New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-06-20
ORGANIZING FOB CIVIL WAR.

The organ of French example here rec
ON mends military organization for the
purpose of holding the State Offices by
force of arms. It assumes the organiza-
ton of the State militia as a military
menace from the blacks, and argues:
There is in this danger of which we can
neither exaggerate nor unGerrate the i'm
portance. We see in this reason why the
whites-not with an'objec5 of attack, but OF
prOtsction-shoulda also organize in man.
ner to make their rights respected and to
defend their lives and property.
These local organizations will have the
additional advantage that they can render
great service in the event the disorders
which the Conservatives should avoid pro-
voking, but which they may have an IN
terest to repress promptly and energetlcally
# the defeated Radicals should have re.
course to such means to seek to maintain
themselves in power. The organization,
white or Conservative. should count here
at the expiration of three months, 10000
registered electors. 1t could then go to the
polls in November with the certainty OF
success, and should feel itself sufficiently
strong to cause the results Of the election
to be respected in inhicting summary JUS
tice upon those who may wish to impugn 1t.
Let US tell the people what all this
means:
/. To make an armed and illegal organ
ization to conduct the elections.
2. In the event the clubs claim the
election, this armed force is to be en-
ployed in putting its own men in office
and maintaining them there.
We can not refrain from remarking that
if twenty thousand voters support any
city ticket it must be elected. What, then,
would be the use Of arming these men?
This beats st. Landry. Our French in
structor forgets for the moment where he
is. That writer may not be citizen OF
the United States, and may, in case of
trouble, save himself under his own
nationality, but the government Of the
United States will maintain order within
its own jurisdiction. When an election
of city officers shall take place, the decis-
ion upon the validity of the election will be
ma de by the legal authorities Of the State,
sus tanned, as they have been heretofore, by
the military force of the government.
We can not tell what will be the despera-
ton Of the few French anarchists among
us, but we know that the American citi-
zens feel no disposition to appeal from
the legal decision Of an election here, or
from the right Of appeal to Congress. OF
this we have had recent example. Nc
Emery, Campbell, McMillen, Pinchback,
were all dissatisfied, either with the re-
suit of our popular election, or with the
decision of Congress upon their particu-
lar claims Have they returned to the
s'pro vince of Louisiana and raised the
banner of revolt and resistance? This
would have been the French rem
edy for their grievances. But these
men are Americans. They believe
IN universal suffrage, and abide by the
decisi on of the constituted authorities.
To these they appeal, and not to petro-
leum or to armed conspiracies. We have
no idea that an organization can be
formed on the basis proposed by the
French resident and visiting among US.
But it may be well for the executive of
this State to note this open proclamation
OF a purpose to carry the election by a
war of classes and to enforce the purpose
by civil war. Americans will now under
stand the French mode of conducting an
election, and will remember their duty to
the republican principles under which
they have been born and bred, and under
which they have been never shot, tried,
imprisoned or transported for their po-
litical opinions.