The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1876-08-16


50 forced to resign was Democrat, a
rnan OF established character for probity |
at his precinct-Rose Hill.
When the voting began" said Gen.
Hurst, an eyewitness, "the Democratic /
club drew up in line and demanded that
Stratum should not act as one of the in
spectors of election. They said we
d mt want you, not because you are dis
honest, but because you will not do what
We want you to He said, IF that is the
case, will GO and they got man by
the name of Wat Haynes, and appointed
him inspector.
General Hurst, who was Brigadier
General Of State militia in that county,
thus explains what resulted
''W hen it was time to close the polls,
asked one Of the inspectors if he
wanted a guard placed over the ballots,
so that they would be unmolested while
they were counting the votes. | thought
that he was very honest. high minded
man He said, L am afraid to count
these votes He had been notified by
this parry. of Louisianians, and told
what they were going to do with the box.
Wat. HAYNES, when | told him that |
there that night, said: Don't you do
it, | want to manipulate that box to
night We want to carry this thing.
The party Of Louisianians referred TO
were a company of outlaws, notorious
in that district whom the Democrats
had invited to come into that precinct,
and who fired at crowd of cOlored cit
liens when they were in line waiting to
deposit their votes. About seventy OF
them were thus driven into the woods.
Nor was this the only precinct at
which armed invaders from adjoining
States took conspicuous part III the cleo
ton 1t is testified to both by Republl-
cans and Democrats that they came over
from Alabama and helped to swell the
Democratic vote in the counties adjoin
ing that State
In Amite county the Republican
Sheriff, the Superintendent of Educa
ton and other officers were driven into
exile as soon as the polls were closed
Here the pretext that the officers were
obnoxious to the people, or that the ne
groes and Northern men monopolized the
Offices, are refuted by the facts that both
Parker and Redmond, who were ex-
L.,
nation for Sheriff; that the Republican
candidates for Sheriff, Circuit Clerk,
Chancery Clerk, Treasurer, Coroner and
three of the five Supervisors were white
men, leaving the Assessor and two SUI
pervisors to be colored, which, as Mr.
Parker remarks, ''as fQur-fifths of the
Republican voters were black, was the
best that we could do" There were
only three Northern men on the Repub-
lcan ticket, and two of them had mar
ried Southern women; all the others
were natives of the State.
THE COURTS PowERLEss.
04.) The evidence shows that the
civil authorities have been unable to
prevent the outrages set forth in this re-
port, or to punish the offenders. This is
true, not only of the courts of the State,
but also of the District Court of the
United States, as appears from the report
of the grand jury made at the term held
in June last, when the evidence of the
offenses committed at the November
election and during the canvass, was
laid before that body.
In support of this statement, reference
is made to the testimony of j. w. Tuck
er, and to the letter written by him to
Colonel Frazee, as well as to the report
mode by the grand jury to the Hon. Il.
A. Hill, Judge Of the District Court for
the Northern District of Mississippi. |
See document evidence, PIP. $50, 151;
Jes of H. p Hurst, p. 9S.j
10 The committee find that outrages, |
of the nature set forth in this report were |
perpetrated in the counties of Alcorn,
Amite, Chickasaw, Claiborne, Clay, Co |
piah, DeSoto, Grenada, Kinds, Holmes,
Kemper, Lee. Lowndes, Madison, Mar
shall, Monroe, Noxubee, Rankin, Scott,
Warren, Washington and Yazoo, and
that the Democratic victory in the State
was due to the outrages so perpetrated. |
(16.) The committee bnd that if in the !
counties named there had been free |
election, Republican candidates would |
have been chosen, and the character of
the Legislature so changed that there |
would have been sixty-six Republicans
to i:ftv Democrats in the House, and |
twenty-six Republicans to eleven Demo
Gratis in the Senate; and that consequent |
" the present Legislature of Mississippi |
is not legal body, and that It's acts are
not entitled to recognition by the politi
cal department of the Government Of the
United States, although the President
may, in his discretion, recognize it as a
de facto for the preservation
of the public peace.
as Your committee find that the
resignation of Governor Ames was eff
fected by a body Of men calling them
selves the Legislature of the State of
by measures unauthorized by
law, and that he is of right the Governor
of that State.
(1S). The evidence shows, further,
that tbs State of Mississippi is at pres
ant under the control Of political organi-
cations composed largely of ar4ed men,
whose common purpose is to deprive the
negroes Of the free exercise of the right
Of suffrage, and to establish and main
tain the supremacy of the white line De
nocracy, in violation alike of the Con
,titution OF their own State, and of the
Of the United States.
The power of the National Govern
nent will be invoked, and honor and
iuty will alike require its exercise. The |
Nation cannot witness with indifference
he dominion of lawlessness and anarchy
Il State, with their incident evils and a
If the inevitable conse-
Iuencez. 1t owes duty TO the citizens
# the United States residing in Missis-
ippi, and this duty it must perform. 1t
as guaranteed to the State of Mississip-
Il republican form of Government, and
his guarantee must be made good
The measures necessary and possible
a the exigeney are three;
!. Laws may be passed by Congress
or the protection of the right of citi-
ms in the respective States.
Stafo.