Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1879-11-09
SUNDAY, NOV. 8, 1879.
REPUBLICANS AND THE STATE
DEBT ONCE MORE

Hon W. E. Kindrick, of Roane
county, has written another letter
to the Nashville american, for the
purpose Of convincing the mana
gers of that journal that the Re
publican party may be trusted to
bring about the reforms necessary
to a sound, healthy, prosperous
State government in Tennessee.
The task is a hopeless one, and We
are surprised that Mr.. Kindrick
has undertaken it. The american,
in its zeal, to have the record Of
the Republican party appear as a
shutting and unreliable one, and
that therefore the party can not be
trusted to act honestly in the great
question of settling the State debt,
tries to fa8ten upon the party the
odium of supporting Dorsey B.
Thomas, a leading Repudi-
%ationist. This is a forced con-
clugion, utterly without founda-
ton. Individual Republicans
undoubtedly supported Dorsey B.
Thomas, not because of his position
on the State debt question, but SIM
ply because he was opposing the
regular Democratic nominee. And,
Judged by their platform, there was
very little difference any way, for
the regular Democracy hat year
had SO far yielded to the demands
of the low tax party as to pledge
themselves against any increase in
taxation. This, taken in connec
ton with the course of the preced7
ing Democratic Legislature, justi-
fed the chasing of the regular
Democracy as repudiationists, and
so, after declining to make a nomi-
nation, the Republicans had no
choice left them, except to vote for
one Of the Democrats or not vote
at all. A great many Of them did
not vote at all, as will be seen by
reference to the returns. The course
and platform of the Republicans
that year was not wise by any
means, but it was the only party
that took anything like strong State
credit grounds. The editor of the
american is too well posted not to
know these things, and too truthful
to deny them. AS We have stated
before, the Republican party in
Tennessee must be judged by its
public utterances and by the RECORD
made by the Republican members o.
the several Legislatures. By these
we will stand or fall. We assert
and defy successful contradiction
that fairly judged the record of tht
Republican party in Tennessee OF
the State debt question is unassail
able.
The american tries to make Mr.
Kindrick appear as admitting tina:
there is some force in its former
statements that the Republicans o
Tennessee are too Ignorant to set
tie this question properly. We MAKE
no such admission in any sense
whatever. The masses of the Re
publican party are just as intelli
gent and just al we'll qualified tt
exercise their high privileges at tn
ballQt-box as the Democrats. Thez
are as wise and as patriotic, and any
statements to the contrary are not il
accordance with the facts. And tn,
Republican leaders in the State ar
as able, as intelligent, as well edu
Gated and as patriotic as the leader
of the Democracy. The objectio.
as to ignorance is no bette
founded than some others which ar
light as a feather, but to which tn
american appears to attach grea
weight.
The foundation of all the mis-
chievous, rotten sentiment in Ten
nessee, lies in the indiscriminat