Year: 1878

taxation has not brought US our


hardships. and will not bring US re-


lief. Am | not right in saying that


we are locking in the dirt for a glow


worm to give US light to guide onr


steps when we should be looking in.


TO the heavens for the sun to lend US


his rays to direct our going to and
fro? say to high tax men, if they


could elect every member to the
Legislature whose hobby was high


tax, employment would not thereby


be given to the idle. I say to the


low tax men, if you were to elect


every member to the Legislature


whose hobby was low tax, you would


not bring relief to the suffering peo.


pie. I do not mean to underrate the


Importance Of State taxation. even


though there is majority of our cit


izens who are not required to and do
not pay any State tax. Unfortun-
ately majority Of cur citizens are
not owners of real estate, nor own
ers of over $1,000 of personal prop
erty; hence they are not required to
pay State tax and are not directly
affected by it, whether the rate be 10
cents or 40 cents.


THE STATE DEBT.


We have before US now no propo.
sition to compromise the State debt,
nor do [ anticipate another soon.
There was a proposition made to
compromise at 60 cents on the dol
lar and six per cent interest. That
was not accepted. and another pro-
position to compromise at so cents
was offered. as we understood it.
That was not accepted. Since the
adjournment of the Legislature
large majority in amount of the
bondholders have met in New York
and formall announced that they will
accept nothing less than the original
proposition made by the Arbitration
Committee to our Legislative Com
mittee. The Baltimore San, which
may be regarded in some degree as
the exponent of the majority of the
holders of our bonds has also said


"The discussion OF the State finan-
ees is waxing warm in Tennessee,
and the prospect is that it will be
the prominent issue in the canvass
just opening. Fifty cents on the
dollar, however, is not what the
bondholders propose to accept. Some
irresponsible party offered that. The
genuine bondholders have declared
their willingness to accept so cents
not less.'' |


AS there is no possibility of any
such proposition being accepted
while the bondholders hold their
present attitude. we will have no
proposal for the compromise of the
State debt before as. And yet. it
must be compromised in some way.
The interest is increasing at the rate
of $1.500.000 per annum. We can
not afford to repudiate. nor can we
afford to entirely to suspend pay.
ment on our State debt day longer
than we eau devise some means to
escape from the difficulties under
which we now labor. think il
would have been better to the State
and to her citizens, and less expen-
siVe, to have compromised the debt
at the last session of the Legisla.
ture than to have permitted it to
continue to run uudiminished in the
principal and undiminished in the
rate of interest. Twenty-fv mill.
ions of dollars is a large amount to
owe. and six per cent. is a heavy in-
terest on SO large an amount. But
it is useless to grumble over the past
let US look to the future. AS Dem.
ocrats, who wish to act in harmony.
we must consent to give aud take
from each other little abuse. Ad-
NIT that each was partly right and
partly wrong, H


The last two Democratic State
Conventions wisely declared that
the State tax on property should not
exceed so cents on the 800, ad va
Iorem. / maintain that as the re.
duction Of the State tax 10 10 cents
On the 500 has brought US no re.
lief; we are just as able to pay more
than 80 cents now as we were when
that amount was fixed as the maxi.
mum. -. 81 81. tiss sa s..


In my opinion, the State debt can
be compromised, removed from pol
tics and paid without ever return.
ng to tax of 40 cents. provided
The proper steps are Immediately
taken. 1 certainly should net ask
for a tax higher than would be nee.
sssary to pay the interest on the
lebt If settled at SsB cents on the |
lollar, and that is the lowest rate
Isked by the lowest tax advocates.
n two years it would not be neces-
AIRY, in my opinion, to have as high /
tax as that levied. .st


ONLY ONE. SOLUTION. = -