The weekly herald. [volume] (Cleveland, Tenn.) 1876-1888, 1877-04-12
The Democratic Repudiation'
ist.

Redfcld, the Tennessee cores
pondent Of the Cincinnati Com
mercial says of the Wilson county
Democrats;
The mcetingin Lebanon was in
reference to the State debt. Sol
enn resolutions were adopted
against reputation, but in favor
of scaling the bonds down to their
present market value in New
York-rorty-fOur cents on the
dollar! That is 4 beautiful prop
osition. After iOoling with the
creditors for years making them
promise one season to break the
next, decciying them, cheating
them, lying to them, and acting
in such unmistakable bad faith
that the bonds have gone down
on the creditors hands to forty
four cents on the dollar, and then
step Nd and say: "We will give
YOU new bonds for the old ones at
the rate Of lorty-iOUr cents on the
dollar; it is all they are worth!
If this is not a clear case of Ia
king advantage Of ones wrong,
which the law says shall not be
done. don't know where you will
find it. OF course if the swindling
nrocnss Of having neither interest
nor principal is continued, the
bonds will 20 lower. Suppose we
wait until they are twenty cents
on the dollar, and then say to the
HELPLESS creditor: Here, take
twenty cents in new bonds iOl
your old ones; its all they're
worth"
TO show the b~are-faced dishon.
esty Of the treatment which the
creditors OF Tennessee have beer
subjected to for years, it is only
necessary to state that the debt;
of Cincinnati and Tennessee are
almost precisely the same. The
taxable valuation Of Cincinnati
is about 1854, 100000, while that d
Tennessee is about $27j,0O0,0O0
And your rate of taxation is sey
en- times greater than that Of thi,
State. OF course an agriculture
country cannot stand a city tax
but only six mills, or at most sly
and a half mills, are required here
to pay current expenses and in
..terest on the debt here. Andin
terest IS all the creditors ask
They are willing to give the State
/. a hundred years if necessary,
she will but pay interest, at th'
low rate Of six per cent.
| have no personal interest il
this thing except as a Taxpayer
never saw a State bond and don
. want to; never talked with
bondholder that l know Of, AM
, don't know who they are an,
, don't care. ! only know the Stat.
owes the money, and has had val
ne received for it, and that he
treatment Of her creditors is
shame and a disgrace, and Shouts
; be a matter Of humiliation t.
( every citizen. For years the Leg
, islatures have treated the credit
! ors dishonesty, levying only
: niggardly four-mill tax, a matte
of small moment to Il propert.
, owner, for if not able to pay tina
! he had better give away his PROF
erty, and certainly Of no conse
y quenco at all to a non-propert
holder, who hes none Of it to cor
:, tribute. a man with five thor
sand dollar farm for instance ha
only twenty dollars taxation
wear, and if the rate was put Il
u so as to pay interest on the Diet
I his increase would be but to
l. dollars. j..
= A. State with but n four-mi
+. tax, lower than that Of any OF tn
surrounding States, only show
her dishonesty when she seeks
keep her creditors from the MOI
ev they have advanced upon he
n plighted faith and honor.