The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-02-01
FEDERAL BULLDOZING.

| Of more than a hundred freemen arrested and
brought hundreds Of miles from their homes
to be tried by court organized, from It's
porters to its Judge. 10 perseeute and convict
| Do the annals uf constitutional government
furnish any parallel to this cruel and shame
full speotacle2 The personal liberty Of the ctl-
zen violated. the right Of the prisoner to
speedy trial by q jury of his peers denied the
| judiciary dobasod. debauched, and made the
mean and contemplate instrument of pollt-
icel persecution In this interest or party
which has stolen the government and bank
rnpted tho country. This In the pass to which
a Republican administration has brought
constitutional government In Louisiana. The
reconstruction policy.
that fatal and perfldous bark,
Built IN tho eclipse and rugged with curses
and which II was believed had drlrted away
into the past. again spreads It's black and
ominous sails In our midst, and darkens all
our shores.
it would SEEM indeed, as II the American
government were drifting into a brutal des-
potsm as irresponsible and merciless MS that
OF Turkey. II Ia impossible for any man to
point TO any Just cause for these arrests and
prosecutions Their object Ia not tho vlndica-
tlon Of the law, nor the punishment of crime,
nor the protection Of life or liberty. Their
solo and obvious purpose Is TO lntimldate and
overawe the Democrats and Conservatives of
Louisiana; to deter them from henceforth
taking any activepart In politics In this State.
and 10 force them to abandon tho control OF the
government and It's congressional and elective
representation 10 the Radical leaders Of the
negroes
| When these trials have boon carried out
when 1t IL seen that The Federal government
can and will arrest Democrats In droves and
drag them from their families and homes TO
this city TO undergo tho embarrassment. OK :
peDse and modification Of D criminal prose-
eution; when 1t shall BIO manifest that Federal
judges, juries, marshals and prosecuting off,
GERS have been appointed and instructed TO
convict or to persecute to the EXTREMIST ex-
tent, there are thousands OF men who, rather
than be subjected to such risks and sufferings,
will abstain from any participation In poll
tics, and who will abandon the field TO the op-
| position.
No more effective, extensive and disgrace.
full scheme OF intimidation could be devised
and yet Senators and Representatives In Con
gress, hundreds Of newspapers and thousands
and thousands of Radical Republicans all over
the land are representing II as measure for
the protection OF constitutional government.
The protests Of our people are scarcely
heard they are drowned in tho wild babble and
fierce deDunciations of the passion iniiamed
populaoe and press of the North. For the
purpose OF maintaining, or rather restoring
the supremacy Of the Republican party, the
Federal administration, and It's courts and
officials are striking Mt the dearest rights
and interests OF South Carolina and Louisiana
To restore that supremacy fearful crime
| 10 being attempted. The civilization Of these
two States Is TO be destroyed II necessary
the value Of their property is to be annihila-
ted; their borders are TO be made too inhos-
pitable for Intelligent, enterprising, free
white men TO live therein. The white people
are TO be forced, under the penalty of criminal
| prosecution, TO submit to the domination OF
the ignorant and brutal negro rabble, led by
white men OF the meanest character Such
| are the ends which are aimed at I'm these per-
secutlons by court organized and instructed
to persecute and convict Democratic and Con-
servatlve citizens Of louisiana by the score
and by the hundred.
The most bigoted partisan, who knows any
thing Of the white and black races or this
State and Of the character OF the unserupu-
lous men who control and lead the latter,
must be convinced that, even grant
ing that the whites have committed
some acts of violence, there has been
q measure Of wrong on the part OF the me-
groes; that all the violence was not perpe-
trated by Christian and enlightened men, with
business and property interests ut stake, and
that the ignorant, debased and brutal negroes
were In all and every instance In the right
And yet we do not find amongst the indicted
parties single Republican, white or black
The only men who have been indicted are
white men, and Democrats or Conservatives
Does not this fact alone prove that they are
prosecutions, or rather political prosecutions.
instituted for political purposes and to over
awe and intimidate the white citizens Of Louis
lana? Why could not the packed grand jury
indict some of the Radical negroes who open ed
the fight at Caledonia. in Caddo; or some OF
those who were up In arms, who fired on the
white citizens Of Tensas; or some OF those who
for ten years, have kept the parish of Natchi-
toches In turmoil and on the verge OF civil
war; In all these agitations and riots could
the Federal grand jury hear of no white
or negro Radical who had criminal part In
these tumults? Could the district attorney
learn Of no witnesses save those who were
able to swear against Democrats? Yes; but
that would have been against the instructions
from Washington; that would not have been
In harmony with the theory of the prosecu-
lions, which Is to intimidate Democrats, and
not to vlndicate outraged justice
But these prosecutions, inspired by the
basest of motives and pursued with shame
full recklessness OF law justice and the pub
lie interests, cannot succeed in this State
Even partisan jury and an audacious court
dare not convict single one of these men, in
defiance of an enlightened and free public
opinion. The constitution cannot be abol-
ished in Louisiana and South Carolina. their
,.o.,~,o -, a 10 tho viotims of tho Ignorance and