New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1873-11-09
LETTER FROM HON. L. A. SHELDON.
NEW ORLEANS, November 8, 1873

| LEAK olR-On my return to this city
Yesterday, received by mail your letter O
the thirtieth ultimo. Also. see the cores
pondence between US was published in thu
Picayune and Times OF the second instant
and presuning that this has been done
| with your knowledge and consent, assume
That 1t Will be pardOnable in me, if | moi
| only send you this rejoinder by post, bu,
place copies of it in the hands of the press
for publication.
Permit me at the outset to correct a mis-
apprensIon. | am not con:esting your seat
but protesting against the extraordinary
manner in which you are attempting to em
oarrass me in regard to my seat IN the
forty third Congress. l agree that certiti
cate from the executive authority of a
State only gives prima face title to a seat
and that IL may be destroyed by
contest, prosecuted in accordance
with the requirements of law. On
the thirtieth of December ultimo the
acting executive of the State executed in
due form of law a certificate showing my
election by considerable majority, which
| caused to be filed with the clerk OF the
House OF Representatives according to law
on the sixth January following. This GER
tlfleate was issued in accordance with the
finding of board of canvassers, which the
Supreme Court OF the State has repeatedly
decided to be the legal one, which finding
Was promulgated in legal manner ON the
eleventh December, and the acting eXecu-
tive was recognized by the.government of
the United States and by all the authorities
of this State. 1t will not be disputed that
at this time the controversies between Mr..
kellogg and Mr.. McEnery had not arisen.
nor could it have occurred until the second
Monday OF January. when, by the constitu-
ton of the State, the new Governor is in
augurated.
These facts must have been known to
you, as well, ALSO that for quarter of a
century and longer the United States
statutes pointed out your remedy It you
felt aggrieved. No other board or pre-
tended board of oanvassers ever found, or
promulgated. at least any result of the
election for Congress in any district of this
State until January Is, l believe. If you
had felt that this was legal board and
legal finding, it occurs 10 me that Mr.. Nc
Emery, whose pretensions to the governor
ship you support, would have been the
proper person to have granted a certificate
to you, for | can not conceive you will deny
the proposition that Governor is not iustl-
fed in making a certificate until the officers
appointed by law have reached and pro-
mulgated result. / assert that, on Decem
Der 4, no board or pretended board of can
vassers had promulgated any result, and |
think l am safe III saying that none had
reached a result.
In order, as l suppose. that you might
have prima tacle case also upon the face
OF a certificate, you obtained from Gov
ernor Warmoth certificate written out on
the tenth OF April, signed and attested on
twelfth of April, and dated back to Deem
Der 4, when Warmoth was Governor, but
before the canvass had been completed and
prOmui gated Dy any body.
Your letter transmitting the paper to the
clerk of the House bears date of April Il
| do not by any means charge you with
being party to this fraud, or that you had
knowledge of it, because | do not know
such to be the fact; but men less cOnsiderate
than am might think it a strange proceed
ing, that certificate bearing date De-
cember should not be forwarded until
April l2, when Governor Warmoth had
been fuisetus oticio tor ninety days. and the
term OF the Forty third Congress had run
for forty days. Many men may think that
the circumstances were such as to put you
on diligent inquiry at least.
Happily you do not deny in your letter
the allegations | have made relating to the
time ana manner OF the execution Of your
pretended certificate. / think it may be
fairly inferred that you admit what | claim.
We're your letter an answer III a judicial pro-
ceedIng, l think an Intelligent court would
enter judgment against you pro c0nfessO
SO strongly am Impressed with this view
that | shall place your letter with the
Clerk OF the House as cumulative evidence
OF what l claim concerning the fraud ulent
character OF your pretended certificate.
and do not see how you can make objec-
ton to this, since the whole ma tier has been
made public on your part.
The facts. then, regarding your ceIti-
ticate, may be considered as beyond dispute.
just how to treat the case has given me
some trouble, for there is not precedent
in America that can tlnd and probably
there is none anywhere. The statute does
not provide for such case
Il occurred to me that the only way to
meet the question was to attack the author
ity. Clearly if the signature OF Governor
Warmoth had been forged, might show
the fact to establish the invalidity of the
and as Warmoth was not Gov
ernor on the eleventh OF April, it seems to
me equally clear that the fact may be shown
to destroy the apparent official character of
the instrument. l gave you early notice of
my purpose that you might not be sur
prised.
The letter OF June Is was placed in the
hands OF your law partner, Maj or Austin,
on that day in your office. and | am sur
prised at his delinquency in not possessing
you Win earlier Information.
At this point the case might end, for the
question made by me was simply one Of
validity of certificate, but do not intend
to be technical.
Really | did not suppose that you dis
puted my election until was informed that
you had forwarded the certificate before
mentioned. Since you assert that you be.
lieve you were elected, take you at your
word, and believe that you think so, but
beg leave to differ az to the fact.
can not go into this discussion of legality
Of canvassing boards or the way IN which
they reach conclusions, but whatever may
be your opinion or mine. we shall not be
called upon to decide that question. | take
it that the House of Representatives. will in
a prilna tacie case follow the rulings of the !
State courts, which is d principle too well
established in precedent to be set aside on
the opinion Of either of us. | disagree with |
you as to there being ample time TO carry |
IN contest by consent covering the whole |
ground you present; besides it is an unusual |
method of proceeding and would probably |
'esult in our being required to go over the |
ground again on such terms and under such |
limitations as the House might prescribe. |
Moreover, it is the right of constituency |
o be represented from the beginning of the |
session, and therefore it is best to settle the
,rima facie case first. Then. although l |
link you have neglected your opportuni-
les tor making contest, no objection will be
made by me to your gong into the whole
ase.
/ must be permitted to add word fur
her on the point under discussion. Your
retensions are founded upon the findings
f pretended canvassing board, whose
egal status has been ignored by the SUI
RENE Court OF the State. But whether
his holding of that court is correct or not,
unnecessary for me to affirm or deny.
he facts are. and / make the statement in
he full belief that it will not be disputed.
hat that board did not count the votes OF
be parishes of st. James and Terrebon
or poll three of Jefferson parish. nor
oil eight of the third ward, where nv