Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1877-01-31
LOUISIANA AFFAIRS.
Remarks Of HON. WIN. SPENCER,
of Louisiana,

3
Mr., Spencer. Mr.. Speaker as Rep.
resentatve of the people of Louisiana
upon this floor, cannot consent TO sit
in silence and allow to pass without
challenge hecharges which have been
made upon this floor this morning by
gentlemen on the opposite side. Sir,
| unite with those gentlemen and with
every man upon this floor who desires
an investigation. The people of Louis
lana want an investigation OF the
election which was held there last No
vember That investigation cannot
be too thorough, it cannot be too com
plete for us. And | now venture the
prediction that when this investigation
is made, when the bottom facts are
found, it will be shown, us the mass of
this Nation already believe, that that
State was carried fairly and freely by
the Democratic party
Mr.. Speaker, the old hue and cry of
intimidation is raised again. The
same thing was done in 1874. The
same cry of murder, rapine, and vio-
lence went up after the election of 1874
that goes up now; and this House,
thcn Republican, sent its committee to
the State Of Louisiana to investigate
it, with the honorable gentleman from
Massachusetts, Mr.. Hoar] as its chair
man and the gentleman from Ohio
Mr.. Foster] as chairman of the sub.
committee. What did that committee
report They came back here and
reported that they had investigated
the question Of intimidation that the
Republican party who had control had
failed to show that there was any in.
timidation of the blacks by the whites,
but that it had appeared that intimi.
dation had been practised by the color.
ed Republicans upon the Democrats.
! say now-and am perfectly willing
to rest upon the proof which will be
taken by this committeeman the
same state Of facts will be disclosed
again.
Why, Mr.. Speaker, we are not afraid
of investigation. We court il. The
whole machinery of the election law
was in the hands of our adversaries.
In the so-called bull.dozed Parishes
East Feliciana, East Baton Rouge,
West Feliciana, Ouachita, and More
house-Unlted States troops were sta.
toned at almost every poll on the day
Of the election and how do you ac-
count for the fact that these are the
very parishes where the colored men
voted most solidly the Democratic
ticket Take the Parish of East Fe.
liciana take the Parish of Ouachita
There the colored men were under the
protection of the United States Army
on the day ofthe election, and il only
added to the solidity with which they
voted the Democratic ticket, Sir, com
ing from the Parish of Concorda. one
of the largest and most densely popula.
ted colorcd Parishes in the State, do
not hesitate TO say that il We could
have had five hundred United States
soldiers stationed at the polls on the
occasion of that election, il would have
made difference Of 1000 votes in
favor OF Mr. Tildcn and General
Nichols.
Why, sir, hundreds of colorcd men
in that Parish-becausc | was born
among them and they have known me
from infancy-hundreds of colored |
men in that Parish came TO me and |
told me they desired TO vote the Dem
oeratic ticket but they did not dare do
1t FOR their lives. They wcrc threaten.
cd with social ostracism, expulsion
from their churches, and il went even
so tar that their leaders openly and
publicly advised tho wives of those
mon who sought TO join the Democratic
party TO quite them, and in many in
stances IL was done.
Those are the facts, sir and yet the
of that Parish, n Rcpubl.
can, made his return to the Returning
Board, and what did he do2 lie ex.
,ludcd three Of the polls in that Parish
from the count because of this intim.
lation and this violence practiccd by
Republican colorcd men on Democratic
,olored men That fact was sanction
I'd by the oath of the three commits
'ioners at every one of those polls.
But did the Returning Board notice
~ No; and yet the return was madc
strictly in conformity with law. 1t
was aupportcd bv tho oath nj thu