Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1882-05-09
EMPHATIC DENIAL.
Messrs. Sneed and harrington Denounce
as Wholly False Certain "Whis-
pered RumOrs on the
Street, in So Far as They Refer TO
Themselyes-Cards from Gen. w. j..
Smith and j. Il. Goodwin.

To the Editors of the Appeal:
The article in your Sunday mornings is
sue headed "a Sharp Trick" evidently refers
to us, although our names not men
TONED; but when-taken in connection with
street rumors, and the fact that We were adj
vocales OF the bill for 'settlement Of the
debt of the city of Memphis" and also were
in Nashville urging its passage by the Leg
Islature, there can be no doubt that We were
the parties referred TO in the article said to
be based upon reliable information" and
under this belief the present communication
is written. BY way Of further introduction,
W. have to say that any charge, rumor or
insinuation, that we changed, altered or
clipped the bill in any particular different
from the form in which 1t passed the Legis-
lature, or connived at the the same, or at
tempted to obtain the governors signature to
it with any omissions, or were cognizant OF
such, is a viie tuLsehOOd and sIander. While
THE ENROLLED cory
was being composed the original bill by SEN
a.or w. NJ. Smith, who had charge of it, and
Representative J. III. Smith, chairman of
the Enrolling Committee, We left for
home, and only knew what transpired
afterward from General w. j. Smith
in conversations with us, and from Senator
w. NJ. Smith, through a telegram. From
General w. ]. Smith we learn that the bill
was not presented to the governor in his
presence; that il was presented to him only
once, and then by Representative j. III.
Smith, in the presence of Senator w. NJ.
Smith, and that it was signed by the gov
ernor precisely as ii was presented the fret
and only time. From Senator w. NJ. Smith
we understand the bill was compared with
the copy by himself and Representative j.
Ii. Smith; presented TO the governor by the
latter, and that he knows OF no change or
alteration. Perhaps ii is proper to state in
this connection that had the section referred
to in your article been omitted or clipped it
would in no way have changed the character
or effect of the bill, as similar provisio in
four other different places required the rati
fication and approval OF The Legislative
Council before the act should take effect.
II .nce it will be seen that
THE INFORMATION
which you regard reliable is untrue, namely,
that this act came near being signed by the
governor with the last section omitted, which
provided that it should become law only
upon approval of the Legislative Council;
it Is untrue that the bill was ever iii the
hands of the governor with this clause
omitted; il is untrue that the governor ever
returned it for the insertion OF the missing
link; IL is untrue that General VIM. j
Smith, or any other person, called the gov
ernor's attention 10 any omission; 1t is un-
true that the important clause was clipped;
it is untrue that those interested in the bonds
manipulated any omission. We therefore
pronounce your informant and the originator
of these or any such charges against us,
whispered on the streets" with view OF
injuring US, as an anprinciptcd s'dndereT, and
as such we denounce him before this commu-
nifty, whoever he may be, wiHfui and ma
Lcious friSifer Of truth. We have heard the
rumor as stated in this article relative to
this subject, and have investigated it in our
own way, and since this false and uile state
ment has made its appearance in print, il is
proper that we should give the facts con-
nected with the enrolling and signing Of the
biz sih- We and many oshsIs snPPeF1tsd the
/ original draft was submitted to
PRESIDENT HAppEN. Mr.. ovERToS, MR..
GOODWIN, ~
IN other gentlemen. Perhaps you will
al, o remember that synopsis of il was pub
lished in the APPEAL. Its provisions were
fully discus ed ty us-Messrs. John Nj. 1t n,
John Overton, sr, w. A. Collier and others,
all advocating its passage without submis-
sion TO the Legislative Council before the
Finance Committee of the Legislature. We
carried with us 10 Nashville petition
numerously signed by many of our most
prominent citizens advocating the re-enact-
ing of the Flippin compromise act. And
white in Nashville we received another petit
tion and various letters and kilograms advo-
eating the bill. After the bill passed the
House we msds special trip TO Memphis
and conferred with and explained the pro-
visions of the bill to Messrs. Hsdden, Lee,
Heiskell, Burke and Gavin of the Taxing
District, by invitation at one of their meet
irgs, in the presence Of Mr.. John Oyerton,
jr, md also explained il to many citizens on
the streets. While the bill was first pending
we failed TO get Judge Smiths favorable con-
siderstion of the same for the reason that he
considered il oeal measure and thought
possibly
THE PEOPLE IN MEMPHIS
opposed it, and to meet this obj ection, in con-
neciion with Judge John Nj. Lea, pro-
posed to Judge Smith to amend the bill,
quiring its adoption by the Legislative
Council before taking effect. To this Judge
w. NJ. Smith very promptly aceeded, an
| amendments to that effect were inserted in
the bill. When the bill had passed its final
reading the Legislature was upon the eve oil
| adj turning, and all bills have TO be first
engrossed, then examined and compared by
the Engrossing Committee and signed by the
governor before adjournment OF the Leg
Eislature, ii became necs ssary to do this work
| very rapidly in order 10 have it ready before
\ adjournment. So we stated to one of the
clerks Of the Senate that if he would employ
some extra help and put him to work on the
copying so as TO have il ready we would pay
|
when Judge w. NJ. Smith, who had charge
OF The bill, and ourselves were shown this
copy il was Sd imperfectly done that many
pages and sections had to be rewritten, and
| Immediately the party engaged to copy it.
Judge w. NJ. Smith and ourselves set 10 work
to do it. Some OF the old sheets were re-
tanned, while others had to be copied over.
As before stated,
| JUDGE W. NJ. SMITH
was experimenting this and was present all
| the while, except for short while when he
was called up to the Senate chamber to vote
| upon some measure. lie returned, however,
before the work was completed, and himself
read out part of the amendments, which he
had caused to be added, and was reading for
| the copy, when we all concluded that ii was
finished. General w. J. Smith, whe had been
present pert Of the while, stated that he
would 60 up stairs and bring representative
| ]. III. Smith, who was chairman OF the En-
| crossing Committee, preparatory for his ex-
animation and comparison of the bill for his
certificate which was necessary before pre-
sentation TO the governor. Representative
| j. III. Smith came down, and he took the en-
crossed copy, aud Judge w. NJ. Smith the
original copy, and commenced comparing, to
see if the epgrossed copy was Garrett. just
as they commenced this stated that we
| had then just time TO go TO the hotel and pay
our bill and reach the depot in time for the
$50 o'clock train; whereupon the gentle
men, Messrs w. NJ. Smith and ]. ii. Smith,
replied: "You can go; we Will attend to
comparing the copy with the original and
see that the governor signs IL. We then
| Immediately left for home, and heard for the
first time, on Wednesday last, frem
| A RUM0R
ON The street that when Messrs. ". NJ. and
j. H. Smith had finished comparing they
discovered that the last section and amend
ment had not been engrossed.. Whereupon
we learn that Representative jill. Smith
and Senator w. NJ. Smith added 1t and pre-
sented the bill 10 the governor, who signed
it next morning, Just as it was delivered 10
him, without returning it, and without alter
| ing or changing it in any respect. So far
from our desiring TO deprive the Taxing
Dis'ric of "any voice in the debt settle
ment," we were in fact the authors Of the
lproyision requiring the acceptance OF the
act by the Legislative Council before it