The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1873-03-10
NEW ORLEANS.
An Address to the People OF Louis.
lana by The Governor and Lesisla'
ture.
New ORLEANS, March s.


Legislature the undersigned wer,
. appointed a committee by tn,
; General Assembly of the State to ad
: dress their fellow-citizens in refer
ence to the contest growing out o
the election OF the 4th of NovembeI
last, with q view of vindicating the
course they have thought proper K
pursue, AMI ofiniicatins that which
they recommend for the considera-
tiun and adoption of their constitu,
ents in the present grave emergency
OF our State. lt Is u source OF con-
ISOLATION and confidence 10 Us in the
discharge OF this duty that i'll our
past conduct aS yOlf servants, We
are able 10 present full endorsement
of tue highest political authority
which could be invoked and deslrg i
on the question At lSSIe, To wit: Inlt
some or the most prominent repre-
SenCatlyeS OF the POLITICAL party Op-
posed 10 Us III tnaC august trloInal,
! lut u. oGlhIC, SOhA AlAANlVC
cOmpOsed exclusively of Senators
VINO supported the reconstruction
land enforcement acts Of Congress
wnlch nave been set up Is the OASIS
AMI pfeGeXC Tor the total reversal of
tue legally expressed Will OF the
people III our last election, anu the ln-
sCIuLCIJu oiLL uSIrplns nlnJrlty in
our State gOvern.nentnL nLS, after u just
AMI full Investigation or tie laws
and the fa:Cs arrived ut the follow
ins conclusions
FIRST, CuIt the action of an United
States JIlst III tJtcIlS lnJJ tle
ChIei Executive o.fic1 Oi this STATE,
IL perSJL wLO Vas legally returned rs
defeated Oy Il myOnty OF over SIX
tlJISIll votes, AID tLrtn1r, Dy an
illegal Otl1r directing the oc;LpLtlon
OF the DIlIIIuS leased for u state
ID JLSt, and tntJI5l al armed f0rca
auI m1nlcS' OF UuILeI States troops,
lnSCIiiIl5 - m1nJtrS or the Gener-
al \ ,St.nJly Uf LJLlSlLaI, pcfsoLs
VINO Were never elected " tIe peO-
pie AMI Md no Ojner title 10 sucn
places CnAn that cOlGerreI Oy the ale
gItlOn5 Ola OH Ih cnIncery; anl the
lIIeSII AM TLrrLutel exclusion Of
lAwlully reLIrn.l AuI elected III IN
DerS; l. ullulm JuSly ani e.npLLtlc-
ally cOAIenntI Is an LcC OF JLllclLl
uSurpILlUl, aOLse AMI outrage. 1t
is SHOWN uy the same Com .nlttee
tnat the lawful and regular Returns
OF the vote OF the peJp.e were set
aside by corrupt, dishonest AMI
PARTISAN board oi canvas5erS, VINO
substituted for the real and prop
er evidence OF sucn votes anI
elections, &c parte allildVlts, CELL
suS estimates, newspaper re-
ports amd other testimony alike in
aImIsiDle. 1t Is conceded " the same
committee tnat no de.Jdre or unlaw-
Il 4 government can he created Uy
: .cn means OF canVasslng or making
up the election returns, and that no
court or tribunal can impIrt any
legality to Il tenure OF office Uhus OO-
tanned. It's with like unInImIty adj
mlttrl by the same high authority
tnat state officers who mad regular
and lawful returns were entitled 70
enter Oh their Offices and that those
contesting their right OH charges
OF fraud or violence should De
reunited to the tribunal which
had jurisdiction Of such cOntrovrr-
sizes, and that in this case the uni
form practlC' 0f law, was reversed,
and the prtR' Jucie right accorded
those VINO merely alleged or claimed
their election, against tnOse VINO mad
the legal and proper returns. These
several propositions being cOncurred
in by all OF the Committees of the
\. >. Senate, Il majority thereof de
Cldred that the government of Kel-
lUgg and his party over this State
Was u gross and tlagrant usurpatiOn.
These conclusions OF a Committee of
the highest political authOrlty in the
nation, have fully confirmed and
Justified the course pursued by the
Executive and Legislative officials
vino were returned is the "elect' of
the people of Louisiana, and who
proceeded duly TO organize the Gov
eminent of the State. To have done
otherwise, would have been an aDan-
dOnment Of IA PLAIN duty, and "a sur
render of the rights OF the people VINO
had elected them. The Government
thus organized, has been confronted
by another, resting entirely on out
rageOuS Judicial orders.
\ Judicial order of a United States
Judge, upon an illegal and purely
fastIdlOus and fraudulent return OF
votes OF the people is subversive Of the
honor of the republic and the cause
of right justice and law. Tie Presi-
dent Of the United States conceived
it his duty to extend 10 this tarstidjOus
and fraudulent government the pro-
lection of the United States army.
This was done at first under a gross
ly erroneous view of his duty as Chief
Executive officer OF the nation 10 en-
force an order of United States Court,
whether legal and constitutional or
not, even though that order was III pal
pIDle excess and abuse of justice and
1t Is still more 10 be la
mentcd that the support and prOtec-
tiOn Ofan usurping state government
has been continued by the Presi-
dent in tneeXcess Of MS power, when
he could no longer defend his cause
by concession 10 all United States
Judge of the authority to decide
such questions, after full investiga-
ion and exposure by proper trIDu-
nal OF the alleged fraudulent and US
urping character Of that government.
The position of the President, unsup-
ported by an opinion Of single
mem Der of the Committee Of the
United States Senate was based on
the assumption that there existed a
de Jdct0 government in Lou
isiana seperate and apart from
and opposed to the de jure govern
.ent AMI that ne was OOund 10 recOg- !
niZe the de tlctO authority. Totally I