New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-02-04
THE LOUISIANA CASE
FACTS, OPINIONS AND SUGGESTIONS
Opinions OF the Leading Men in Washing.
ton, Compiled from Various Sources.

| Since the Senate has begun to serious iI
consider the Louisiana question, there ha
been a good deal of discussion in Washing
ton among the great and small. The Presi
dent and his Ca binet have been intervie wed
and re-interviewed, and nearly all the jour
mails of the capital, of New York and the
| West laid under contribution to present one
side or the other, and in many cases both
sides Of the subject. We present some
extracts below which viii be found inter.
esting:
| From the Washington Correspondence Of the New
| York Herald, January 70.
| VIEWS or THE PRESIDENT AND ATTORNEY
| GENERAL.
| The President was visited this morning
| nv Governor McEnery and General w. l..
| McMillen, the Senator elect from Louis
| lana. They had been reliably informed
| that only few days ago the President
| favored a new election, and desired to learn
| from hI u directly his present position on
that question, and also % disabuse lis mind
| as to certain representations made to him
| that no considerable number of the people
| of that State desired new election. They
| were most courteOusly received and ac-
| corded long interview. During the con
| versation Attorney General Williams was
| present and took part in it. The President
| admitted that the people OF Louisiana were
| oppressed by disorder and bad governments
| which he claimed had been the rule eiuce
| the war; also that the returns of the last
| election, which he characterized as an
organized fraud, had not been counted
by any returning board recognized by
the courts and that the Lynch board has
been obliged to make their returns from
other than legal or official sources He
justified bis action in the case by saving
that he had simply followed the decisions of
the courts. He also expressed the opinion
that Congress had no more power to inter
fere with the State governmental Louisiana
than with that in New York. He thought
that the first thing for Congress to do was
to impeach the judge, who, it is claimed,
acted without jurisdiction ia overthrowing
the State government of Louisiana and set
ting up another in its stead, and if the
Judge were found guilty, then Congress
might have power to apply proper
charged, that the general government,
through its Judiciary. had improperly in
terftred with the State government of
Louisiana, and thereby had worked an in
Jury to the people of the State and to the
cause of free government, and whether the
political department of the government
could not correct the evil done WITHOUT wait
ny W puHlSl Lilo ptISUu guilty oi Inc
outrage. He repeated his opinion that the
Judge should be tried first, from which it
would appear that the President is of opin-
ion that stolen property ought not 70 be re-
stored until the thief is caught and pun
ished. The Attorney General admitted that
Congress had power TO determine whether
or not Il republican form oi government
existed in any particular State. and i! il
found that none such did exist. then it
h.s rs Ify1fi IL .llJtys
gress TO provide the State with one. The
President ana the Attorney General were
reminded of the fact that the legal State
government o! Louisiana had been over.
thrown by the neiawtul Interference Of q
federal judge. backed by The Unite! States
army. and that action by Congress now
could scarcely be considered as interference
with :. State government chosen Gv the
people OF the State and regularly cstab.
lisheI unde. Il, constitution aud laws.
Proof was also rendered to chow tli: 4
large majority If the property owners Of
tina. State. os well as re pectablr number
OF the best Republicans. desired !. NJ ~ e.ee.
ton 3, the best solution q. the i,.!t;ica!
troubles OF the State.
III. PROPOSED MESSAGE AND VEINS a.; :EE
CABINET THEREON.
The action and position OF the Pres i,ient
relative to the Louisiana case ia som what
enigma,ca,. |. is a wei. asceytainea fact
that ;he President some time since. con
s.iyinS the dc fact, o. K-llcg. government
- .onc set up without votes-tha: IS. with
no connection Legally established between
Vie ballots cast and the officers in stalled ia
power. and 50 set by Il military force ;E-
iishcd Jy tie executive and on .-dtr Of q
federal iuGge-.'ri. that not only the in.
tegritr of .he Republican party but o: the
national government itself was seriously ia
VOWED. This healthy presidential concep.
ton of the merits of the case was s., in
ten-iied hv th. enlightened and honest
tone of :he press OF the country that the
executive expressed his purpose to unload
the party :r"m its monstrosities, and
favored pvonOUncedlv n new election in
Louisiana. IL accordance with these views
he proposed 10 send q message to Congress
recItiHg lis action in the case and the
reason. for it, and to further alcge the
existence Of political issues and compica.
tons that should be settled by Congress, the
political department of the government.
and not BY The executive. Subsequently, he |
was induced by the Attorney General and |
o hers to SO far modify his message as sim. ,
ply to recite his executive action in the |
case, without suggesting or submitting tie |
political questions to congressional consid. |
GRAFTON. This message was submitted 10 |
tue Cabinet yesterday. and, under their adj. |
vice. withheld. Several considerations have |
combined to produce the conclusion arrived !
at by the eXecUtiye--tirst, the Cabinet, con.
sidering that the nOnaescript. non-com.
initial message. prepared under the revision
OF Attorney General Williams, presented no |
facts that were not already in possession of |
Congress. the message under the circum-
stances mi ht be considered not only eff.
ciOus. but a case OF executive trifling.
They further suggested that the debate,
McCreerv having spoken, had already be-
gun in the Senate, and Eo message was
necessary pro or con to call official |
attention to Louisiana affairs. These sug-
sestions influenced the President to delay
action IN the case. Second-In the mean
while other influences were brought to bear
to induce the President to abandon not |
)nly the purpose to send in message, bat |
even his advocacy OF the election alto
rether The Impression was made upon his
mind that the executive recognition of the
Kellogg government. which had been it,
ended to be only provisional in its charac-
.er, and tor the purpose OF preserving the
,nblic peace until Congress should other
wise provide, really Was a solution under
he constitution and laws of the political
question, and conclusive against all execu-
i've interterences in the matter whatever,
{ was urged that his political opponents
o considered his action, and his admins
fdtioH "ouii oe uelu 10 tulS responsibility, |
ND any abandonment OF his position would |
'e troacherons to his party and ire parablv
amaging TO himself Again, the Attor-
ey General argues that Congress could |
ot constitutlona!Iy interfere SO as to remit |
he question of the State government TO |
he people, except it should appear that
aid government was set up by some ex-
raneous authority outside the State law
nd without the consent of the people OF
he State. The ground of congressional in
4rference could only be esta blishcu by as !