The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1878-01-26
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known facts ard resorts to subtetfuge and
sophistry.
The exc oveInor made the following extract
from an editorial in the DEMOCRAT of yester
day. charging The responsibility for act No. II
upon him ami his party, the text of his
speech,
'Bus we most ernphaticaly denounce the
assertion that Gov. Warmoth has found in
the Democratic party any Endorsement Of
this or of any of the other ubiquitous meas
ures of his protiixate administration
After reading this paragraph, Warmoth
called attention to an agreement signed by
two On three Democratic and several Radical
members Of TIE Senate Of 1872, to cooperate
together in She passage OF certain bills
among whin1l were "3the general approprii-
tiu3 bill" and "the bill defining the expenses
Of the General Assembly The whole num-
lyr of persons who signed this bill was fifteen.
How many Of them were Democrats we do
mot remember for. with but one exception -
Mr.. w. r. Blacklnsm- they have all passed out
of publiulfe and long since sunk into obscurtty.
Following his presentation OF this document
Mr.. Warmoth said that every Democratic
member Of the General Assembly, seventeen
in number. except Moncure and Bryan had
voted for the bill Hence" he exclaimed
"the editor of the DEMOCRAT was in error
whep he wrote his article Warmed with
his subject and inhamed by his own
swelling eloa,lence, this light which has
wandered from its original but now dark
ened system. and loomed up star OF the
first magnitude in the constellation OF
Louisiana reformers went on to declare as
another evidence of the responsibility OF the
Democratic party for the existence of this OBJ
oxious act that the Legislature of 1876, which
was a Democratic body. failed to repeal it. and
closing in q blaze of indignant wrath, ex-
claimed Away with the hypocrisy which
prompts men to denounce law while they &C
cept the money for which 1t providesr'
We believe we have very accurately stated
the points made by Mr.. Warmoth in his reply
to our assertion that he could find no Demo-
cratic Endorsement of the measures OF his adj
ministration. The agreement signed by a
number of Democratic and Radical Senators
proves nothing. 1t seems to have been a sort
of treaty to support all the enumerated bills
upon q basis of retrenchment and reform, and
IL act No II of that session was framed by
Jnt hbuiCHlS uliitl b,itbb utStS'"Ohst ~
was a violation of it, and some of the signers
of the treaty must have regarded it as such.
Mr.. Blackman, for instance, one of the Demo-
Gratis who signed it. seems not to have voted
for the act on its final passage. Mr.. War
moths statement, that all the Democratic
members of the General Assembly voted
for the bill. except Moncure and Bryan,
Is not strictly correct. for we find that Mr.
BlacSman did not vote for 1t. Without rigid
investigation we concede, for the sake OF the
argument, that the statement is otherwise
correct. And if 1t be correct, 1t proves exactly
what we said yesterday, that. If any Demo
crat indorsed act No. II as wise and
proper law, he represented but an in
significant portion of his constituency.
Every Democrat who voted for that bill has
been retired by his constituency from public
life Looking over the journals OF the Legs'
lature Of 1872 we recognize the names OF no
Democrats who have retained the favor and
support of the Democratic party except John
G. Moneure. who voted. Mr.. Warmoth says
against the bill. and probably Mr.. Black1nan
who did not vote at ALL Only few years
have elapsed since the session of 1877
and vet SO utterly have all the Democrats
who were in that body, save the two
mentioned. sunk into obscurity that we
cannot pick them out from the Radicals
Some of them were doubtless good men, but
evidently they were not representatives OF
leaders of their party.
But suppose that the seventeen Democrats
| who voted for this measure had been promi
nent men, by what rule can Warmoth and his
party, who had an overwhelming ma
| jority in the Legislature which passet
this act, shift the responsibility upot
the Democratic party, which had so in
significant a representation in that body
What sense or consistency is there in thu
| position Gov. Warmoth has wasted the time
| of the House in presesting? II the responsible
| lity for the enactment OF obnoxious laws is
upon an insignificant minority when ths
| Democratic party is in the minority, and thu
| responsibility for their non-repeal upon ths
majority when the Democratic party is slight
sy in the ascendency when will we ever b.
able to fasten upon Mr.. Warmoth and his
party the penalties for their crimes agains
| the State?
1t is matter of history that the Legislator,
of 1872 was counted in by supple fingers, tha
| ballot-boxeS were stuffed and every species o
fraud and violence practiced in the selection
of it. It was made up to suit the wishes
views and purposes Of Gov Warmoth and his
| immediate partisans, and it was overwhelm
ingly composed Of his followers. few Dem
oorals got in, but the Democratic party hat
no real representation In that body. The
responsibility for act No. IL. therefore
| is upon Gov. WarRloth and his party
| and upon them alone. Somebody says TIT
| act was not so bad; that, considering thu
time at which it was passed, it vas reall!
| a. REFORM measure. Possibly it may have
| been an improvement on what existed an
terror to it. We have neither time no
inclination just now to inquire into that
But if it was a reform measure we may .catcl
a faint idea of what the administration was OF
which it was an improvement.
Coy Warmoth's statement that the Legis
1 L. rnAt