Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1877-03-10
rExT OF TILE ADDREss,

y D
f. o. PRINCE, Secretary.
TEXT OF THE ADDRESS.
To THE AMERICAN PEoPLE-We submit
to the country the following review of the
events which have resulted in the decIara-
ton that Rutherford B. Hayes has been
elected President of the United States. In
the late political canvass, two facts stood
out prominently:
First-The Republican party, true to it's
sectional nature, thought to unity the North
against the solid South; and while engaged
in that effort, ii was striving to make good
its probable losses in the North by dividing
the votes of the South. This division il
sought to effect by the unconstitutional use
of the army in South Carolina, Florida and
Louisiana.
Second-The troops were sent to those
States when there was neither invasion nor
domestic instruction to require them, with
Legislatures easily to be convened. The
only demand for their presence was made
by the State executive.
The elections in these States, therefore,
were held in the shadow of military power.
The bayonets glistened at the polls. In de-
posting their ballots, the citizens enjoyed
only such liberty as was permitted. In other
States the elections We're unusually peace
full. Immediately afterward, the result
showed that 1876 Tilden electors had been
chosen. OF the whole popular vote, they
received majority OF more than quarter
of million. OF that Caucasian race which
controls every other Christian and civilized
government of the world, they received a
majority of more than 100000. On the day
succeeding the election, it was announced
by the Chairman of the Republican Ma
tional Committee that lS4 I1lden electors
and 135 Hayes electors had been chosen
Nothing had then been learned OF the cleo
ton, excepting the vote actually cast. Ii
has never since been disputed that by that
vote a majority of the Tilden electors had
been appointed. Such an announcement
therefore, could only have been made in
pursuance OF an arrangement TO change the
vote shown TO have been given by the PEG
pie. We charge that after the true result
had been proclaimed, q conspiracy was
formed by the Republican leaders to revise
| the decision made at the polls. The field
| chosen for the development of the conspir'
| acy was the States of Florida and louisiana
! The persons to act with the original CON
! spiratOrS were the Governors and members
! of the Returning Boards of those States
! The field was well chosen. The State ofh-
| GERS selected were suitable persons for the
| work to be done. For more than ten years
| those States had been subjected to govern.
ments not of their choice. Taxation and
maladministration had robbed them o.
| their substance, and well nigh destroyed
! their spirit and hope. The army of the
| United States had been freely used to main
| tain these governments in their acts OF cor
| ruption and usurpat1on. 1t was DeileVeC
| that its services would aid in the designed
! conspiracy. The names of the officers de
pended upon are MarcelluS l.. StearnS, sam
ueI b. McLin and Clayton a. Cowgirl, o.
/ Florida, and VIM. Pitt Kellogg, J. Madison
| Wells, Thomas B. Anderson, E. CaSanavt
| and j. Is. Kenner, of Louisiana. These men
were not strangers 10 the American people
! They had before usurped authority. The
| Returning Boards of these States had made
| them themselves bywOrdS in the land. The
Governors were known 10 be pretenderS
| If there were two names dishOnOred in the
general estimation, they were the names O
| William Pitt Kellogg and J. Madison Wells
To such men was the work OF Gonsunmat,
! ing the conspiracy cOnfided. They entered
| upon their task with alacrity, advised and
! encouraged by leading visiting Republican
statesmen of the North, They took each
I, doll To N
| for law. Before the election in Louisiana
| William Pitt kellogg and his subordinate
| assumed exclusive control of the execution
! of the registration law. Ihey refused regis.
| tration to thousands entitled to it, and added
| thousands to the lists who had no right &c
| vote. On the day of election the polls were
managed by officials appointed by the Gov
ernor. These were in nearly every instance
members of the Republican party. United
States marShals SwtlTmed at every pfeclnct
when thought necessary, under pretense Of
preserving the peace, but in fact to 1ntimi.
date the voters. Ballot boxes were stuffed
| in the interest of the Republican candi-
! dates Poll books were falSified in some
| instances, and then returned to the Canvass
| ing Board, while in other cases returns Civ
| ing Democratic majoritieS were withheld
| from the canVassers altogether. After the
returns had been delivered to the board they
remained in its exclusive possession, and
while there they were opened with Its con-
| sent and original papers distracted and
false ones substituted in their stead. When
the returns were opened, the board, with an
appearance of fairness, permitted persons
! representing both parties to be present, but
when decision was made as TO W hat should
| be counted secret sessions were held, from
| which every Democrat was excluded, al
though the law constituting the board re-
! uuired that it should be composed of repre-
| SentatiVeS of both political parties. In
counting the votes il exercised powers not
conferred by the statute, and in the most
! fragrant disregard of truth and justice, the
members of the board changed the poll
| books SO that Republican officers appeared
n
! fact been elected. They forged the names
| of officers to certificates OF election They
| threw out the votes Of precincts upon ath-
| dayitS which they knew had been fraudu-
| Iently obtained. Indeed, they themselves
ordered false affidavitS to he made hundreds
| of miles from the places at which they were
! purported to have been taken, in order that
| the decision might appear justified which
| they had in advance determined to make,
| They arbitrarily threw out votes when there
| was no preliminary statement from the
| Commissioners of Election to give them
| jurisdiction. They corruptly, in order TO
! elect their faVOriteS and to correct the mis-
| takes of certain Republicans in voting for
electors, added to the lists votes which had
never been cast. While considering the
| ease, the members of the board endeaVOred
to enter into negotiations with both Repub-
/ lican and Democratic National Committees
| to sell their decision. A half million dollars
! was the price asked. Not obtaining it, they
| tried to bargain with leading Democrats OF
| Louisiana to elect the State ticket of their
| party. j. Madison Wells, with the approval
of Thos. c. Anderson, offered to elect the
| Nichols State licked for 100000 cash in
| hand. The money was not paid. Negutia-
| lions were renewed, if ever broken of, with
! the leaders of the Republican party. The
result was declared in its favor. The chief
! conspirator. J. Madison Wells, admitted
! that he had been paid by that organization
for his decision.
! In Florida, the same frauds characterized
the returns and action of the returning
! Board. Votes were thrown out with the
same disregard for justice. Besides, in that
! State, it refused to regard the orders ofcOurts
| of competent jurisdiction, and proceeded in
most defiant contempt ofjudiclaI authority
In this manner more than LOO IIlden
! votes were thrown out in Florida and more
| than 10000 in Louisiana. The votes of these
! States, in consequence OF the conspiracy,
which in fact had been cast Tor 1IIden, were
| given TO Hayes.
The only excuse for this outrageous rever-
sal OF the judgment of the people IS that in
| timidatiOn had been practlced by the whites
! thrown out. Whether this intimidation
! compelled some persons to vote against their
| Will, or prevented some from attending the
| polls, it afforded in either case no juStitica-
| ton for the deliberate rejection of ballots
| by the Returning Boards. But the statutes
| OF Louisiana only authorize proof of intimi-
| dation in cases where charges OF violence
! were made in writing by the commissioner
OF elections on the day when the election
was had there, The charges we're 70 be in
! closed to the board in the envelope contain
ing the returns. In a few cases only Were
charges made as required. In the rest,
/ evidence was received without proper
foundation having been laid. This evidence
received consisted in the main of athdaVltS
written out by the clerks and employees OF
the Returning Board, without ever having
| been seen by the persons purporting to GER
tify them. There was therefore no adequate
proof of intimidation. 1t may be remarked
here that the temptation to Kellogg and his
Returning Board was very great to manu-
factura paSeS of intimidation. for il was only