The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1874-05-08
Aoa;n from civ ont Of sftv.a;oht a.

pears by the Certlneate or the EofmaI
board found on page eighty-one OF the
report. 1t is said that three OF these sl1
parishes were rejected because OF VIC
1ence. Forman says so in his testimony
on the seventy-sixth page. They have
given no evidence of the violence ex:
cepting in n case, and that is spread
out from page sos to N1-thirty-tve
pages of evidence relating to the alleged
violencein the parish of Iberville. This
wasa Republican parish, havinga strong
preponderance of colored votes. There
were from 700 to 800 white votes to 5000
colored votes registered. The white
vote was made up, as we know, of the
Democrats; and in that parish of Demo
cratic planters, to their credit be it said,
there seems to have been no man in the
parish who suited Mr.. WarmOth as SUI
pervisor, and a Mr.. Tharp was brought
from New Orleans and was made super
visor. The commissioners took the bal
lot-boxes with the poll lists to Plaque
mine. They claimed the right to go into
the courthouse. The sheriff prohibited
them. They had a right to go in. We
would have gone in. They, intent and
earnest, watched the ballot box. When
one party would grow weary others
would relieve them, and they stood at
the windows watching the boxes
In all the testimony of thirty five pages
there is no evidence of n act'of vio-
lence. What the violence was in the
other two parishes they have not had
the grace to give us one word of testi-
mony to inform us. There was no vio-
lence. There was no reason that the
ballots should not have been counted
and the returns made up, excepting that
it was a strong Republican parish. /
will show presently the effect Of the ex-
clusion.
The returns from several of the par
ishes are forged, but they all go in to
make up McEnerv's majority, as we shall
see presently. The Senator from Wis
consin very fairly, in a calculation in
which |, having gone over the figures,
entirely agree, makes a deduction for
those parishes, From one of the parish
es the returns were manufactured, and
then my friend asks me for evidence,
and will trouble the clerk to read from
pages 900 and $40 of the testimony that
which | have marked.
The chief clerk read as follows:
State OF Louisiana, parish of Orleans,
city Of New Orleans.-PersOnallv came
and appeared before me, Robert H.
Shannon, United States commissioner
in and for the district of Louisiana, John
z. MOntamat, of the city and State afore-
SAID, who, being duly sworn, doth depose
and say that during the month of No
,Vember, 1872, and for four years before,
he was d justice of the peace for this
parish of Orleans; that in the month
aforesaid, after the election held in this
parish for Governor and other State and
parochial officers, "what date / can not
recollect, but it was while they were
counting the votes, at the State House,
at the Mechanics Institute, situated on
Dryades street." one Jack Wharton, also
OF this city and State aforesaid, came to
my office, situated No. 33 Exchange al
ley, near CustOmhouse street, in the city
and parish aforesaid, and requested that
| should go with him in q certain place
in this city of New Orleans, in order to
administer the oath to one of the super
vlsOrs of election in and for the parish
of Madison. Atsaid request went with
Jack Wharton, who took me in a house
situated on Gravier street, some where
near Baronne street; the entry doors
were closed, and at the signal given by
Jack Wharton (three consecutive and
hard raps) the doors were opened. In
the said room / saw one CahoOn, whose
first nam | do not know, but whom I
had seen before in this city; he, the said
Cahoon, then and there informed me
that he was the supervisor of election
for the parish of Madison, appointed by
Henry G.. Warmoth, then Governor of
Louisiana, and that he wished me to
swear him as to the returns of the late
election. | saw there several persons
whom did not know; they were MAX
ing tally lists of the returns of the cleo
ton. l inquired from CahOon, the SUI
pervisOr, how it was that he had not pre-
pared the lists and returns in the parish
where he came from. He told me that
he could not count the votes there it was
a Republican parish, and that he had to
run away because he wanted to count |
the votes and admit n excepta few,
and he would have it his own way, and
would here in New Orleans return such |
persons as he thought proper. I swore
him to several tally-lists and returns. |
| believe, to the best of my knowledge, |
that the greater part of the tally-lists
were yet in blank when | swore him.
JOHN P. MoNTAMAT.
Subscribed and sworn to before me
this third day of February, 1873.
r. H.. SHANNON,
United States Commissioner, District of
Louisiana.
Mr.. Frelinghuysen-There was a &C.
cret place entered by arranged signal
where officers were engaged in making
up returns, a number of which werej
sworn to in blank and filed up after
ward. Now read, if you please, the rest
of that marked.
The Chief Clerk read as follows:
"Question-Taking your estimate of
the votes in these parishes where the
frauds are charged, if the vote had been
fairly counted what would have been the
result az compared with the vote in the
parishes where no frauds are charged 7
"Answer-I do not understand yOur
question.
by Mr.. Hill-What would have been
effect on the general election 7
by Mr.. Logan-What would have
been the result of the election?
"Answer-Oh, it there had been no
frauds in these parishes, and they had
returned the vote as they did in some of
parishes, fairly, they would have
given the Republican ticket q 9 large
majority, according to their own returns.
"Questi0n-In the State9
"Answer-Yes, sir, in the State.
"Question-Do you speak of the votes
1ctually cast, or the voters in the dis
Answer--I refer to the voters
out the votes actually cast, in my judg-
nent, if properly returned, would have
given the Republican party a majority
IN the State. | have no doubt of that.
"Question-That is, the votes as they
we're actually cast? Answer-Yes, sir;
actually put in the boxes,n
Mr.. Morton-I ask what parish that
Mr.. Frelinghuysen-A parish some
;wo hundred miles away.
Mr.. West-The parish of Madison.
NM Mnrfnn-Enm For nu,nurA L