The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1882-09-06
BoiteYism and tho Nashville
American.

holds, IS more sensitive IMAM the simmer,
which was an original Boiler, and
writhes under the charge Of Bol,ersm.
The fact speaks well for it, and is evil
dence the ImericaA is not entirely re
creant to its Democratic instincts, and
in time, perhaps, may be reclaimed
from the political reprobacy towards
which it is tending. 1t feels kcenly the
awkwardness Of its position in opposing
the action Of Il sx.seycnths majority Of
Democratic Convention, 50 strictly
representative Of the Democratic party.
Its present conductor must frequently
start in shame and terror, as at midnight
he hbors on the utteranccs that ven
cradle journal is now forced to give,
while the shades of his loyal aud distin-
guished predecessors stalk through the
sanctum, uneasy at the prostitution to
which it has descended. It's position
to-day is an atIront to the faithful Dem
ocrats, who living, have long looked to
it for sound counsel and guidance; and
deflement of the memory Of the true
and able men dead, who for forty years
toiled to give it the distinction it, until
recently, held as an organ Of Democrat
ic principles.
To parry the charge of Boltcrism and
descrtion of the Democratic party, the
American, in feeble fashion, reviews
the platforms of Democratic Conven-
tions and leaders during the last ten
years, and lamely argues that the Dem
ocratic Convention of 1882 has aban
doned the position of the party on the
question of adjusting the State debt
To excuse and justify the bolt of the in
significant faction it supports, it charge
that the party has bolted from itself
Can anything be more absurd and i'm
potent than this assumption that siS
scvenths Of the party, represented b
the bulk of its intelligence and upright
ness, had suddenly become utterly oil
livious to its principles and regardless {
its duty2 that that large majority of
representative convention of men who
during all the agitation of the deb
question, had been part and parcel @
Democratic participation in it, had flat
ly forfeited all claim to consistency an,
wholly forgotten the responsibility
which devolved on them2 Surely thu
American can offer some more plausbl
palliation for its course than propos
ton 50 insulting to common sense &
that. That imputation charges sue
men as Harris, House, Atkins, Viii
thorne, Marks, Bright, Dibbrell, Sin
onton, McMillin, Warner, Bate, Sa
agc, Wilson, Taylor, and fifty others
more or less prominence, with politics
proAgacy and poltrooncry; indeed
reflects that character on the vast ma
jority of the Democratic party as repre-
scented in tina. Convention. The Ameri
can will not dispaagc the intellectual
capacity of the leaders named, but il
places them, by its imputation, in til,
category OF political imbecility or politi
cal knavery,
The Democratic party, justly impa
tient as it is with the American and i,
ilk Of the Russell following, is dispose
TO be less ccnsorous towards them tha
the charge of that newspaper implies {
the mass of Democratic leaders m
rank and file. Bolterism is II grievou
fault, and merits to be severely chara,
terizcd. 1t is disorganizing aud d,
structive to all interests and question,
The majority Of the party regard il Il
fatal to the true interests of the YER,
question on which the bolt was made
settlement of the debt-while il jeop.
ardizes the larger interests of the Ma.
tonal Democratic party. But in con
demning that course--mad and foolish
As 1t is-the Democratic party does not
impute that the men who arc engaged
III 1t have forfeited all claims to polti.
cal honesty. Indeed, the action of the
Democratic Convention demanded O,
none Of its members u sacrifice of tbei,
individual views in regard to the bcs,
policy to be pursued in regard to the
debt. 1t was council called to osccr.
tain what sense of the majority of the
party was as to n practicable compromise
by which the great desidcratum-a set
tlement-could be reached. 1t claims.
and r'shtfully claims, that every loyal
democrat should calmly bow to the dc.
c'aion of that overwhelming and con,
elusive majority. 1t contends that
there is no question of administrative
policy, State or National, so high or Sol
sacred that majority of the party can
not pass judgment on it, and that that