The New Orleans crescent. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1866-1869, 1868-09-25
A FAIR REGISTRATION.


waste words on the subject they ara deter
mined to have it. This may as well be under
stood first as last, in order that unnecessary
contention NAV be avoided. There is no dis
position on the part of the people of this
State to impede their adversaries in the exer-
else of all their legal rights-nor have they
any thought of accepting less than their own.
If the vote of this State can be given to Grant
under fair registration and fair election the
Democracy will, of course submit to the YER
dict; but the time has passed when they could
be DISTINGUISHED at will, and in violation of
law, by the shameless tools Of military despot-
ism and of hungry carpet-baggery. They
want peace, they want order, but they want
to vote. On this point they are resolute,
and we sincerely hope that the official to
whom Is confded the task of conducting the
registration will not attempt to cross their
Just and reasonable purposes. The business
Of registration is to commence to-day, and,
to-day we shall ascertain whether the super
visors intend to discharge their duty under
the law, and in accordance with the law, or
whether they are going to lend themselves to
the infamous scheme of cheating the white
people of the State out of their votes. The
law by which the registrars and the supervis-
ors should be guided is very plain. 1t simply
carries out the provisions of the III Constitution
r,.Ss,. Image and disfranchise-
leaves no room for evasion except by
recourse to fraudulent expedients and SMILING
pretexts. We repeat our hope that the super
visors will not resort to such expedients and
such pretexts in order to diminish the effect
i've strength of the Democratic party.
The rule of action for the registrars and
supervisors is to be found in the act of the
Legislature of Sept It'll, 1858, passed in con-
formity with the Constitution. That act re-
quires the applicant for registration to make
the following affidavit
"I-, do solemnly swear Cor affirm, as the
case may be- that am twenty one years OF age,
was born Tor naturalized, as the case may BEL in
the United States, and am subject to the jurisdic-
ton thereof, and have been resident OF the State
of Louisiana since the - day of -, and
resident of this parish since the - day Of -,
and that am not dsfranchised for any Of the
causes stated in the fret paragraph Of article
ninety nine of the Constitution of this State.
And do further solemnly swear Tor affirm. as
the case may be,) that did not hold any Office
civil or military, for one year or more, under the
organization styled "the Confederate States OF
America !" that never registered myself as an
enemy of the United States; that ! never acted
as leader of guerrilla bands during the late rebel
lien that never, in the advocacy of treason,
wrote or published newspaper articles or preached
sermons during the late rebellion that never
voItd for and signed an ordinance Of secession in
any State.
This affidavit can be taken by every citizen
possessing the constitutional qualifications of
age and residence, except those disfranchised
by article SO Of the Constitution, to-wit: Those
who held civil or military Office, for more than
a year, under the Confederacy; those who
were registered enemies, or were leaders of
guerilla bands, or who wrote or published
newspaper articles, or preached sermons in
favor of the Southern cause. The most nu-
merous of these classes are those who held
Office for more than a year, and the registered
enemies. Of the former there may be about
twenty Hva hundred IN the State, Of tho l0tts-,
perhaps, three thousand. All citizens except
those embraced in the excepted classes above
named, are entitled to register on taking the
prescribed affidavit Democrats must re-
member that no previous registration is of any
consequence, and that they have a right to
demand registration unless DISTINGUISHED as
above stated. Those who are thus disfran-
chised can relieve themselves of their disa-
bilities in one of two prescribed methods. In
the first place they can file certificate of
recantation with the secretary of state; in the
next place they cen take an affidavit the
terms of which are prescribed by the law as
follows:
/, -, do solemnly swear (or affirm, as the
case may be- that prior to the first of January,
eighteen hundred and sixiy.eight / favored tie
execution Of the laws of the United States popu-
larly known as the reconstruction acts of Con.
gress, and openly and actively assisted the loyal
men Of the State in their efforts to restore Louis
ana to her position in the Union.
Either form is conclusive. The registrars
have no power, under the law, to go behind
the recantation or the affidavit. They have
the right to invalidate the affidavit of the
claimant who swears that he is not disfian-
chised, provided they can procure sufficient
evidence; but in the other cases they have no
discretion. That is to say, they may ex-
anime the case of an applicant touching his
qualifications as a voter, or his disabilities;
but this power lapses in regard to the disabil-
tiles as soon as such disability, or imputed
disability, is removed by the recantation GER
tifcate or the reconstruction affidavit. In
these cases the applicant, otherwise qualified,
must be registered. The supervisors have no
discretion, and any attempt on their part to
impose additional restrictions, or to impugn
the affidavit of the claimant otherwise than by
legal prosecution, in cases of false swearing,
is bold, reckless and wicked violation of the
law.
We repeat the hope that no such course
will be taken. We say again that the white
people of Louisiana desire peace and order;
but, we likewise Say again, that they want to
vote, and that they lciN register and ,oiR vote
if legally qualified to do so. We state this
calmly and seriously, but with an emphasis
justified by our knowledge of the spirit of our
people. They have been deliberately and