The Morristown gazette. [volume] (Morristown, Tenn.) 1867-1920, 1884-03-19
LETTER TO THE EDITOR.
SOHREHA PERSONAL, BUT OF
GENERAL INTEREST.

GENERAL INTEREST
Well, Uncle John, it seems that
YOU have stirred up the monkeys
quite lively, all over the State, and
from the way they have been chat
tering and howlng you must have
poured hot water on a tender place.
Good for you. Go for them; and
that portion of the Democracy that
is yet free from the corrupting in
fiuences of the Penitentiary and
Whisky rings will stand by you.
You know that no man in the State
had a higher personal regard for
Gov. Bate than the writer had at
the time of his election; yet L am
free TO confess that his administra-
ton of the State Government has
caused me to lose that regard for
and>confidence in him that had held
a place in my heart since 1861. The
administration of our State Govern
ment for several years past has been
and is 4 shame and disgrace to the
intelligent people of Tennessee. We
have hsnest and capable men in the
Democratic party, and let us bring
them to the front; and when once
the Augean stables are cleansed,
and our public positions filled by
the right sort of men, the journalist
who had the independence to first
cry aloud against the great evil will
become a great public benefactor,
instead of n malcontent, disorgan-
izer. &c. as some "highfaluting
coons" would now try to make you
out.
But this is not what l wanted to
write YOU about: an item in your
last number with reference TO what
some Northern or Eastern man had
said about your roads, impressed
me. at the time of reading it, very
forcibly as illustrating the one great
draw back to all of East Tennessee
80 far rs immigration is concerned.
Our roads are enough to keep the
richest section of the world contin-
ually with its "nose to the grind
stone" and always poor. How long
is this state of affairs to continue
The roads in my neighborhood are
in far worse condition, to-day, than
they were FIVE years ago; and L
suppose that your county roads,
having been worked under the same
law and system rs ours, are like
wise. While yen are punching up
the monkeys" Uncle John, give
the would-bs average member Of
the next Tennessee Legislature
few lunches on the road and fence
questions. If demagoguery could
be sat down upon for a few years IN
State and good common sense and
sound judgment be exercised in the
passage OF a few laws with refer
eace TO our roads, fences, sheep
killing dogs, &c it would be worth
a great deal of money to the people.
To illustrate: if Hamblen county
had good turnpike reads from its
western TO its eastern boundary
lines, and from Noes Ferry to
Chucky Bend, or Lick creek, they
would DO more to build up the trade
Of Morristown and make your farm
ers prosperous than all your rail
roads put together. Give the rich
farms of the Chueky Bend and Lick
creek sections an outlet to Merits
town, and your merchants and bust
ness men would soon feel the differ
enec. In my county-Blount-a
good turnpike from Knoxville to
Maryville alone, would be worth
thousands of dollars annually to our
farmers; and so with every county
in East Tennessee.
Agitate these things, Uncle John,
arouse our people to these impor-
tant points in their own interests,
and when the good work shall have
been accomplished, countless thou
sands will rise up to call you
blessed" Yours truly, X.X.