Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1882-07-05
governor, said

governor, said.
On the question of a settlement and what wa
meant by the best terms that can be agreed upon
he said that the creditors had at one time Offered
to compromise at sixty-and-six. and at a late
day at ffty-and-four. There was an evidence o
| a concfliatory spirit, which ought 20 be met i'll
similar spirit. He recognized, and SO did the
platform. that great losses had been entailed on the
state by the late war, great depression of business
and general shrinkage on values. The Republi
can party and its candidate for governor wanted
to pay all, as he understood them. The bolterS
and Greenbaek party would agree TO pay only one
thousandth and have the balance unprovided for
and allow the interest 10 until Il
would become $50, 900. 900, $40, 600, 900 o 1850, 600. 900
but he, as the candidate of the Democratic party
! on the VerV best ce9piomtse he eonIid get. he
knew we would not be required or expected &c
burden the people. He believed it could be set.
tied now on better terms than could be attained
in the future. He believed it could now be settled
so that the poor mer of the country would have
taxed so lightly that they would scarcely know il
or feel 1t. The debt now was about SIC, 600, 600
all told; at sixty cents it would be reduced
70 $4,000 600. and AZ nifty cents to SIS;
0 oH ' tSs :;lO6 and would tax raise 81 ' m05s f 1han
ate a small sinking fund by which the principal
would be gradually reduced. At tour per cent
t DEBT f% %e4e .o, w ! and 81 e eonaae ne s Testofed II ian 6ds
and other property would increase in value. How
came the debt to be created? 1t was before his
time, in 1884, when the fathers OF Tenne, see met
to adopt a constitution. So far as paying The debt
he individually was not able to pay more thar
| half of it. Judge Wright gave some statistics as tc
the tax necessary to meet the debt expenses. 1t is
not the poor man but the property-holder that is
| telling ignorant people that il the tax necessary te
pay the debt was levied and collected the poor
man would be ruined. II the people elected him
governor, and the Legislature was sent up TO sup
port him, he would have the debt settled in a way
that would oppress no man, be he rich or poor.
On the 3lst of August Judge Wright ad.
dressed the people of Robertson county at
Springfield, and said:
The creditors have already made commendable
Atty cents. Our platform c~ontempiates an honest
settlement on the basis of losses by the war,
shrtnkage in values, etc, and the further consid-
Grafton That a spirit Of compromise has heretofore
marked the course Of the creditors. If we should
compromise our debt as indicated, even then our
taxes will be less than any Southern State except
the State OF Missouri, and that pays forty cents on
and no complaint is heard. Alabama aud Georgia
have both compromised their debt, and their taxes
are now lower than they were before, and general
prosperity is beginning to crown their efforts.
In all his speeches Judge Wright insisted
that tax alton would not exceed forty cents
on the dollar, which shows that he based his
calculation on a settlement at fifty cents on
the dollar. The Democratic press in every
part of the State urged the election of Judge
Wright on this ground. On the 21st of
August, 1880, deprecsting the divisions in
the Democratic party, the APPEAL expressed
the hope that
Some satisfactory compromise could be effected
the Republican party, whose extreme views in re-
gard to the settlement of the State debt, instead OF
preventing reputation, will increase the number
of repudiators, for there is nothing more thor
eughly understood in this State than the fact that
the people feel they cannot and ought not to
pay over fifty cents on the dollar.
Again, in urging the election of Judge
Wright, on he 9TH of October, 1880, the AP-
PEAL, in advocating a fusion between the
High and Low-tax Democrats in selecting
candidates for the Legislature, said:
The Memphis Democracy last night turned out
the Legislature. The meeting was large and eu-
thusiastic, and most gratifying TO every man an1-
into the hands of the Republicans. whose policy
Is Numerically opposed to the Wilson faction.
which those who support Wright ex-
pect to accomplish by his election. While both
lion. they believe it IS far Better to sink Their
DIFFERENCES on the state debt question,
end t to fSs f sisf. eisht ths ar tie ten led Rsp GS
the fend and send republicans to the Legis-
people would induce them 10 make a settlement
which would be obnoxious to both wings of the
crat in Tennessee who expects to settle the state
debt at a higher rate than that which the bond
holders nave agreed TO accept-nlty cents on toe
dollar. The State debt will finally be settled on a
basis approximsting these figures. The conces-
sions made by the bondholders are liberal, and
compromise offered by the creditors OF the
and this will never exceed fifty cents on the
dollar, for the bondholders know that any exac-
ion beyond that sum will procrsstinate a settle
nent and. increase the dangers of reputation.
We could make fifty extracts from the ed
torial columns of the APPEAL, all breathing
he spirit of the above extract, showing that
he election of Wright meant a settlement OF
he State debt at fifty cents on the dollar.
The Democratic press of the State took the
anne position, but the boilers consider it re-
to propose a settlement on the
rery basis upon which they urged the cleo
ion of John V. Wright.