New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-02-08
CONGRESS-.
Senate.

CONGRESS.
Senate.
WASHINGTON, February THE Chair
| submitted a memorial from the New York
| BOARD of Trade demonstrating the inexpe-
d,tncv of attempting the resumption Of spe-
| Gle payment before the requisite conditions
| are ripe.
| Mr.. West presented joint resolution of
| the General Assembly of Louisiana, asking
an appropris ton for the construction OF the
levees of the Mississippi river in Louisiana;
| exclusive control of such levees. Referred
| to the Commerce Committee.
| the bill allowing four per cent interest
on the Alabama claims after judgment
passed.
Secretary Bristow's railroad sinking fund
communication was ordered printed and lie
on the table of the Senate When MIR. West
will speak on the subject there will be strug-
gle whether it shall te referred to the judi
ciary or Finance Committee.
MI. Morrill, gave notice he would, a: p.
NJ. tomorrow, call up the centennial appro-
pristiOn bill.
and Christiancy spoke against. and Mr..
Howe in favor of admission. No action.
The Sepate went executive session and
adjourned.
Mr.. Thurmans speech was written. In
opening, he said he knew it will be t!resome
to the Senate to nave further discussion
of this question. and no task was more as
! agreeable to him than repeating what he
had already said The Senator iron Indi.
ana tMorron) had deemed it proper to call
| attention to the reasons why in his Nor
ton's) opinion Mr.. Pinchback should be
ad nitted, and certainly it would not be
out Of place for him (rhurman) to call
the attention of the Senate to the
other side Of the question. He would at
tempt TO do so, not by q full argument, but
by q brief condensation of the case. He
would not refer to party feeling, or make
any party appeal himself, as the Senator
from Indiana had done. He would not
leave the State of Louisiana as that Senator
(Morton) had done, to hunt for anything
like the utterances of Robert NJ. Toombs,
of Georgia. He lThurman) was not accus-
toned to argue legal questions in that nan
ner. The q lestion before the Senate was in
it's nature d judicial one, and should De ]uCl'
cially settled.
case as made by the Committee on Prlvl-
| lepes. and cunc!uded: The committee had
rel orteu that there was no lawful govern
men1 in Louisiana, aud that neither John
Raw nor McMillen were lawfully elected.
1t Raw was not elected Pinchback was not.
, That report as signed by NJ. H. CARPENTER.
} John A. Logan, L Alcorn and H. B. An
mort would give their votes in accordance
with that report there would be an end TO
| this whole question. Afterward Mr.. Carpen-
ter introduced bill to organize govern
: ment in Louisiana, and the only basis for 1t
I | was the resolution reported by the COM
mittee that no legal State government ex-
listed in Louisiana, and that bill, sfter long
! debate, came to vote, and eighteen Sena-
| tors voted for it to twenty against 1t. Ssv-
| enteen of those who voted tor it were Re-
publicaps, and eight of them were members
| of the Senate to-day. If these Senators
, | would stand by their record this question
i would be decided. Even it subsequent
4 as Governor, they would not justify
: them i'll voting for the admission of Pinch
D | back. There was but one thing upon which
o the question turned, and that was, whether
' | the body of men which assumed to elect
8 Pinchback was the lawful Legislature Of
! Louisiana or not. If they did compose the
q lawful Legislature, then Pinchback was Ell
8 titled to his seat. If they did not, then he
t could not be admitted. Mr.. Thurman
t then referred to the decisions of the
t Supreme Court of Louisiana, and said the
Q question now before the Senate was for the
Q Senate to decide No decision OF any court
not even of the Supreme Conrt OF the
the matter, the Senate being the exclusive
! Judge of the election and qualification OF Its
h own members.
= In conclusion, he said he did not see how
;. | changing circumstances in Louisiana cOulC
l. change legal opinions. Were Senators tt
;. listen to an appeal to choose between Re-
a | publican and Democrat, as if they were
sitting as electors9 If Senators would stand
. by their consciences, which induced them te
:. vote for the Carpenter bill, he would prom
;. ise them that there would be result winch
:, would be in accordance with the dignity o1
3 the Senate.
Mr. Christiancy, Of Michigan. said when
J, his views; and he did not wish to take bach
= or change one word he said then. He etood
7 now where he stood then. He thought the
;. onestion had been fairly stated by the
Senator from Ohio lThurman). In his
a (Christiancy's) view party policy hac
: nothing to do with the case. If he allowed
- - his psrty feeling to influence him in the
matter he would feel that he was deserving
OF eternal infamy. If in the Senate when
the vote should be taken, he would vote
. against the admission of Mr.. PiRchback:
= MT Howe, of Wisconsin, said he had
= noticed here, to-day, as always since !ne
,, great question arose, that there was ciaim
y back, that they Represented good morals
\ fair minded and honest polltlcs, ana as
:. consequences those who defended the rights
y of Pinchback to a seat in the Senate, mis-
:. represented all these things When ht
sh0uld vote for the admission of Mr.. Pinch
:, hack he would do so according to the hon
= . eat convictions of his conscience, and he
: would do SO believing that there was not a
man on the floor holding a seat who had {
better right to it than Pinchback had to his
He (Howe) hoped all the Senate and all thu
J world would be assured, as he knew all the
=. !. angels in heaven we're assured, that ne
:. would give HE vote through no persona
q consideration. He argued that Pinchbaci
"a never had anything but a prima tac'e case
In regard to his signature to the report
the committee in 1872, he said he signet
that report, but he had done Peuanc'
for it since, as far as Senator coult
do penance for a mistaken vote. Th'
= question of who was the Governor o
~ Louisiana, Or who constituted the Legs
lature of Louisiana in 1872, had not been de
n cided to his satisfaction by Judge Durell o
g. any other Judge. There was only one til
d bunal in the world which could determin
Of who was or who was not Governor Of Lou
re isiana. and that was the people Of Louis
Of ens. So far as the imperfect evidence be
fore Congress could guide one to resul,