The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1879-03-06

State, so far as they could, from ali
obligation to pay them?
ACTION OF LEGISLATURE OF lS69-7O.
Why did the Legislature, then also
in session, recognize by their legis
lative action these very Brownlow
bonds? They then investigated
fully this question, and all The facts
we're then fresh before them, and
let me again ask why did they not
pronounce them fraudulent and void
if they were so? Will it be said il
was moral and physical cowardicei
Did they not pronounce bonds il
sued to the Valley of Virginia 10
surance Company and the Mineral
Home Railroad Company voldi
Why did they not pronounce the
others so also, if they were2
Certainly it was not cowardic,
that caused the Legislature To pass
the act of goth January, 1870, an
thorizIng the railroad company 10
pay into the State in liquidation of tie
principal Of said indebtedness ahy OF
the legally Issued siT per cent bonds ~
kks State of Tennessee outstanding.
without regard 10 series Ornumber
Gov. Marks says: "Under liuress
from the threatened overthrow OF
the State government by Federal
Interference and believing they haa
the abilityctO4 provide for the pay
menS of the entire debt, the tax
payers submitted TO the grave
wrongs which had been done them,
rather than. imperil their liberties
and subject themselves to unfliend.
~ criticism, and they went down in
the hopeless effort
Cowardiee might account for their
refusal to repudiate these bonds.
but some mercenary principle will
have To he imagined if is supposed
they authorized bonds to be re
ceived which they knew 10 be fraud.
uleRt. Ii they had intended To rex
clude bonds issued by Gov Brown.
low, they could and would hive SO
SAID in their legislation. By per.
hitting bonds of any series to be-.
received, they made no distincuon
between what are called Brownlow.
bonds and any other bonds.
Cows. Brown and Porter, and all
our State Comptrollers so construed
the law, and so our courts held in
the railroad cases which went. be
fore them, and which were brought
there by our commissioners, +. b
Fogg, A. Wright and r. j. McKin-
ney, whose names are a sufficient
recommendation without any re-
mark from me. The present Cover
nor A. S. Marks, has been in public
life since 1870, in that year having
been elected Chancellor. In 1872
he made political speeches, and was
before the Democratic Convention
of 1874 as a candidate for the Dem.
ocratic nomination for Governor
and in 1876 he made an elaborate
speech at Manchester on the State
debt question. Why did he not, on
some of those occasions, say that q
large portion Of the debt of Tennes
see was fraudulent, and should moi
be paidp Where did he obtain any
new light, or gather any new factsi
He does not state a single fact N
his message that is new. Every
well-informed man, who is at all ia.
miliar with the financial history OF
the State, with the Comptroller's re
ports and the reports of the investi
eating committees, has known for
the last nine years all the facts
which are stated in this message
but they have also known the other
side to the question, which has not
been stated H. this message. In
his speech IN Manchester be sail
that when orr people had a free
voice they ignored the wrongs which
we had mentioned, acknowledged
the obligation of the whole debt,
and he said if they would permit u
% create State bank it would make
us $l,500,000 per annum, which
would pay not only the interest on
our debt, but would rapidly extin-
guish the principal by purchase of
bonds. If we reject all bonds sup
posed to be tainted with fraud, then
in equity and good conscience we
are bound to pay in full ali that are
shown to be genuine and valid, for
''he who asks equity must do equi
ty," and this would leave us a much
larger debt than we would have by
n settlement with our creditors sat
isfactory to them and honorable 10
us.
THE PLEA OF POVERTY.
The plea or poverty will avail us
nothing with intelligent men either
in or out of the State. "If we take
the benefit of the pauper's oath"
said Mr.. Clapp, let us be sure we
make q clean breast of it," Tennes-
see has less tax in proportion TO
her productions than almost any
State IN the Union.
The rate of State taxation in the
Southern States that lost much
more by the war than Tennessee is
as follows: Louisiana $l.45, Ala
bahama 20 cents, Georgia 90 cents,
Florida 80 cents, Arkansas $l.OO,
W NcuOSt Mt9oOuii ~
cents, Virginia so cents.
We have been paying thousands
of dollars per year TO publish books
our great wealth and re
sources, TO show how rich and great
we are, and yet when we are called
to pay even fifty or sixty cents per
capita each year TO preserve our
credit and liquidate our just Indebt-
edness, wethrow around us the pro
tecting cloak of the ''paupers' oath"
OUR CREDITORS AND THE GOVERNMENT.
Gov. Marks says that we must
call upon the Federal Government
to pay a considerable portion OF our
debt, because OF the spoliations |
made during the war.
Here follows an extract from |
Gov. Marks late message recitiDg |
The depradations OF Federal soldiers
during the war, and proposing 70
Offset the ante war bonds with a
claim of damages against the u. >.
We omit the extract
for want of space.-ED. CITIZEN.
No one knows better than Gov.
Marks that this never can, never
will be done. He had just as well