The Portland daily press., 1878-08-16
THE INVESTIGATION.
Another ROmancing Witness
Who Alleges that He Saw the Sher-
man Letter.


day IN the Potter investigation was John A.
Leet OF the New Orleans Times. He said:
When Andersol called on me after coming
from East Feciana he told me he had carried
ont the programme. As well understood be
tween Kellogg, Anderson and myself, the pro-
gramme was to keep colored Republicans from
voting. Each man had a programme of his
own. 1t was thought best to exclude colored
Republican votes SO that the Returning Board
could throw out the whole Democratic vote of
party was demo.al'zed there and would have
been beaten. Anderson went back to
East Feliciania and a peaceable election was
held. Anderson told me be did not mean to
make any protest until he found out ''where
the land lay" Kellogg urged me to do what
1 could to get Ander son to make protest.
The attention of the whole country was being
concentrated on Louisiana and Kellogg said it
was highly important to get protest out of
Anderson before some of Tilden's emissaries
arrived there and bought him up. L advised
Anderson not to make any protest. Anderson
and agreed that the Republican party was
defeated, and We were sorry for Hayes but
glad that Packard was beaten. We agreed
however that though beaten the Republican
would get in. In an interview with Kellogg
do he could count the State 10 for Hayes. We
agreed to Kellogg's plan to count in Hayes.
Knew very we'll that Sherman and the visiting
statesmen had come down there to steal the
state. knew they were after Anderson's
protest so that after committing himself he
could not go over to the Democratic party
without perjuripg himself. There was
glorious prospect for Anderson, and knew
that he could get anything he demanded for
his protest which would cause the vote of East
Feliciana for Tilden to be thrown out. think
that even without Anderson's protest they
would have thrown out the vote. Kellogg
wanted me to manufacture afidavits, but
refused, and Anderson told me he had an inter-
view with Sherman and Sherman promised
him everything. Anderson was delighted and
said his fortune was made and he was glad he
made his protest He said he was promised
the naval ofice but never got it. told
Kellogg that West who was running for
Senator promised to let me into the Attorney
Generals department if l supported him.
Kellogg and considered the count of votes
finished before it was begun. They had hold
on Anderson 10 his protest as it he had opened
his mouth for Democrats they could produce
his sworn protest and have him up for perjury.
Anderson and knew this and kept quiet. L
knew it would be up hill work to expose frauds.
Bulldozers we're numerou and would shoot
white man or black man to get office. e. Q.
Butler, Andersons clerk, was one Of these.
They and their acts were perfect Godsends to
Republican party was it did not have an office
for every bulldozer.
Q-Do you know anything about leaving off
certain names off ballots, in election.
Ayes sir, we knew very we'll IN the cam
paign of 1876 that the State was lost to the Re
publican party, SO Kellogg and Packard sold
Grant out in the Cincinnati convention and we
could get no more troops. Yarmouth admitted
the state lost by $4,000 votes. He figured it
up that Hayes would be elected without Louis
lana BY close squeeze: Yarmouth told me
confdentialy that Louisiana carpetbaggers are
a better class of men than many who denounce
them and that these visiting statesmen who
are down here are a lot of old frauds and have
come down to steal the state aud will steal 1t
too. The statesmen were there to either carry
off the votes of the state or to prevent it from
being bought up by the Democrats.
wanted to get Mr.. Nash in Congress so that
he would be friend OF mine. told him he
never would get counted in except he secured
Anderson. Anderson told me he had told KEEL
logg he would count in Nash and that Kellogg
told him to make out cases of intimidation IN
several parishes. They made out charges OF
intimidation against the Republican voters in
several parishes, among them being Livingstone
parish where there were no Republican voters.
Here Gen. Butler took the witness in hand
for cross-examinaLiou.
Q-You have bad memory for dates?
Ayes, very.
Q-What time did the visiting statesmen Re-
publican side) visit New Orleans?
A-About the time Anderson came down
from Felicaua Witness went on to testify
that Anderson never showed him copy of the
protest of East Feliciana. He simply told him
he had made it. Sherman was the only one of
the statesmen witness remembered, The 9TH
ers he did not think amounted to anything.
Witness had seen Sherman before he had seen
his name to the letter. Witness refused to be
introduced to the visiting statesmen because he
feared their seductive influence. he never saw
the Sherm an letter more than once Witness
saw the McVeagh comm ission there in April.
When Anderson cot the Sherman letter he be-
gan to withdraw his confidence from me. Said
witness, II remember that Anderson called on
me and said he had some verbal promises from
Sherman, and that in couple of days after
wards he called again in great joy and showed
letter" Witness stated he was intimately
acquainted with all the politicians in Louisiana
and in his judgment they were the most COM
plete set of rascals that be ever saw; that Cass-
anave of the Returning Board was the honest
est of the lot. Witness was then questioned as
to his standard of honesty and becoming little
angered at the manner of the questioning said
he proposed answering when, wDere and how
he pleased. Witness then submitted copy of
his paper in which he published bis prediction
that the election of 1876 would turn on Louis
lana. Several extracts from the paper were
read to the mittee. Several letters of An
derson's to witness were placed in evidence
after being read, but only showed the terms of
intimacy between them. Witness complained
that he wasn't allowed to make a full state
ment of his record to the committee. Potter
said they only wanted his testimony. Co nmit-
tee then adjourned till tomorrow.