Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1880-08-05

a
4 the sale Of these bonds they Oh
tanned the capital Of the Ban
] OF Tennessee and the Union an,
Planters Bank, from which tn
State derived a large revenue
! The capitol Of Tennessee wa
built, the Hermitage purchased
and the construction of the turn
pixies and railroads in Tennessee
were aided by the sale of Ties
bonds. These turnpiked and rail
roads have vastly increases tn
wealth and taxable property of
our State since 1850. From 1873!
to 1861 every governor of th'
State, including governors New
ton Cannon, JAS. x. Polk, Jas.C
Jones, Aaron v. Brown, Neil S
Brown, WilliamiT rousdale, VIM
B. Campbell, Andrew johnson
and Isham q. Harris were CON
cerned in some measure i'll the is
suance and sale Of the bond:
which created almost our entire
present Indebtedness. Soon af,
ter the war the citizens and pub
lie spirited men all over the State
held public meetings and petit
toned the Brownlow government
to issue more bonds to rebuild the
roads almost destroyed by the
war. Brownlow's government
issued the bonds, they were sold
for currency in the market and
the roads rebuilt. BY an act of
the Legislature of 1870 all the
railroads, to which aid had been
granted and which had failed ia
pay their interest as provided by
law, were sold and the proceeds
of the sales were applied to the
payment Of the State debt, there
by reducing it about one-half or
about twenty millions Of dollars.
1t is also a part of the history
ofthe Democratic party of Ten
nessee, since the close of the war
and its readvent into power, that
they have recognized the validi-
ty Of the debt by passing an act
to fund the same, and in their
conventions at Nashville, in 1874
and 1876, they declared the debt
to be valid and binding.
In the year 1870, the Demo
cratic party regained control of
theState government by refrain
ing Q Constitution with their own
hands. Tennessee is now the
same State she was in 1861,
when her people were SO patri-
otic as to be willing to die for
her honor. She never has been
any other State. In the name
of Lincoln county we coniure
all Democrats, and good citizens
of her sister counties, to stand by
her and the State in this time of
trial, remembering that a few
years ago Tennessee was proud
and happy, her patriotism bold
and lofty, her manhood in peace
no less firm than her courage in
war; that by the valor Of her
arms Tennessee has achieved Oh
every battlefield to which her
citizens have been called a mil
itary rcnown, justifying the be-
lief that no technical declama-
tons OF demagogucs, nor wrongs
on Tennesseeans by the
misfortunes of war can long lay
them asleep to the dishonor of
their own State, nor cause them
long tc forget their manhood and
duties as citizens in time of
peace; that if it could be even
supposed that Tennessee erred
in her internal Improvement pol
icy and the creation of her debt,
it must be admitted that it was
an error Of her own people, for
which they alone are response
bic; and ne, the people of Lin
coin county, assume for her the
full measure of her responsible
ty for the Indebtedness of the
State, of which we are Justly
proud, and we now, therefore,
declare:
We endorse the Democratic
platform at Cincinnati, June %,
1880, as a platform of principles
throughout, by which We will,
and believe the party every
where should, be bound and gov
erned. And we also most hear
lily endorse the Cincinnati nom
nations of w. S. Hancock, forI
President, and w. II. English, |
or Vice President, of the Uni
ed States and pledge to them
our united support.
We oppose reputation III ev-
Try form and guise in which it
AN be presented, and We lre in
avor Of paying and honestly |
lischarging every obligation of
Tennessee. We entertain no
prejudice against the holders of
,ur State bonds, and appreciate
he liberal offer heretofore made
~ them to compromise an in
lebtedness of the late war,which
destroyed so much of our resour-
es for its payment. But, whilst
ve desire the Legislature of our
,tata fO entertain. either Inv