Shreveport semi-weekly news. [volume] (Shreveport, La.) 1865-18??, 1865-09-16


tive instrument, his acts are legal
and binding throughout the whole !
State. He is. i'll that case, the bona
tide governor of the State. and has
power to appoint Judges. sheriffs,
district attorneys. notaries, justices
Of the peace. assessors, police jury
men. constables, &c, and these ap-
poiutees have the tull legal right to
do every act and perform every duty
appertainiug to their respective sta
! tons
! Tie Governor. We believe. has
made appointments Of the several Of
ficers named in all the parishes of the
State, and the gentlemen appointed
ar. in the daily discharge Of their
! duties. A large amount Of legal bu-
siu-ss is transacted in our courts.
marriages are solc,nniZ-d by the
Judges and Justices appointed by
his excel!encv. and numerous other
acts, of vital interest to the country,
are performed by these several func-
tionaries.
If, on the contrary. the cons,i,u-
ton of lsGl is no, legal and valid
| instrument, we have no Governor
nor any other civil functionary.-
! Governor Wells. so far as lawful au-
thori,v is concerned. is man of
straw, and so with all his -ubordi-
mates and appoin..es. In that case,
Judge W.ems is no more the Judge
OF the 10th Judicial Dis,ric, than We
are, and had no more right TO put TO
trial the man John than Wa had,
and Chaplain Thomas Callahan had
"A perfect right to have the Judge ar
rested and tried for violating one Of
the rules Of the Bureau Nor has
the Judge or Justice the righ; in any
case. to solcmnize marriage or DO
any other act belonging to their re-
spectve stations.
And wha, makes tn. matter still
worse, is, the President of the United
States is aware ofthe exact situation
of the case, and sits by and sees the
mighty wrong pcrpctrated without
n move TO Its correction.
The fact that Pr--id-n, Johnson
permits Governor Wells to hold his
office under the constitution o: 1864.
is tacit and dir.c, approval of that
instrument. 1.-THE government fra
med under the constitution of 1864.
had been, as is said, amerc "bogu. "
government, the President would rot
have allowed the farce TO continue.
one single moment longer than it
could be helped. The same course
would have been adopted AS in other
States, that is, n Provisional Gov
ernor would have been appointed and
a convention called to establish IA
new constitution. VIVA, \ cruel
mockerv TO have allowed the con,in,
uance Of a false government, when n
valid, legal government could have
been Just as easily established The
question is too plain for comment.
The position of Mr.. Callahan, ha,
the constitution Of / sS4 is no; bind,
ing in the parish of Bossier because
the people of that parish on the Is,
Monday Of September, 1864 did no,
meet at the ballo,-box and vote on
the question OF ratification. i wholly
untcnahle so palpably so in fact,
as to render any serious rr:uta;iou o!
the position wholly unnecessary.
The constitution, if binding in one
par, of the state, is binding in all
If New Orleans alone had voted,
and the vote cas-: was sufficient. the
constitution would hav. been adopted
and binding on all and in every par;
What is II The Constitution OF the
State OF Louisiana, not of a part o.
louisiana, but the who'll. of Louisi-
ana. That the trainers of the instru-
men, looked upon it in that light It
evident, as they provided for a gen
eral election in every parish of the
State las soon as a general election
can be held, &c"
But the difficulty provided for in
the administration Of justice in the
case of Freedmen. in Paragraph VII
Circular V, is not applicable to this
State, as we have had for the last
forty years statute in force that al
lows frea persons of color the priyi