The Portland daily press., 1867-02-14

shows that during the riot of the Both of last
July 81 loyal citizens of New Orleans were
killed, AZ severely wounded, and SO slightly
wounded On the other hand, barely one
disloyal citizen was killed, by accident and not
by any of the friends of the obnoxious Con-
vention, and just 10 policemen were slightly
wounded. These facts are taken from the Of
ficial report fDr. Albert HartsuR, Assistant
Surgeon U. S. A, who has reason to believe
that at least 10 more negroes were killed and
20 wounded, though he is unable to verify
this latter statement with absolute certainty.
We can afford to discard these merely proba-
BILE cases and to neglect the SS reported as
slightly wounded If we set only the IS kill
ed and wounded friends of the Convention
against the 10 slightly wounded policemen
can anybody doubt which was the aggressive
party? Next consider the additional fact,
that in the six months which have elapsed
since that bloody massacre, not single po-
liceman, not single assailant OF the Conven-
ton, has been arrested and brought to trial
for lis share in that days work! On the con-
trary, prosecutions under an old law passed in
1906 are even now pending against the menu
bers of the Convention, for a breach of the
peace! Suppose we grant that the Conven-
tion had no powers, no authority whatever;
does it follow that the members OF the Con-
vention had forfeited all rights? that their
uniounded claims, if they were uniounded,
had stripped them of all social privileges, so
that they might be shot down with implnity ?
That is the theory which still prevails in New
Orleans.
Albert L. VOorhies, Lieutenant Governor,
and Andrew S. Heron, Attorney General of
Louisiana, and ]. T. Monroe, Mayor OF New
Orleans, are the three officials who must bear
the chief responsibility for this crime-all reb-
els, Monroe at that time without even the
poor apology OF a Johnsonian pardon for cali
ing himself penitent traitor. Two days be-
fore the riot VOORHEES, and Heron both sign
ed an inflammatory dispatch to the President, |
telling him he had been bitterly denounced'
by the Radicals, and asking If the military |
would interfere ito prevent process of court |
On the same day Voorhies and Monroe called |
On Gen. Baird to inform him that the design
previously intimated to him, to which he had |
strongly objected, Of employing the police to |
break up the Convention, had been abandon |
ed, and that on Indictment by the grand jury |
OF the parish process would issue to the sheriff |
to make arrests Gen. Baird telegraphed to
the War Office foI additional instructions, but,
got no reply. Secretary Stanton, who now
heard OF the difficulty for the first time, re- |
garding Gen. Bairds course, explained in his |
dispatch, as entirely satisfactory, and seeing |
no occasion for further Instructions The |
President however, who had been visited by
special agents of the conspirators and notably |
by one j. Adolphus Rozier, was prepared to |
reply promptly to Messrs. Voorhies and Her. |
ron His dispatch assured them that the mil |
itary would be expected s'to sustain and not to |
obstruct or interfere with the proceedings of |
the court So assured "the court" did mo-
eeed in startling and high-Eanded fashion,
the like of which has hardly been seen since
st. Batholomews day acquired its bloody
prominence in the calendar. M
On the Sth September following the Presi-
dent in his famous speech at st. Louis, de-
man engaged in that Convention, with the
intention of superseding aud upturning the
civil government which had been recognized
by the Government of the United States, was
a traitor to the constitution of the I'm tied
States" and that another rebellion was COM
menced having its origin in the Radical Con-
gress." Mr.. johnson has probably discovered
since, that the civil government of Louisiana
has not been recognized and has no immedi-
ate prospect of being recognized by the Con-
gress Of the United States, and that without
such recognition it is less permanent than he
had supposed. The Convention proposed to
remodel that government so as to admit to
the polls all loyal citizens black or white, and
exclude traitors. That was what the Pres-
dent called rebellion" Finally, Judge How
ell, President pro tempOre of the Convention,
testifies that he visited Washington to get
some encouragement from Congressman and
failed So much for the responsibility of the
Radical Congress in the matter. 1t should
be added that the President was perfectly
aware that the Governor of Louisiana was
cooperating with Judge Howell in calling the
Convention together. Yet he spoke of this
peaceful gathering under the auspices of the
chief magistrate of the State, as "a rebellion
and he treated it as rebellion, to be stamp
ed out crushed, put down without ruth or
mercy. 1t was after the massacre, be il OBJ
served, that he spoke thus of the Convention,
iustitying tie violence which he had himself
encouraged. But one excuse can be offered
for such language as the President used at st.
Louis, and that excuse would itself furnish
ground for impeachment. F ..4a, ~
Such is the history of this bloody massacre.
The investigation does not convict the Presi-
dent or the local authorities directly and clear
ly of conspiracy to bring about the riot 1t
does uncover what must at least be called
criminal neglect to prevent disturbances plain
| ly foreseen. Their own words and acts since
the event have shown in what direction their
| sympathies went forth. The government
| Of Louisiana is still in the hands of the men
who controlled it in July, the men to whom
the President committed it. VIII Congress
| leave it there ? a.s.-