New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-08-30
THE PARISH OF NATCHIT0CHES
THE BENEFlrOF ONEROUs TAXATION
The Republican Party Not Responsible

been made to lay the high axatiOn at the
door of the Republican party. l propose
tn show, sir, and defy contradiction, that
the Republican party is in no manner re-
eponsibie for the oppression OF the people
in this parish ON account of high taxes.
The Democratic police juries for the years
1867, '68, 'G9, like their predecessors, issued
parish warrants in large quantities, besides
borrowing large amount OF money for
which bonds were issued to pay the same.
A large amount of these bonds remain I'M
paid while the balance, the Democratic
capitalists bought up for speculative pur-
pose which propose to show; the payment
Of these bonds was to be made by taxation.
The police jury, lS68-69, donated TO
grown paupers ten dollars and to each child
of the pauper five dollars per month, and
their pauper list was larger than heretofore
known. This continued for that year. This
police Jury gave the contract TO paint the
courthouse to a painter for $1,000 when
other painters offered to do the work for
$500. This contract was paid IN paper
which was eagerly sought for, because
ferent parishes to be sued and compelled
special tax to be levied to pay the judg-
1nents.
In 1870, the first Republican police jury
in the parish of NatchitOches met, aud
after several sessions, they followed the
example of several other parishes in the
State, and endeavored to induce immigra-
tion to the parish.
To this end they appropriated $4,000 in
parish warrants. At that time warrants
were selling at thirty cents on the dollar.
They under special State law, during that
wear appropriated $4,000 to procure parish
map and field notes; the paper at this time
being also at thirty cents on the dollar. The
law requiring each township and part of
township to De separate map, and there
being forty townships in the parish OF
NatchitOches hence large bound volume
twenty-four by thirty six, containing for
ty maps and field notes was made. Both OF
the above appropriations were en!oined,
and none of the map money was issued ex-
cept to prominent Democrat, while
not one cent injured to any Re
publican in the parish Of Natchi-
toches. None of the above $4,000 and
5000 went on the market, except $3.50
paid to one of the Democrats to the con-
tract; hence the parish was not called on
to pay these appropriations To the map
contract, in order not to make a political
contract, the parties politically stood three
Democrats, two Republicans, all men in
good standing in their respective parties.
This police jury for 1870 did not levy any
calling themselves a reform committee ex-
amined the police jury records. The gen
tlemen who made the examination were
thoroughly competent. They made the ex
animation from the year 1868 to 1871, and
no report was ever published. lt was
found that report would be damaging to
the Democratic rather than to the Republi-
jury of 1870 repealed the ordinance
allowing the paupers monthly pay,
which had been passed by the Dem
ocratic police jury Of 1862 and
also repealed several other obnoxious res0
lutions passed by the same police jury:
The Republican police jury for 1870 levied
no tax; hence the people had no parish tax
1878, shortly after having charge OF the
parochial affairs, repealed the ordinance
disallowing pay to paupers, which the pre-.
vious police Jury Of 1870 had adopted. This
police Jury commenced with new pauper
list, and issued monthly large amount in
warrants to paupers. They levied parish
tax for the fiscal year 1873 amounting to
$4,000; and it can not be denied that at
the expiration of the first six months Sl3,000
of this was used by them, that is, $4,000 in
warrants of this amount were issued and
on the market at from twenty-five to thirty
cents on the dollar. The law allowed each
police juror $50 per year, and it can not be
sienied that at nearly every session which
took place every month 500 was donated
to the president Tor extra services, besides
his regular pay, and the same donation
made to the treasurer and clerk of this
police Jury. All such acts were illegal and
unwarranted in law and i'll direct violation
of law.
The parish ordinary tax that the peopIe
of the parish Of NatohitOches are nOw,calIed
upon to pay at the present time is the $751;
900, levied by the Democratic police jury of
1928. Up to 1870, the Democratic CAPT
4,r; IoA oh hto;n no1 low
number ofjudgments against the parish for
the face value of the warrants they pur-
chased at thirty to forty cents on the dollar.
The tax collector every three months paid
each pro rata on what he collected under
the special parish tax to pay judgments, and
in order to prevent the Republican police
jury from issuing warrants to pay court
and other parish expenses, a committee
most of whom were judgment creditors,
and all Democrats, sued out an injunction
to prevent the president of the police jury
from signing any warrant or other evidence
of debt against the parish. The object was
understood. If more paper were issued by
the police jury, the more judgments would
be obtained against the parish, and the
more judgments the less the pro rata would
be; hence this committee had an eye to
business, because they desired to obtain all
the paper on the market. and as the police
jury could not issue new paper, they would
be masters of the situation. The special
tax to pay these gentlemen and other judg-
ment creditors for the year 1912 was
two and half per cent in currency. Some
$95, 900 was wrung from the people, in cur
rency, from 1870 to 1873 inclusive, to pay
these Democratic spectators in parish
paper. Out of ninety judgments against
the parish, up to the first of January, 1874
eighty-eight were obtained in the name of
and held by Democrat Reformers, and the
board Of assessors of the parish of Natchi-
t0ches has assessed special tax, in curren-
cy, to be collected this year, to nav these
Judgment creditors the sum OF Sc, 900. The
board of assessors stand, politically, two
Democrats, one Republican. The Repub-
lcan. who is clerk Of the court, is seldom at
his office, and in his absence is represented
by his chief clerk-a Democrat Twill state
that one of the Democrats, who is q judg-
ment creditor, obtained judgments on par
ish paper received by him from the parish
for services rendered; he did not buy the
paper.
short time since, taking advantage of
the intiamed condition of the minds of the
people on the subject of taxes, all OF the
judgment creditors, with few exceptions
called meeting to take the question OF
taxes into consideration, and obtain
time to pay them. About q week before
the meeting took place, the Repub-
lican police jury reduced the ordinary par
ish tax of two per cent, which had been
levied by Democratic jury, to one per
cent, and the Republican school board re-
mitted the school tax of two and one-half
mills, and ordered the tax collectors to re-
fund to each taxpayer the amount of school
tax paid by each, and the Republican
police jury repealed the ordinance called
the Kearney tax of two and one-half mills;
hence, the only tax left to be paid to carry