788 



TENNESSEE. 



and corruption in the administration of the State and 

 Federal Government, and for its total disregard of all 

 civil-service reform ; and do hereby declare our un- 

 qualified opposition to the practice of said party in 

 levying upon the employes of the Government a tax 

 for political purposes. 



Upon the adoption of the platform, a pro- 

 test against it was made by about 150 dele- 

 gates, among whom was ex-United States Sen- 

 ator Bailey, who afterward left the conven- 

 tion, and organized a conference, with General 

 W. H. Jackson as chairman. Their objection 

 to the platform was that it was " an effort on 

 the part of the debtor factions to harmonize 

 their differences at the expense of the public 

 creditor, and to determine judicially upon that 

 which should alone be adjudicated by a sol- 

 emn court of justice, or else by voluntary 

 agreement between the debtor and creditor." 

 Having adopted a resolution directing the 

 chairman to appoint an Executive Committee, 

 and instructing that committee to call a con- 

 vention of u the true Democracy of the State to 

 meet at Nashville, July llth, and having ap- 

 pointed a committee to prepare and publish an 

 address to the public, stating their reasons for 

 withdrawing from the convention, the con- 

 ference adjourned. The address set forth in 

 forcible terms the committee's unqualified ap- 

 proval of the " 60-3-4-5-6 " compromise, and 

 stated that the new terms proposed, " although 

 unjustly discriminating between the creditors," 

 not only does not lessen the sum to be paid by 

 the people, but makes it greater than that to 

 be paid under the settlement made by the 

 Legislature. 



The convention of the " State Credit " wing 

 of the Democratic party met on the llth of 

 July, passed resolutions approving the act of 

 May 20th, opposing repudiation, advocating a 

 liberal system of public schools, favoring the 

 establishment of a railroad commission to reg- 

 ulate freights, etc., so as to prevent unjust 

 discrimination, and arraigning the Republican 

 party for its extravagance, disregard of the 

 organic law, its tendency to centralization, and 

 its protection of monopolies. After the adop- 

 tion of the platform, Mr. Jo'seph H. Fussell was 

 nominated as the "State-Credit" candidate 

 for Governor. 



The Greenback party also nominated a can- 

 didate, John E. Beasley. Their platform op- 

 posed the payment of any part of the debt, 

 except a small portion of the " State debt 

 proper," and not even that, unless the people 

 at the ballot-box voted in favor of it. This 

 party held that all the " railroad " bonds were 

 illegally issued. 



The canvass was active and heated, resulting 

 in the election of General W. B. Bate, by a ma- 

 jority of 27,454 over Hawkins, 114, 127 over Fus- 

 sell, and 109,211 over Beasley, in a total vote of 

 224,204. The result of the election is under- 

 stood to be an expression of the popular will 

 against the " 60-3-4-5-6 " funding act, and in 

 favor of an adjustment by the next Legisla- 



ture on the following terms : 1. The payment 

 of the " State debt proper " in full, less war 

 interest, in bonds, payable in as short a period 

 as possible, and bearing the same interest per 

 annum as the original bonds. 2. All bonds held 

 by educational and charitable institutions, and 

 the 29 6 per cent bonds belonging to Mrs. James 

 K. Polk, to be paid in full. 3. The remainder 

 of the debt to be settled at fifty cents on the 

 dollar, principal and interest (including war 

 interest), in bonds to run for thirty years, with 

 privilege of earlier redemption, and to bear in- 

 terest at 3 per cent per annum. It is sought to 

 excuse this repudiation of the " 60-6 " act, 

 under which nearly half of the debt has been 

 funded, on the ground that its passage was 

 open to suspicion of corruption, that the 

 people not only did not sanction it, but posi- 

 tively instructed many of their representatives 

 who voted for it to vote against it, and that 

 the terms which are now contemplated and 

 approved by the people are the best they can 

 afford to offer. The following is said to be a 

 correct statement of the bonds originally is- 

 sued, and constituting the " State debt prop- 



er. 



500 bonds issued to Union Bank of Tennessee. 

 2,500 bonds issued to Bank of Tennessee ...... 



1.166 bonds issued to build the Capitol of Ten 



nessee ..................................... 



48 bonds issued to purchase the Hermitage. . . . 



1,258 bonds issued for stock in turnpikes ...... 



449 bonds issued for stock in Hiwassee Eailroad 



Company .................................. 



202 bonds issued for stock in East Tennessee and 



Georgia Railroad Company .................. 



200 bonds issued for stock in La Grange and 



Memphis Kailroad ........................... 



$500,000 00 

 2,500,000 00 



866,000 00 



48,000 00 



1,262,856 66 



449,000 00 

 202,000 00 

 217,250 00 



Total, 6,323 bonds, amounting to ........... $6,044,606 66 



A bill was passed by the Legislature at its 

 second extra session to redistrict the State ac- 

 cording to the congressional apportionment, 

 although the number of representatives ten 

 is not increased. After the bill was enrolled, 

 signed by the Speakers of both Houses of the 

 General Assembly, and approved by the Gov- 

 ernor, it was discovered that three counties 

 Rhea, Meigs, and Cumberland were not named 

 in the bill. The defect was not detected until 

 after the Legislature had adjourned. The At- 

 torney-General and other prominent lawyers 

 advised the Governor that the bill was void, 

 on the ground that, if the Legislature, in divid- 

 ing the State into congressional districts, could 

 leave out three counties, they could leave out 

 a greater number ; that the Legislature ought 

 to be convened to remedy the defect, or that 

 the election should be held under the old and 

 only valid law. The Governor did not follow 

 this advice, and the election was held under 

 the imperfect bill, which, in the opinion of 

 many, makes it invalid, and may cause the 

 State to lose her representation in the Forty- 

 eighth Congress, until a perfect bill shall be 

 passed and a good election had. The mem- 

 bers-elect of the next General Assembly belong 

 mostly to the Democratic party, and are di- 

 vided, as to party, as follows : 



