American citizen. [volume] (Butler, Butler County, Pa.) 1863-1872, 1864-01-27

Our Washington dispatches, yesterday
stated that the same steamer which brought
accounts Of the great meeting in New Or
leans in favor of holding State Conven.
tion to do away with Slavery, also brought
letter to leading administration con-
gresham, from one Of the most prominent
leaders of the Free State movement in
Louisiana, which states that " President
Lincoln has started Missouri case in
Louisiana" !" that Banks is another Scho-
field"-and worse than he )" that, while
the mass meeting was {" a complete sue
cess" its object will be defeated by
Banks, who, under orders direct from the
President, declares his purpose to order an
election for State Government, and not
to allow an election for a Convention"
These would be very disagreeable and
disappointing statements, if we could be-
lieve them. But we think, from careful
examination of the letters from various
correspondents of the press, which came
by the same steamer and have since been
published in the New York papers, that
the prominent leader" who wrote to the
administration congressman, must have
been laboring under some dclusion His
letter was written on the 9th inst, the
day after the great mass meeting, and prob
| ably was the hasty and indignant out
pouring of one who had met lying Sc
cessionist, whose unscrupulous assertions
were made more as reprisals for the ''com-
plete success" of the meeting on the pre-
vious evening, than as yeritable and aG-
thentic intimations of what the pro-slave-
ry party had either learned, or hoped, as
to Gen Banks's policy.
That some such rumors as this writer
has been alarmed by, had been circulated
among the pro-slayery party in New Or
leans, there is no reason to doubt Indeed,
We find the following passage in letter
to the n. Y. Tribune, which was also writ,
ten on the 9th instant:
"There seems to be considerable salts
faction around town, the last day or two,
among the pro-slavery party here. Upon
what they build their hopes do not know.
Some Of them pretend to believe that an
election will shortly be had upon the basis
of representation fixed by the old Consti-
tuition, and in that they find great cause
of joy. Some of the Union men fear
there may be some truth. in this, though
| can hardly think it possible. If 50, the
work of the Union men for the last six
months will go for naught Any election
at the present time based upon the ratio
of representation fixed by the Constitu-
ton of 1852 will be fraud-a cheat-a
practical disfranchisement of more than
half the loyal men of the parishes of Or
leans and Jefferson These two parishes
contain more than half the white popu-
lation of the State, and, upon the old ba-
sis Of representation, will only have about
one-fifth Of the representatives. On the
other hand the other parishes with not
quite one-third of the white population
will be enabled, upon the neg o basis, to
control the majority of the representa-
tives. That accomplished, they think
they see how to blast Louisiana's prospects
for another generation at least
Slavery having a legal existence in
some parts of the State, they hope to be
able to prolong its existence in spite Of
the people by pretending to abolish it
They vii! enact gradual emancipation
re-enact all the black code 50 long as sla-
very exists--all the odious police and ju-
ry laws Of the country parishes will be re-
vived, and no man who is known to be an
earnest, sincere lover of freedom will dare
put his nose into the country parishes, for
fear of being brought up for violating
some internal provision the Solons have
enacted to protect the institution. Free
dom of speech, or of the press, under a
system Of gradual emancipation, is nomore
possible than it was before the rebellion.
The mere contemplation of the despotism
and tyranny to both black and white will
certainly nerve every man to fight this
thing desperately.
What special communication these pro-
slavery men have, cannot at present be
traced but it seems hard to believe, as |
/ heard one Of these men say, that things
arc going to Ia fixed in the election ar
rangement to suit them. We all know If
these men had finger in the arrange
ments what would happen" ="
Two days after these communications
/ NClt Nllbttil. Oh 'iiS iith iiiSi''
appeared Gen. Banks's proclamation, or
dering an election for State officers to be
held on the 22d of February, and appoint
ing the first Monday in April to hold an
election of delegates to a Convention to
revise the State Constitution. We think
the very terms in which this remarkable
document is couched, themselves disprove
the charge that Gen. Banks has any in
tention of becoming an instrument, like
Schofeld, in the hands of the pro-slavery
party. He will not prove false to all his
antecedents, nor ever be numbered with
the back-sliders--if this proclamation
may witness for him And in writing this
proclamation, or in any other act of his
administration whoshall say that he would
Keep the word of promise to the ear,
To break it to the hopei"
We append the proclamation, and think
careful reading of it will show that Gen
Banks at least means to do right:
PROCLAMATION.
HEADoUARTERs DEPARTMENT OF THE GuLP.l
NEw ORLEANS Jan. H. 1864.
To The Peopte Of Louisiana:
/. In pursuance of authority vested in
me by the President of the United States,
| and upon consultation with many repre-