The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1866-08-11

the opinion Lnat, unuer the resolution
of adjournment, the Convention could
lawf1llyre- assemble. A distinguished
Democratic Senator In Congress took
the same view with myself. IF had
any doubt on this subject, which I
have not, / should have refer
red to the opinion of ADLER men.
The total number of delegates COM
posing the convention was one hun
dred and fifty; the number elected
was seventy three. The quorum was
fixed at seventy-six. This number
being a majority of the whole, there
were twenty-seYen parishes unrepre-
sented in the convention entitled to
ffty-one delegates, and adding thereto
ten vacancies to be filed, would
make sixty-one delegates to be elected,
besides there were some ten or twelve
delegates who, disappearing the
emancipation clause, refused to sign
the Constitution, who may rank with
the extreme conservatives. Counting
the sixty-one delegates to be elected
to be of the same class, and the bal
ance of the convention to be radical,
it will be seen that the parties would
have been really equally divided.
/ have gone into, these details to
show the falsity of the charges that
have been made, " that it was intend
led to have the Convention thoroughly
packed. u, Each and every parish
would have been represented, and
about one half elected their delegates
in 1864, and the other half in 1866,
making a just equilibrium of those
who opposed and those who sustained
the Confederacy. There are disfran-
chising clauses in the Constitution of
1864. The much abused members of
that body had it in their power and
could have made the Constitution as
stringent against those engaged in re-
bellion as Tennessee.
They pursued az opposite course,
and believing and trusting, as / did,
that these men would be actuated by
spirit of tolerance and forbearance
In return for the liberality shown to-
ward them. How the members of
that convention had been treated in
dividually by the very men in whose
honor and good faith they trusted, to
say nothing about the scorn and Will
fication Illuminated against them, as
collective body and the Constitution
they made, let the record of the
bloody doings at the Mechanics In
stitue on Monday, the 30th ult., an
swer in keeping with their unrelent-
ing policy to maintain the power of
the State In their own hands exclu-
sively. a 2 o.
Admitting they had assembled for
that purpose, what occasion was there
for alarm unless it was meditated to
assault the Convention. The infer
ence is Irresistible, by the massing of
the police alone, that it was designed
to break up the convention by force
A beginning was necessary and an
sought for. This soon
occurred, by the arrival of a process
sion of blacks with music, on their
way to the, place of meeting of the
Convention, which procession had to
enter the street through the crowd of
policemen and citizens. AT the corner
of Canal, they were met with insults
and jeers which brought on a COLI
sion. s. .-.es. .Ioa III. ,,,,...
A shot was fred but ended In moth
ing serious The next act of violence
was the arrest cf colored man by
policeman in front of the Institute,
for what offence ! am unable to say.
The crowd of colored persons assem-
bled naturally became excited at
this occurrence, the same as a body of
white men would do under similar cir
cumstances. Some took sides with
the policemen and others the side of
the prisoner. Brickbats were thrown
and shot fired.
With the power of State in their
own hands exclusively, they opposed
the meeting of the Convention Of 1864.
They needed no better monitor than
their own conscience to tell them that
by their conduct they had forfeited
all claim to further liberty from the
original members of that Convention.
They resolved it must be put down
crushed out at all risks. The terrible
scenes of the Both of July were con-
fidently predicted incase the Conven-
ton met, were the resultssof the letter
of Mayor Monroe to Gen Baird. ilnb 4
This communication gives proof
that it was the determination, if every
other means failed, to resort to force.
Everything was arranged on Sunday
Preparatory to that purpose, the po-
lice received orders, and on Monday
morning they were in large numbers
on the corner of Canal and Dryades
streets, each having one or more re
volver on his person. Why were they
there except to commit violence?
Among all that has been charged
against the speakers at the Friday
night meeting. they concealed moth
ing more than the blacks coming
around to defend the Convention in
case the testimony went to show that
it was Gone by one of the colored
crowd. 1t was answered immedi-
ately by shots from the crowd
OF nnilcnman thu oornnr ond