New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1877-03-23

Republican Party Of Louisiana,
New Orleans march 49, 1871.
Tothe People Of the United States:
There has been so much said and written
about the Republican parry in Louisiana
so much that is partly and so much that is
entirely false, inspired in many cases by
ignorance, but in the majority of cases by
malice-that the State Campaign Commit
tee. as the authorized repre- sentative of the
party, has thought proper To lay a state
Inent before the Republicans of the country,
setting forth some Of the difficulties with
which the party here has had to contend
since its establishment and exposing some
OF the false charges wi ich have been made
againstit.
The passage of the reconstruction meas
ures by Congress found very few white
Republicans Ia the Slutb, and that
few comprised of old Union men and
such ex soldiers of the Union army az
had at the close of the war ehosel
the South as their future home The
native white people of the South, who at
that time could have easily directed the
vote of the newly enfranehised citizens, in
spired by that bitterness which is always so
much longer lived with q defeated than
with a successful party to conflict, sul
lenly stood aloot from anything like gen.
eral participation in political affairs. They
believed that the gift of suffrage to the col
cred race was not intended as an act of
Justice TO the e0l0red people themselves,
but rather as an insult to the whites, and
they would not o0dntenance this conceived
insult, nor confirm the title of the colOred
men to their newly acquired rights, by even
voting at an election in which eolored men
participated.
With this state of publ.c feeling there
was but little opport unity at that time to
extend the membership of the Republican
Darty heyOnd the old Union men the az
a III
naturally attached themselves to it as the
parry which had emaneipated them from
bondage, and conferred upon them the
rights of citizenship. While there are in
L0nisians, as in all other communities, two
naturally antag0nistio elements among the
WhiEes--one class which looks to the future,
and another which looks to the past--Ghe
frat progressive, and the latter retro
gressive element-stilI, owing to the causes
stated, and TO the further fact that all
Southern white men who countenaneed in
any way the new dogma were at once BAN
ished from all Southern society, and forever
after treated as social pafiahs, it was i'm
possible to make any very great advances
In that direction.
This remarkable domination of the Bour.
bon over the conservative element through
out the South has continued FROM the close
of the war until the present time. 1t was
inspired by an implacabe and popular de-
termination to resist aud nullify the results
Of the war, and it has been secured in q
variety Of ways. There is no Instance of
Southern man of prominence identifying
himself with the Republican party, no
matter what his standing before, but has
done 20 at the expense of his social position,
and who has not been generally and con.
stantly denounced as a traitor to his seq
tlOn. The most prominent examples are
General L0ngstreet in Louisiana General
Hfht. in nd 81 =.
Virginia. This influence alone has deferred
Thousands of the best men Ia the South
from eignalizing their aequieseenee in the
results OF the war by joining the Repub-
hcan party.
Ia the spring election of 1868 the Bour.
bon element sulleDly stood alOof, and de-
termined that no white men should partici-
pate. In the fall election of the same year.
when General Grant was the Republican
candidate for President they pursued the
reverse OF this policy, and determined that
no blacks should vote; and in carrying out
that determination they first put into prae-
tiee that terrible system of violence and
murder which has since been introd 1eed
into other Southern States, and into other
campaigns in this State.
General +. IL. Sheridan, in an official re.
port, has stated that 72l cases Of political
murder occurred ia this State thatyear The
result was that Seymour received 1894
votes, against 1873 for General Grant.
The fraud was 50 palpable that Congress re-
fused 70 count the vote.
It was this terrible campaign which lad
e she enactment by q Republican Lsaisla-
tufe Of law to dieeo rage murder ae a
means OF political success, by depriving it
o. it, eject And as desperate Diseases
tqaife heroic remedies, the Returning
Beard law was the result. This law would
nor perhaps. be defeneible in q healthy and
at ftal.F
ent the best argument ia its favor il Lon
Hlaae ts the fact that bat for its existence,
and the u1Hiaehing courage and integrity
q as mem bers Of the Returning Board In
eeatlng its provisions, Samuel J. Tilden
you'd t. day Be the President Of che United
eszfes o. 3 direct result Of the hundred or
% Political murders in this State during the
4eet year. and not of fair and free ex-
en Of public opinion,
We DO net propose 70 enter into any ar
Ezneat At thia time to prove that Louisiana
2 Republican State, because we believe
that fact i generally conceded. We affirm
2n1f 2 2 lasf tssetlon the Republicans would
carry The Stats BIZ %. 600 majority. and it
Nas justly returned for President HAYES be
zl1lI1les ranging from 1893 for the highest
e.teeqt. 20 e57I for tbs lowest eieet0r and
Governor Packard BY GOO more votes
n 1sf he lowest Hayes eleotor. The
'ese' E1te Of LouisiaBa for prssidens
~ ea counted By Congress 10 con
.el8 NIl1 national law. and the vote for
9e sek4td was counted by the
sssIzl4fuza a ioiat convention, with
g each honse. Ia conformity with
a11It41QaAl Eedqifemenfs OF the
Aa % was dulg declared Governor.
lEe e tbs Office Is absclotely
~ ena General Nichols slain
sses 20 e much respect
e NeaH ga1efnatoti6l can
IS Is al44 EfI.5 f4sa1.s14 fffs4lsll5 - 49,