The New Orleans Democrat., 1876-08-29
LOUISIANA POLITICS.


1
from Washington, where he went to re
ceive advices as to the political outlool
in bis State. In a conversation with
Herald reporter he expressed himsel
! satisfied OF the success OF the Repub
lcan ticket in Louisiana and Soutl
Carolina. He has been through thu
South, and Is able to speak authorita
lively OF what the present aspect Q
politics there Is likely to portend. H'
says that ia both Louisiana and South
Carolina the negro vote is so large tina
no doubt Of the result can be entertain
ed, IL the whites do not endeavor tc
hinder free exercise OF suffrage; anc
IL proper precautions are taken there IL
reason to believe that voters will not bt
impeded in the performance OF theil
duty In Florida and North Carolina
too. the Governor thinks there Is still q
fair chance for the Republicans to sue
ceed, and 1t Is possible that these States
will be gained for the party that wins
the earliest advantages In the cam
paign. At the present moment
THE PEOPLE ARE wAvERING,
and they are very accessible to tina { in.
fuence which the prestige Of early sue
cess is calculated to give. The October
elections will greatly tend to decide
what ticket these States will indorse,
|
States, such az New Jersey, will be
gained I'm the same way. 1t il general
| ly admitted that In Presidential cleo
tions the weight OF the larger and more
populous States example acts upon the
smaller ones, and the vote in Ohio will
be apt to exert a very strong influence
| in this campaign. In reference to the
probability OF any disturbance occur
ring in Louisiana during the election,
Gov. Kellogg said that he did not appre-
| hend any, provided the chances of
| Hayes and Wheeler seemed very favor
able, as the whites would hesitate In
such u case to attempt any outrage or
to coerce their colored neighbors in the
disposition Of their votes. But II Til
den seemed likely to win, there was
reason to believe that an effort would
be made in some parishes to gain u
Democratic majority ut any cost,
and some OF the white liners would
not shrink from any injustice that
might further their interests II they felt
that they could gain immunity from
punishment, as they no doubt would II
the National Democratic ticket sue
ceeded. In State where there is a ma
jority OF 5000 or 10000 negroes outside of
a good many Woodworking Republican
whites very little doubt might be enter
tanned Of that party'5 success, did there
not exist 80 perfect an organization
among the whites and 50 fixed d deter
mination to keep the negro out OF Office
and, il possible, to deprive him OF his
suffragan privileges. The extremes to
which this feeling OF race animosity
could be carried had more than once
been demonstrated, and although OF
late any outward manifestation of it
had been suppressed, there was little
doubt that it existed as Intensely
and perhaps as widely spread rs
ever. Whether there would beany such
public exhibition Of this feeling in the
coming election as there had been In
the past or not was something which the
future alone could determine; but the
success OF the Republican ticket in other
States In October would go far to make
the election peaceable in Louisiana.
The statement frequently heard nova
days that the colored vote in the South
is likely to be largely Democratic was
ridiculed by the Governor. He thought
such an idea preposterous. He said
that IL allowed to vote at all the negroes
will certainly not vote for the party
which has not nominated for State or
local office a single member OF their
race, and which has always declined to
recognize their right to use their own
judgment at the ballot box.
SOME OF THE CANDIDAT Es PUT FORWARD
for offic are men who have persistently
opposed the negro, who have voted
against the fourteenth constitutional
amendment, and who are well known
as leading white liners. 1t is not likely
that any hustings eloquence is going to
be an adequate apology for the massa-
ere and for all the outrages perpetrated
in the State. The negroes now, as In
the last, are devoted to the Republican
party, and they cannot be cajoled very
readily into giving over their allegiance
to it. In States like Mississippi and
Texas, where there is 80 much terrorism
welded by the white Democrats, and
where the colored people are prevented
voting IL they seem indisposed to act in
political accord with the whites, some
people fancy that large mass OF the
negroes vote the Democratic ticket. |
But they do it more through fear than |
inclination. In short, there is every |
reason to mark district with a large |
negro population as essentially Repub- |
lican, and the result will generally go
to prove the correctness OF such calcu-
lation.
The Governor then went on to say
that
THE DEMOCRATS HAD SOME GOOD MEN
on the State ticket, and Of these the
candidate for Governor was doubtless
the best. The campaign no doubt would !
be spirited, and strong effort would be
made to elect him. But only little
was paid to the State contest
in comparison with that given to the ma
tional issue. On that all the attention
Of the Southern States was fixed, and
they were willing to sacrifice local in
terests so long as they could gain some
thing for the national party. In fact. in
such States as Louisiana and South Car
olina they looked to the Democratic
Administration il it should get into
power to override the State govern
ment and nullify the effect OF sue
cessful Republican State ticket. The
South was gathering all its energies
to bear upon this campaign. A
great effort would be made at this
critical moment to regain power, and
the Southern Democracy hoped that,
with the aid of that Of the North, they
would be able to secure first Demo
cratic administration, and then, with