New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1875-01-19
Communicated
Mr.. Clarkson N. Potter on the Louisiana
Case.

All the city papers on Saturday morning
published, in the shape of report of sub
committee on Louisiana affairs, the views
of Mr.. Clarkson N. Potter, Democratic
member of Congress, and master spirit and
part proprietor of the New York World, on
the subjects which that committee has re-
Gently had before it. These views received
some additional force from the pen of Mr.
w. w. Phelps, the owner of fifty shares or
one-half of the New York Tribune. l do
not count Mr.. Foster as having had any
ing had anything further to do with the re-
port than signing it. He probably thought
he could get into the Democratic party as
soon, and spite the friends of General But
Ter as much, in that way as in any other.
But give the entire credit of the document
to Mr Potter and his Democratic counsel
In this city. belive some portions of it
were literal excerpts from the Democratic
brief submitted to the committee.
The opinions of Mr.. Potter are Justly en-
titled to consideration at the hands of the
party to which he belongs, but should not
and will not carry much weight with the
party OF progress, of enlightenment, of tree
speech and liberty without license. The
report reads HkeIan ex parte statement of a
White League lawyer. 1t is not based on
the evidence placed before the committee.
1t omtts everything tavorabie ~ The Re-
publican party and contains everything in
extenuation of the conduct of the Dem.
ocratic party. 1t is filed with gross mis-
statements of fact. 1t says that Governor
Nellogg has appointed judges to preside
oVer>sQurts which had been abolished and
recreateS in order to enable him to do so,
which is untrue. The Superior District
Court was created and the Judge thereof
appointed before Mr.. Kellogg was Governor.
1t says that the kellogg Legislature'' has
created "monOpolies in markets, gas max
ing, waterworks, FERRIES" ETC.. which is
untrue. The markets, the gas company,
the waterworks and the ferries were all in
existence years before the "Kellogg Legis-
lature" was in existence. 1t says that the
kellogg Legislature "by changing the
laws, centralized in the Governor every
form of political control, which is untrue,
as that Legislature modified those laws
very materially, and not so much power is
now in the hands of the Governor as there
was before Governor Kellogg came into
office. Furthermore, there was not a
particle of evidence before the committee
touching these subjects, nor had the Re-
publican counsel any notice that the com
mittee intended to touch them.
| On the SUBJECT of in timidation the report
says that there was "no general intimida.
tion of Republican voters" In the face oi
all the evidence before that committee, in
spite of the fact that General F. N. Ogden
testified that he had a detail of fifteen
White Leaguers at each poll in this city
where there was confessedly less intimida.
tion than in any other portion of the State
we do not see how even Mr.. Potter could
| sign such a statement. The committee
took evidence on two parishes only, des
| ignated by the Democrats, and refused
absolutely to hear evidence relating to Other
parishes, especially the Shreveport country
in relation to which a large amount O
testimony was ready and offered to them.
The committee says that the police seized
the arms of private citizens Immediately
previous to the fourteenth of September
without legal proc ess, which is untrue
There was no instance of seizure without
the forms of law were complied with. The
White League lawyers of this city assidu
ously attempted to inc ulcate in the mindl
of the people the idea that every man haC
a right to make walking arsenal of him
self under the constitutional provision tha'
"the right of the people to keep and beal
arms shall not be infringed,' taking care tt
keep back the prefix and explanatory por
ton of the provisio n, which is that "a we'll
regulated militia being necessary to tht
security of free State" Then follows
"the right of the people to bear arms shal
not be infringed." 1t stands to reason thai
no man has the right in law to "keep anj
bear arms" for the purpose OF shooting the
"well regulated militia"
| We feel great satisfaction in the fact thai
this report was so fragrant of partisanshir
that that portion of the committee which
did not visit Louisiana has concluded moi
to rely on Mr., Potter, but will come and see
and decide for themselves as to whether
the Republican party in this State is all
wrong, and the Democratic party all right
REPUBLICAN.