The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1880-10-28

Moore to see that it has widespread cir
[ ulation:
An OPEN LETTER TO WILLIAM X. MOORE.
MmrPuIs, October -, 1880.
My DEAR SIR: Upon my return to the
city late last evening I learned that yJu
.had, during my absence, been devoting
little OF VGHr spare time To Your fayuriIc
occupation OF 'lrt;cr-wriring" Tor the n,ws-
paper, and WIS shown in tie Avalanche of
yr-tcrday morning YOUR last performances.
in thai line which hsr vet reached the pub
lie, viii, rein you m.k Ike such reference 10 mo
~ Ia snvitc, | think, the liberty which |
now takc,ut replying To You through the
sSnie channel which you yourself have SC
lCc;ed and HsrG. Now, my dear sir whEn
HOn PenlR.d that paragraph in your letter to
the Avalanche III which YOU formulated
into words an expression Of your affected
belief in TIE truth of the statement that |
had III 4 public speech called you liar
when you were not present. you must have
had 4 very strong suspicion resting upon
your mind that vou were writing down 4
little fiction, To- speak Indeed, did YOU
not know such to be the f,ct, us well AZ
you knew when you were delivering vour
famous operahouSe speech, OF which Won
sevm 80 proud, that you were uttcring and
publishing to the world the wickcdcrt and
most unfounde,l libel upon the people of
your section that can b. found in all the
political literatuOe of the republican party.
putrid rs il Is with such deadly pnixon?
The most frequent among the MANY silly
and unfounded statements you are In the
constant habit Of making III your letters
and speeches is the declaration that there il
in IL
cal questions, and no free expression of DO
litiral sentiment. And yet yuu refuse to
meet me IN joint discussion at all, while
you deliver the most incendiary and OBJ
noXl"us harangucs to your followers with
out giving anEb' dy ar opportunity to re-
ply, and you have not been able vet to find
single human being in the Tenth Con-
grcsSi0nal district who would intimi,late
you, bulldoze you, or Ito express it III
new phrase suggested for your future use
even tn Eliza I'inkstun Vou You arr. inst
as safe now while making your denuncia-
tory speeches and writing your slandcTous
letter. under the heading OF Hon. VIM. K.
Moore" republican candidate for Congress,
as you were twenty years ago, wien, as
plain Chilly Moore" you Were contributing
your money freely i'll arming and eQuipping
the young men of Memphis to go out and
fight against the government which YOU are
now 50 anxious II serve rs q member of
Congress. You contribute as far 80 YOU
can to the suppression of free thought and
the sitting of all free discussion BY calling
your followers together without notice or
Invitation TO the public, spnak TO them az
you please, allow nobody to answer Won.
and then instruct them not TO come out to
hear anybody else speak. If YOU want
free speech, II the principles Of your party
are so vastly superior to those of the demo-
cratic party, why do Won rot ALLOW rom,
body to discuss them with You? II ytu
fear to meet 50 poor an antagonist rs me-
what would you dc in Congress as the rep
resentative of the metropolitan district of
the State when you uLd r ale some one of
the wonderful measures OF legislation Won
have promised to carry tn olgh? You.ssv
that you are lighting against intolerance,
persecution and oEtracisn for opinions
sake, and tiIat when you shall have accom-
plished the overthrow OF these relics of bar-
barism, your mission will be ended and
you will retire from political strife l
have been engaged III the same work for
ten years, and you and your followers are
enjoying the fruit OF my labnrs by trsyers-
ing this entire district, stirring the passions
arOusInG the prcludices and arraviag one
race against the other in the most deadly
hostility, and vet no man has offered To
public utteranceS for Fix years on the stump
and upon the floor Of Congress | have bt en-
urging the broadcast tolerance and most per
/ feet freedom everything pertaining t.
! political sentiment and action and This Il
| known to you and your entire party in this
| district. As We are both tngagcd in tn,
same good work, and as l entered the field
| first, why not You leave it and let me COM
! plete the under taking? Or, If YOU will not
surrender the whole to me- why not let
me at least share the labor with Won Iv
/ joining you in public declarations to my
/ party and yours of the high object We woulci
accomplish. You have nrrai,sned the good
! people Of this district before the public of
thiE country III terrible bill of Indictment.
| II its allegations are true they deserve the
eXecratiou OF all mankind; but if they are
false they shnuld be vindicatcd against
charges so munstrOus. You are their ac-
cuser. In gratitude for unnumbered kind.
nesscs i shall be- their defender. charge
that each rnd every one of your allegation E
against them are untrue. Let us 20 To the
tribunal before which you have laid the
charge of these fearful crimes of murder
assassinaIion and IaWIcfs violence agains;
uT ncighbors, and try the issue. Aod
promise You in the outset tliat / will prove
cuncluhiveiv, So far ~ AIRY fact not admitted
can be established by republican Witnesses
that every charge vuu make affecting the
good name, upright, candid and law.
abiding spirit OF the people among whom
you and have lived so hong is unsupport
cd by a single fact that can be proven by
any evidence save YOUR own assertion, and
even this shall fnpeach by vaur own and
the declarations of at least six of your most
trusted followers. Now will you accep
this proposition, and either prove that tn,
section i'm which We live is = land of bar
barisln, Icopied by .avages, or that this old
old story of murder, assassination, kuklux
ing and general private and public de
bauciitry in the sCHth il but the. malignant
gossip Of some worthless strangers, or thc
spurious charge Of some ungrateful son
There Is another question which vou and
may thus determine, or enable the % ,nnls
! To do 50 for It's. We are both aspirants ioI
a position OF distinguished honor and higI
responsibilities, and our respective quail +
cations to fill 1t Is question of some int
, ct to those whom We are 10 represent
charge that your acts and conduct have IN
fitted you to hold that position, while
, claim that mine entitle ne to continuet
public confidence and support. While
have boeen seeking by judicial and practi
cal legislation to bring wealth to our PEG
pie, yOu have been hurting curSt 5 and I'm
, athciuas ut them. While / have been try
q ing TO secure CONNIE rcial prosperity to or
marts of trade, Won hive, by your Violen
4 utieranccs. been inviting blight and ruiz
. While have been endeavoring to infuS
: more vitality into our city, after Eein
! wasted and well nigh destroyed by th
; plague, You have been pointing IN derisiO
= to it's empty houses and decaying awning
= While l have been vindicating from til
foulest aspersiuls those whom your none
: armed to fight against the government yo