The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1873-12-26
Governor KellOgg's Reply to
Mr. Ogden.
STATE OF LOUISIANA
Executive Department. !
New Orleans, December 8. IBT3.9

mittee on Privileges and Elections, wash
ington, District of Columbia:
Sir-W ashingt0n dispatches Of yes
terday contained 4 letter addressed to
you by Mr.. H. N. Ogden, of this city.
asking IN investigation into the Louisi-
ana contest and asserting, first, that the
present State government was not elect
ed by the people, and secondly, that it
can not sustain itself.
In reply I have to say that, so far as |
am concerned, / nm quite willing, if such
investigation be had, both thorough and
complete.
Such an investigation will disclose
among other facts that Mr.. Ogden and
other prominent Democrats, in the April
convention, 1872, bitterly denounced
Governor Warmoth and the convention
adopted q resolution declaring that any
political alliance with him would be in
famous. At this time and subsequently
these gentlemen bitterly %upbraided War
moth for withholding his signature from
laws then in his hands repeating the
obnoxious features Of the existing State
election and registration laws, and re-
peatedly publicly congratulated them
selves and the people that the enforce
ment law of Congress would serve as o
check upon Warmoth and aid in secur-
ing q fair election. Yet it will appear
that q few weeks later these very gen.
tlemen entered into an alliance with
Governor Warmoth by which, in con-
sideratiOn Of his using the executive
patronage and power to secure to them
the State government, they agreed to
send him to the United States Senate.
At q meeting called to ratify this Goa
lition, Mr.. Ogden, Mr.. McEnery and Gov
ernor Warmoth spoke from the same
stand. Mr.. McEnery said: "This COM
pact is binding upon us all, and we must
accept it in its entirety" and Governor
WarmOth said the reason why he did
not sign the election and registration
laws was because his allies had chang
ed their minds and did not now desire
him to do 80; that the existing election
laws were as good as they wanted. At
the same meeting the enforcement act
OF Congress, previously approved, was
condemned.
In this connection / ought to mention,
that when / wasin the Senate, prominent
Democrats, including several members
of the Democratic State Committee,
wrote urging me to dOallI couldtO extend
the provisions of that act over the entire
State. An investigation will show that
afterwards the registration and election
laws, and the power and patronage of
the Governor we're used TO the utmost
extent in the interest of the WarmOth
Democratic Fusion ticket; that ballot
boxes were stuffed and changed; that
after the election, the returns were in
some cases forged, and in other cases al
tered, and that fraud and violence we're
resOrted to after the votes were cast, to
the end that q large and known Republi-
can majority in the State might be Over
come.
An investigation will show that by
the registration taken under Fusion
auspices, but subsequently suppressed,
there was a majority of 5000 colOred vo-
tiers in the State.
Recently, in a speech delivered before
acolored convention in this city, Icharg-
ed all these things and many more upon
the Fusion leaders. The New Orleans
Times, an opposition journal, r%epublish-
ed this speech the morning the Fusion
convention assembled in this city last
month, especially calling their attention
to the charges made.
Mr.. Ogden's assertion that the existing
State government can not sustain itself
is easily disposed of. Except in a few
distant border parishes, where a num-
Der of desperate and lawless men, in
spired by the hope of some action by
Congress favorable to them, continue to
pursue the Bourbon policy of shooting
colored men and occasionally a white
order prevails, and the rights of all
citizens are protected, irrespective of
race and color. The federal troops have
not been called into Tequisiti0n for
months, except in the one case, and then
only to act as q posse to aid the United
States marshal in arresting the COlfGx
murderers.
That the present State government is
self-sustaining is still further shown by
the collection of taxes. During 1872, the
last year of Governor WarmOth's ad-
ministratiOn, the total amount of taxes
paid into the treasury was $3,299, 900.
The present administration, from Jan
uary /, 1879, to November 80 has collect
ed and paid into the treasury $780, 900,
and this amount does not include the
| returns from the country parishes for
the quarter ending with the current
| month, which are the heaviest of the
year. Here is an excess of taxes already
collected by us over 1872 of more than
| half a million, and it is safe to say that
by the end of the present month it will
reach at least a million. There have
been no extraordinary measures resort
| ed to, and very few tax sales have taken
place. We have paid the interest or
| our public debt and all the large arrears
left by the late administration, notwith'
standing present financial embarrass,
ments. The excess of taxes collected
over last year is made up in part of tag
| ed which have this year been paid int
| the treasury, but which in previous years
though collected, were diverted by dis
honest officials; but the greater portion
OF it results from the collection of take!
from that class who, though best able tt
pay, have heretofore refused to do so OF
various pretexts, not the least of which
was hostility to the then existing State
government, which they constantly as
serted to. be the child of the %unconstitu
tional reconstruction acts of Congress
and a usurpation forced upon the Statt
by federal bayOnets. This they have
been in the habit Of asserting with quit
as much yehemence of the late as of thu
present State government, and it ha
been too often o convenient pretext OF
the part of many for refusing to pa.
taxes. Hence the enormous delinquen
lists which we. found due when we tool
charge of the State. *
Wherever one of these wealthy tax re
sisters has been made to pay his take
he is half converted already to the sup
port of this government, and thinks hi
recalcitrant neighhors should be mad
to do the same. The most bigoted par
ltisans here can not but acknoWledg
chat the opposition to the State govern
ment is limited now to q comparatiV
few. The most conclusive proof of thi
is that all the efforts put forth recent.
nrofest againstthe present State govern
ment and to appoint q committee to Ia