The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1877-12-07

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hold the Senate roost, upon which the un-
seemly beast from Louisiana has been per-
mitted to creep?
1t is painful TO speak in these disrespectful
terms of the Senate; but those who have fol-
lowed up the late disgraceful struggle over
the senatorial contests from this State and
South Carolina, and read the report of the
m ajority of the Committee on Privileges and
Elections on which Kellogg was seated, will
declare that they are justifiable.
In the prosecution Of their dishonorable
and corrupt tactics, Edmunds and Conkling
went SO far as to attempt to influence Judge
| Humphreys to hold his decision in the crimi-
nal proceedings against Patterson over that
individuals senatorial head to terrify him
into voting to seat Corbin. Could Senators
commit graver crime than this effort to
influence the decision of court for the pur-
pose of carrying their point to seat in the
Senate. for purely partisan purposes q car
pet-bag thief?
Again when Edmunds, with brazen eff
frontery, denounced Patterson and Conover,
charging them with having made cor
rupt bargain with the Democrats, and Sen
ator Thurman confronted him with the fact
that the Republican Senators had given each
of these branded rogues the chairmanship of
an important committee, the whole country
Dug hit to have blushed with shame.
| We give these incidents only as examples,
and not the most disgraceful examples, of
the tactics pursued in these contests by the
men who compose the majority of the
Senate
The report on which Kellogg was seated
was a fit emanation of a committee repre-
senting such body. In that report the ma
iority of the committee declared. in sub
stance, that the Nichols government was a
revolutionary and illegal government, set up
by armed force and violence, and that they
could not recognize the claims of Judge Spot
| ford elected by Legislature organized by
| such means. "The doctrine says the re-
port commended for by Mr.. Spoford, if es-
tabished, would render insecure all political
vested rights
| We are startled at the audacity of the men
who carelessy cover the dishonesty of their
acts and utterances under so transparent q
disgu Sc as this. 1t is utterly useless to go
over the argument, familiar to every one and
never refuted, to show that the Nichols gov
eminent was elected and installed by the
people of the State and that the state
ments in the report are VIGOROUSLY false.
But if we admit their truth, and, for the sake
of the argument, concede that the Nichols
government was set up by armed force. What
then? On what ground can these Republican
Senators protest so vehemently against 1t?
Have they not recognized, supported and in
dorsed government in this State, for four
years, which was purely the creature of fraud
and armed violencep Do they not know that
the Kellogg government, they supported, was
propped up, from the time of its Inauguration
by debauched, drunken and prostituted judges
until its baeful and ignominious close, by bay
onets, and bayonets alonep Bah it is simply
disgusting to hear the hypocritical cant of
these dishonored Senators.
But these eminent statesmen express the
apprehension, that if the doctrine contended
for by Mr.. Spofford were established it would
render insecure all vested political rights.
w ell, we do not propose to discuss the doc
trine commended for by Mr.. Spofford further
than to say that it is imbedded in every
free constitution. But it is a little re-
markable that Senators, who SO much fear
to recognize Senator because he holds
the credentials OF government born of a
somewhat angry campaign, feel o loving
tenderness for vanished usurpation which |
was the revolving creation of body or
ganized upon principles more hostile to civil
liberty, more dangerous to free institu-
tons, than any of those which provoked the |
English revolution, or those against which |
our ancestors fought. "The right of election
is the very essence of the constitution. To
violate that right and, much more, to transfer
it to any other set of men is step leading
almost Immediately to the dissolution of all
governments"
The same author, from whom we quote,
says: "The free election of our represen-
tatives in Parliament comprehends, be-
cause it is the source and security of, every
right and privilege of the English nation.
The ministry have realized the compendious
ideas of Caligula. They know that the liber-
ty, the laws and property of an Engishman
have, in truth, but one neck, and that, ito vio
late the freedom of election strikes deeply at
them all
The Returning Board which created the
Packard usurpation, was organized upon the
perncious principles our illustrious author
herein denounces as SO dangerous to the free
dom of the people. 1t was designed to vio-
late the right of election, "the essence of the
constitution" and to strike deeply at the lib
erty, the laws and the property Of the people
of Louisiana, and it was the revolving prin-
ciples of that board which the Republican
Senators recognized and Endorsed in seating
Kellogg.
One suggestion of Secretary Schurz in his
late report is worthy Of consideration. He
thinks that the government is wrong in en-
ploying only white men at the frontier posts