Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1874-10-12

| who were members eG QVtc10. The law provides
| that when a vacancy occurs within the board the
members shall fill it. There were two vacancies.
| If they were filed by Yarmouth then they would
become Yarmouth board, and would count the
| fraudulently elected candidates in. If they were
| filed by Lynch, his opponent it would be called
| Republican board. Each party tried to fill it.
| The Supreme Court decided that the Lynch Board,
| or Anti Warmoth Board, was the lawful board.
| They decided that in several cases. That board
| counted the votes, and declared the Republican
| candidate elected After this board had been
| elected they called upon Governor Warmoth for
| the returns which had been sent him after the
| election. They made two demands, but he
| fused to give them up. The returns were con-
cealed somewhere in the city, and could not be
| found then after waiting for them, and not being
able to get them, they went on to count the votes
| without them. There is where the ilegality &C.
cured. never justified their action in that case,
and never justified Judge Durrells action. said
in my report that it was not for me to go behind
the courts of the State, in regard to which was the
lawful board. The State Court decided that the
Lynch Board was the lawful one and that their
| finding of who was elected was conclusive.
THE PRoposAL For A NEW ELECTION.
Now, one word in regard to my own action IN
| the Senate. When the majority of the committee
brought in the bill for a election opposed it,
upon the ground that the returning board, crea-
| ted to count and determine who elected, had
made their decision, and it was not competent for
| Congress to 90 behind 1t. That board might have
decided without the proper vote upon false tes-
timony, They might not have had the proof, but
they made the finding, and the Supreme Court de-
cided that the finding was conclusive. took the
ground in the Senate, and tlatter myself that my
argument was never answered, that so far as
State election concerned, the election of State
officers must be determinedby State tribunals, and
when settled by the Supreme Court of the State,
or by those tribunals created purpose to decide
State elections, that conclusive, and the Gov
ernment of the United States and Congress could
l.(.. A. 1Nrtl, ole ap.
count the votes and determine who are elected
The decision of the State tribunals upon purely
State questions arising under State laws, in which
no statute of the United States and no provision
of the Constitution of the United States was IN
yolved, was final and conclusive. In that l was
sustained by majority of the Senate. The case
was made in New York in 1865. The Democratic
candidate for office elected by notorious frauds
in the city of New York. The Republican candi-
date was elected by not less than $1,000 majority,
but that majority was overcome by regiments OF
rcpeaters in New York, organized by Boss Tweed
and marched from poll to poll and voted the whole
day through. 1t monstrous fraud, and the
Democratic candidate was counted in. Suppose
the attempt had been made in the Senate to turn
Hoffman out and put the other in. 1t could not
have been done; the answer would have been that
Hoffman had been declared elected by the State
tribunals established for that purpose and that the
Congress of the United States could not go behind
that decision. Take case right here. Suppose
Gen. Browne should contest the election OF Hon.
Thomas A. Hendricks as Governor of this State.
Suppose the friends of Gen. Browne should say
that Governor Hendricks had obtained his small
majority by repeating i'll the city OF Indianapolis
or Fort Wayne, or importing votes in Evansville
or New Albany. Suppose they could even prove
it, would it be competent now to 90 behind the
State tribunals after Governor Hendricks had been
recognized tor two years and turn him out !!
Every body would say no. That is the difference
in the circumstances between Kellogg and McEn-
cry. The ground took regarded at the time as
impregnable, although the bill was only defeated
two years ago by small majority. Yet, when 1t
was brought forward last session, it was not
pressed to vote, for Senator Carpenter found
that it would not have half dozen votes in the
whole body | have no defense to make for the
wrongs committed by the Republicans of Lousi-
ana. They committed some frauds undoubtedly.
They violated the law in some cases. They have
urged in their justification, that in their opinion
they were engaged in struggle for life. They
believed that a Democratic State Government
would be the signal for murder and slaughter;
that white Republicans would be driven from the
State; that it a struggle for life, for home.
have no apology to make for any irregularities
committed by them.
The CoLFAx MASSACRE.
In the month of April 1873, another slaughter
took place at Colfax, in Grant Parish, which was
Republican by about 300 majority. The official
returns from Grant Parish were proved before the
| Senate Committee to have been forged through
| and through by Warmoths men, as were the War
moth returns from seven other parishes in the
| State. Governor Kellogg commissioned the Re-
publican Sheriff and other parish officers there.
McEnery commissioned the Democratic candidates
as elected, when they were VIGOROUSLY defeated.
About the lst of April Nash, the Democratic can
didates for Sheriff, gave the Sheriff notice that he
would turn him out of office, and demanded pos
session of it. The Sheriff aud other lsh officers
heard that forces were being collected in the
neghborng parishes to capture the place and take
possession of the offices, and they summoned
posse of about 800 colored men to protect them
selves. On Easter Sunday believe the 18th of
April, Nash. the Democratic candidate, appeared
with one IIadnot the commander of the forces, a
member of the McEnery Legislature, who held
commission from McEnery. The town was sur
rounded by about 200 men. The negroes retired
into the Court house, on one side Of which there
were no windows. Nash and his force approached
on that side and set the Court house on fire. When
the flames arose the negroes could not stay, and
held out white handkerchicfs in token of surren-
der and then rushed out through the fire. many of
them with their clothes burning. As they passed
they seized and stabbed or shot. The evil
dence showed that three or four white men would
hold negro while another would put pistol to
his mouth and kill him. Many Of the dead had
twelve or fifteen wounds upon their persons. The
evidence laid before the Grand jury, which was
the evidence / saw, showed that about thirty of
these men were marched down to the river bank
and shot there Several men would be placed in
a row, breast to back, and one of these rutfians
standing at the end of row would see how many
bodies he could shoot his bullet through Three
days after the massacre ftty-seven dead bodies
were found around the Court house, they could
not tell how many were killed in ALL but the evil
dencc showed over 100. 1t was of the most
cruel and unprovoked slaughters that ever took
place. l have spoken ofthe recent massacre which
took place at Coushatta. Between these killings
the murders have been constantly going
THERE Must BE SECURITY IN THE SOUTH.
Now you have something of the condition of
Louisiana. | repeat, it has been slaughter house
for eight years. Who are the men now demand
ing the State Government of Louisiana? There
are the assassns of 1866 of 1868 and of lS13-the
same men, not one of whom has ever been pun
shed to this day. 1t is too late now, as said be-
fore, to inquire who was elected in Louisiana.
There must be some things settled or you cannot
carry a government. There must be some
time when questions of that kind cannot be raised
There must be some tribunal, whose decisions up
on such questions must be respected as final. AS
Kellogg has been recognized and sustained for
nearly two years it was entirely too late to raise
the question as to who was elected. l have gone
through with this history, and shall conclude what
have to say upon it with the remark that beyond
all question Gov Kellogg did, at the time of his
Inauguration, and does now represent the politics
of large ma orty of the people of Louisiana;
That McEnery represented only the minority :;