The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1875-01-07
3eneraS SHERIDAN h NOV tint Il Was nscess


charged here by senators on the ether side
Of the chamber that the president hadjused
the army in Louisiana IN vtolatiot1 OF law.
They need not think that the President had
made mistake. He might make mistakes
| some times, but be never made q military mis-
take. 1t had been charged further that Gene
raj Sheridan was ordered to New Orieaus
over the General Of the army, and contrary
to all usage. He {Mr. Wcst), before com.
mencing bis speech, fortunately had found
upon the floor of the Senate the Secretary
of War, and upon asking him 1t such had
been the case the Secretary replied In the
negative. aud handed him the evidence to
contradict the statements that the General
of the army had been ignored. Mr.. West
then sent to the clerks desk and had read
the following letter received from the Sec
rotary of War: Hra@
HEADQUARTERS OF THE ARMY,2
"ST. Lorls. December 80, 1874.
" General w. r.. Belkndp, Secretary of
" ar. Washington, D. c.:
" Genera, Il have the honor to acknowl
ledge the receipt Of your confidential COM
munication of December Goth, with the en-.
servant, w. T. SHERMAN, General"
Mr.. SALISBURY, of Delaware: That is sim
ply an acknowledgment Of the receipt Of
confidential communications, and does, not
state the character of them. Fl.
Mr.. WEST: When this resolution shall have
been passed, and all the information comes
out, the Senator will see that it was an &C.
acknowledgement of the receipt OF all orders
and communications in reference to General
Sheridan being ordered to New Orleans.
That is the fact, and know it to be So
He then proceeded to review the cream
stances. attending the organization of the
Legislature in New Orleans on Monday last,
and charged that by the laws of Louisiana
acts of the Conser vatiye members of that
Legislature were illegal, violent, and revo.
lutionary, and, in fact, were the acts Of a
mob The seating Of five members whose
| seats were contested, before any permanent
organization, was without parallel. BE
| quoted from the records of Congress to show
! that John Quincy Adams at one time pre-
| sided in the House as temporary Speaker for
| sixteen days on account Of certain contested
! cases which were not acted upon until long
! after permanent organization had been
effected. The so-cllled Speaker of the Lou
isiana House of Representatives had declared
that those who contested seats were entitled
to them without any evidence to show that
!
Wilt claimed to have been elected Speaker
lacked five Of the legal majority of the body.
| He next read from telegram stating that
| Congressman Potter was present at the or
ganzation and dscountenanced the action
of Wilt. General De Trobriand was first
called upon to maintain order in the lobby
By the so-called Conservative majority in the
House of Representatives. The five men
who contested seats had not as much right
upon the floor as those in the lobby, and
when those men were elected by General De
Trobriand he did not see how exception could
be taken.
1t was all proper for the military to be
used in clearing the lobby; but all wrong
when used to quell mob and eject from the
floor five men who were not entitled to be
there. The charge that the President had
been guilty Of mllfeaSance was entirely con-
tradic'ed BY the facts before the Senate. He
then spoke of the uukind treatment towards
northern people in Louisiana, and said that
over three thousand lives in that State had
been yielded up for the sake of their politi-
cal opinions. Talk about peace in Loulsi-
ana? There was no peace there!
General GORDON, Of Georgia, said he did
not propose to reply to the speech of the
Senator (WesD. He was quite willing that
it should 60 to the country and make its own
answer; but when the people whom he IGOR.
DOM loved as his own life-whose fortunes
were his through veal or woe, through life
or death--were held up as aSSaSsins and
murderers, he could not, and would not, re-.
main silent; and if his voice and gestures
were tumultuous now with emotion, it was
not the emotion of anger. but the emotion Of
indignation at the outrage perpetrated upon
| npnnIp. q stood a Snpcforlp
presented in this Senate yesterday-a specta-
Gle Of one portion of the members seeking to
ruin the fair name and the honor OF the people
Of one section of this country before the civil
lied world. He was amazed, utterly amazed
that there should be found in the hearts Of
men with whom he daily associated upon this
floor so much hate. He was totally UMPIRE
pared foI it, and if he believed to-day that
The expressions which he heard from sena.
tors lips yesterday reflected the sentiments Of
the northern people he would feel that it was
time for the southern people to die. II he
believed that those expressions foreshadoHed
the policy Of this Government towards the
South then he would say let us have done
with this farce Of local self-government. He
did not believe that, such sentiments
were entertained by northern PEG.
4 pie. He cid not believe that the
brave men against whom the people Of the
South bad lately contended entertained any
such sentiments. He believed the great ma.
jority OF the American people of both North
and South, white and black. abhorred any
such spirit Of luminosity. He believed the
movement inaugurated in 1872 by that
Iarge-headed and large-hearted man of
New York to bring about good feel
ing and harmony would be successful.
In the support which be (Gordon) gave to
the resolution rs presented by the speaker
(Thurman), he protested against any con.
struciion which would make it appear that
he was wanting in respect to the President
of the United States. Much had been said
! here about the President being commander
in-chief OF the army. He (Gordon) was glad
he was commauder.in-chief-- that the
military was subordinate to the civil power.
BE did not propose to discuss the resolution,
but to reply to what he was forced to con.
clude were Sratuitous insults offered to his
| people By some of the senators On the other
side ofthe chamber. 1t was charged that muir
der prevailed throughout the South, and that
these murders were by the hands Of the De-
mocratic (White man's) party. His reply to
that was brief. The charge was false. 1t was
true that murders have occurred, but no one
deplored them more than himself, and no
more than the people he represented. HIS
people Lad always said that the class of peo-
Die committing these murders were the worst
enemies Of the South. If murders were com.
mitted was there any reason for branding the
whole southern people as set OF assas-
sins and barbarians? Wherever IN
the southern States the people OF
honesty and integrity have control OF
| public affairs, property, life and liberty, are