Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1878-08-21


ern Policy Made in the Interest of the
Bargain = Instructive and Interesting
Reading.
New YORK, Aug. 20.-The Potter committee
resumed it's investigation this morning Major |
A. E. Burke was the first witness. He said: 1 |
was charged with registration and election mat
tiers in 1876 at New Orleans, as chairman Of the |
central committee and registration bureau. 1
think we knew the result of the election in
Louisiana about the 18th of November. The
returns were all in except the parish of st.
Martins which has about 1000 votes.
Gen. Butler did all the questioning of the
witness. The witness said: The highest Til
den electors votes was $3.50, and the lowest
Hayes elector received 75.240 difference of
8,61o. The witness could not give the vote for
Nichols exactly, but he had majority of 2, 900
votes. The returning board threw out some
10000 votes to count in the Hayes electors.
In the campaign of 1874, said the witness, we
were cheated out of the election results by this
same returning board OF 1876. There was no
change in their action or principles. They
were arbitrary and uni ust IN 1876 as IN 1874.
Our apprehensions were increased by kilograms
passing from leading Republicans all over the
country to these leaders In Louisiana. which
showed us that they would sustain their men
in any action they took. The Louisiana men
got Respondent after the election and gave it
up, but when these kilograms commenced and
the visiting statesmen arrived, their spirits
rose and they never faltered from that out
The Inauguration of Gov. Nichols took place
before some so, 600 persons, and the Senate and
Assembly was at organized. They took
| possession of everything except some small
space filled and occupied by Packard.
The witness said he religiously and seriously
| believes that Hayes and Packard were defeated
and Tildon and Nichols elected, and that was
| the opinion of every honest man there.
| Witness went to Washington he said, the
| 18th of January, as agent for Gov. Nichols, to
secure non-intervention by government troops
| with the State government. We had the moral
| and literal force of the people of Louisiana,
sufficient to establish ourselves. We never in
| tended to have collision with the United
States troops. We were determined to protect
the interests of our State against any source
whatever, and if an armed attack were made on
| the Nichols government it would have been re-
PEELED. We.had become sick and tired of the
| state of things. Cheated out of two elections,
| and plundered. we determined uot to stand it
| longer and would have forced military gov
eminent in preference to standing such things.
| Gen. Grant modified his ideas after my visit to
Washington. was in Washington for the pur-
|
got an order to that effect on the afternoon of
the I'd of March.
O. Then you got that order on Monday,
when Gen. Grant term expired at IL o'clock
at night. Now, did you not know that Hayes
| called on Grant the same day at IL o clock in the
morning. A. Nc sir, / did not hear, did not
know of any conference between Hayes and
| Grant.
A telegram of the 1st of March, 1877, from
| Grant to Packard, in which he stated that he
does not believe public opinion will sustain
any action by the United States government in
Louisiana, and that troops would only be used
to protect peace, witness admitted to be correct.
| Witness said that in Louisiana were not in
favor of the electoral commission. We under
stood through crude and logical reasoning that
if Hayes was recognized that Packard would
have to be recognized. Witness saw nothing in
| Hayes letter Of acceptance about the State go
l ing to the dogs.
Here a telegram from U. S. Grant to General
Augur, dated 10Th January, 1877, was read,
from which, while deprecating interference on
the part of the federal government In the State
government, it said that the Packard govern
ment should be recognized, as the electoral
commission had declared them elected. When
the hope of Tilden being elected passed away
on the 18th of February, we were ready to con-
fer with Hayes and see what he meant dong
for Louisiana. Among some of the promises
made to Senator Matthews were the suppress
sion of crime, education Of blacks and whites
promotion of friendly relations between both
and equal civil and political rights. The ed
ucation question Of black and white together
was not discussed between Matthews and my
self. Nothing was said between Matthews and
myself about the returning board. Wltnes:
said, there not one word in these guaran
tees that are not compulsory and embodied II
the laws of the United States and State O.
Louisiana.
@. Now was this all you offered to put il
| D,oly I'd A No ffpra haS
for Nichols government. Witness said w
did not acquiesce in not opposing the coun
) when we found the Republican party were de
termined to go on with the count.
O. Did you and your party friends agreest
stop opposition to the counting in of Hayes
:. A. We certainly did, sir. We were assured b
President Grant that after the count was com
pleted troops would be Withdrawn. said t
Matthews that while we were assured that Presi
dent Grants assurance of President Hayes
5 policy were well intended, yet we wanted tn
assurances from such men as Garfield, MOI
S ton and others whom they regard NOR
5 than HAYES. He said he could not answer fo
n them, and said: ''Then we will place you
g party in such position they will speak,
meant thereby our people would JOIN tn
o ilibusters and prevent Louisiana and Sout
u Carolina being counted for Hayes.
). Witness said there were but two phases c
n negotiations in this thing-Cameron an
Il Matthews phases-that he made the sam
5. proposition of agreement to Cameron as b
did Matthews the 18th day of February; ais
to Foster and other leading members OF til
# Republican party.
@. After the resolution passed the 18th {
. February, by Congress, deciding not to int
|. fere with the Louisiana count, was there an
hope for Republican administration
q A. No, sir; except some arrangement We
y made with the Democrats of Louisiana. l ha
II a conversation with Hewitt and he said tt
Democrats were determined to put the odiu
u of the fraud on the shoulders Of the Republ
+ can party. The Republican party were we
aware of our determination break up tt
70 count.
"a Witness said he had conversations with &c
Grant the 26th of February. He minated
le could not do anything to prejudice the Repu
N lican party and would not act until the coul
n was declared for Hayes. Grant allowed us vi
a tually to take possession of the State. We &C
s. ed on his intimations and he submitted
d. them On the 26th of February witness !
ceived a telegram from Ellis, of Louisian
'e- from Congress-. and went to see him. He sal
$ s'Come instantly" He told me he had a lett
Z. from Lamar relative to a conversation he IL
u. mary had with Matthews and Foster in rega
to the speech made by Foster. The foloWl
is a copy of the letter: ~,
WAsH1NaToN, Feb. 90, 1s77-My Dear Ell
Ill