Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1880-09-21
STATE CREDIT.
Ringing Ufterances from Hon.
.. ~ Horace Maynard.
The Debt am Honest Que and
Should be Paid.

The Debt am Honest Que and |
Should be Paid.
From his speech at the opera house, Sept |
18th, 1901
Six years ago 1 had the high honor of
being before the people of Tennessee for
governor. | then examined the question
of the state debt, and discussed it, to some
extent, with my successful opponent, and,
SO far as J. was then aware the only ques-
ton between US was the best method by
which this debt should be honestly paid.
I thought saw way by which it might
be satisfactorily done. After l had been
away for long time, heard rumors that
there were men who were beginning to
whisper that the
DEBT SHOULD NOT Be PAID.
Well, gentlemen, smart men can give
reasons for almost anything. If man
borroWs ten dollars of you ard gives his
note, there are men smart enough to tell
him that he ought not to pay you
| TINS thing is I'll wrong that one man should
! have lot of money and another should
! have nothing. l could imagine that there
| should be men who would tell us that we
should not pay our debts, but that there
should be enough who thought thus to es-
| surprised me as much as to hear that po-
lincal party had been established upon one
OF the ten commandments. (Laughter.)
THE DEBT. -....
Let Us look into this thing. We began
| with debt of some three or four millions,
| which we called he state debt prober. OF
that, the portion that had the least to rest
upon, and, as l think, the M st unwisely
Co tracted, was that contracted TO build our
state capitol. We had a great deal of con-
troversy as to where the capitol should be.
Nashville, Knoxville and Murfrt esborO
were suggested, and various reasons were
given why 1t should, or should not be, at
either OF those Places. l remember one of
the reasons given why it should not be at
MuTfreesboro. The man said that he had
learned to make h, and that he could
spell Knoxville NIT <, and he could
spell Nashville nit a K, but be couldn't
spell Murtreesboro NIT K daughter. J
FANCY, B USELESS.
J At any rate, I believed that our state
house bonds were the ones most unwiselv
issued. That Was like a fancy gold headed
cane or like great many other superflui-
ties that young ind inexperienced men
: think they must have. In the same general
line is included the law OF turnpike roads,
| though these were OF more importance, be-
cause they tended to develop the coun ~.
Altogether the debt amounted to three OF
four millions. Then came the
RAILROAD SYSTEM.
The people of Tennessee seemed to regard
one peculiar internal situation AS such that
we should hav4 railroads to carry our pro.
ducts to distant markets Pro baby we had
MADE some railroads that should have been
, LETT awhile, but they were thought TO be nee.
l essary, ana we undertook them, so that al
the beginning of the war the debt amounted
: TO about sixteen millions. During the Wal
the accumulating interest increased the debt
to nearly twenty million dollars. Ate,
r the war was over, the legislature met. and
;, We sometimes hear This legislature snok
I of in derision and contempt as the
I BRowNLow LEGISLATURES.
1t has been my fortune t. know more o,
: less OF great many of our state legisla
). lures, and will say as TO these two legis
lures OF Brownlu w's-and / have NJ
g especial personal reason to extol them
thought when l was before them as q can
= didRte for their favor, and 1 say now, il
justice to them. that more honest. pa
> kSiotic and sincere body of men, anxious t
q do what was right under difficult con
ditions, has never assembled in this state :
q my knowledge before or since, and / thin
the impartial historian, when he come
Q along, to write Of these times will say ex