The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1873-01-15
The Warmoth-Kellogg Controversy.

l
Governor Warmoth be;o:e Judge Dn-
reli, of the United States District
Court of Louisiana, the Judge proceed
ell according to law or was guilty of a
thigh handed judicial usurpation. The
spectacle Of two legislatures and two
governors, each claiming to be the
rightful State Government Of Lou
isiana, implies somewhere a gross de-
parture from the due process of law.
The one salient fact which appears
in all the reports of these extraordinary
proceedings is that Judge Durell, upon
application of Kellogg, a Senator of the
United States, and candidate for Gov
ernor of the State of Louisiana, issued
orders ofinjnnction and mandamus, de-
signed to prevent the canvass of the
votes of the recent election by the
State Board of Canvassers provided for
by the laws of Louisiana, and that I'M
der these orders and rulings another
board of canvassers came into existence
and, without having the election re.
turns in their possession, declared Kel-
logg to have been legally elected to
the oifi"e Of Governor of the State. in
stead of McEnery, the opposing candi-
date. The case is exceedingly com
plicated by suits and couutersuts; yet
tue action of Judge Darrell, taken prior
to the canvass. which, according to The
laws OF Louisiana, was officially to as
certain and declare tie result of the
election, aud virtually determining the
result by a board unknown to the,
State, stands ont with an unmistaka
bic and undisgused prominence. tt
was in consequence of th-i 81
action that Kelloggw was, by
the purell- X llogg Board of.
CaEvassers, declared to be elected and
McEnery defeated. We have read ALL
the reports from New Orleans as Civ
th'by both sides, and find them coin
cident in the main facts as above sta
ted. - ".f !
There are, as it seems to us, two IA
tai objections to the course pursued by
Judge Durell. The first is the fact
that Kellogg, the applicant to the
court for judicial relief, was By the
constitution of Louisiana, ineligible to
the Office to which he claimed to have
been elected. He was at the time of
the alledged election a Senator of the
United States from that State; and,
moreover, he has not, we believe, to
this day. resigned his office. This
fact made it constitutionally impossi-
BILE for him to be elected as Governor
of the State, even though all the votes
had been cast for him. The constitu-
ton of Louisiana expressly says that
''no member of Congress or any per-
son holding office under the United
States Government shall be eligible
to the office of Governor or Lieuten-
ant Governor" The ineligibillty here
described makes the election "null and
rpld' ii it exists at the time i'm which
the vote is cast. To say that. this con-
stltutlonal restriction simply means
that no person shall be a member of
Congress or a Federal officer aud Gov
ernor or Lieutenant Governor of the
State at the same time is mere quib-
BILE, contrary to the grammar and spir-
it of the language. The ine}igibility
plainly intended attaches to the per-
son at the time of the pretended cleo
ton and constitntionally disqualifies
him. This is reasonable construc- i
ton of the language, and no other is
reasonable. That Kellogg was sena-
tor of the United States at the time in
which he claims to have been elected i
Governor of Louisiana is a fact admit !
ted; and, hence, we find Judge Durell /
in the strange predicament of attempt (