Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1876-05-27
GOvERNOR BROWNLOW's LETTER.

may be stated very briefly; they made
no nomination for Governor, the ia
vorite of the white section for Presi-
dent was evidently Bristow; that of the
colored section, Morton, and latterly
they seemed disposed to concentrate
on Blaine. A motion to send no Office
holders as delegates to the National
Convention at Cincinnati was tabled
by large majority.
On the whole the policy of the Ten
nessee Radicals seems to be that of
watching and waiting. Their hopes
are conferred in the anticipation that
Reputation may be strong enough to
divide the Democratic party; they pro-
test vehemently against it, they secret
ly pray that it may be strong.
We pay our exclusive attention now
TO Mr.. Brownlow's letter.
On the face of it this looks like
sturdy, honest anti-Repudiation man
ifesto and nothing more; and so we
read it at first, but on a reperusal the
cloven foot soon peeped out and by the
time we got to the end of the second pc
rusal, tail and horns had both disclosed
themselves, and the veritable AUD
Hornie" stood revealed full length.
The first suspicious point about it
was the old and oft refuted libel on
JEFF. Davis, that he led the State of
Mississippi into the slough ofrepudia-
tion--he, who had made no entranceinto
public life at the time when the battle
of reputation was fought in Mis-
sissippi. Was this worthy of the
old partisan who, with all the rancor
of his political animosities, gener-
ally pursues straight forward course
with them? We put it to the Gov
ernor as an honest man, if be is
sincere in preferring the credit and
honor of Tennessee to all party con-
siderations. is this a wise way to fight
repudiation2 He must know that there
are old soldiers in Tennessee by tens
of thousands, who would look on re-
pudiation with much more leuieney if
proposed to them in the name of their
old chief, than as coming from newer
demagOgues-will he not look over
the sources of his information and
correct this mischievous error? Ifthe
name Of Davis is still potent spell to
conjure with, will he not frankly tell
the Tennesseeans that that name was
never stained with the degrading
brand of reputation.
One other point of criticism and we
proceed to those parts of the letter
which meet our hearty appreciation.
In his exordium, which is of course
all to the praise of Republicanism and
dispraise of Democracy, he tells the
Republicans that "itwas their privilege
to establish the best system of free
public instruction which the State
ever had; and that they did all this in
spite of every obstacle which the Sc
cession Democracy could throw in
their pathway"
Yes, on paper the Radical party were
profuse in their zeal for public educa-
ton; but what became of the splendid
means, the millions then possessed by
Tennessee for that purpose? What
became of the school fund? It was
during the administration of Cover
nor Brownlow that that fund became
invisible and has never yet been ac-
counted for; and, alas, this was only
one item of countless populations of
that period, the palmy days of Radi-
ealism In Tennessee, when stealing
from an ex-rebel was deemed all fair
as coming under the category of the
spoils of war.
Does not Governor Brownlow know
that the profuse Issuance of bonds in
his days for purposes to which they
were never applied is the trump card
in the hands of regulators of the
present day? Does he not know that
they furnish the stump orator and the
bar-rOom politician with his most
damaging arguments against the pay
ment of any bonds at all?
We we'll remember at the time when
the Radical government was drawing
so prohigately upon the credit of the
State, what earnest and foreboding
protests wise men made against such
reckless prodigality as leading by d.
rect road to reputation and the pre-
diction is fulfilled: if ever the State
should reach that last depth of disast-
er and disgrace, the extravaganza and
peculation of the Brownlow admins
tration will be looked back upon as the
most efficient of all the causes which
combined to force it there.
We do not accuse Governor Brown
low of personal corruption, but it was
practiced during his administration
with an unblushing hardihood match
ing that of the Babcocks and Belk-
maps of the Washington circles, and
he is at least so far responsible for it
and the clamOr for reputation which
has been so largely promoted by it,
that it is at least specially incumbent
upon him to grid himself to the work
of correcting the evil.
We believe him to be in earnest in
denounclng reputation, and after ex-
tracing these thorns of party rancor,
We freely accord the admission that
the letter is good letter, so much so
that We now quote a paragraph from it
that meets our hearty appreciation
I would rather vote for an honest Demo-
crat than "a dishonest Republican, and |
warn all repudiatOrs who wish to steal
their way into the Legislature by appeal to
party, that on this question in East Ten
neSsee we know no party but the party of
honest men. am confident in the belief
that the great mass of the Republicans of
Tennessee are in favor OF the payment of
all of the states Indebtedness in letter and
spirit, and, likewise, the better element of
the Democratic party, and for the good
fame OF Tennessee l hope that the masses
of that party are OF like faih. No Repub-
ncan thief shall cram himself down Our
threats in East Tennessee with the clamor
of ma tional issues, so il there be any OF
that sort OF cattle looking for preferment I
admOnish them that we will find them out
in East Tennessee and treat them accord