Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1880-08-13
lancaster frltelllger1rer.
Tennessee In Better Shape.

Tennessee In Better Shape.
The Tennessee Democracy in conven-
ton have ratified that part of the Ma
tional Democratic platform, pledging the
party to the preservation of the credit
of the states and the nation. The party
in Tennessee could have done nothing
else and preserve its position in line with
the National Democracy and in harmony
with Democratic ideas. The Tennessee
platform is very decided in its expression
of opinion on this matter, and it was
adopted by very large majority of the
convention. Two years ago the party
was not wise enough to take its position
boldly on this issue, but for the sake OF
harmony adopted a platform which signi-
fed nothing and nominated candidate
for governor who signified less. He was
ajudge on the bench at the time, and was
the author of the platform. The two
together were adopted with about the
same unanimity with which they have
now been spewed out. The party has
found that it does not answer tOpurchase
harmony at the cost of principle, and
to hesitate to defend a vital doctrine. 1t
is cowardice which has troubled our
party for many years and earned it many
a diShonorable defeat. No Democrat in
Tennessee ought ever to have failed to
see that it would he as wise as it was
honest to protect the credit OF the state
and ward from it the stigma of repudia-
ton. Now the people of the state seem
to he nearly unanimously Of this opinion.
The Republican party has declared itself
in favor of meeting the demands of the
bond-hOlderS of the state, and have nOm-
mated a::candidate for governor who has
decided conviction Of the propriety Of
such policy. The question is therefore
eliminated from the contest between the
two parties; although third party will
he in the field composed of the refuse of
the other two who object to the mainte-
nance of the state credit. 1t is not likely
to be of much Importance. The Repub-
lican hope, however, is that it will take
enough votes from the Democratic
candidate for governor to elect
their man. The repudiatiOn Democrats
showed themselves SO weak in numbers
in the state convention, rs to make this
result unlikely: and the strong proba-
bility is that Tennessee, though late to
move, will eventually make as creditable
Il settlement of her debt rs have Georgia
and other sister states. The debt of Ten
nesscc is comparatively small, being but
about twenty-five millions, and the state
could easily shoulder the whole of it
without feeling it. The bondhclders
have offered however to take, in new
per cent. bonds, sixty per cent. of the
face of their bonds and of the interest
which has accrued for five or six years
past. The state has been disposed to
offer new bonds for forty or fifty per
cent. of the debt at four per cent. inter-
est and the final adjustment will he
somewhere between these propositions.
AN intelligent gentleman visiting this
city from Texas gives us some idea of the
kind of government which the people of
the South have suffered from in those
sections where the preponderancc of the
colored vote placed in power the ignor-
ant negroes and rascally carpet-baggers
and scalawags. Our informant resides in
one of the three counties of Texas in
which the blacks largely outnumber the
whites and the Republicans have COM
plete political control. In that county,
Marion, he says the local government
piled up such an immense debt that county
bonds have deprecated to about ten
cents on the dollar. This burden was
largely incurred by the building of new
Jail and court house, which for 4 corrupt
consideration were SO disadvantageous-
ly located, by private influences, that a
new set of public buildings had to he
built, SO that the county has two court
houses and two jails, and either of the
latter is SO badly constructed that, our
informant tells us, while on the grand
inquest lately, he demonstrated that he
could pick his way into them or out of
them with a barlow knife. He recently
saw the spectacle of a drunken judge on
the bench, asleep, while supposed to be
trying case, and beside him were three
negro county commissioners, not one of
whom could read or write
THE New YORK Tribune admitted at
the close of the session of the Forty
fourth Congress that the Democratic
majority in the House had effected per-
manent saving to the country in the an
nual appropriations of $50, ,0OO, 600; and it
is an unquestiOned fact that it was the
rigid governmental economies then ell
forced and the blessings of Providence in
giving us good crops and other material
prosperity that permitted the resumption
Of specie payments. The Tribune can,
however, no more bc expected to recall
and admit this fact than Hurler's Weekly
is likely to republish the picture of Gar
field, which appeared in its issue of March
Is, 1873, with the following inscription
above it: Disgraced in the eye of the
public for owning Credit MObilier stock,
which was in fact and intent a fraud
upon the government. Also for deceit
and evasion. The high trust of legisla-
tion misused. The people will not long
reSDect the laws if they lose reSpect for