New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1872-06-30
Address 10 the Republicans and People OF
Louisiana.
HEADoUARTERs REGULAR RRPUBLICAN PARTY
OF Louisiana, No. Is Dryades street, Z
Eerr OrIeana Inna % lHIl

I
in the city of New Orleans. By Fesolu-
ton of this convention, the basis of repre-
sentatiOn IN the same has been doubled,
and an election has been ordered for an ad-
ditiOnal number Of delegates to the same,
equal in number TO the whole delegation
already elected. The object in this is to
afford an opportunity to all the people Of
this State who approve Of the principles
herein set forth to take part in the deliber-
atiOns Of the convention, and in the nomi-
nation of capable, honest and representa-
tive men, who have their homes and their
interests in Louisiana, upon a ticket and
platform of principles which shall secure
the support OF all the good people Of this
State.
In the present confused and transition
state of political parties we recognize three
universal and powerful sentiments, which
run through the hearts of large majority
of the people of this State, without distmc-
ton Of party. These are:
First-A desire for an honest, economical
and stable government, administered by
Representative men of character and capa-
city, who shall be chosen without distine-
ton from any official ring.
Second-A conviction that the interests
of all the people of this State are identical,
and desire for growth of new political
relations, which shall Obliterate past class
and sectional animosities, and cultivate
that mutual Cancellation and good will
which is essential to our common prosper
ity, and to the permanent success Of any
political party; and
Third-A growing recognition of the good
policy and necessity of a closer alliance be-
tween the voters of the Republican party
and that portion of the native population of
the State which has hitherto abstained from
political affairs on account of differences
created by the late civil war. With such a
party, based upon such liberal and benefi-
cent principles, we believe that the rights of
the colored people would be safer and better
protected, the liberty of opinion and the
political interests of the ex-UniOn soldier,
the Northern settler, and the old Union citi-
zen, more cordially and completely secured
and the intelligence and property of the
State, and the rights Of the native COnfed-
crate Southerner be better represented
than is possible under any other practicable
political combination.
In these premises, we say to the Repub-
licans of the State that in the organization
and upon the basis presented by us, is their
sole hope for eleeting any Republican Off
GERS in the State, and for preserving their
party. The success of the CustOmhOuse
State ticket nominated at Baton Rouge is
hopeless, and if the fortunes of the Repub-
lican party are attached to it, its defeat is
certain.
| ton to the history of the Packard Custom
house convention at Baton Rouge, which
has assumed to present candidates to the
people of this State in the name of the Re
publican party.
Messrs. Packard, Casey, Herwig, Stock
| dale & Co. set out to control the Republican
convention called for August 9, 1871, in the
interest of their customh0use ring, with a
view of getting control of the State govern
i - Il H. ~ 4
| their associates. To do this they eOnspired
| to control that convention. With this de-
| sign they sought and obtained permission
| to use the CustOmhOuse building, the mar
/ shals of the United States courts, and the
| forces of the United States army. In def
ance of all decency and respect for public
/ opinion, and to the great scandal of
| the national government, they cOnyoked
/ the convention to assemble in a United
States courtroom in the CustOmhOuse. They
rejected all protests of their Republican
! fellOw-citizens with the imperial insOlence
| and haughtiness of Eastern satraps. To
make sure of controlling the primary or
| ganizatiOn of the convention, and, in de-
| fance of all known rules tor the organize
| ton of such bodies, Messrs. Packard, Casey
! and their cOconspiratOrs undertook to de-
bar all delegates except such as they ad-
| mitted from a voice in the election of the
! temporary president Not satisfied with
this, they closed and barred all the doors
/ of the immense CustOmhOuse building
| against the public for one whole day in or
| der that the lobby, as well as the floor
| of the convention, should be packed
| by their own partisans. To further
| ntimidate and coerce the delegates, they
| filed the building with special deputy
| United States marshals armed for the Occa.
sion. To complete these extraordinary pre-
| parations for a political convention and to
| emphasize the Inauguration of this new
/ style of consulting the wishes of the people,
| they obtained the necessary order from the
military authorities and fortified the closed
! Customhouse with Calling guns and gar
! risOned it with United States soldiers under
arms. One hundred and ten delegates to
| the convention, being majority, disguised
and indignant at these tyrannical and dan
| gerOus proceedings, turned away from the
| CustOmhOuse and assembled the regular
| convention in Turner Hall. The State Cen
| tral Committee appointed by that cOnven-
| ton has by its authority convOked the
| present one.
| On the nineteenth of June Mr. Packard
/ and his partisans called q convention at
Baton Rouge to nominate candidates for
| the chief State offices. The CustomhOuse
] cabal could not keep good faith even with
/ their own confederates. In order to secure
| the nomination of the favorites of their own
ring, and to obey instructions from a
| higher authority" they expelled from their
| convention all representative and independ-
emit men, and seated strangers, intruders,
carpet-baggers and proxies of their own
| creation, until their convention consisted of
| Customhouse officials, internal revenue tax
| collectors and postmasters.
CustomhOuse employees, who were elected
| as delegates to the Baton Rouge conven-
! ton were openly threatened with dismissal
| from Office by United States Marshal Pack
ard if they failed to vote as he dictated.
| The lists of delegates elected as furnished
| to the State Central Committee by the par
| ish and ward clubs were suppressed by Mr..
/ Packard for four weeks previous to the
meeting of the convention, and the names
! of delegates were not allowed to be made
/ known to members of the committee Lists
Of delegates pledged to the ring candidates
| were manufactured in the United States
marshaPs Office and foisted upon the con-
| vention as the regularly elected delegates.
| Lobby tickets were issued so that all access
| even to the lobby was denied to any but
| the partisans Of Mr.. Packard. Mr.. Casey
| refused, in the presence of several well
| known gentlemen, to assure his Custom
/ house employees that their places should not
| be imperiled if they voted independently of
Mr.. Packard's dictatOn. Mr.. Packard and
| his instruments, when they discovered that
| a majority OF the convention favored a
union with the regular Republicans, substi-
| tuted fraudulent resolution in place of the
one really offered, by which such insulting
conditions were imposed that union was
made impossible. They refused all hOnora-
| BILE offers of union with the regular Repub-
| hcans for the sole reason that such cOmpro-
mise would interfere with the Customhouse
/ slate for nominations. The president and
secretary Of the convention were convicted
in open session Of fraudulently altering their
| own rolls. Credentials were withheld from