Year: 1869




The following proBunciamento appears
in the Knoxville Waig Of June IS: -
ael CARD. fls


/ find myself called upon, by letter
and through the newspapers, TO define
my position on the suffrage question, now
being agitated throughout the State. /
have never held an equiyOcal position
on any great public question and never
will. Nor have / the vanity tosuppose
that my opinions will influence those
of any considerable number of men, on
this or any other question, and / certainly
have no purpose to dictate to any OF
them, how they shall vote at the coming
election. 1t is from an entirely ditier>
ent motive that I shall state what fol-
lows: ssa


In my Judgment, the existing franchise
law was an absolute necessity to prevent
the State from being thrown into anarchy,
and to protect the loyal people thereof
from being subjected to prescription, vlo-
lence and murder or exile. On this ac>
count and with this view have sup
ported that measure. II l had the power,
| would dislranchise, for life, the active
leaders who brought on and upheld the
rebellion. These bear about the propor-
ton to the other numbers who were
drawn into rebellion--say, as one to ten.
The question arises, then, in view Of the
recent decision of the Supreme Court,
and TO which shall soon more particu-
lar refer, how can you discriminate to
make the disability fall upon them alone?
Would it be right or wise to keep
thousand men under disabilities, nine
hundred of whom do not longer require
it, for the sake of the one hundred who
do?


IS The Republican party in Tennessee
have secured the entire judiciary in the
State for eight years to come, and should
the Governor recommend to the Legis~
lature an alteration Of the constitution
admitting the disfranchised to the ballet,
it will require two years to accomplish
it. The Rebel population of the State
will then have been disfranchised at
least six years. Should they then come
into power by welding a majority Of
the votes, it will be impossible for them
even then, to fill the offices Of the State,
with Rebels, to its injury, because of
the fourteenth amendment to the United
States constitution.


There is still another view Of this subs
ject l wish to present. The Supreme
Court of Tennessee, a court of our own
choosing, bas recently restored to the
ballot, by its late decision, about twenty
thousand Rebels, among whom, were
some of the active leaders Of the rebel-
lion, who had been excluded therefrom
by the franchise law. ~. us..t .. ..i


We elected Grant upon the platform
of universal suffrage, East Tennessee
alone giving him about twenty-six
thousand majority. In his inaugural ad-
dress Grant comes out fair and square for
universal suffrage the reconstruction
measures of Congress all proceed upon
the principle Of universal suffrage the
entire Republican party Of the nation and
the entire Republican press of the North
are out unequivocally in favor of univers
sal suffrage. Should the Republicans Of
Tennessee obstinately stand out any
longer against the great Republican party
of the nation and its entire press, and
also against the President and both
houses of Congress, they will simply rem
der themselves ridiculous in the estima~
ton of all besides themselves.


1t will be seen from the foregoing, that
in my Judgment the safety Of the State,
the welfore of its people and the protec-
ton of its loyal citizens do not demand
the perpetuation of existing disabilities
longer than the time when they can be
constitutionAlly removed.


In conclusion, | have no confidence in
that organization known as the Demo-
cratic party, either North or South. l
can never act with that organization,
nor support any man for office who, |
have reason to believe, will be controlled
by its partisans Indeed, if | desired to
bring the devil out of his lair, and secure
his active cooperation with me in poll
tics, l would proclaim myself a Demo
crat of the Rebel>Conservative school,
The organization is choke>full of hatred
of the United States government, and
having the fsh-like smell of States
Rights" it is unsavory to the nostrils o
modern progress. There are but two
parties left in this country-the diminish
ing party Of Democracy, that brought
about the rebellion; and the rapidly
growing party Of National Republicans
who advocate universal suffrage, and th'
equal rights of all, irrespective q birth
place, or color. To this party / belong
and with it and my country propose t.
sink or swim, live or die, survive o
perish! W.G- BRowELow.
June u, 1869.