Year: 1870

boat navigation, was voted down by only
one majority. We are informed that every
member from Fayette, Shelby, Upton,
Lauderdale and Haywood, voted against the
bill, and that numerous petitions from the
counties named above, protesting against
the bill, were presented. Colonel Rosson
made manly effort in the face of this com
bined opposition, and unlike those who
would close up the natural outlets to com
meree, deserves the hearty thanks of his
constituents In his letter to Us, Colonel
Rosson says:


''In the evening several members came
to me (Rosson) and told me (ROsson) they
had voted under misapprehension; the
motion being to lay on the table, when they
thought they were voting for she passage Of
the bill, and they moved reconsideration,
and when that motion comes up I think we
will have a fair chance of passing the
bill"


Below we give the speech of Colonel
Rosson, and call the attention of Memphis
merchants and the Memphis press to the
many indisputabIe truths it contains, and
ask them to cooperate with US in restoring
to the thousands of families who live along
the Hatchic river the valuable right and
of which they have been
deprived by unwise and partizan legislation.
Will the press of Memphis tell US why the
of Shelby would deny to
that city three hundred and seventy FIVE
miles of steamboat navigation?


Me. SPEAKER: This is bill of vital inns
portance to Il large portion of the tax paying
people In that portion of your State that |
have the honor to represent on this floor.
bill, sir, of much more importance than
your committee that reported against its
passage seems to have attached to it. And
for what reason they report against its pas
sage is unknown to me, for they have not
condescendcd to give US any reasons FOR
that report. But | have said on former
occasion that when this bill came up for
final action, that would give to this house
the fucts in the case which l thought would
abundantly justify its passage.


Now, sir, what are the facts In this case
Here is one of the best, and not only one of
the BEST but tLe very best, navigable streams
in the State, of its size. Meandering its
way through one of the best farming sect
ions on the face of the earth; natural out
let for the productions on It's margin;
stream that has been declared navigable,
and appropriations made by your State to
remove all distractions; a stream, sir, upon
which steamboats, have been plying for
thirty years And continued to do so until
the Memphis u Ohio Railroad Company
stuck up bridge across it, and obstructed
the MASSAGE of boats


And that too, sir after tue State had ap-
propriated one hundred thousand dollars to
that railroad company for the purpose of
building drawbridge there that would not
obstruct the navigation of that river Now
its true, sir, that they did at first build a
drdwbridge as the law required, which was
partially destroyed during the war. But it
is we'll known to every man who knows
anything on that subject, that they did not
eXpend the half of that one handred thou
sand dollars in the construction of that
bridge But instead of expending the
balance in the erection of another draw
bridge, as they should have done, they
choose to stake set of 'dead-beats" aud
"bummers," and send them up here to
lobby around Il partisan legislature and
misrepresent the facts in the case, and get
that legislature to declare the navigation of
that river a nuisance above that point, and
for aught | know, sir, it cost them as much
to have this little insignificant law passed as
it would have cost them to put a draw in
this bridge as they should have done. Here
is the law, sir, of which l complain, only
three or four lines dong, so short as to look
perfectly Insignificant in itself But short
and insignificant as it is, its nevertheless
| long enough to strike down and destroy the
rights and privileges of large and res
pectable portion Of our people. A people
sir, that has been equally as punctual to pay
their tax, as has been this highly favored


railroad to pay the interest on the bonds
| loaned them by the State to build this
! bridge. And yet, gentlemen will call this {
vested right in that railroad company, and
point me to this little Insignificant act of ;


partizan legislature to sustain the assertion


An act Of assembly, sir, that is in palpablC
violation of the spirit OF the constitution o
| the country, procured by fraud and misrep
resentation Talk not to me about it bear


ing vested right If vested at all it is
| vested wrong-a vested outrage upon the


rights and privileges Of these people tina


had been given them by the God of Nature
The navigation of the Hatchie river a nuis


ance, indeed. That, sir, must have been
| legislature vested with extraordinary powers
They pass their franchise laws, striking


down the rights and liberties of the people


and said it was irrepealable. They declare


portions of your constitution a nuisance-s


they do the laws of your State, that ha


been the result of the wisdom of some q


Tennessee's ablest statesmen; and not cor


ten. with that, they absolutely declare tn


works of Natures God, nuisance. An


gentlemen faunt that little Insignificant az


Of assembly in my face, and say that it vesr
right in the railroad company that


irrepealable.


l have heard enough about the acts


that Radical Legislature. They stand on Z


higher ground than the acts of any othe


legislature, subject to the repeal of an


subsequent one, even If the spirit OF tn


constitution had not been violated IN !


passage.