Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1876-11-17

clause Of your note first quoted, We are Il
most requested to be witnesses OF what shall
occur IN the canvass of the votes, without
power or legal influence over the result o,
over the means by which. under the laws o
Louisiana. the result j. to DE- determined
We cannot doubt in this you, upon reflection
will concur with US. We are here as private
citizens. with no official power. We, there,
fore. cannot supercede or modify any law OF
that State, nor have we any right Ia cOntro
or influence any of it, officers Is TO the man
ner in which they shall perform the ministe-
rial or judicial duties imposed upon them BY
ITS laws; and should We, being strangers and
without official functions, attempt this, We
should be condemned by the people of every
State IN the Union for improper interference
with local administration. The following eX-
tract from the laws of Louisiana ;how that
the canYasSing board l. expressly requested
: in certain cases TO exercise Judicial as well As
ministerial functions:
SECTION That in such canvass and COM
pilation the returning officers shall observe
the following order: They shall compile,
first, the statements from all polls or voting
places at which there shall have been q fair
and peaceable registration and election
Whenever, from any poll or voting place,
there shall be received the statement Of any
supervisor of registration or commissioner of
election, in form as required by section twenty
six Of this act, on affidavit of three or more
citizens of any riot, tumult, acts of violence,
intimidation, armed disturbance, bribery or
corrupt influences, which prevented, OF tended
10 prevent. fair, free and peaceabIe vote of
all qualified electors entitled TO vots at such
polls or voting places, such returning officers
shall not canvass, count or compile the state
ments from such poll or voting place until the
statements from all other polls or voting
places shall have been canyaSSed and COM
piled. The returning officers shall then pro-
ceed to investigate the statements of riot,
tumult, acts of violence, intimidation, armed
disturbances. bribery or corrupt influences at
any such poll or voting place, and Il from
the evidence of such statement, they shall be
convinced that such riot, tumult, acts of vio-
lemce, intimidation, armed disturbance, brib-
cry or corrupt influences did not materially
interfere with the purity and freedom of the
election at such poll or voting place, and did
not prevent sufficient number of qualified
voters thereat from registering or voting to
materially change the result of election, then,
and rot otherwise, said returning officers
shall canvass and compile the vote of
previously canvassed and compiled; but
fully satisfied thereof, it shall be their duty
to examine further testimony In regard there
to, and to this end they shall have power to
send for persons and papers. If after such
examination the said returning officers shall
be convinced that said riot, tumults, acts of
violence, intimidation, armed disturbance,
bribery or corrupt influence, did materially
interfere with the purity and freedom of the
election at such poll or voting place, or did
prevent a sufficient number of the qualified
ele tors thereat from registering and voting
to materially change the result of the cleo
ton, then the said returning officers shall not
canvass or compile the statement of the votes
of such poll or voting place. but shall exclude
them from their returns; provided that any
person interested in said election by reason Of
being a candidate for office, shall be allowed u
hearing before said returning officers upon
making application within the time allowed
for the forwarding Of the returns of said
election.
Hence, if there are any facts requiring the
judgment Of the board upon the validity of
any election or returns as affected by such
frauds or violence, it would be a manifest in
reference with State rights and local self
government for persons like ourselves, with
out official right, TO attempt to influence or
control its judicial election. Had Il CORE
spending board in the State Of New York, in
1868, been authorized to pass upon the fraud
ulent returns of the votes Of the city of New
York that year, and delegation of citizens
of Louisiana however respectable, attempted
to influence its Judicial action upon the facta
presented to 1t under the laws of that State,
fuch an attempt would have been universally
condemned. If the duties of the canvasSing
board of Louisiana were merely ministerial or
clerical, As in the case Of any officer charged
by law with the duty of verifying and declar-
ing the result of any election, and inYestigat-
ing, with no discretion, Us when the president
of the senate counts and declares the votes Of
the electors of the several States in the cleo
ton of President and Vice President under
the constitution of the United States, d differ
ent case would be presented. II Is, in our
Judgment vital to the preservation of consti-
tutiOnal liberty that the habit of obedi-
ence 10 the forms of law should bs sedu-
lousy mculcated and cultivated, and
that the resort to extra constitutional modes
of redress for even actual grievances should
be avoided and condemned as revolutionary,
disOrganizing and tending to disorder and
anarchy. To reduce the whole question,
therefore, to the mere clerical duty Of count
ing the votes actually cast as proposed by
YOU in distinction from votes legally cast and
returned irrespective of hequestion whether
they are fraudulently or violently cast or 9th
erwise vitiated, involves a notification of the
provisions OF the laws of Louisiana, which
have already been adjudicated US valid by
the supreme court, and would be wholly un-
iustifable here as Well az in any other State
of the Union which had provided laws to
protect the rights of voters and the purity of
the ballot. We cannot, therefore, concur in
II l
sis. Very respectfully,
JOHN COBURN, Indiana
LEW WALLACE, Indiana.
" ". A 4. MGREW, Iowa. Iowa.
J. W. CHAPMAN Iowa
W. r. SMITH, Iowa.
ABNER TAYLOR, Illinois.
g. r. HAVEN, Illinois.
J. N. BEARDSLEY, Illinois.
{. B. FARWELL. Illinois,
SIDNEY CLARK, Kansas.
J. c. HBLS0N, Kansas.
JOHN SHERMAN Ohio.
STANLEY MATTHEW'S, Ohio.
J. A. GARFIELD, Ohio
W. d. KELLY. Pennsylvania
JOHN A. KASSON, Iowa
T. W. STOUGHTON, New York
J. IRVING DITTY, Maryland
J.H. VAN ALLEN New York
EUGENE HALE, Maine
u. 5. QUAY, Pennsylvania.
WILL CUMBACK, Indiana
ED Y. MOVES, Ohio.
JOB T. STEVENSON, Ohio.
To Hon. John Malone, Lewis V. Bosy, Lyman Trlm-
Dull James broadhead' W. X. Morrison and
others, present at the request OF the chairman of
the National Democratic committee
The Returning Board in Session with
Closed Doors.
New ORLEANS, November l6.-Ex-Gov-
ernor J. Madison Wells, General Thomas c.
Anderson, &. Casanaye and Louis NJ. Kenner
to-day took the oath of office, filed the necas-
sary papers with the secretary of state, and
went into executive session in the room as
signed them in the statehouse. Nothing has