Daily evening star. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1852-1854, 1854-04-05
DAILY EVENING STAR
THE WAY THEY MANAGE ELECTIONS
IN NEW ORLEANS.

The LATE RIoTs.-We take the fol-
lowing extract from the New Orleans
Delta of the 29th ult., giving an account
of the.late election riots in that CITY
"The first error was in appointing
corporation officials as inspectors, who
were personally interested in giving a
particular direction to the voting. Next
it has been represented by reliable per.
sons, that votes were received with Q
rapidity and a disregard of the iniunc-
tions OF the law, which disgusted ali be.
holders; challengers were ordered off and
dlsregarded; demands for the swearing OF
the voters were refused on the ground
that the inspectors had not time, and
persons who were pointed out as having
voted before, and who were illegal voters,
were received: citizens who invoked the
application of the legal tests, were in.
suited and threatened; and many other
lmproprieties committed. Although the
average vote of the ward was but seven
hundred, We arc informed by good au-
thority that thousand votes had been
received at twelve clock, Just four hours
after the polls were opened. This would
be at the rate of four persons a minute,
rate which excludes all idea that the
requirements of the law were regarded.
These circumstances produced great
excitement among the citizens, and a
large crowd assembled near the polls.
In front of the judges stand and the bal.
lot-box, was room, sometimes used as
q ballroom, wherein were assembled a
mixed crowd Of angry disputants. One
great cause of angry contention was the
refusal Of a man by the. name of Smith,
to relinquish a position which he occu-
pied near the Judges stand, and to cease
challenging voters. Smith having been
threatened, drew his pistol, and defied
the crowd to remove him. He was main.
tanning his position, when, about three
o'clock, two detachments of stout and
furious men rushed into the ball room
by two-doors, brandishing heavy loaded
sticks, and shouting, "Down with the
Know-nothingsr'
One of these parties was led by Will
liam Mochler, a policeman, brother of the
policeman who was killed on Sunday
morning in an affray of his own provo
cation. Mochler was a powerful man,
and appeared to be bent on some despe-
rate purpose. He rushed into the crowd
with his club, there was a general melee,
and Mochler and his party were observed
to be retreating, Mochler himself falling
near the door, and another man named
Martin Towsley falling within the house.
They were both stabbed mortally through
the shoulder. Lamentable as such an
occurrence as this must appear to all
good citizens, it would be vain to pretend
that these men were engaged in any other
but an unlawful and violent interference
with the rights of other citizens. They
were evidently provoking an affray.
For the remainder of the day there
was comparative quiet at the polls. The
polls were closed at the usual time, and
it was given out that the number of
votes registered was 935. This procla-
nation gave general satisfaction, and the
crowd dispersed. The inspectors took
the ballot boxes into possession, and re-
firing into an interior room, began to
count the votes in the presence of gentle
men of both parties. AS they were
about to commence the count, to the sur
prise of some persons, it was stated that
instead of 935 there were l40O votes in
the box. The Misrepresentation as to
the number was confessed by some to be
a ruse, to prevent the polls being mobbcd.
BY others, it was charged or suspected
that votes had been placed in the box
after the polls were closed. This fact
soon got abroad, and drew crowd around
the house. A police force was sent
around, and stationed in the street near
the polls.
Meantime, some gentlemen were depu-
ted by the crowd to proceed into the
house and see that the votes were hon.
estly counted. They did so, and reported
the fact that there were over fourteen
hundred votes in the box. The excite
ment of the crowd was growing quite
ws-m and threatening, when Captain
Tenbrink, who, with the Chief of Police,
was present, seeing that the presence of
the police added to the excitement, ap-
pealed to the crowd to preserve peace
and order: and having, as he thought,
calmed the tumult, deemed it prudent to
order the police Off Shortly after this
was done, there was rush by the crowd
at the doors, several pistols were fred
both from within and without the house !;
the doors were broken open, and a furious
body of men rushed into the interior
where the count was going on. The
ballot boxes were seized, and thrown
into the street, and trampled upon, and
the inspectors were driven off.
Such, we believe, are at least the
leading facts, as far as we could gather
them from contrariant and conflicting
accounts, of the deplorable incidents Of
Mondays election. sa .-..
MEXICO AND BIBLE PROHIBITION.
The Universal of the City of Mexico,