New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1873-12-10
VOLUME VINO. 2O9.
GOVERNOR KELLOGG's REPLY TO
MIR. OGDEN.

in answer to the characteristic letter OF
Mr. Horatio N. Ogden, delegate from pee
pie of louisiana" which the Washington
agent of the Associated Press took such
particular pains to transmit over the wires
on Saturday night Would it be in order
to suggest that the Governors rejoinder
is entitled to equal consideration at the
hands Of the agent herel
STATE OF LOUISIANA
Executive Department, :
New Orleans, December 8, 1872
Hon o. p Morton, Chairman of Senate Committee
on Privileges and Elections, Washington, Dis
ttlct OF Columbia:
SIR-Washington dispatches of yesterday
contained letter addressed to you by NTH.
N. Ogden, of this city, asking an investiga
ton into the Louisiana contest and assert
ing, first, that the present State govern
ment was not elected by the people, and
secondly. that it can not sustain itself.
In reply have to say that, SO far as
am concerned, l am quite willing, if such
be the desire of the committee, that an in
vestigation be had, both thorough and CON-
plete.
Such an investigation will disclose among
other facts that Mr.. Ogden and other prom-
nent Democrats in the April convention. 1872,
bitterly denounced Governor Warmoth;
and the convention adopted resolution de-
claring that any political alliance with
him would be infamous. At this time and
subsequently these gentlemen bitterly up
braided Warmoth for Withholding his sig
nature from laws then in his hands repeal
ing the obnoxious features of the existing
State election aud registration laws, and
repeatedly publicly congratulated them
selves and the people that the enforcement
law of Congress would serve as check
upon Warn0th and aid in securing fair
ii, Va%,t will hot faxr
weeks later these very gentlemen entered
into an alliance with Governor Warmoth
by which, in consideration 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 meeting called to ratify this coalition,
Mr.. Ogden, Mr.. McEnery and Governor
WaImoth spoke from the same stand. Mr.
McEnery said: This compact 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
changed their minds and did not now de-
sire him to do so; that the existing election
laws were as good as they wanted. At the
same meeting the enforcement act of Con.
gress, previously approved, was condemned
In this connection l ought to mention,
that when / was in the Senate, prominent
Democrats, including several members OF
the Democratic State Committee, wrote,
urging me to do all l could to extend the
provisions of that act over the entire State.
An investigation will show that afterwards
the regi stration and election laws, and the
power and patronage of the Governor were
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 were
resorted to after the votes were cast, to the
end that large and known Republican
majority in the State might be overcome.
An investigation will show that by the
registration taken under Fusion auspices,
but subsequently suppressed, there was a
majority OF 5000 colored voters in the State.
Recently, in speech delivered before
colored convention in this city, l charged
all these things aud many more upon the
Fusion leaders. The New Orleans Times,
an opposition journal, republished this
speech the morning the Fusion convention
assembled in this city last month, especially
calling their attention to the charges made
MIR. Ogden's assertion that the existing
State government can not sustain itself ia
easily disposed OF. Except in few distant
border parishes, where number of des
perate and lawless men, inspired by the
hope of some action by Congress favorable
policy of shooting colOred men and occa
sionally white Republican-with these
exceptions good order prevails, and the
rights Of all citizens are protected, irrespec-
tive of race and color. The federal troops
have not been called into requisitiOn for
months, except in one case, and then only |
to act as a posse to aid the United States |
marshal in arresting the Colfax murderers. |
That the present State government Is
self sustaining is still further shown by the !
collection of taxes. During 1872, the last |
wear of Governor WarmOth's administra-
ton, the total amount of taxes paid into the |
treasury was $3,299000. The present ad- |
ministra ton. from January ], 1873, to No |
yember 30, has collected and paid into the |
treasury $3,S700O0, 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 al |
ready 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 leaet a million. There have been no ex-
traordinary measures resOrted to, and very |
few tax sales have taken place. We have |
paid the interest on our pu olic debt and all
the large arrears left by the late admins
tration, Notwithstanding present financial
embarrassments. The excess of taxes col
lected over last year is made up in part of
taxes which have this year been paid into
the treasury. but which in previous years,
though collected, were diverted by dlshon-
est officials; but the greater portion of it
results from the collection Of taxes from
that class who, though best able to pay.
have heretofore refused to do SO on
various pretexts, not the least of
which was hostility to the then exist
ing State government, which they con-
stantly asserted to be the child OF the un-
reconstruction acts OF Con-
gress, and a usurpatiOn forced upon the
State by federal bayonets. This they have
been in the habit of asserting with quite as
much vehemence of the late as of the pres
ent State government, and it has been too
often a convenient pretext on the part OF
many for refusing to pay taxes. Hence the
enormous delinquent lists which we found
due when we took charge of the State.
Wherever one of these wealthy tax re-
sisters has been made to paw his taxes he is
half converted already to the support of
this government. aud thinks his recalcitrant
nephbors should be made to do the same.
The most bigoted partisans here can not
but acknowledge that the opposition to the
State government is limited now to COM
few The most conclusive preof
nf this is that all the efforts put forth re-
gently to assemble a convention IN this city
to protest against the present State govern
ment and to appoint committee to lay
their pro est before Congress resulted in a
wretched failure. only equaled by the
ridiculous collapse of their unification
lodge of last summer; and that the commit
Zee appointed by this so-called convention
If the people has dwindled down to the one
representative of ''we, the people
IF Louisiana in Washington-the Fusion
Tichborne claimant to the office Of Attorney
General of the State.
Very respectfully,