American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1873-06-14

In the recent proclamation of President
Grant threatening the people of Louisiana
| with the bayonet unless they submit to
the authority of the usurping Kellogg
Government. he makes certain downright
| assertions which are contradicted by the
evidence of court records and Congression-
al proceedings. For instance:
"Uhereds, Under the pretenee that William P.
Kellogg, the present Executive of Louisiana. and
the officers associated with him in the State admin
istraiion were not duly elected certain turbulent
and disorderly persons have combined together with
force and arms to resist the laws and constituted
authorities of said State: and
Where's. 1t has been duly certified by the prop
err local authorities and iudicially determined by
inferior and superior of said State that
said officers entitled to hold their offices re-
peciively and execute and discharge the functions
The evidence ELECTED in the Senate in
| vestigations on Louisiana affairs shows
| that Kellogg was never elected Governor
| of that State, and that his election was
never certified TO by any proper local au-
| thorities. The spurious Returning Board
| which pretended to count him in had no
| legal returns on which to base their count,
and this board did not pretend that enough
| votes were actually cast to elect him. The
| assertion that the courts of Louisiana
have decided that in Kelloggs favor is
| based on the fact that the spurious L6gis-
lature abolished two District Judgeships
| and created new court called the Supe-
rior Court, giving it exclusive jurisdiction
| to determine title to office. Mr. Bovee,
one of the members of the spurious Return
| ing Board, was made Judge of this court.
| Thus an illegal body creates a court to
pass on its own title to existence; and a
man implicated in stupendous frauds is
without any legal authority made pre-
| tended Judge, with exclusive power to
pass on questions arising in consequence
of his own violations of law, This is
what the President calls judicially de
termining the validity of the Kellogg
Government.
President Grant further says in his pro-
| clamation:
Congress at its late session. upon due couside-
ration of the subject taciiy recognized the said Exc
cutive and his associates then, now in office by
refusing to take any action with respect thereto.
This is at variance with the facts as
| shown by the proceedings of the last Con
gress, and by the declarations of prominent
members of that body Congress did
tacitly recognize the arbitrary course of
| the President in using United States troops
| to overthrow the legal Government of
| Louisiana, for it was too cowardly and too
| subservient to executive domination to in
| terfere with his lawless proceedings; but
it was very careful to distinctly repudiate
any recognition of the Kellogg fraud in
itS PioScSulHSs- III Regard 10 tHlS SiDject
the evidence of Senator Carpenter will
probably be admitted by all parties as
trustworthy. In his speech in New Orleans
the other day the Senator said:
There were two Legislatures. and consequently
two Senators. Messrs. Ray and Mcmillan. We took
up both of these cases. and made full inquiry.
We wanted to hear from everybody, and everybody
was heard. and the committee satisfied that if
the election had really elected anybody, McEnery
was elected But were not well satisfied of
this and that's what's the matter. If the returns
were truthful. McEnery elected; but the
was presented 10 us we satisfied the election
was not fairly held. The question then was, what
could be done? Kellogg was not elected AT ALL
The only redeeming feature of the ac-
ton of Congress in this matter was that it
decidedly objected to giving the Kellogg
usurpation any recognition whatever. II
is impossible to construe the refusal of
Congress to recognize Kellogg in compli-
ance with the Presidents wish as a tacit
recognition of the usurping Government;
and no one knows better than General
Grant the feeling of Congress on this sub
ject-
Popular belief in the truthfulness of
General Grant was seriously shaken by his
celebrated controversy upon question Of
veracity with President johnson and his
Cabinet; and this message will not inspire
any new confidence in the accuracy of his
statements.-Neto TogIc San.