Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1895-03-27
LETTER TO OLD PETE
Concerning the Fishiness and Rotten.
ness of the SOcalled "Investi-
gatiOn.o

ness of the SOcalled "Inyesti.
CATION"
To the Editor of the Banner.
Hon. Peter Turney-Dear Sir: Your
letter asking my opinion as to the re.
suit of the election bearing on your
candidacy for the Office of Governor,
and also touching the investigation now
in progress under the contest inaugur-
ated by you; and further, as to the true
meaning of what is called the poll tax
election law, has not yet reached me,
but will reply to the inquiries, as l
am not willing to have you think me
unkindly negligent.
AS to the election proper, it was a
surprise to me. When the canvass
opened my estimate was thatyou would
receive plurality of not less than 25,-
600, and possibly as many as 49,,
600 votes over Mr.. Evans. My opin-
ion. however, changed after read your
reported speech at Murfressboro. That
speech, | felt sure, would cause you to
lose from 10000 to 10000 Democratic
votes. l felt that | knew there were
that many or more Democrats in the
State who would set themselves square
ly against any effort to open up the bit
ter passions and feelings of the war and
reconstruction periods. Manifestily, my
estimate was correct. Mr. Evans did not
receive more than the full Republican
vote, whilst you received enough less
votes of your party to be beaten fairly
and tolerably badly.
l say badly for this reason To get
at the true measure of your defeat, to
the plurality against you by the face
of the official returns, must be added
the votes of Democrats that didn t vote
for you and that would have voted
freely for any live, progressive Demo.
crat OF average personal popularity.
| expect, too, that quite considerable
number of shrewd, liberal, go ahead
Democrats voted for Evans, as he hap
pens to be, personally, one of the most
intelligent and clever men of the en-
tire country.
AS to the contest inaugurated by you
it looks to me as the greatest mistake
of your life. First, letting it be grant
ed that your grounds fer contest are
good, you should have allowed long
precedent to have prevailed, resulting
in the Inauguration of the candidate
having the largest number of votes on
the face of the official returns. Had
you sent message to the General AS,
sembly early in January demanding
that such precedent be observed, and
closed your message with these words
II shall vacate the office l now hold
on the 10th of January, 1895, and only
resume the same under new inaugur
alton If successful in contesting the
election of the Governorship," two re
suits, in your favor, would have fol
lowed. First, your chance of success
full legal contest would have been in
creased, at least 1000 per cent, dnd
second, more than one hundred thou
sand Democrats of Tennessee who now
openly denounce and condemn you
would have been your active friends
in the contest proceedings and,
guess, that might safely add that {
little more than one million, eight hun
dred thousand Democrats in othel
States, east, west, north and south
would have felt warm and interested
friendship for you, who, instead ART
now condemning you, and the wickedel
ones of them cursing you for seriousl!
injuring the reputation and futur
chances of success for the party. In
deed, l may add further, that all wir
pulling Republicans from Maine t,
Oregon are chucking with delight be
cause Of our action, and failure to &C
as required by law, and although the,
regard Evans as favorite and know
MIN to be in the line of most favora
Bile promotion, they will be personally
or, rather, l should say, POLITICAL,
glad if you succeed by technical trick
cry and partisan unfairness in relating
the office OF Governor.
As to the question of the poll ia:
election law, in one very importan
sense, it needs no explanation. Wer
l without ordinary legal knowle1g
derived from books my recollection o
a number of arguments l have hear,
you make at the bar and the reading o
one of your decisions while ON the Su
preme Bench would lead me TO sa,
that the language of the statute requiI
ing prefer of the poll tax receipt by th
voter is overshadowed by the const
tutional requirement providing tina
evidence before the judges of election
shall be satisfactory that such a pol
tax has been paid. The gist of the al
guments and decision above referre
to is this: The constitution is the su
preme law of the State. A statute a
variance with it must be held as nul
and void. A statute can not explain
away, modify, enlarge or diminish tn
plain letter and responsible spirit of o.
article or clause of the constitution.
is somewhat like the action of princi
pal and his agent. Suppose you, as
principal, say to an agent and employt