Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1880-08-07
ALetter from che Hon. w. J. sykes.


A Letter from the Hon. w. J. Sykes.
The following letter from Mr..
Sykes, to a citizen of Dyersburg, is
published in Neal's State Gazette /:
S.R. LATTA-Dear Sir: received
your letter and thank you for your
kind expressions and / assure you
/ highly appreciate them, coming as
they do from a gentleman of your
high character, who though not a
political office seeker, yet feels a
deep interest in the welfare of the
State and in the success Ofthe DEM
Ocratic party. / can not however
consent to fake an active part in any
political canvass. If had the abil-
ity nothing would afford me more
pleasure than to canvass the State,
not with a view of obtaining Office
or gaining notoriety, but that /
might in some degree be instrument
al in rescuing the State from the vOr-
tex of ruin into which | fear there
is danger that she may be plunged.
There are younger men, however,
men much better qualified than /
am to discuss this question and to
arouse the people to a true sense of
their danger. The young men have
their all at stake, their pride, their
nlanIiness and their hopes of sue
cess in life. To them the State now
looks with hope in her hour of dam
ger. The Democratic party will at
its August convention have grand
opportunity to place itself on the
high plane of sound Democratic
principles, chief among which is "a
strict maintenance of public faith,
State and national" This OppOr-
tunity, If lost. will be lost for
ever. If that convention should
fail In the performance of its
high duty, it would be calamity
to the State and to the Democratic
party of Tennessee. The party
would then be scattered, democrat
lied and eventually destroyed, for
no party can long have success nm
less il is based upon sound principles.
1t would be far better for the nation
nj Democracy that the Tennessee
by adopting a sound
platform, should run the risk of los
ing few State offices, than to i'm
peril the success ofthe national DEM
by cOnntenancing in the
slightest degree the doctrine of
population. A pOstpOnemento of q
settlement Of this debt will, / am
result in final and complete
unless by the use of
corrupt means. a settlement might
be obtained at such high
rates as would be ruinous to the best
interest of the people, and at the
same time destructive of the honor
OF the State. Let US not, bya refusal
to settle this debt upon fair and reas-
Enable terms, furnish a pretext and
an excuse for the use of corrupt
means to obtain a payment of the
debt. It has been charged, with
what truth / know not, that there |
was a Carnival of revelry and cor
connected with our legis- |
latute. If this be so, may there not |
be another carnival of revelry and |
in the settlement OF |
this debt, more demOralizing and |
extensive? IL is to guard against |
these things, and TO remove the |
Danger of them, that 1 have advo-
,ated fair and a just settlement.
To those of us who expect and desire /
10 make Tennessee our permanent /
home and the home of our children,
he proper settlement of this debt
IS matter of more practical impOr-
.ance than any mere party question.
Parties often change, parties live
and die; but when reputation is
Ince upon State, its hopes and its
its good name and its
are gone, forever gone!
r- VIM. j. SYKES.
Nashville, July, 1880.