New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-07-21
CONFEDERATE REPUBLICANS.

duty TO elect some p0llucai aSsociauon
which would renew their alliance and
allegiance with the great American people
Most of these men to whose American
courage and capacity the duration of tn
war was due, fought for the prophecies
Many, though opposed to secession, tool
up arms to resist invasion, or stood by
their States under the conviction thai
the highest and first allegiance OF
citizen was due to his State. The
grounds Of opposition were, II
fact, reduceable into one 1t was
feared that the election of Mr.. Lincoln
would pervert the government into q rude
rule Of numbers, under which the slave
would be liberated, with all the eonse.
quences of San Domingo or Of Jamaica.
The war is over, the constitution amended,
and the former slave is now a citizen, Ia
borer, safe, docile and Indispensable. The
American Confederate reflects as to the
terms on which he shall reunite with some
rule Of political principles which will as
sure him just participation in the direc-
ton of the republic. d.,
Many Of these ex-Confederates were
never members of the Democratic party
before the war. They have no inclination
to commit themselves to its support. Why
should they? Was the Democratic admin
istration over the South before the war or
during the war either satisfactory or just
to the Wings, Union men or conservatives?
Did not the war disclose the horrible sham
Of ''the Northern States Rights Democ-
racy?" When Mcclellan headed one army
Of invasion, and General Butler another;
when at Baton Rouge, Breckenridge, the
Southern States rights Democrat, encoun-
tered the troops of General Butler, the
Northern Ststes rights Democrat how
could this shattered sham of Democratic
unity be ever pat together again? There
may be ''crystaline cement" warranted to
reunite broken pieces of pottery and glass
without sign or seam Of the fracture but
it could never patch together the frag-
ments of . dislocated Democracy blown
far apart by the explosion Of civil con-
Aict. No, the x-ConfedeEates are under
no earthly obligation to answer the Demo-
cratic roll call, and they never will
They must, however, act with some
party. They are ordered to oppose the
Republican party in Louisiana. Men
who laid down their arms with Lee at the
last hour are now denounced here in New
Orleans by men who never went to battle
even when the opportunity occurred at
their own doors. When these Exon
federates have taken the oath Of allegiance
and accepted the rights of amnesty have
they forfeited all discretion of political
association :? May they not cooperate,
or even enroll themselves with the Repub-
lican party? Much of this condemnation
in New Orleans comes from those who
viewed the war and endured its privations
from Paris, Liverpool, Nassau or Niagara.
Much comes from an element that is alien
in sentiment and even in fact to the
republican form Of government. They
constitute powerful influence in money
and numbers, and many Of them have
very little of common opinion with the
mass of ex-Confederate soldiers, being in
effect merchant subjects of foreign kings
held here by personal interest only. This
alien interest was, during and before the
war, very powerful. The French consul
claimed that there were thirty thousand
people in New Orleans who were entitled
to the protection of the French Emperor.
An official document published by the
federal commandant stated that there
were 10, 400 families fed with public "a
lions, less than one-tenth of whom, or
1910 were Americans. Ofthirty-two thou
sand persons SO fed but three thousand
we're Americans. OF eighty thousand
dollars per month expended for this pur-
pose, seventy-two thousand dollars went |
10 foreigners. OF these thirty-two thou
sand persons seventeen thousand were
British born subjects, mostly claiming !
British protection.
The foreign consuls were very active in
the blockade and exchanging |
cotton against material of war or other
They furnished protection
md exemption from military service to
thousands. 1t was, perhaps, fortunate
or the United States that these thousands
vent no further than to arm as "Eu-
opean Brigade" If the dense mass of
men who thronged the levees, and reviled
n all the tongues of modern Europe the
ederal officers who came to take possess
ion Of the city, had been American citi-
ems, or had partaken of the courage
which rendered formidable those citizens
# Louisiana who went into the field, they
would not perhaps have allowed a few ma
ines and four or five thousand troops to
AVE captured city of 16O, 900 population.
>ut embarrassed by alienism and weak
ned by the absence of the American
cement, New Orleans did not offer to
epeat against Butler the resistance which
had offered to Packenham.
And this alien sentiment is equally hos
lie to the federal government now as
hen; why should it not be Subjects of
king, why should they approve of uni
ersal suffrage or representative election
till preserving their allegiance. to an
established religion, why should they APP