Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1876-08-10
Gen. Savage and State
Finances.

a three hours speech in the court
house last Friday to an attentive
audience. We were unavoidably
absent at the opening and closing
of the address, and, in justice tt
the speaker, will not attempt
full report. The positions assum
ed and arguments advanced, judg
ing from what we heard, were
similar to those delivered at Col.
umbia, of which we have a re
port:
Referring to national aft sirs, he
compared the cost of maintaining
the Federal Government in the
earlier period of its history and
for the last few years. He de-
clared himself in favor of reform,
and said that the present was the
time for the reformation to com
mence 1t seemed to him that re-
formation was needed in policy
and platform as we'll as men. 1t
was his intention to vote for Til
den aud Hendricks, though the
ticket was not the best in the
world. 1t would not be sweetest
morsel in the world to him; but
Hayes and Wheeler would be like
poison. lie event for" the National
Banks and dealt some very hard
blows at them. They were doub.
ling their capital every seven
years. In twenty,one years they
would accumulate to a sum great
er than the vast national debt,
and in double that time their
wealth would he greater than all
the property in the United States.
For the last sixteen years the
policy of the Republican party had
been one of continued disaster to
The country, and there must be a
change. The people were sick unto
death ofthe present state of affairs.
Tilden and Hendricks might not
be what the people wanted, but
the Republican candidates were
equal to death itself.
After some further discussion
of national affairs, Col. Savage
turned his attention to the State
debt and the legality of borrowing
money on the faith and credit of
TIE State. Some people had said
he was in favor Of reputation, but
he would take the opportunity to
deny that he was for reputation
in the evil sense OF the word.
Such men as wanted to pay only
half of what they claimed TO be
just debt, and such men as wan
ted to ignore it entirely by pass
ing it by and leaving it Tor poster
ity to settle, were repudi4tiOuiSts
to some extent. But there was
no reputation in the doctrine he
taught. The law he taught COM
handed all men to live honestly
hurt no man, and give to every
one his due. 1t also taught that
law was common sense, and that
there was or ought to be, a leme
dy for every wrong, and happi-
ness to every human being. A
man dared not utter the truth
these days, for if he did he would
be bounded from one end Of the
State to the other by bondholders,
newspapers, orators and mischieV-
GUS politicians.
He held that, under the Consti-
tuition of the State, the Legislature
had no power to issue bonds or to
borrow money. The people new
er invested them with such power
That power belonged to the peo-
pie and did not vest in the hands
of a few men. The Constitution
of Tennessee had placed an express
Limitation upon the power of the
Legislature, and the only power
that body had was to levy taxes,
those taxes to be equal and uni
form throughout the State.
The system of internal improve
ments, Col. Savage said, was
dangerous and ruinous one. No
personal obligation Tor the pay
ment of this debt rested upon any
man, woman or child in this State,
and no Tennesseean could be sued
on these bonds in or cut of the
State. In point of law and fact,
there was no personal obligation.
If it had been the intention of the
to create a lien in The
nature of a mortgage upon the
then taxable property Gland and
negrCes) of the State, it could Ue
shown, from the highest legal au-
thority, that the obligation had
been released and discharged.
By the emancipation Of the negroes
in Tennessee, that part Of the per-
sonaI obligation had ceased to
have any effect. The slaves, as