The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1877-03-28
The Louisiana Commission.
VIVA, it Will Attempt 10 Do.

Washington special to the N. Y. Tribune.l
The exact object of the appointment of the
Louisiana commission, about which there has
been so much discussion, will be publicly an
nounced as soon as it is organized. The an
nouncement will probably be in the form of a
letter OF instructions given to its members. I'm
til then the administration thinks it best to
give no specific information as to the duties
which the commission is expected to perform.
At the same time the general character of those
duties is very apparent to every one familiar
with the Louisiana case and with what it is de-
sired to accomplish. 1t is not probable that the
commission will 60 into any investigation Of
the late election in that state. The two COM
mittees of Congress, besides the unofficial COM
missions which visited Louisiana in November
last, have made full reports upon that subject,
and it is hardly probable that any additional
information could now be obtained.
The commission will undoubtedly endeavor
to bring abouta coalition by which there shall
be single Legislature and single judiciary of
undisputed title, which the people of Louisiana,
irrespective of party, will recognize The title
of neither of the governments in that state nor
any department of them is now admitted to be
valid by opponents. Nichols certainly has no
title which is legal in form to the Office which
full if there are not also flaws in the title of
Packard himself Neither legislature has
probably been organized in accordance with
the constitution and laws of the state, and
everything which each of them has done, in
GLIDING the comforting Of a title upon a COVER.
nor, would undoubtedly be declared null
and vod, if submitted to test in
the United States Supreme Court. If
these Legislatures are illegal in their organ
izatop, peither of them certainly could have
conferred legal title upon any one as COVER
nor. The courts of the state are also in an
equally mixed condition. Those which recog-
nize Nichols and which have possession of the
court houses and records are asserted to have
been made up in an illegal and demonstrations
al manner.
If this is true, then the citizens of Louisiana
cannot afford to have them continue giving
judgements which affect titles to property and
others important interests. Such judgments
would, of course, be set aside by the Supreme
Court of the United States on appeal. 1t is,
therefore, equally important to the Nichols
and to the Packard parties that any adjust
ment that may be made shall be one which is
satisfactory, or, at least, which shall be recog-
nized as legal by all parties. If the President
should order the immediate withdrawal of the
troops from the vicinity of the state house in
New Orleans and the result should be that
Packard and his government should be over
thrown, the validity of all judgments of the
courts would still be an open question, and one
which it might not be in the power Of Gov.
Nichols to establish.
which valid legal government in all its
branches may be brought out of the chaos now
existing in Louisiana, its creation will be
wholly indicated and justified. If it should
fail to do this, the delay in the settlement of
the Louisiana case will in any event be brief.
Its success or failure will be fully determined
within week or ten days from the time it
reaches New Orleans. If it fails, the status
quo will have been in the mean time pre- served,
the question will BOT have been iD the least
complicated by its efforts, and the President,
with more light upon the subject, can de-
farno ipo wi ot no hall iTret
as we'll as he could have done before the COM
mission was elected.
WASHINGTON, March q.
Nothing has been authorized from the EX-
ecutive Mansion as to what gentlemen are de-
termined upon as commissioners to Louisiana.
The disposition is to complete the list of COM
missoners as eatly as possible and the Presi-
dent is cautious with regard to the selections.
Four gentlemen have accepted and one vacan-
cy remains to be filled. Their names are to be
withheld till the commission is complete. 1t is
known that Gov. Brown of Tennessee has ac-
cepted and it is generally believed that Gen.
Harlan of Kentucky and Vice President
Wheeler are others OF the commission.