The New Orleans bulletin. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1874-1876, 1875-02-19
A BITTER PILL FOR "TRUTHFUL
PHIL.O

Senator Thurman, Of Ohio during his speech
on Louisiana in the United States Senate. OF
Wednesday, JAM n, in referring to the assertion
! That there had also been outrages in the Alabama
| said that he had received letter from member
OF the House OF Representatives. y no was on the
Committee Of the House that went to that State
to investigate its condition. The Chief Clerk o.
the Senate then read the letter, which was written
by Congressman Buckner of Missouri. Below i.
the letter:
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, UNITED STATES
WAsHINGToN, ID. O., Jan. %. 1875.
SRI was much surprised to hear Senator
| sherman lending the weight of his character to
the SANDER on the people of Louisiana, uttered
| by Gen. She idan, as to the number Of murders
| that had taken place in that State. While it is
not stated by these gentlemen that these thou.
| and murders were political ASA ssinatons, the
charge has no Significance, unless they design it
10 be SO understood. L venture the opinion that
it Will be found to be an atrocious misi epresenta-
| ton, with the smallest amount OF truth to sup
port it.
come to this conclusion from the testimony
adduced before the Alabama Committee appont-
Cd by the House Of Representatives to inyesti-
gate the condition OF affairs In that State during
the late political campaign. You will recollect
the letter OF the Hon. Charles Hays to the Hon
Joseph X. Hawlev, specifying numerous outrases
that had taken place from about the LIST of July
70 tho 10Th OF September 1874, and also tele-
graphic dispatches to the same effect pub
llshed IN the Northern papers. The num-
DeF vi murders mus stated as having
occurred in the counties of Choctaw,
Marengo. Sumter, Pickens, Green, and Coffee
(all OF which are included in Fir. Hayss Congress
slonal District except the last), and which oc- |
Cured within the space Of two months and |
hall, amounts to thrty.siX, to say nothing of |
twenty thirty wounded. With the exception
OF the murder OF Billings and Ivey, in Sumter
county-the former white and the latter colored
man-there was not particle Of evidence before
the commit that any such killings had taken
place in either OF these COUNTIES, and they were
proved to be unfounded far as negative can
be.
| was of tho subcommittee that examined |
witnesses in Sumter county for four days-near |
the center of these alleged outra ges-and with
the exceptions | have mentioned no witness
stated that any such homcides, or any homicides
at all, had occurred in these counties, stated in
the Hawley letter or the teIegraphic dispatch
referred to-. The evidence now in course of
publication will confirm my statement in every
jot and little.
But if by murders is to be understood homi-
c!fes OF every description, including the killing
ot negroes by negroes, and the usIfiabe killing 4
of negro es and white men in the preparation Of
4 + lony, such as robbery arson, burglary rape, !
ETC., then there may be some sembance of truth
n this statement OF Gen. Sheridan, Endorsed by I
senator sherman. was informed by gentle
nan in Montgomery county, Alabama, that at .
he time were there the Jail of the 4
county contained upward OF one hundred prison =
rs awaiting trial, principally for felony; that all
WIG negro eActpt one OF TWO, ana That there II
we're not less than a dozen murders in that
ounty during the year 1874, and all Of them
by negroes upon negroes This b
ounty has large Republican majority and has l
een entirely under the control OF the negroes 5
ince reconstruction. l app ehend that thor n
ugh investigation as to these thousand murders ~
Louisiana will show that at least lour-tifths of
IL that have been committed have no political
ignificance whatever, which Gen. Sheridan n
nows, if Senator Sherman does not have the =
OnOr to be, your Obedent servant. - -
A. 81. BUcKNER
Hon. A. G.. Thurman ia