The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1877-09-19
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BY HENRY ST. JOHN,
Bradley'S Confession.

Justice 10 Bradley has felt the ne.
cessity of coming before the country
with a letter in respect to the part he
played in the Electoral Commission
Fraud. 1t is strange piece of work
for man in his senses. If he meant
it to te explanatory and defensive, he
must have left his senses behind him
when he began to write it; for any
body who looks at it, as printed else
where in the Sun, will see that it is in
the nature of a confession of the charge
that is brought against him.
we charged that in the argument on
| the Florida case before the Electoral
Commission, Justice Bradley wrote out
his opinion and decision in favor of
the Tilden electors, and next day gave
his vote Oh the other side. In dealing
with this charge, Justice Bradley
makes no denial of it whatever, but
turns away from it with the utterancc
of this amazing sentence "Whether
wrote one opinion or twenty in my
private examination of the subject, is
of little consequence and of no concern
to anybody, if the opinion which f.
nally gave was the fair result of my
deliberations, without influence from
outside parties" In subse quent part
of his letter lie recurs to the charge,
and says that, in examining the ques-
ton of going behind the returns, he
"wrote and rewrote the arguments on
both sides, sometimes being inclined
to one view of the subject and some
times to another, but finally I threw
aside these lucubrations" and then
Justice Bradley wrote out the opinion
which he read in the Florida case.
Thus he wavered from side to side, ar
guing on both sides, perhaps twenty
times, and apparently changing his
view of the question as often as he
wrote about it. Justice Bradley's con-
science, reason, judgment, and legal
opinions were evidently in a strange
state OF confusion at the time he was
trying to reach decision of the qnes-
ton before the unconstitutional Electo.
raj Commission.
Justice Bradley takes great pains to
deny one charge that has not been
brought against him. He says: 81
had no private discussion whatever
(who charged him with such discus
sion p of the subjects at Issue with
any person interested Oh the Republi
can side, and bot very few words with
any person." He further says that lie
"sedulously sought to avoid all dis
cussion outside the commission it,
self" Justice Bradley had another
way of dealing with the business than
discussing it with Republicans.
Justice Bradley denies that lie read
an opinion, any opinion, any one of
his numerous contradictory opinions,
to Justices Clifford and Field. But
his language leads US to suppose that
he communicated an opinion to them,
for he says; 81 read no opinion of Ell
ther of them, and have no recollection
of expressing any. If did, it could
only have been suggestively, or in
manner, and not intended
as committal of my final Judgment or
action"
Thus 10 Bradley makes confession
though we cannot tell how often he
changed his mind respecting the ma
ture of the confession he ought to
make. Thus he admits the truth and
accuracy of the fundamental features
of the charge brought home to him in
the Sun.
This matter must be thoroughly in
vestigated, if the impeachment of JUS
tice 10 Bradley is the only way of
reaching the bottom facts of it.-[N.
Y. Sun.