Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1877-11-24
THE CRIsIs FOR TENNEssEE.


The approaching extra session of |
our State Legislature is now so near
at hand that il would be considered
strange if we failed to have few
words to say to our readers on the
subject, nay we should be in danger
of causing them to think that the
discouraging result in the Leg
islature last winter had led us to
abandon as hopeless the position we
had held from the beginning in de-
fence of the States credit. Any
thing rather than that. We even
now approach the subject with mis-
giving as to the effect of our words
the subject has been so hackneyed
that WEAKNESS Overspreads mems
spirits VIXEN they hear of it-but,
whatever the result, we feel that at
this juncture some words are de-
manded from us in behalf of the
honor, the credit and the future
prosperity of the State. Let us then
understand distinctly the question
now before our representatives in
the General Assembly. 1t is not
what we are going to propose, but
what are we going to do about a
most liberal proposition which our
creditors have made us. Our cred
itors offer to give us 40 per cent. of
the debt we owe them. No honest
statement of the question can be
made on any other terms. There
are only three answers that can be
nationally made to this proposition.
First-We accept it gladly and
with gratitude.
Second-We are bankrupt and
can't pay it.
Third-You can't help yourselves
and we want pay it.
The first is, as we see things, the
only answer which as honest men
we could make; the second would be
a lie, known to all parties concerned
as such; the third would be plain re-
pudiatiOn for which we hardly think
that the people of this State are
ready, though persistent efforts have
been made to bring them to it and
the opposition to it has been feebly
and cOldly maintained by some who
should have been in the front of the
battle. But there aTestill men who
think that some compromise ought
TO be proposed by us, by which we
should pay something less than six
ty per cent. of our debt. Thus a
gentleman from an adjoining cOun-
ty argued i'm this way with us: "YOu
think we ought to pay sixty per
cent. on our bonds, but there are
men who think that fifty per
cent. is rs much as we can pay and
others forty, thirty-three, twenty
fivetwenty etc. Now don't yOuthink
that you ought to compromise and
say fifty or forty per cent, for
the sake of settling the matter and
taking it out of politics ?" In other
matters we have a high respect for
our cOllocutor, but must think that
he showed little judgment in this
argument. He seems to forget that
this proposition is itself a compro-
mise and that it is childish TO talk
of some other compromise between
that and nothing at all.
No! from us no proposition at all
can hOnOrably come except to pay
the whole debt at par; and, when
our creditors voluntarily offer to set
tie at 60 per cent, to offer them any
thing less is plain reputation. Yes!
though we offered them $3.50 per
cent.
The question before us is a plain
one and has to be met at once. 1t is
this: "Shall we close gladly with a
liberal offer, or shall We plainly de-
clare ourselves fraudulent bankrupts
before the whole nation"