New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1871-09-02
INTERVIEW WITH HON. p. b.
PINCHBACK.
The Customhouse Convention.

4
The reporter of the Cincinnati Commercial
| interviewed Senator P. B. S. Pinchback, on
the twenty-third of August, and published
the result the next day, as follows:
We had an interview, yesterday after
| noon, with Mr.. p. B. S. Pinchback, manager
| of the Louisidnia,1-a colored peoples
| organ-State Senator from the Second Dis
| trict of Louisiana, and president Of the
| Turner Hall convention in New Orleans.
| Mr.. Pinchback is an intelligent, well in
| formed eolored gentleman, whose position
| in Louisiana affords him peculiar oppor-
| tunities for getting at the bottom Of most
| of the political movements of the State. 1t
| was in regard to the recent CustomhOuse
| convention at New Orleans, that we inter-
| viewed him, and on that subject he panned
| out about as follows:
interviewer: Are you native OF Lou
| isiana, Mr.. Pinchback!
MIR. Pinchback: No, sir; l was born IN
| Georgia, but have passed most of my life
| in Louisiana. Most of my education was
| received here at Gilmores school.
| interviewer: The question that is most
| interesting here just now is as to the justi-
tication of the United States officials in
using those troops at the recent convention
at New Orleans Was there any necessity
! for bringing them into the fight
| Mr.. Pinchback No, sir.
| interviewer: Were there any threats or
| violence of any kind
| Mr.. Pinchback None at all, sir.
| Interviewer: Mr.. Close, in his letter to
| the Commercial, says he thinks there were
| threats made by the friends of Warmoth
| against the marshal.
| Mr.. Pinchback: That is not true. That
story was trumped up by those gentlemen
as an excuse for the outrages they perpe-
| trated upon the people of Louisiana.
| have with me a copy of their organ, paper
| published By the Customhouse and sus-
| tanned by the Customhouse employees,
which makes a charge of that kind, put 1t
| is unfounded.
Interviewer: How long has this feud be-
| tween the State and United States officials
! been going on!
| Mr.. Pinchback: just a year ago this
month, when the party headed by Lowell
| called primary meetings for the election OF
| delegates to a State convention, at which
| Lowell proposed to get control of the party,
| the adherents of Lowell 1.-THE Customhouse
| gentlemen) exerted themselves at that time
| TO destroy Governor Warmoth's influence,
by telling the people that the Governor had
| broken faith with them, and that If his ad-
| ministration was sustained, there would
| not be colored man in Office in the State
in another year. They made a good deal OF
| capital out of such statements as these,
! continually trying to convince the people
| that il was a fight made by Governor War
| moth against Lieutenant Governor Dunn,
| because Dunn was black man. On that
| issue they misunderstanding Governor
| Warmoth for the presidency of the conven-
| ton. 1t was then left to the chairman OF
| the convention to appoint i've members OF
| of the State Central Executive Committee.
| Lieutenant Governor Dunn refused to ap-
| point any one who was favorable to the
/ amt 10 rntnGpn
pOint John Lynch, who had given him the
| highest exhibition of respect and friendship
| ever made by any white man in the South
to a colored man, because Mr. Lynch was a
friend of Governor Warmoth.
| interviewer: What was the cause OF the
quarrel between the State government and
| the CustOmhouse people!
Mr.. Pinchback: The quarrel originally
| was not between the Customhouse and
| State government, but between Lowell and
| Governor Warmoth. Lowell being on the
| State Central Committee, soon arrayed ii
against the Governor, and under his lnt1u-
| ence the committee made desperate efforts
to defeat the amendment to our constitu
| ton abrogating article fifty, which made
the Governor Ineligible to reelection. The
| committee also tried to get Mr.. Casey re-
moved, and, think, would have succeeded
had it not been for Governor Warmoth.
thought he ought to be removed, but l did
not think it at all probable that the Presi
dent would remove his own brOther-iu-law
even if we all asked it, so | took no part IL
the attempt to get him out.
interviewer: Great stress is laid on the
fact that Mr.. Warmoth is the friend of Gen
eral McClernand. Do you hear anything o.
that kind down there!
Mr.. Pinchback: Yes, sir
Interviewer: Does this seem to be part o.
the aninu5
Mr.. Pinchback: No, sir, l do not think i
is. The fight is between Lowell Packard
and Warmoth, and Packard and Governor
Warmoth were bosom friends.
Interviewer: Had Casey, the President:
brother-in-law, been on a visit to the Presi
dent Just before this convention?
Mr. Pinchback: Yes sir; he got back the
very day the convention was to assemble.
interviewer: What was said about the
use of troops being authorized by the
President! Was it supposed that it wa'
directly authorized by him.
Mr.. Pinchback: That was the impression
I had, and l think it was the impression
that generally prevailed. Packard an
nounced that he had the highest authority
in the nation for the use of the troops a
the convention, and that, of course, mean
the President.
interviewer: Did you hear him say that
MI Pinchback: That was the report O
the campaign committee while | was at thu
| office of the REPUBLICAN, with Heron anC
Campbell and several others, who signed
the protest against the assembling OF tht
convention, when he said he had the high
est authority for assembling the conven
ton there.
Interviewer: Mr.. Close says, in his com
munication, that all the halls in the city
were engaged by the Warmoth men, ant
that there was no other place to meet ex
cept the Customhouse, unless they wen
into hall under the control of the War
mothites. Is that so!
Mr.. Pinchback: Well, l don't know
whether the Warmoth men had all the halls
engaged or not, but do know that a com
mittee of the Customhouse men were ten
dered the Turner Hall, the Deuteh Hall and
two other halls. They were offered foul
places that I know of. The excuse giver
for holding the convention in the Custom
house, through fear of getting into tht
hands of the enemy, is all fOl-de-rol. They
did not determine, Or at least, did not an
nounce, where they would assemble, unit
one day prior to the convention. When oul
committee waited upon them the Saturday
| preceding the convention, to ascertain
where they were going to meet, they sale
they could not tell us just then, but woulC
let us know after the meeting of the com
mittee.
interviewer: Didn't they publish the cal
for the convention, and mention the plac,
of meeting in the newspapers in very small
type, and purposely make it obscure'
Mr.. Pinchback: They didn't publish it a
all until the day before the assembling o
| the convention, that / saw.
Interviewer: Was there any danger o
public disorder that day?