Year: 1872

I H4O &GGS III MS WY


When he was military Governor


of Tennessee, the claims of associa-


tion-the claims of religion-the


claims ofwOman hood-nothing de-


tered him from opening prison
| doors to old friends, and comrades,


old neighbnls, and the wives and


children of these. His cant about


raising money from the rich to re


lieve the distresses of the poor is


the fimsy plea of the bighwayman


1t would not be 4 fair pretext if it


were true, and it is notI true. Yet,


for these things, Tennessee forgave


Andrew johnson. Her forgiveness


was wrung from her partly by cir


cumstances and partly by charity.


He was President off the United


States. She was captive in irons.


For his own purposes eZmade--a a


show of returning sympathy for his


own people. His own people needed


his sympathy and succor. They got


neither as a matter of fact They


had at last to work out their destiny


for themselves. They did this, ow-


ing nothing to Johnsoa. But he was


not so free from obligation. Ten


nessee stood fast to the bond; she


indorsed his pretensions to re-elec-


ton; she voted for his nomination


in the New York Convention of1SG8,


and when he came back-dcfeated


and detected, miserable failure as


he had shown himself to be-she


gave him a hearty welcome. There


was complete amnesty and oblivion


then. His eXccsses as military
| Governor were not remembered


against him. His neglect of Ten


nessee whilst he was President was
| forgotten. He had only to settle


down, as an ex-President should,


with dignity, to be honored in spite


of his shortcomings. But he did


not pursue this obviously sensible
and decent course. Tennessee, no
thanks to him, was free and he set


himself up for the hero of victory


he had no part in, a victory which


had boon won in spite of him. He
seemed to construe amnesty to
mean 4 perpetual claim upon office,
He complained then, as he COM
plains now, that everybody is en-
franchised but him, and he is pro
scribed because there are those who
consider that he is not the best man
to send to Congress, his election of
course involving his reinstatement
as cock of the walk in Tennessee
politics.


For our part, we think the reap |
pearance of Andrew Johnson at
Washington would be positive in
Jury to the Liberalism which we are
devoted to, and which we think the
Memphis Avalanche, for all its pro-
fressiuns, illustrates hardly at all
We think also that whilst the Ava
lanche is demanding an amnesty for
johnson, which Johnson had long
ago, it might as well exemplity its
pretense of IiberaIity by giving the
same amnesty to Harris. But,
these considerations apart, it is PLAIN
that johnson is mere factious agi
tator-illiberal by nature and inca
pable by habit of conceiving the
Liberalism of our day-and that his
success will build up a personal
at Nashville which will
make slaves of such papers as the
Avalanche or drive them into the
Radical party, whether they seem to
be tending even as it is. We would
save them from the mistake they are
making, if we can; but whether we
do OF not, we would warn the people
of Tennessee against the error and
wrong of preferring a claimless and
cgotist like Andrew John
son to a plain, straightforward,
honest man like Frank Cheatham.
We say s'disgraced" advisedly, for
everybody knows how he did dis
grace himself at the Maxwell House
after his defeat two years ago.
There is no other political signifi-
cance in the contest than this, that
johnson back at Washington Will
be a perpetual marplot, whilst at
Nashville he will become the center
figure and boss of q personal ma
chine quite as proscriptive as any
that ever domjncered over a people.


Liberalism in Tennessee can never
thrive through Andrew Johnson. 1t
can not even exist if he is placed at
the head Of afTuirs. If he is its only
hope it had better be defeated until
it can get a better. We are earnest
in our Liberalism, and we have
thought, despite its bilious and fret
full temper, that the Memphis Ava
lanche had the same general pur
pose at heart. It's narrowness in
this campaign suggests a different
train of reflections. But this as it
NAV, the Avalanche can rest assured I
Of this, that it is not preaching the
Liberalism of Horace Greeley, nor
following in the wake Of that move
mcnt which-not by prescription
nor through such shameless Hunk
ers as Andrew johnson, but by the
influence of fresh cur
rent of national principles and mar
shal the new South upon the pros
rarn,1s highway of the future. We