Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1882-07-23
Card from d. r. Nelson.

Judge Houk and myself are upon friendly
terms, and it having been my hope that the
contest between Mr.. Rule and himself would
be conducted in such way by them and
their friends that all could with consistency
unite upon the one receiving the nomina-
ton, have thus far refrained from saving
anything through the papers in regard to
our convention; but the hired slaves of
Judge Houk continually make war upon
myself and others in our county who have
seen fit to think differently from them, and
feel that their false statements should be
contradicted.
The charge that l was understood to be
for Houk when made chairman of our
county executive committee is false, the
editor of the Republican Farmer, of his
own personal knowledge, knowing to the
contrary. l was committed to but one man,
provided he made the race, and that man
was not L. c. Houk To those not knowing
the facts, l refer to Ebert Kerr, John S.
King, S p Cook, Hon S. A. Rodgers NJ
L. Mourfeld, and can give many others.
The convention was called just as all
of our county conventions had been in the
Congressional conventions. The call was
made by our executive committee, COM
posed of both Rule and Houk men, and
every Houk man in the county that talked
to ON the subject Endorsed the manner of
the call, except DR.. Foster. | advised with
J. d. Foute, DIR. F. Beals and many other
Houk men on the subject.
Yet the hired tools of Houk try to make
it appear that the convention was thus
| called to trick him, although the conven-
! tons held in our county in 1878'80 that
| instructed for Houk were mass conventions.
| 1t was fair then, but foul now The next
| offence of mine was claiming that / had
| the right, as chairman of the executive
committee, to hold the convention. If Houk
men had regarded precedent, my right would
not have been questioned. The chairmen
of our executive committees have always
presided at our county conventions. 1t
was fair and all right when the county
instructed for Houk twice, and when MIR.
Foute was nominated for sheriff, but foul
the last time.
The next charge, that l intended to hold
an unfair convention, is as false as its author
No honest man will deny that | offered
everything that was fair before and at the
time our convention was held l proposed
to Houk's friends to hold an honest, quiet
convention, count the Houk men and the
Rule men, and give each his pro rata share
of the vote of the county, the offer being
made to NJ. L. Mourfeld, Capt. William
Allison and others, who were for Houk, but
the proposition was rejected At the time
the convention was called to order, [ pro-
claimed to the crowd, that if Houk had a
majority of the voters of Loudon County
present that he should have the county. 1t
Lbeing intended to separate the Rule and
Houk men, get the men from other coun-
ties out of the convention, ask the Demo
Gratis present to withdraw, then count the
men present for each, and give the county
to whoever had the majority, but before
this could be done; Or the convention de-
clared ready for business, S. NJ Williams
nominated J. T. Shipley for permanent
chairman, took the vote himself aud de
cared him elected. I saw that 1 h.d tc
withdraw or involve good men in b8ody
riot I retired about twenty steps, anc
proceeded to open the regular convention
| Hon. Stephen Mathews was nominated fol
permanent chairman. [ took the vot'
and he was elected, and by me SO declared
r H. Magill was elected secretary, and thu
work of the convention is before the
public
The editor of the Farmer writes about tn
convention as knowingly as if he had been
present, but in fact he was not on hand
!, / was an eye witness. To make false state
ments more effectual, it is charged that
am seeking for offices Cor myself and fami
| w. DIR. Foster, as well as many others
knows that l don't want an Office under tn
government or State; that my law bushes
:, pays me better than any office | could get
/ and Mr.. Rule win testify that he has neve
ID oca md
I now well understood Men were to b.
, brought to our convention from every coun
ty in which they could be procured: whisk
was to be used freely and everything was t
be carried by storm. Mr.. n. P. Bacon, lat
l delegate from Loudon County to the Demo
>. cratic State convention, that nominate
, Gen. Bate, led what was known the Welch
l er stilIIhouSe gang, with plenty of fire.
J. whisky, composed of men from Loudon an
} Roane Counties. J. p. Freeman, anothe
y Houk Democrat, admits that he brought I'll
teen Roane County men from the north sid
; of the river, all for Houk, and there was nc
3 less than two hundred Houk men frol
t Monroe, Blount and ROane Counties takin
o part in the convention, some of them Fed
eral officeholders, and if reward for then
will be offered by reliable man their name
will be furnished. There were from two t
L three hundred men, more or less drunk
yelling through our streets for HoTlk, max
r ing perfect pandemonium of our to va an
!. a riot of the Houk convention Now
whose money bought the whisky? Who
+ responsible for the final results of its use
Y that capped the climax of the days doing
with blood and the slaughter of human bt
;. ing: The slayer and the slain were both Hou
men, no doubt, heated by his free whisky. Tn
blood of the deceased is upon the garment
of the man or men who issued out the FIRE
whisky on that eventful day. No one ca
truthfully claim that Rule furnished whisk
S to his enemies, and but two of luis friend
a were seen under the influence of whisk
during our convention.
L But the drug store of Mr.. j. ID. Foutt
5 one of the Houk leaders of our county
. was made the Rule headquarters" We'll
o well, well What clever fellows the Rul
- men are. For several weeks pa
. the printer of the Republican Farme
e received his wages through this establish
/ ment, aud the account of the editor of tn
!. Farmer unsettled at these &C headquarters
! is now about 1928. What clever simpletor
= these Rule men" are to thus indulge the
: enemies. We venture the assertion that n
S Rule man has received SO much favor froI
IS these headquarters" Then there was ''br
o two or three respectable men in the Rul
convention" Let the people look at th
l two delegations, one of the Houk delegates
" Mr. J. P. Freeman, being a Democrat
Il admit that the violent whisky demonstra
= tons of the Houk men kept great man
g good men who were tor Rule, ike Hon.
. j. Mason, W. K. Jones, W. NJ William
. W. f. Johnston, and others, away from tn
I. convention, this being part of the Hou
h programme. But the Houk men were niC
- fellows. Among them, prominently, VIZ
noticed work-hou convict, turned OF
= for the occasion, having been convicted fl
: stealing wheat, and one other who ha
rs escaped the penitentiary for the crime
s incest for want of a prosecutor. Nice fe
:, lows, these. Upon the subject of none
Il being used in our county. The proclamatio
q made by the Houk canvassers as they roc
y, our county, to the working classes wa
n Zone dollar per day, dinner free, wit