Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1876-12-23
Are Republicans Insensible!
From the New York Sun.

Are Republicans Insensible!
From the New York Sun.
The picture recently drawn by Prof.
Sumner Of the state of affairs in New
Orleans under carpet-bag rule cannot
fail TO be disheatening to every lover
Of our free Institutions. Here is o
city, the ninth in population of the
cities Of the Union, almost utterly
wrecked by the corrupt rule of a set
Of scoundrels.
Even Republican committees have
stigmatized the outrages on the liber-
ty of the franchise which have been
steadily committed in Louisiana for
eight wears past, under the fostering
eye of the naaa;cnal Administration,
and with a brother-in law ot tha Pres
ident as one of the chief engineers If
the machinery. Louisiana has been
deprived of free government during
this time. Its wealth has been squan-
dered, its superb natural advantages
have gone to waste, and the enterprise
which has gathered nearly two hun
dred thousand people in its chief city
has been defeated by a misrule more
tyrannical than that which has driven
many q plundered and desperate
community into the forlorn extreme
of war.
We have read of outbreaks in New
Orleans, and the almost hopeless
energy of its people has been denoun-
ced by Gen. Sheridan as the lawless
passion of banditti. But as whole,
the citizens have displayed a self-con-
troll which does them honor, a self
control which we entreat them to
maintain with even greater care in the
present terrible emergency than they
have done in the past. Their enemies
alone will profit by their acting other
than in peaceful ways, against the
power which grinds them. Their
patience and forbearance will stir the
sympathies of the rest of the Union,
or else we are fit only for corrupt
despotism.
Prof. Sumner says that New Orleans
to-day is the most mOurnful city he ever
saw-squalid in appearance, the peo-
pie dispirited and hopeless, and every
thing that gives life to a comm ercial
centre gone from it. In the last cleo
ton the citizens used every lawful
means of getting rid of plunderers.
They made no objections to negro
suffrage, found no fault with the
Union, which was used to strengthen
their enemies, gave no work to the
United States troops sent tbither
under the pretence of keeping them
in order, aud relied only in the ballot
box to secure their redemption. They
exhausted every device to prevent
frauds at the election, reasoned with
the negroes, organized political clubs,
sent out trusty agents to prevent re-
peating at the polls to collect returns,
and did everything that q lawabiding
people under our system or COVER
ment can do. And now they find
their villainous Returning Board
preparing to count out the handsome
majority their efforts secured and of
which they have the detailed and au-
thentic returns. Meanwhile q great
party at the North refuses to listen
to their solemn word, preferring to
take the lies of Q set of scoundrels its
own agents have hitherto denounced
and reprobated; and it's head and the
head Of the national Government sur
rounds these tamperers with the ballot
with Gordon of troops.
Can honest and reasonable Rspub-
licans stand idly by and allow wrong
to be consummated Are they pre-
pared to take advantage of it to in
augurate President Of their partyf
Do they not foresee the doom that
impsnds over all who have any part
in such perversion OF the ballot {?
This is not partisan matter. II is
much bigger than that. It is as if
the city of New York had been kept
under the heel of Tweed's Ring, spite
of the efforts of its citizens, by the
power of the State and national Gov
ernment working in unison to annul
the verdict Of the ballot box. II New
Orleans vas acroes the river from 10,
We should think Of little else than
how to redeem it from the thieves
who devour its substance and to wipe
of from our frame 90 black blot %
its ruin. But through New Orleans
Is sixteen hundred miles away, its
adversity is as reactivs on rs % if it
were only six miles away. Looking
at the outrage merely sel6shly, can
any man OF business, any man who
works, fail to sec that the crushing Of
great city Of Union, containing
neatly two hundred thousand inhab-
itants, the outlet Of the vast trade Of
the Mississippi river. must surely
work great damage to our own pros!
perityY And in . large light ws can
nee the truth Of Prot. Summers words
when he says he came back from
New Orleans believing that our in
stitutions are about to be put to tsst
compared with which the war was
insignificant one which win demand
that We gather together al our
manhood and patriotism, and AZ our
traditions of civil liberty and aslf-
Roverment. "
We still hope that We may come
ont Of this trial sound and hea1thy,
for the questions now foEoed on the |
attsntions of the country aEe - jas9ei ]