Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1883-03-31
mrER-socterY DEBATE.


societies in that institution, en-
gagged In joint debate last Frida.
night. We were so highly honoret
as to be made one of the judges o
the discussion and were thus afford
ed very fine opportunity of listen
ing to the speeches that were made
We appreciated the position both
on account of the compliment il
paid US, and the rare treat that We
enjoyed in listening to such an ami
mated, and in many particulars
able discussion.
| The subject tor debate was
fought Protective policy or Free
Trade Principles to prevail" The
Washington Irving Society had the
Affirmative and the negative was
very ably maintained by the Stew.
art Society. The members of the
former engaging in the debate were
G. Mason, Jr., J. T. Martin, J. B.
Cavitt, J. G. Patton, and III. Craft,
Jr. Those of the latter: Il. W.
Gregory, G.. A. Blackburn, G. B.
Harris, Jos. A. Smiser and J. A.
Boyd.
There is something about the
freshness of youth that is always
interesting and that we find partic-
ularly attractive. The lack of sim
lister motive, and the entire absence
of selfish design, in college debates,
gives their earnestness charm that
more than compensates for want
of reality in purpose.
''The sublime audacity of faith"
in the school boy orator is really
delightful and leads the listener to
ready sympathy with
ellis illusions, aspirations, dreams"
The speeches Friday night were,
in the main, very good, and much
better than we have heard in more
pretentious assemblies. The young
gentlemen handled the subject in a
manner which showed that they
had given it thought and investi-
cation. Some of them, of course,
fell into very noticeable falacies, but
we don't believe any of them got
so far wrong as to say "the tariff is
a local ISSUE"
The Judges were little perplex-
ed as to the nature of the question
discussed. As stated, it seemed to
refer to the theories of political
economy which would have been
altogether different from a consider
alton of the policy of the United
States. But the disputants almost
wholly confined their arguments to
the more restricted meaning. It
was evidently their intention to
discuss the question now considered
a political issue in the United States,
and in that view the Judges made
their decision.
A lack of time and space prevents
our entering into any detailed criti-
cIsm of the speeches made. Such
an account of the debate would
probably prove more prolix than
interesting, but still we must al
Jude to some points with which we
were particularly impressed. We
would be right sorely puzzled to
decide who made the best speech of
the evening, on the same principle
that Mark Twain thought it would
be difficult to marry i'm Genoa. Mr..
Cavitt, of Texas, impressed us very
favorably he fell into some errors
like ali the others, but he was so
terribly in earnest that he was free
from that consciousness which made
some of the speakers timid and 9TH
ers over bold. Mr.. Martin possesses
the qualities of logical speaker,
and demonstrated the fact in his
effort Friday night. Mr.. Mason
and Mr.. Gregory saved their best
speeches for the last. A few more
speeches on Mr.. Gregory's side as
good as his last effort might have
changed the result of the debate.
Mr. Boyd spoilt a very excellent
speech by touch of sentimentality
and one very falacious argument.
Suppose" said he, "the jewellers
in the pine barrens of Wisconsin
should attempt to raise coffee, and
the United States Government
should protect that industry with a
high duty on all imported coffee"
Such case is, of course, not sup
possible, nor analogous to anything
in the present tariff laws of this
government.
Too much time was given to ar
gument about the origin of the tar
iff which really had nothing to do
with the merits of the question.
The general disposition of the mega
tive side was to saddle this on New
England. They thought the tariff
was SlESu ny SOtIOh uhdtItCA ohN
was cousin german to Salem witch
craft. A very enthusiastic free
trader went further than this; he
believed the Ubiquitous thing was
born of the dark ages along with
feudal tenures and the numerous
other legal monstrosities charged to
that indefinite period. One of the
speakers for the affirmative, to re-
flute all of these calumnies on his
side of the question, boldly affirmed
that the tariff was a great and good
institution and that Henry Clay
was the daddy O. it," One very
neat argument, made on the mega
tive side, was peculiarly student
like. The gentleman disposed of
the whole question with sylogism.
Think of that we congressman, who
have wrestled with the wool sched-
ule, the metal schedule, the patent
medicin schedule and the thousands
of articles that 60 to make up the
hundred other schedules! Ye who
have wrangled yourselves hoarse
talking about blooms, ingots, steel
rails, quinine and sugar, and have
| a. oWrk