Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1880-10-20
WHO STANDS IN THE WAY OF COM
pROMTgFfu

4
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WHO STANDS IN THE WAY OF COM
PROMISES"
Undy this head the Appeal Of this
morning has long double. loaded edi-
torial, from which we make the follow
ing extract
When the returns Of the election to
be held on the second Of November
next are all in, and the mortif5ing an
nouucement is perhaps made that
Hawkins, the republican candidate,
has been elected governor, the rank
and file of the democratic patty will
rise as one man and ask, who stood
in the way Of the compromise pro-
posed by the APPEAL, the accept
ance of which would have saved US
from this modification, this humilia-
tion?' Four days have come and
gone since the suggestion, and no
result has followed. The Wright and
Wilson wings of the party still con-
front each other as they did last Fri
day. Nothing has been done. Steps
we know were taken, but they have
been arrested. BY whose order, by
what authority, we do not know. We
only know that the gentlemen from
West TenDeslea who had been sum
moned and who had promptly answered
the summons to 60 to Nashville and
assist in bringing about fair, manly
and Just compromise, that would have
united the democracy, met and dis
blnded, have returned to their homes
chagrined, mortified end disgusted.
We ask in the name of the democrat
party by whose authority the work OF
compromise was thus defeated at
the moment Of initiation? Who is it
in the democratic party that can rise
superior to the will OF the voters who
compose it Who is it 10 the party
that has a purpose foreign to its unity
and success? Who is it that in the
face of facts occurring every day, and
that are plain to be seen OF all men
who, having the power, would inter
fere to prevent the consummation of
purpose that in the now imminent
danger that besets the democratic
party on all sides is the one that every
true aud loyal member of that party
should hail with pleasure These are
thequestions that will occur to every
man who to-day learns that compro
mise between the Wright aud " ilson
wings Of the party has been strangled
in its incipiency. They are qnestions
that if not answered will only give
way for the more weighty one with
which we have prefaced them They
are questions for which there ought
to be an answer The democratic
party was needlessly and recklessly
divided at Nashville. The response
biliiy for that division will be one day
be fixed. An opportunity presents
itself now. when the voters are close
upon the baliotbox to heal the dis
sensions and unite the divisions there
made-to make them solid against
Hawkins and for the democratic party.
No policy or purpose can be superior
to this.
We commend our contemporary for
its perseverance even at the eleventh
hour. 1t seems from the above ar d
from other information, that there has
been move to compromise so as to
make doubly certain the defeat Of
Hawkins and Horace Maynard. If
we are not mistaken the move was
started on the high tax side, but it was
throttled before it was born. No prop
osition has been made to the low tax
democrats, hence they have not had the
opportunity to arrest the movement
The spirit which predominated at
Nashville on the 10Th Of August seems
still to animate the leaders. The
olive branch they have offered is a
demand for an unconditional surren
der. The supporters Of Wilson after
being denounced two months are at
last invited to give up their views un-
conditionally and walk over on the
i,igh-tax platform, to vote for Wright
1t is now evident from the tone of the
Appeal that its efforts to bring about a
compromise have failed. and thit the
managers at Nashville have given no
tice that they are still running the ma
chine and need no help. They arc
runniug it with a vengeance rarely
witnessed in politics. II is less than
two weeks until, the electioR-morc
harm than good is likely to be done in
that time. Nevertheless the Appeal
has made laudable effort in striking
contrast with the course of the high
credit democrats generally, and de
serves to rauk among the well-mean-
ing peacemaker5 who were promised a
special blessing many centuries ago
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