Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1880-08-21

3. We are opposed to the reputation OF |
the rights of sovereignty OF the people.
4. We recognize the time-hOnored axiom i
OF the democratic party, that our govern /
ment Is Of the people, and that they are /
sovereign and supreme, and that tile iegisia- |
ture are their servants, and therefore we are |
unalterably opposed to any settlement OF
the state debt by the legislature until the
same has been first submitted 70 the people,
at a separate election, and ratified by their
free voices at the ballot-box.
5. We are unalterably opposed to surren-
dering the sovereignty OF tile state; To tax
ing from the people the right TO say wat
the rate of taxation shall be 10 placing the
state i'm the hands Of the federal courts, 10 be
run for she use and benefit OF the bond
holders, By receivers appointed by said
courts. Therefore we win never consent to
take coupons for taxes.
incidentally to the introduction
of this amendment it was made
known that under the term 'just
Indebtedness OF the state" none of
the railroad debt was included, and
that the supporters of the amend
ment would not consent to the pay
ment of any part of it. The amend
ment was very warmly discussed
and soon voted down.
Itshould be here stated that the
first amendment we discussed was
signed by four delegates, headed by
Mr.. III. T. Johnson, of Gibson
county, and was generally spoken
of as the johnson amendment,
while the second was also signed by
four, with Gen. John Z. Garner, of
Robertson, at their head, and was
known as the Garner amendment.
The majority report. on the other
hand, was signed by twenty-one
delegates, and is known to have
been drawn up by the Hon. H. II.
Lurton, of this city.
Both the amendments having
been thus disposed of, a motion
was then made for the adoption of
the majority report. a warm de-
bate ensued, during which we were
absent from the room on account Of
temporary indisposition from the
heat and imperfect ventilation.
During this time several speeches
pro and con were made, and among
them one by Polk johnson, which
was spoken very highly of. We
are not going to give it any com
mendation, however, as it was made
against the medical advice of this
editor, and Polk, as we anticipated,
was made seriously sick by it.
There, young man, learn to obey
your doctor hereafter.
On final diUisioH the original
! platform, as drafted ia the majority
report, rds carried 6y q eOte Of S2j
to 455.
This left nothing for the conven-
ton to do except 10 appoint as its
standard bearer and candidate for
governor the brilliant orator whose
campaign we have already COM
menced to record.
NoU toUO,0ed the bot. Mr.. Snod-
grass, the defeated candidate for
chairman, announced that with such
a platform he could no longer re-
main delegate in the convention,
and he retired from the room in
company of small body variOusly
estimated at from seventy to one
hundred.
We have only now to defend the
party from the charge brought
against it Of having deliberately
brought on what is called a split in
the democracy.
In the first place, there is no split;
the true democracy continues solid
and undivided. A small body of
men has sloughed off from it who
never were really democrats, but
who, for a long time secretly, and
sometimes even avOWedly, have
been making it their object to
break up the party, and thereby
gain for themselves n few scraps
of patronage from the ruins. 1t is
best that the public should be in
formed in plain language how the
truth is in this matter. When Gov.
Marks was a candidate for governor
he avOwed the purpose of forcing
the policy of the lOw-tax section,
which everybody knows to be the
policy of reputation, within the
party. 1t was then believed that
by the time the present election
came on that section would be
strong enough to dictate to the state
credit men the alternative of accept
ing their program or Withdrawing
from the organization.
Before the last legislature finally
adjourned, the governor detected
symptoms of decided 2eaetiOn
against the repudiatOrs and their
program, and squared his policy
and trimmed his saiis accordingly.
The leaders of the repudiators, how
ever, in other parts of the state,
knew nothing OF any reaction and
came to Nashville expecting to
drive the state-credit men to sub
mission or to secession; they pro-
claimed loudly that no compromise
would be entertained. The state
credit men awoke to the magnitude
of the emergency, and it was not
too late. They had before their
eyes the eXaml lie of ruined Vir-
ginia, and they swOre that Tennes-
see should not he trampled out in
like manner. Thcyknew that they
possessed the support OF all that was
really good and reputable in the
state, and, above all, they thorough
ly recognized the fact that the day
of compromise was over, that the
party had to become either all hon
est democrats or all Tepudiators, and
the fatal vaciIiatioR and INDIGESTION
which has SO long held them en-
thralled was AZ once thrown aside;
they chose to be detnocrats and rot
regulators, come what would Of it.
the smallfess 81 the detection
wbicA resEitea was d surprise evea
10 ourselves; II only illustrates she
sacfsdous power atfaine4 by tae
Wang Dvef the rixilt wlsely IN ut.
Gsf slaIls 70 Assert ilsegf, gEEaeslgHel