The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1875-01-21
Out Of Their oWln" NO Mouths I: are
'@' 70 They Condemned, -
Report of the Sub. Committee
A FULL, FREE AND FAIR ELECTION, WITH
lQUT INTIMIDATION, RESULTING IN
"a AN UNDOUBTED coNsER- '
d. RATIVE VICTORY YID
Which was Turned into Defeat by
the Returning Board, Aided
by Grants BayOnets'

---@ @------
WASHINGTON, Jan. 15-The sub-com-
mittee appointed to visit New Orleans
for the purpose of investigation has re-
ported to the General Committee. After
giving full account Of the action of the
Returning Board, the Committee report
that they are constrained To- say the ac-
ton of the Board in the rejection of
the returns in the parish of Rapides, and
giving the seats for that parish to the
Republican candidates, was arbitrary,
unfair, and without warrant o. law III
the Committee were to 90 behind the
papers before the Board and consider
n alleged charges Of Intimidation upon
proofs before the Committee, their find
inc would necessarily be the same. Rap
ides parish was taken as a sample OF IN
timidation. Many witnesses ofboth par
c,cties, show beyond a question that there
was a. free, full, fair and peaceable elecN
ton and registration. There was no
evidence of any intimidation Of voters
practiced ON the day of the election, all
Il. though it was asserted that Intimidation
of colored men before tthe election had
been effected by threats Of refusal TO en-
ploy them, or to discharge them il they
voted the Republican ticket. No eyl-
dence, either OF discharge Or srefusal to
employ, wasproduced. CerYlnwitnesses
themselves every one otficeNholders, tes-
tilted generally to such action, but hard
ly one of them was able to specify SIN
Ole instance in which he heard any em-
blower SO threaten, or discharge any vo-
ter or knew of any employe being SO
threatened or discharged. Not one sim
gle colored man throughout the entire
parish was produced to testify to such
threat or to the execution OF such pur-
pose, whether before or after the cleo
ton.
The committee allude to numerous IL
legal acts of the Returning Roard, and
say: "Again we are constrained to de-
clare that the action of the Returning
Board, on the whole, was arbitrary, un-
lust, and, in our opinion, illegal; and that
this arbitrary, unjust and illegal action
alone prevented the return by the Board
of a majority Of Conservative members to
the Lower House. The Committee con-
fined their investigation to two parishes
and general intimidation Of Republican
voters was established. No colored man
was produced who had been threatened
or assaulted by any Conservative because
of political opinion, or discharged from
employment, or refused employment
OAall those who testified to intimidation
tb9Te was hardly any one who, of his
own knowledge, could specify reliable
instance of SUCH acts; and OF the white
men who were produced to testify gen
orally on such subjects, very nearly all,
if not every single one, was holder OF
Office. No witnesses, we believe, sue
ceeded in naming in any parish five Re-
publicans who supported the Kellogg
Government who were not themselves
ofice-holders, or related to otfice-holders
or those having official employment. On
the other hand, applications to the Uni
ted States Commissioners in the various
parishes, not only for alleged crimes, but
because of alleged threats Of discharge
and non employment, or other interfer-
encelwith political preference, were fre'
ouent. Upon these applications warrants
were often issued, and white citizens ar
rested and bound over for trial In many
localities Federal troops were detained
for service under the Marshals and Dep
uty Marshals, and not only made many
arrests Immediately before the election
but reports that they were coming to par
bticular neighborhoods about the time o.
g1the election for the purpose of making
such arrests served as the Conservative
aaa claimed, to intimidHte. ..aN sometimes
ma even to produce 4 ataln2ede among white
I,l voters, ga'. 1. .ao leh1s l}li, "'s
q d How differently the two parties lool
upon the same fact will appear from the
testimony ofMr. Reddle. He was United
States Commissioner in the parish o
IBERIA Shortly before the election, upor
application of colored persons, he issued
J[ a large number of warrants He eonsid
credit his duty upon the arrest ofthe per
sons, charged, to require bail from suretie'
who possessed landed estates within thu
d parish, certified to by the assessor of thu
parish to be of sufficient value, of which
the title was approved by the Register Q
Deeds This rule necessarily produced
much delay in procuring bail for persons
arrested, and he was waited on in on
case by procession of citizens who offer
ed him bond signed by every man il
9 the procession. This he regarded as il
.... .H u6TlblOu VI lllS pIOCccOuHSS, anu TtlubO'
to receive the bond He was called as
witness to prove the intimidation tina
existed in that parish. He had himsel
s.s,. no knowledge of any act ofthe-kind, ex
cept this procession, which he though
was calculated to intimidate the coloreC
voters. He had no idea that arrests mad,
.yr upon his warrants and proceedings unde
.' them, had any effect In interfering will
the Conservative voters. On the othe
hand, the Conservatives in that neighbor
hood thought about this matter Just tn,
reverse. Indeed, the reports of the mil
italy officers in command of the forces o
the United States in the country, though
generally indicating a condition of quie
y and order, take sometimes AN entirely
different view of the situation. On tn,
etlsir hand, it was in evidence that black
VIZ sought to act within the Conserva
tite party were sometimes exposed t
cruelty and abuse. L)
In the interior one colored man wa
shot for making Conservative speech
and in New Orleansit appeared, from tn,
testimony, that colored men who sough
TO cooperate with the Conservative
were subject to SO much abuse fiom tn,
police and otherwise, that the Association
of Lawyers volunteered to protect then
- but with very little effect. Lar