The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1874-11-05
A CASE IN POINT.

A CASE IN POINT
Now, was this wrong? Suppose one
Of you owes, let me say Gen. Dibrcil,
Il hundre | dollars. lie borrowed the
money five years ago, and promised to
pay the interest semi annually. This
hc has failed to do, aud o Gen.
Dlbrcll wants his money. But the
man says, 81 cannot pay you now; !
have property aud resources which |
can make the money from, but ! have
not got itnow." Very well you owe
me o thirty dollars OF interest; just
give II new note Tor $3.50. and | will
give you more time. You have youth,
energy, resources, and, above all, hon
cstr, and will not press you"
Isn't that honest? Isn't that right?
And if it is right between individuals,
why isn'tit right between the State and
her creditors, for the State is only an
aggregation Of Individuals. That is
all there is Of the ''infamous" funding
bill, and if there is mar within the
sound of my voice who will say that it
is not right and honest, | would like
to hear from him. a pause, and no
answer,
There are distinguished men now
going about the State dcnouncing
these measures, who were informed OF
the fact that they were pending before
the Legislature, and raised no warning
voice against them. "Where was
kodcrick Dhu, whose bugle blast were
worth ten thousand men 7" They
knew then that we were carrying out
the instructions of our constituents to
the best Of our ability, and | think they
are doing the honesty of the people
great injustice in supposing that they
have 50 500 forgotten the instruc.
tons they gave US.
Fellow citizens wc cannot too firm.
~ insist upon the fundamental truth
that the maintenance OF the fair fame
and public faith OF the State and ma
ton, is the very
FOUNDATION STONE OF OUR PROSPERITY.
Let the quirksanhs Of reputation
and violated faith swallow this foun-
dalion stone and the whole editicc falls
to the earth in ruins. You all know
how necessary it is for q man to main
tain his individual honor and credit.
\ on may say that you have no need to
anything, hut there are times
and occasions in the life of every man
when his existence may depend upon
the credit which is gwen to his prom.
Uses and to his plighted words. And
when these are forfeited, to what a
Dltlahle condition is man reduced.
Y attcl III his Laws of Nations quotes
rom Grotius' History oil the Disturb
Inces in the Netherlands 10 the effect
SIN 1896 Philip III declared himself
bankrupt, under pretense that an unfair
advantage hal been taken of his ne
His creditors loudly ex
laimed against his conduct, and as
efted that no confidence could thence.
be placed either ia his word
r his treaties since he interposed the
'yal authority to supercede them. He
,uld no longer find any one who was D..
Hing TO lend him money and his af- /
IRIS suffered SO severely in conse.
hence that he was obliged to rerlace
ings on their former footing, and to-
al the wound which he had given tOI
e public faith" d
Yet we find now, in the South, a few \,
stinguished public men openly or :
verify advocating reputation of the u
'iigations Of the State aud nation. 81
'sht here, let me reed to you, as a te
answer to their arguments. ~
nat 'altel says in his treatise Of the :,
'ws OF Nation upon this point. :"
"S2l5. When a lawful power con. X
'cts in the name of the State, it lava a