The south-western. [volume] (Shreveport, La.) 1852-1870, 1868-04-01
SHREVEPORT, La, March 81, 1868.

Editors of South Western:
In your last issue, under the editorial, head, I notice
an article headed {" The Constitutional Oath ,"ih which
you say, " We publish below arciele 100 of the African
constitution, that our readers may know. what the can
didates for their suffrage are willing to swear TO /
elected and the constitution ratified" And after moE
ing the oath, " with what propriety can any candidate
for office ask the support of any man who is unwilling
to take this oath? or what man opposed to the ina1gu-
ration of either negro equality or negro Supremacy
for the first is but the means, while the second is the
end-can cQpscientiously vote for any candidate Will
ing to take it?"
As am the only candidate announced In that nun
Der of your paper, | respectfully requess that Ycp VIII
publish my views touching this matter. -"
In the first place it must not be inferred from nv
candidacythat | am in favor of that constitution or have
any sympathy with it. On the contrary, ! shall % ali.
l can to defeat it. This had not supposed would, be
necessary for me to say, but l say it now to preclude.
all doubt on that point.
constitution should not be ratified, then. of course, il
all other respects the election goes for nothing
But if it is ratified, aye, there's the rub" for after
that constitution shall have been adopted and We
have nesiigently shuf1ed off the last vestig of q Glance
to save ourselves, what then? There's the respect
that makes calamity Of long life" If that conaftg,
ton is adopted, as citizens OF Louisiana, we shall ali
be bound by it as the law of the land, and the greatfct
of negro equality, .civilly and politically will be estabt
lished so far as legislation can do 1t. In that event that.
constitution, odious as it may be, will be administered.
by officers ofsome sort. Is it better to let the Radicals
elect all these officers from their own ranks withoutthe,
semblance of opposition ?-this we tried last year in,
the election OF delegates TO the convention, ana the.
consequence is before us in the shape of a purely Rad
ical constitution-or, on the other hand, would InOt +
be wiser in us to elect as many conservatives as posi-
BILE !? Does the man driven before the storm in hisbark
canoe madly throw away his paddle because he cannot
control the waves? Suppose we all say " | will vote for
no man who is willing to take that oath" The conse-
quence is we never vote at all, and this leaves the matter
wholly in the hands ofthe Radicals to do with us astheir
prejHdices or passions may dictate. 1t is under any cir
cumstances q painful thing to be sacrificed, but if must
be sacrificed, should consider it no triaing palllatono
be allowed to choose my own eXecutioner. My posi-
ton in this matter then, is briefly this Let every con-
sentative citizen vote to reject the constitution, andh
the same time vote for such candidates for the Offices
as he may approve. In this way we shall save our
chances in the event of ratification. It will be too late
after ratification.
must confess my inability to comprehend whyth
voters of Louisiana, opposed to the Inauguration OF ne
gro equality, cannot conscientiously vote for candl
dates at the coming election. Aye. more. How can
thcy reasonably omit to vote for them? A halt iOh
is better than no bread. five must have the constltn-
ticn, let Us, by all means, have as many CONSERVATIVE
officials as possible to administer it.
ap1 1t A. B. LEV lSth'