The People's vindicator. [volume] (Natchitoches, La.) 1874-1883, 1878-07-27

Which is a Reply to a Reviewer,
and Makes Matters Clearer.
NV ORLEANS, July 20, 1873.
EDITOR or INDICATOR:
When | commenced my correspond
ence with you, l, Of course, anticipated
criticism, or even bitter complaint and
deuuuciation. History teaches that in
all ages and countries no form of govern
ment, no administrator of government.
no abuse of power, nor neglect OF duty
has ever failed to have supporters. II is
in the very nature Of things that this
should be 80, and the more fragrant the
neglect, insincerity, weakness, or worse,
on the part of rulers, the more sensitive
are they to criticism, and the more We
hement in praise or defense are the syco-
phantic satellites who revolvo around
them.
The object Of the letters l have writ
ten You was to give expression to views
held not only by my humble self, but by
large numbers Of at least as pure, as in
teligent, and as patriotic citizens of Lon
isiaua as any that can be found loung-
ing around the seat of power and there
by to possibly cause check or change
in the conduct of things. have never
had an axe to grind for self Or friends,
and consequently have never been seen
beside the grindstOne. Bnt ! am selfish
at laSt-my business, my little property,
the happiness of my family, depend Oh
good government, and if the govern
'"rnt is the best that good faith to the
whole people, stern opposition to class leg
islation and reasonable political sagaci-
ty eau supply, would never he heard
complaining or criticising. But if that
government is in any degree the reverse
of this. as long l care for self, family and
State, it will not he in the power OF the
satellites or the apolog SITS Of power, to
keep me silent
say this as PREDATORY to reply to
coarse and rude criticism of my letters,
which appeared over the Signature,
"Jnstitia," in the New Orleans Picayune
of June 3Oth ut
"Justitia' charges Tie, in his very first
paragraph, with vehemently and unjustly
making charges against the Executive,
which are without foundation in fact,
and which flow from error or malice.
He also says that endeavor to bring
the Executive into contempt by holding
him responsible for all 1.-THE unfortunate
condition of affairs that prevailed in this
State during the first three months OF his
incuwbency."
All this III one paragraph
Let me reply to this paragraph before
going farther
Vehemence is defined by Webster as:
Evidence; ardor eagerness fervor ;
force; impetnosity; might
Now, I will plead guilty to any or
all of these definitions save the first,
and would not give copper cent tor
any MN who could not exhibit such
qualities in what be conceived to 10 a
good cause. repudiate the first detini-
tion-Ist, because there was no reason
why l should have been violent-2nd,
because there ia not u violent word con-
tanned in my letters, at the same time it
must not be forgotten that there are
causes in defense of which, or in the adj
v0cacy and establishment Of which, men
are distinctly called On to be violent, and
if they are not then violent they are
simply not men at all. vide: the Con-
f.derate cause and the cause of the 9Th
of January, in each of which instances
our Executive showed his faith in VIC
lence.
To charge me with injustice, or malice
! towards the Executive is more serious,
and repel the charge as utterly gratui
tous aud grOundless. Let us SEQ just
can bear against the Executive.
First, in Letter No. !, state that the
Executive stopped short on the 9th day
of January, of taking the State Hous
in which Packard was barricaded
through the same means he had adopted
for taking the Supreme Court-viz
fnrce of arms. condemn his policy-as
do any number of as good men as Lou
isiana holds and l 60 on to prove By
ono of Packards leading men, thai
the theory of our military men-that the
position would have been carried with
out the firing of a gun-was correct.
say that that was the supreme moment
of the crisis, and that we lapsed from
manly and approved aggression into thu
low channel of huckstering high ant
undying principles for half loaf O.
bread
This is absolutely true. This is histo
~, and the coarse denunciatiOns O
':Justitia' cannot alter it.
Then say, that on the night of tn
Sd of March, the opportunity for takin;
the State House again presented itself
but it was not availed of. This, also,
condemn as unwise, not sagacious, AM
l have right to say SO without being
vulgarly charged with "error,' "injus
tice'' or "malice."
| l think that both Grant and Haye'
w0nld have been glad to see the Stat
House taken plenty of good men think
as do; we can think and say 50 with
out casti < insult OH the Executive, ant
it is an outrage that such expression o.
political opinion should subject q gen
tleman to personal newspaper denuncia
ton and ierjsion.
In Letter No. 2, charge that since tn
9th of January, Conservatism, so-called
in contradistinctiOn to what this element
has been pleased to call ''Extremism"-
has controlled the conduct of things.
~ farther. I say that compromise, bar
gain and sale, took the place of the mus
ket.
1 have only to point again to thu
prominent part played by the Louisiana
State Lottery in purchasing legisla
tive quorum, and to all the revelation
made, and being made, BY Congressiona
Investigations, to the resolution extortet
from our Legislature on the subject o
political prosecutions or prosecutions
and to the act Of L Legislature appro
priating money [s2o,ooo or 100000 t.
pay the Police that defended Packard
while he was barricaded, while many {