The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1875-01-08
From The Ne,C YORK. Tribune, stu.
Louisiana Under The BayOnet.

The political events of the past two years
in the State of Louisiana found their logical
result yesterday in a forcible expulsion OF
four Conservative members of the Legisla.
ture by the Army of the United States, and
the contamination of the greatest outrage
that has ever yet in the history of the
country been practiced upon the citizens of q
State. To-day minority Legislature never
elected by the people, but foisted upon them
by the most barefaced frauds, without regard
to ballots or returns or anything but the ne.
cessities of a wicked and corrupt Ring of pol.
iticians, sits in New Orleans under the pro.
lection of Federal bnyonets, and undertakes
to legislate for the State. Nothing in the
history OF even the great conspiracy by which
the Border Ruffians undertook to seize the
Territory and State Of Kansas can furnish
any parallel for this browning iniquity of the
Federal Administration.
The history of Louisiana during the pro.
gress Of the complications which ended yes.
terday in putting the people of the State alb.
solutely under the heel of military despotism
is familiar to the readers of The Tribune. No
impartial person doubts that the Conserva.
tives carried the State and elected an over
whelming majority of the Legislature in No
yember last. 1t was as plain and patent q
fact as the election of Gov. Tilden in New
York, and no one pretended to dispute it I'M
til the Returning Board began doctoring the
returns and paving the way for this stupen.
dous fraud upon the most flimsy pretext-in-
deed almost without even pretext this Re-
turning Board threw out the returns from
a sufficient number of Conservative precincts
to leave the complexion of the House of Rep
resentatives 81 Democrats to "a Republicans,
instead OF 40 Democrats to Al Republicans, as
the original returns showed In most of the
cases wherein the returns were thrown out
the grounds of rejection were of the most
frivolous character; in all of them there was
manifest purpose to defeat the expressed
VIII OF the people, and make the Legislature
Republican. This purpose was apparent
through all the proceedings, and there was
hardly any attempt to conceal it. Allthings
having been prepared as the Kellogg mana
gers believed TO insure the organization of
the House in their interest, it turned out on
Sunday that through the non.appearance of
some of the members upon whom they had
calculated, the scheme was in danger of fail.
ure; that after all their well laid plans, there
would be Conservative majority of two.
But these men were playing for too large
stake, and had already committed too many
outrages and too great crimes to be baked
at this stage of their enterprise. The Presi-
dent of the United States was at their back
and the army and navy at their command.
What they had failed to secure by audacious
fraud and unparalleled vilainy they could
easily make sure by simply invoking the
Federal arm. And SO the Army of the Uni
ted States was called in, q sufficient number
OF legally elected Conservative members were
forcibly elected to answer their purpose, and
the last act in this series of unblushing out