Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1878-07-28

morning Ii is not the first time it has been
poiHtedly asked. and he has heretofore refused
to answer; at least, he did so when Luke Fin
lay asked him before large audience near
Germantown. Why Is General Vaughan ST.
Leaf? The question has been asked by Dem
Ocrdts and his old army friends; it is not
a ked by the Radical WorkinOmen National
R-eckiH0 party Are they satisfied that he
= Il vote their ticket? Has he told them So2
|, must be, or else they would not be so proud
o his name on their ystyiped ticket. Then, is
& neral Vaughan ashamed to let his old
friends and comrades know that he is support
il a ticket made up of every conceivable
s. ade, except that of the faith aud hope of
tie south, the party of and for the people?
l. he ashamed to let them know that he is
pportingibyl hisigood name (partly based on
eds of heroism and vaior, which will go
d )wn to his chiidren's children with halo
Of glory which cannot tade) party and peo-
pie antagonlstlG in every respect? Is he
ashamed to let them know that he Is (unwit-
tingly, perhaps) trying TO break down the
party of his friends, and of that section for
which he fought, and in its place to
build up in Shelby county a par
ty which will send a representative
to the next congress, who will be against the
repeal of the resumption act; against the i'm
provement Of the Mississippi river or Its
eYees; against a southern Pacific railroad;
against taxing United States bonds, or
against their payment in legal tenders, and
for everything which the Republican party
wants? 1t may be a matter of expediency
ut cannot be OF amblhon), or the advice of
men who more regarded money than any
thing; but however this may be, the songs of
his youth, the yell SO often heard in his glo-
rl0us manhood and the sad greetings of his
friends yet will never fall as sweetly on his
ears again. 1t is a sad picture, and the writer
draws 1t In sorrow and regr t.
ANOTHER CONFED.
The POll-Tax.
EDITORS APPEAL-AU the poll-tax goes to
the school fund. When it Is paid promptly,
on the usual notice, no commissions or costs
are charged. The school fund is used with
the most scrupulous care to keep up and sup
port our city and county schools. About
eighteen months ago the board of education
Of the Memphis city schools joined In me-
mortal to the legislature, asking that body
to except the school tax from that general
provision of the law which postponed the col
lection of taxes till October, 1877. The Leg
islature did not heed this memorial. The
collection of all taxes was postponed. The
schools Of our city struggled on through 1877
and part of 1873 as best they could, under
a most wise, economical and well-directed
management Of a wise and able board 1.-THE
writer was not of the number), until the
early spring of this year. Then the finance
committee made very gloomy report to that
body. Its statement of the financial condi-
ton was so discouraging that the board
thought it prudent to consider and discuss it
in secret session. The result was few pub
lic-spirited gentlemen, who felt a deep inter-
est in the schools, went to work to remove
the trouble which threatened to crush them.
At the next meeting of the board a more ia
vorabe report was made, and IN March
special committee, raised for the purpose Of
getting out of the financial difficulty, made
an oh md F1ll h.
lIshed in the papers. Its main feature was
petition or memorial to the county court, pray
ing that tax of ten cents, instead of five
cents on the dollar, be levied to support the
schools. The county court considered and
discussed this memorial with that care and
discretion which characterizes that body.
In the discussion it was developed that there
was eleven thousand nine hundred and fifty
nine polls for 1876 unpaid. As business men,
and men of sound sense and good discretion,
they turned their attention to this delin-
quency. They naturally said, If we can
collect this twenty-three thousand nine hun
bred and eighteen dollars. or the half of it,
the school board will be satisfied, and there
will be no necessity to add to the burden of
taxes which is now too heavy on our people.
With this view the following order was made,
at the April term, 1873:
"Ordered by the court, that the chairman of this
court be and is hereby to to appoint agents
collect delinquent poll-tax for 1876"
Pursuant to this order, Tom Holman. jr.,
has gone forward with his characteristic fdel-
ity in the discharge of his duty, and collected
this tax through his agents. In July this uu-
pleasant and irksome business was taken out
of the hands of Esquire Holman by the cleo
ton of Mr.. c. Weatherford as back-tax col
lector. Mr. Weatherford will collect that tax,
and delinquents may begin to look out.
There was a time in the history of Memphis,
within the memory of men now living, when
a man who did not pay his taxes, and espe
'cially his poll-taz, had no credit with his
neighbors. That time sunk about 1865. 1t
may revive. There are prayers going up to
the Almighty that it will be revived soon.
The reportorial and editorial corps
q believe that is the style in
modern parlance) of your cotem-
porary which plays the organ so zealously for
the National (?) faction might have had all
the information given in this communication
if they had spent half an hour IN going over
the records of the school hoard and the coun-
ty court If have called upon the hypoder
mic system to inject few facts and little
common sense into this question, they must
charge it to their want of energy in looking
for facts. Yours, truly,
BP. ANDERSON.