, 1873-02-14

oct OF 1871, had the whole machinery Of the cleo
tlon m u in m h.s own hands He had the appointment
!. ent parishes. and the appointment OF Commits
aloners Of Election, and those officers, with but
+ few exceptions, "ore appointed from the ranks
OF those who were opposed to tho Republican
party. and Eo think, from the informal ey1danca
before the Returning Board, and from what this
Committee has learned tn the course OF this IN
yestigation there is little doubt that those adyan-
tases we're used to the utmost, and every means
resorted to il order to secu-e the triuznh al the
party with which Warnoth WAS acting. Great
difficulties were thrown in the way Of registra-
ton; Republicans in many parishes we're put
to great Inconvenience to find the Registrar,
and in many instances were unable to do so
places Of registering and Of voting in many par
isles we're liked ut points remote from the cen
tres Of population, often without notice Of the
place boing given: False registration papers,
double voting, stufing ballot-boxes, and other
iaaHs ard in mregiaEEites wsrs charged il ana ma,
room to doubt that the Lynch Returning Board
were Of the opinion Tint, upon a fair election,
tho Republican party would have carried
power that controlled tho machinery Of the
election. But Notwithstanding all this, the
Lynch Returning Board, with the sort OF evi-
dence which WAS before them, had no power
under the law Of the State to investigate these
charges Of fraud and injury, or to act upon their
convictions Of the wrongs that hadbean suffered.
The election OF the Greeley Electors was certi-
fed to by the Governor Of the State, but the
official returns Of tile election have not been
counted BY the Returning Board created BY the
laws OF Louisiana for that purpose and the par
sons who in fact made the examinat;cn and
count had no legal authority to do SO. The alec-
Lynch Returning Board, bnt the Board did net
haye tho official returns before them, and their
election Is not certified BY the Governor Of tho
State, az required by tte act of Congress- =.
The Committee are of the opinion that neither
the Senate of the United States nor both Houses
jointly, have tha power under the Constitution
to CANVASS the returns Of m election and count
| the votes to det2r1nine who have been elected
Presidential Electors; but that the mode and
manner Of choosing Electors are left exclusively
they are to be e1ected by the people, the method
OF counting the vote and OF ascert aiming the
result can only be regulated by the law OF the
State Whether it Is a. consistent 1 for TIE % tW9
to the consttutionality Of which the Committee
give no opinion, to go behind the certificate
Of the Governor Of the State to inquire
whether the votes for election hare ever been
counted by the legal Returning Board created By
the law Of the State; or. whether, in making
such count, the Board Ind before them the off,
| cal returns, the COMMITTEES oherno suggestions;
but present only statement of the facts as they
understood them. As to the other questions
1 upon which the Committee are instructed to re-
! port, touching the existence Of q legal State
| Goyerunant il Louieisna and admission Of. =
Senator from that State, they are not now pre-
pared to report
| x ADpENpuN BY SENATOR NORTON. s-
+ A majority Of the. Committee were Of the opin-
| ion that no reference should be made in the re-
port to the decision Of the Supreme Court OF
Louisiana as to which wss the leaga1 Returning
Board, upon the ground that the decision was
made subsequent to the 18th OF December, when
the Electors ware to cast their votes for Prest-
| dent and Vice President. But it secms to ma
/, the history Of the whole MISTER would not be
| complete, and the Senate not be placed In
possession Of all the material facts, without y
statement of the character Of that decision, and
that the fact that it WAS made after the casting
Of the vote BY the Electors, would furn1ah no
sufficient reason why it should not be referred to
ara made at the close Of causes, and not at the
! beginning, aud are held to re1ate back and
establish the rights OF the parties throughout
the whole controversy. On the 14th day Of
in the Eighth District Court of
| Louisiana,, BY the Attorney Gener=
al. ."o on the information Of the
Returning Officers Of Elections, to en5oiu what
theohicial returns and making any finding
1 thereon aud requiring the returns to be placed
in the hands Of the Lynch Board; and to this
i suit Governor Warmoth, Hatch- Da Ponte, and
Wharton we're made parties. Thia =, case s vas ap;
/ By that Court decided on tho - day OF January.
1878. The Court hold the Board consisting Of
Messrs. Lynch, Longstreet, and Hawkins, to-
Rether with Governor Wnrmoth and NJ: Royee,
who was the Secretary OF State who had been
suspended by Governor Warmoth when he frat
appointed Heron, and who had beun restored
BY a decision of the Supreme Court, constituted
Wharton, and Hatch had no authority whatever.
=. o. p NORTON:
i ApDKSpuM BE SENATOR TRC,iBuLL- =
-lIy understanding OF tho evidence is that Gey.
! eruor War1noth some months before the election
had removed Bovee from the office OF Secretary
i Of State, and had appointed Heron in his plHce
that on the morning Of the 18th Of November
he removed Heron IS defaulter, and, in biz
place appointed Wharton, who qualified and took
I possession of the Office Of Secretary Of State
Board stood adjourned from : preliminary neet
ing held the day previous; that after the meet
: ing Of the Board Of the 14th, and the vacanciat
in it having been filed BY Warmoth and Whar.
Da Ponte, Bragdon was appointed AsstHsan'
4 Secretary Of the Board. Governor WarmotE
opened the official returns in their presence
md the AAaiatant Secretary commenced ~ thell
tabulation; but before completing it the Whar
ton Board was enjoined from further proceed
ing by the United States District Judge Duren
Brngdon, who was appointed Secretary Of tn
t Governor Ra we'll as Of Wharton's g Board, and Il
whose possession tho returns remained, assisted
I BY Woodward; who was then Assistant secretar.
Of State under Wharton, as he had previousl,
been under Heron, continued the tahulation q
returns for Electors until it was completed
Governor Warmoth gaye statement OF the re-
suit to the Electors who we're elected according
to the official returns.. I also dissent from th'
following passage in the foregoing report 70
wit:
The evidence submitted to the Lynch Board, an'
which has been deacribed to the Committees, undoubt
edIy produced the conviction in their Kinds that tn
election hes been organized fraud Thers Is no
much Eoom to doubt that the Lynch Returning Boar
were Of the opinion that upon fair election the ReFut
Lean party would have carried the Ste and had tee
checked aud ~hindered in every way possible BY th
power that controlled the machinery Of the election
The fact that tho Lynch Board undertook t
count in fho Republican candidatss ns elected
without the semblance OF an official return be
fore them aud. in aome instances, upon spurious
forged, and false aEila7its, aa tho evidence be
fore The Committee sh6wa, affords no eYideue
to my mind that they supposed fair eleeti01
had not been Lell. 1yMAy TnCNar11-
~-Ehe Reb1:iiding OF Heztou. -
Bosien cvrrs.ps1.dencs ef Tie 81. Lotls Gtobe,
The rebuilding Of the cityis greatly delayed
= fro1n two causes. First, the endeayors OF tn
Street Commissioners to improve the genera
plan Of the burnt datrict are on every Rida ne
With objections from conservative owners IN