The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1878-11-20
THE CADDO TROU DLES.
DISTRICT ATTORNEY HE9NAHsEs's &
STATEMENTS FULLY GOV HEEEs
ANHs THEORETICALLY
HpEN9UNCHR.

gvssp was Responsible fAF the EsfsfHrF
enres In fFse Eariah-LeGRaFas Con
duet During Ihe Fanvass-ssis Hnceu
diary Speeches and Advice to ths
Negsoes-Ehe Caledonia Riot. Ets Taus'
and Wesult-The whites Act Under
the Law ana Resist Assault.
JSnecial to the Democratl
SHREVEPORT. Nov 20,-The Chicago Fri
Hune Of the thirteenth instant contains In tll'
form Of a special. what purports to be state
ment made by United States District Attor
ney Leonard to President Hayes relative t.
the last election in Caddo parish. Mr. Leon
ard, as a bloody shirt shrieker. is certainly E
marvellous success.
In the oirc,lmscribed limits Of q special dis
patch It is impossible to answer separately
all the charges made. There Is in the state
Eneut as published q vast deal Of eEaggera
lion. and much that Is utterly false. But one
military company was organized IN Shreve-
nort. and that was as State militia under the
general law Of the State. It's officers and
Ioonbers were duly sworn in aud enrolled by
yo,t,, Gen. Ward. Of the State militia. This
,,pany never paraded the streets or roads
with on without arms. The purpose Of its
ance which might occur. yet acting under
orders from the militia authorities OF
the State. Not single negro was
taken from his house and beaten
or otherwise rnaltreated during the whole
canvass, and never heard OF ones house be-
ing fired into as charged by Leonard. There
WAS not n single disturbance in the parish
prior to election day, except at Spring Ridge.
and that WAS wholly due to Leonard's iuflam-
nnatory speech there. and was directed not
against the negroes, but against Leonard and
Harper personally. Not single negro or
white man was killed, shot or hurt during the
whole campaign, except at Caledonia pre-
cinct, where q disturbance occurred on the
evening Of the day Of election. Not single
negro WAS driven from the polls on the
day Of ELECTION by any one except
T,eUhRrd himself. who ordered them from the
Shreveport boxes, when he found the election
was going against his party. At the same
time that he ordered them from the Shreve-
port polls he telegraphed to Greenwood q
country precinct ordering them away from
there. They also left the Spring Ridge and
Summer Grove precincts about the same
hour showing preGoncerted arrangement on
and claim the election was carried by fraud
and violence. finding it was Inevitably going
against them.
/ am at q loss toknOw what Leonard means
by saying there were no white men on the
streets Of Shreveport on election day. There
were crowds Of them on the streets and ut
the polls oil day, working with the negroes
TO induce them to vote the Democratic ticket
ish did vote it, It Is true that three boxes
were used at each precinct by the commits
eionere. Ono was for State and parish Of
hcers. one for ward officers, and one for Con |
yressmen Under the State law two boxes
were absolutely required for section 8 Of net
No. 81 Of the acts Of 1877 provides that votes
for ward officers shall be deposited In
separate boxes The Republican leaders here
completely overlooked this provision Of law
and had the names of their ward candidates |
printed on tho same ticket with the State aud |
parish officers There Is nothing in the law
against n separate box for the congressional |
vote. and thora Is precedent for the action, for |
in New York 1t Is done Mt every election at
which members Of Congress arc voted for
The commissioners explained to voters, white
and black. in which box they should vote the /
different tickets. and heard them make the
explanation over and over again Of the Shreve~
port boxes to both white Oud black voters,
The part which Mr.. Leonard took in the
CaEvass and election here was, considering he |
is United States officer. and considering the |
Presidents civil service reform order extreme |
and indefensible. In his speech at the Worthy
place he stated that 1t was usual with col
account, with
employers Or at the nearest store, and in this
way, by the time the crop was ready to
be gathered, they he'd taken up or con-
stunned about all the Interest or share they
had in it, and consequently they did not
care to gather It,; that he did not blame them
for it; they had no Longer any interest in it,
md 1t was natural they should be Indifferent
about gathering 1t, He would feel the same
way about it II he was In their place. This
Was o direct encouragement to the blacks
who constitute the labor Of the country. to
7iolate their contracts and obligations with
he planters, their employers and nothing
,ould be more perGicious in it's effects. In his
speech at Rhodes Churob he is said to have
eminded the negroes Of the time when the 8
bull whips of slavery were cracked over
hem, and told them he wanted them never to
orget the time when the bloodhounds" "
yere turned loose on their tracks,
He also stated on that occasion that Ehere =
vas no question of politics In the campaign 7
hen being conducted; that 1t was simply G
ueston as to who should rule Caddo par 8
sh; whether he md Bowman should rule 1t. q
whether 1t should be ruled by y, and h
=, and -----, mentioning three promi-
ent leaders OF the Democratic party OF the tt
arish. ct
Nothing he could have said, and we'll he o.