Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1877-01-04
The Returning Boards
and Gen. Wade Ramp-
ton


eihnati, more than ten thousand
people met at Pixies Opera
House, 10 protest against the
threatened usurpation of the
Presidency by Hayes. Among
those who addressed the meet
ing was Gen. Durbin Ward.
lie thus contrasts the action Of
the Returning Board Of Louis
lana with the conduct Of Gen.
Wade Hampton. Its truth and
cloqucncc will make every pa
triotic reader long TO grasp with
warmth the honest hand Of Gen.
Durbin " ard
The Returning Boards gets
its power from the act Of 1872,
and that act docs not provide
for Presidential elections, tie
Returning Board has no power
over them, and It's late wo k in
returning Hayes elected is com
pletely null and void. And yet
the Board ahich was denounced
two years ago by Wheeler as
81 disgrace TO ciritizatjon," new,
like a whipped spaniel shows
its gratitude by giving him Tie
Electoral vote of Louisiana.
But, gentlemen, We go deeper
than the technical law. Even
if it had Jurisdiction, Wheeler
was rlght-its work is "a dis
grace to civilizations" and a
disgrace to any barbarism that
that has ever risen high enough
TO find Place on the page Of
history.
The law organizing the Board
required its members 70 be COM
posed Of both political parties,
but it pcrsistently refused TO
fill vacancy by giving a Dem
ocrat a place in it. The law
requires all certificates of in
timidation TO be made within
forty-eight hours after the cleo
ton, and to accompany the re-
turns of the Supervisors, and
if this be not done, then !hc
Returning Board has no juris-
diction to throw out precincts
or polls. And yet, though not
one such certificate was made
according to law, and few in
any form, the Board throws out
scores of precincts and polls,
and more than thirteen thou
sand Democratic votes, on Ger
tificates fraudulcntly manulac-
turcd in New Orleans weeks
afterthc election. They refused
10 give Democrats a fair invcs-
legation before the Board; they
held secret sessions as to the
most important points involved;
they proclaim the result in a.
lump, neither giving the votes
Of the several parishes retained,
nor the reasons for throwing
out those rejected. And yet
the Delphic responses of this
Radical oracle, 90 lstely de-
nounced and its work undonc,
is now, in Radical eyes, an in.
falliblc gospel Of truth. And
these usurping rascals are Jcydj
while the gallant Hampton is Il
rebel, though robed in the Fed
cral flag and proclaiming pro-
found respect and cordial sub
mission to the Federal authori-
~. While United States troops
are stationed TO guard the
Board in their midnight work
of fraud, at high noon the peo-
pies representatives i'll South
Carolina march, like prisoners,
through file of soldiers, and
their certificates Of election are
riScd by a corporal Of the
guard! The one event more
than any other which will hand
this Centennial election down
10 posterity as a dark scene of
force and passion in contrast
with forbearance and high man
hood is the noble department
of Wade Hampton. He has
shown himself worthy Of the
grandest days Of Rome, and to
hc the peer of Coriolanus or
Cato, sccessionist though he
once was. And there is no
mans hand, though fought on
the other side, / shall grasp
more warmly should we ever
meet. 81 this be treason make
the most Of H."
Gen. Francis c. Bar
81. o,,l oovy,oof poNtYh-