Southern sentinel. [volume] (Plaquemine, Parish of Iberville [La.]) 1848-1858, 1851-06-07
From the Baton Rouge Gazette.
:gghe East Legislature, and the Nezt,

[I2e AsaSL iSS 81 1NA t!iS 4sSAt
1t has become a matter of course to abuse
the proceedings of the last Legislature. The
hardest have been applied to its pro
ccedinrs, and Il bitter Indignation seems to fiji
the minds Of all who are fully aware of the
gross abuses permitted, and incapacity dis.
played by the "assembled wisdom Of the State
but we tt ink the blame has been placed up
on the wrong shoulders. The poor members
innocent Of their duties as 4 goose is of waltz
ing; and in a large number Of instances by ma
ture incapable of compromising them, the
choice Of the sovereign people, who are alone
10 Mame for the moustrouS abuses, that charac-
icri-ed the proceedings Of the last Legislature.
If grave statesman had gone into the house,
set it down as an assembly Of rude "collegc
ing appearance of the tout en- semitic. The
time is now approaching to again choose re-
representatives., and we would ask, is any thing
to be done, to correct the evils every one COM
plains of! or arc the people again to elect in
experienced and incapable representatives,
who will occupy another session, only to
plunge the State into deeper debt, and saddle
it with another load of oppressive taxes. How
was the great part of the time Of the last scs-
sion of the Legislature consumed? we would
say, by two subjects, one, the agitation of the
removal ofthc Seat of Government, which was
unconstltutional-thc other, the propriety of
sending delegates to the Nashville Convention,
which was simply ridiculous, if it had not in
VOWED the serious consequences of consuming
the important time Of the Legislature.
WHAT had these two SUBJ ects, to do with the
business, which the members Of the Legisla-
ture were commissioned to attend to, by their
constituents! nothing, and every member who
interested themselves in them Willingly or in
c%essantly betrayed their trust--all were not
equally guilty, but it was in vain, that some
half dozen members explained the responsible
ty of the removal Of the Seat of Government
under our present constitution, and equally |
vain were their efforts to show, how entirely
sending members to the Nashville Convention,
was a thing in the hands of the people when
assembled in their primary meetings-in spite
of all this, speeches and counter speeches.
fuss and muss--noise and confusion had pre-
vailed, until days and weeks were consumed
and not until these sapient representatives of
themselves, and not their constituents, had |
fretted, fixed and sputtered. and died off, az
ter the fashion ola badly corked bottle of GIN
ger pop, was any thing practical Or useful at
tempted, and let us see the result.
We are informed on the most reliable au-
thority, that during fifteen days preceding
the adjournment, one hundred and twenty acts
were passed, making an average. of orer treaty
per day.! Here is a solution of the reason
that so many crude and lily dieestcd and ever
to be lndIgested laws disgrace our statute
book" laws that like the communication tax, are
evils not to be borne, and we trust will sleep Il |
In,1 1offor until ranou1,J p,,+ +l,n -.r. e |
this Legislature, makes it appear that ignorance
and incapacity costs more than wisdom and
capaeity--f,r the memorable session cost the
State the enormous sum of eishty-eigM thou
sand nine hundred. and serenty-sercn dollars
and thirty fire cents, within a fraction of ff-
teen hundred dollars per day. And this vast
expenditure of 800 900 says san official of the
Government is not published among the acts
Of the Legislature, nor a minute made of it in
the journals!
Sober and tax ridden people Of Louisiana,
think of the fact above, 100000 of the hard
money wrung from the sweat of your brows,
by the tax co lector is expended so carclessly,
that no record is made of it in the expense
book of the State; 100000, for the pay alone
of members of the Legislature for sixty days
trilting in the State House, a sum larger than
the whole annual expense Of the State Goyern-I
ment of Indiana for one year.
But, while we complain, let us know the
remedy and apply it. We repeat again, that
the evils of which we speak were maillycom-
mitted through ignorance on the part of the
members of the Legislature, and not through
design, and the people are alone responsible.
for they made these public servants. Now let
our citizens ponder upon the subject, and re-
solve upon a thorough reform, let them nomi-
nate intelligent and capable. representatives,
let no other consideration govern their action,
and the evil under which the State labors will
be remedied. The wealthy can take care of
themselves, or at least they have the means
andthe leisure to do so, and the laboring, hard
working man, should arouse himself, and not
let his powerful influence be given to elect
drones, and demagogues, or men who pulled
up with self.suficiency, and without 4 single
qualification of a representative for the Legis-
lature-why should theyfIlot be as sensible
about selecting a candidate, as they are in 9TH
er business mat Why should they not
ask the eaiidsaate The question, 'can you do the
worskproposed?" not, are you adcmocrat, or a
wAlaaysor do you represent this clique, or that
We have men in our State capable of filling
every office we'll, and we repeat again, that the
people at large, are alone responsible for the
faults of the last Legislature, and should not
complain, if having the remedy in their own
hands, they do not send the right men 10 re-
present them in the coming session which will
be one OF the most important that ever assem-.
bled in Louisiana.
In FOR T.-NVIIilc the immense thronr
We're waiting the arrival of the Nav Flower at