Gallipolis journal. [volume] (Gallipolis, Ohio) 1837-1919, 1869-01-07
Democratic Plunderers.

president in the interests of the demo-
icrat;c marty. What sort of men have
i got the Offices is fully explained in the
| following extract, copied from the
Washington correspondence of the N.
| Y. 1ri5uns. JoHNsoN's attempt to res
urrect the democratic party has cost
the taxpayers of this country untold
millions of dollars. and yet the thieying
goes on, and no efforts are made to stop
it. Was ever any country cursed with
such an administration before? Rome,
in its decline-in the last, corrupt days
of its existenee-may have been, but
history no where else furnishes paral-
lei to the corruptions and frauds of our
government as at tpresent administered.
But, to the extract:
A gentleman who has just arrived in
this city from New Orleans, and who,
during his visit at that city, took par
ticular pains to inquire into matters in
connection with the collection of the
revenue, reports the most appalling
corruptions in all branches of that
service. He says that with but two or
three exceptions, thieves and plunderers
have, from the first, been in Office in
Louisiana, and that their subordinates
have been sufficiently in collusion with
them to enable them to carry out their
schemes and robbery; that officers
of different districts have been leagued
together in perpetrating and covering
up the immense cotton frauds amount
ing to millions. He says that there
were ever forty licensed distilleries
running in New Orleans during the
last fiscal year, and that the Govern
ment did not collect tar enough to pay
the salaries Of the store keepers. No dis
tiller has ever yet been prosecuted in
Louisiana, to a final conviction. Bond
ed warehouses for liquors have been
robbed of thousands of barrels. Ware
houses were burned down where the
liquors had been previously stolen
Bonds Of Collectors have been wholly
worthless, the securities when accepted
being notoriously insolvent. Ware
house bonds have been largely of the
same character. He reports that the
Judge of an important court is openly
denounced as unfaithful to his trust,
and that the o. S. District Attorney is
charged with being in the ring and
that the defendants in certain wine law
suits soon to be tried in that city have
openly boasted that they have so "fxed"
things that the Government can never
obtain verdict in the u. S. Court. -
The Secretary of the Treasury has been
advised by merchants of high standing
in New Orleans that gross frauds were
committed last Winter and Spring in
the Custom House, and that Custom
House officers and Internal Revenue
officers have colluded together in the
fraudulent shipments of whisky; that
men holding small salaried offices have
suddenly become rich, some buying
plantations and valuable stock, others
valuable city property, some spending
tens of thousands upon fast women, and
others losing still larger sums at the
gamingtable and horse-races, while
yet another, as rumor has it, is ena-
bled to pay $4,000 to get elected to
a high Congressional post, filing GER
tain New Orleans offices from top to
bottom with the negro Legislators, and
paying them SO day for doing moth
ing. The gentleman who is here and
gives this information, says that all
these matters have been reported over
and over again to the Secretary Of the
Treasury and the other authorities con-
cerned, but that nothing has been done
to stem the tide OF corruption that is
sweeping over the whole of that coun-
try, except to send down mere boy
from the Treasury Department, who
writes back to Washington telling of
the vast amounts of money that he
could get if he would only join teams
with the revenue officers This gentle
man further says the only remedy that
now seems possible is to send Con-
gressional committee Of investigation
to New Orleans, with power TO examine
fully into the alleged frauds and cor
ruptions.
"Mongrel extravaganza" is theme
which the editor Of the Dispatch often
dwells upon. What has he to say in
regard to these stupendous frauds at
New Orleans? They are committed by |
the pets of President Johnson, man
whom the democracy delight to indorse
and honor. The appointments were
made in the interests of the democracy,
and the frauds and corruptions are the
legacy, of that party, to the country.
It is fit illustration of democratic
rule. How do you like it?
In connection with this. and as
showing the evil results of the Presi-
dents attempt to organize new party,
or rather, bring to life the disorganized
democratic party, we collect a few
facts from the report of the committee
appointed by Congress, to investigate
the frauds of the Internal Revenue De-
partment.
Up to August, 1866, the appoint
ment of assessors and collectors were
made upon the recommendation of the
Commissioner, and up to that time the
collections were satisfactory both to
the government and the people, No
complaint was made of fraud. But just
here change was made in the manner
of appointments. The President, pure
ly for political purposes, took charge
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