Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1876-07-29
AppoYEp pY THE PEOPLE.

I happened to know something as to
the creation of this debt. In 1854
I was a member of the legislature from
Maury county. At that session the
general internal improvement bill,
granting State aid to railroads, was
passed. Against that bill my vote was
recorded; but it was not given because
[ doubted the authority of the legisla-
ture to contract debt and issue bonds
to build roailroads, or make other i'm
provements. No man in either branch
of that general assembly expressed
such an opinion. In the year 1849 the
legislature refused to pass an internal
Improvement bill; but after the matter
was discussed before the people, the
legislature, in 1851, passed bill grant
ing some aid to railroads. With a
knowledge of this fact the people elec-
ted legislature in 1853 which increas-
ed this aid to a large extent. 1t was
neither party nor a sectional ques-
ton. The house of representatives
was Wing, and the senate was Demo-
cratic, and the governor, Andrew
johnson, was a Democrat. He re-
commended these measures first in his
inaugural address in the following
words: "The,subject of internal i'm
proyements by our local authorities
has also excited deep and lively in
terest among our people in many por-
tions of the State. A we'll regulated
system Of internal improvents, intend
ed and calculated to give all reasona-
BILE facilities to the mechanical, agri-
cultural and commercial pursuits of
the country, ought to receive such aid
as will come clearly within the finan-
cial ability of the people. IF such aid
has to be given by the creation ofState
indebtedness, the legislature which
creates the debt should never fail to
provide the means to meet the annu-
ally accruing interest and principal as
they fall due" Afterward, during the
same session, in his first message, he
said "A we'll regulated system of in
ternal improvements would seem to
indicate that the leading and most
prominent roads intended and calcu-
lated to connect the three grand diYis-
ions of the State, should first be Sc
lected and completed. Such other
works should theh be undertaken as
experience and the interests of the
country might suggest. It should be
the primary object of the general as
sembly to bind the State together, from
Carter to Shelby, by railroads and
other improvements which would Sc
cure the gleat end in making us one
and the same people in agriculture,
commerce and mechanics, A system
al II
beyond the limits of the State, would
seem to accomplish the object of the
constitution. All of the members
from East Tennessee, and a large ma
iority of those from West Tennessee.
including the members from Shelby,
Fayette, Upton, .Hardeman, Madison,
Gibson, and from nearly all the other
counties, yoted for the general internal
improvement bill, at the session of
1854. After this bill became law,
the people, with knowledge of this
fact elected legislature in 1855 which
increased State aid to large extent.
In his message to the legislature, in
1856, Governor johnson said: Our
various works of internal improve
ment are steadily and constantly ad-
vancing by the timely and judicious
aid of the State, developing our rich;
est and hidden latent resources, and
bearing of to the markets of the world,
at high rates, the mechanical, agri-
cultural, and other products of the
country" In 1857 Isham G. Harris
was elected governor, and the legisla-
tuFe at that session, instead of repeal-
ing the laws giving State aid, gave
some additional aid to railroads. The
number of bonds issued by Andrew
johnson amounted to s., ,220,0 900, and
by Isham 9. Harris to S,840,000
These facts are mentioned to show that
the people, in their election of repre-.
sentatives, year after year, sanctioned
the policy of issuing bonds to rail-
road oompalies, The governors mere
" executed the laws passed by
the representatives Of the people
and are not responsible for the