless proceeding, we
have seldom heard Of"
Before closing the article, we
stated that "Judge Gillenwaters in
dismissing his Courts, has inflicted
a shameful wrong upon a people,
who are already oppressed by the
long list of untried cases which
have for years been on his docket" "
This was legitimate criticism of
the public acts of a public officer.
1t did not touch the, motives of
Judge Gillenwaters, but alluded to
the "wrong" which his Shameful
degree of alarm had resulted in.
But it seems that one of the Ed
itors Of the ii. & T., has been for
some time Clerk of Judge Gillen-
waters Court at JonesbOro, and
that he deemed it a fitting thing for
him to do, that he should run him
for Congress, and attempt to dis
honor every one who did not do
likewise. So in his issue Of the
28th of November this Clerk
Editor, places himselfin the follow
ing tangled attitude:
"The Bristol Ncrs and Courier in
their last issues both indulge in til
raie upon his action in this case which
is TO say is the least ungenerous and
uniustiiable. But those journals must
have known that in suspending the
Courts he acted in accordance with the
Expressed wish of the municipal au-
Jhorities in the several towns where the
Courts were to have been held. They
Of A Il i'm,
each town is the properly constituted
guardian of the public health, and that
a request of this kind on their part,
under the circumstances. could not he
disregarded by Judge Gillenwaters
without showing a reckless inGiffer-
vace TO human life, for which they
would have been the first to censure
him.
True they say the disease is rapidly
dying out in Bristol, and that there
can now be no danger of spreading it.
But what reliance can be placed on the
statement of journals that purposely
and knowingly Pervert the truth, as
they have in this case, in order to in
iure an individual at whose hands they
have never received ought but kind
ness.
Honest criticism of the acts of public
men is always proper and legitimate,
but when it is called forth by personal
malace or political animosity it not
only fails ofits object but rebounds TO
the dlserect of the maligner him
-ylr"
We had been on terms of persO-
nal friendship with the II. d T.,
and having occasion to remit them
for some paper they had furnished
us, we, under date of 29th wrote
as follows:
"Your leader is, toward me,
vary personal and very offensive.
You assign MOTIVES for my refer
cace to Judge Gillenwaters. You
accuse me of wilfully perverting
ruth. Such statements from such
source, astOund me, and will re-
sc.vc attention of some sort"
Yours truly,
|. G. FOWLER.
we were unwilling to appear over
ready TO resent an insult which car
lied fallacy upon its own 'front.'
We very well knew that any intel
ligent and thoughtful reader would |
see, that the Editor of the II. & T. |
lad asserted as true, what he did |
not, and could not know 10 be true,
and hence he had placed HIMSELF
in a very pitiable attitude. We
were hopeful that he would
promptly extricate himself from
the delema, and hence we called his |
attention to If. We very well !