Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1877-04-18
rHE OTTUMWA COURIER
THE POLITICAL SITUATION Is
STILL a MYSTERY.


the POLITICAL SITUATION rs
STILL a MYSTERY.
Thus far daylight doth not appear,
nor does it indeed seem any nearer
in the unrayelling of the
knotty Southern question in Louis
lana. The old Liberal journals Of the
country, such as the Chicago and New
York 7yfbunes, stand strongly by the
policy. The Chicago
Tribune, especially, deals in bitter in
vective and willful, deliberate false
hood in its advocacy. We take the
extract from lengthy |
editorial in the daily issue of that
paper of the l4th inst:
Packard insists that his title to
Governor is as good as that of Hayes
to be President, but the President
(who is not depending on military
force TO keep him in Office, but the
laws and the universal popular &C
auiescence) does not undertake to de-
eide that purely State question. He
proposes to let the Legislature of
Louisiana, according to the Constitu-
ton of that State,imeet and decide
that question, without the coercion or
interference of Federal troops. There
is claimant disputing Packard's title
to the office. A large portion of the
Legislature rcpudiate Packard. The
police force of the State, a large por-
ton of the courts, the various local
officers, recognize Nichols as Govern
or. The taxpayers, who necessarily
constitute an important portion of the
people who are governed, have never
recognized Packard. There has never
been any constitutional recognition of
Packard as Governor. There has
been no official or popular acquies-
cence, consent. or acceptance OF him
as Governor. He has been a mere
claimant relying upon Federal troops
to kill those who deny his right to be
Governor, and it is admitted tha
with the withdrawal of the troops Il
their barracks all respect for his claim
will vanish, and recognition of hi
official character will cease. And ye
that his title as Governor of Louis.
lana is as good as that of Hayes to the
Presidency
The Tribune willfully misrepre.
sents, when it says that no official au
thority recognized Packard. Tit
Commission now there investigating
and the whole current of authorit!
shows that the Legislature which
counted the votes and declared Pack
ard Governor, was legal Legisla
turc, as returned by the canvassin.
board, the same board which counte,
Hayes in. Besides this, the Commits
sion reports that Packard is willin!
to submit his claims again to the Leg
islature, as constituted by the Return
ing Board, just as President Haye
and his Cabinet advised, but Nichols
will do nothing of the kind. This
again, showing very clearly who ha
the legal right to the Governorship
and that the Nichols crowd know
this full well. Yet, in the face of al
this, the 7sibNnc's column article Ia
nothing but a captious, mendaciou
complaint against Packard all tn
way through.
The Tribune takes occasion to sa,
that there is vast difference between
the case of Packard and Prcsiden
Hayes, in regard to the election il
Louisiana. In some senses this is ap
parent, but the view taken by tn
Tribune of it is full of sophistry
We have no doubt, nor is there al
honest man living who will doubt
but that if President Hayes was il
the place of Packard, the Tribune an,
the Louisiana Democracy would hav
pursued the same course toward him
and that Hayes, like Packard, woult
have stood his ground like any othe
honest man, demanding his rights. j
only needs reversal of positions t.
have the Tribune dcfaming where j
IS now pralslng.
But, it is alleged that Hayes doe
not need to be sustained by Fedora
bayonets. He is the acknowledge
Rrpsident, and therefore, there is {
vast difference between his case and
that of Packard. Well, we admit tina
to some extent there is some differ.
ence, but few weeks ago, whel
Grant was concentrating troops a
Washington, it did not look as though
there might be much difference
Again, it looked rather dubious vi
to about the time, as is now disclosed
that Senator Matthews and Repre-
sentative Foster, from Ohio, held on
snch strong inducements as to {
Southern policy, that some prominen
Southern men claim they agreed t
be Modified.
But leave the Presidency of MI
Hayes, and refer to the 4th of Marcel
1861. Did it not take bayonets, an
all that could then be mustered b
General Scott, to give Lincoln an or
portunity to take his seat as President
and hundreds of thousands of theI
for months, on the banks of the Pc
tomac to keep him from being nn
seated? Did this fact, in any sens,
invalidate, one iota, Mr.. Lincoln
right TO the Presidency? To ask tn
question is to answer it.
We do not wish, in our humbl
mediumship even, to hamper in an
sense fair trial of the President
policy, though we may not agree wit
il, but we do object to misrepresents
ton and abuse of such a man {
Packard, whose good name is dea
to him, and whose reputation is cel
tainly excellent.
One thing more we will sugge
here, and that is that the locality ,
this contest between Packard an
Nichols is New Orleans, with i
eleven thousand Democratic majOrit
and Gov. Packard, to-day, finds h
greatest trouble in the fact, th'
in that city, still largely rebellious
heart, Nichols can and does rally b
supporters and seizes upon the arm
of the government, maintaining thr
the police of that city, strong for
constantly ready to make public OPT
ion and enforce his commands. IT
vote in the balance of the State, eve
counting the bnll-dozed Parishes il
gave the Republicans a majority.
To ex-emplify the situation in Ne,
Orleans, we will suppose that tn
National seat Of government ha
been in the City Of New York instca
of Washin gton, when Congress wa