The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1879-08-29

WHAT GOES WITH THE MILLIONS.
The voters of Louisiana should ask
themselves, before voting on the debt
ordinance, what went with the mil
lions they have unwilliDgly paid dur
ing the past ten or twelve years in
taxes to sustain a government that they
were not allowed to elect. They should
reflect on what will 60 with the mil
lions If they should be SO generous as
to sustain the debt clause.
For years the State was filed with
hordes of the worst element of the
North, who came here with nothing
but carpet-sacks, who lived in grand
style, drove fast horses, wore diamond
studs, dressed in great style, trying by
external glitter and show to hide what
was corrupt within. To do this it
took millions of money, and it came
from the people in the way of taxes to
pay the extra salaries these men voted
themselves. They doubled the offices
and doubled the salaries of those men
to fill them. These men constituted
themselves our agents without our
consent, and that too when the best
element of our people were disfran-
chised. Our legislative halls were
filled with men whose homes were in
other States, If they had any homes at
all, and frequently men were seated
who had never seen the parish they
af6aSnS 3as2 ~
member was sent from a parish where
tho Taxpayers were largely in the
majority and where there were few
negroes, they put him out by tho sword
in the hands of DeTrObiand who was
kept there to see that the plunderers
\ were not nolested by justly enraged
people. These are the men who con-
tracted debt that the people must
pay or dishonor the State forever!
After they have lived ON US for years,
squandered enough to have carried on
| two such governments for the same
length of time, stolen enough to make
themselves rich, buy sugar plantations,
gold mines and such things-While
| they have left the native citizens poor
with a debt so created that it would be
sacrelige to even think of refusing to
pay, they call it reputation, dishon-
OAoOAGS h1oS ~ Oo luOuSub Vi the
good people of Louisiana! The good
people of Louisiana didn't have
hearing when these fellows were grow
ing rich. While tho Charity Hospital,
the Insane Asylum and other State
institutions We're u disgrace to the
State, you did not hear much of the
words honor and honorable then The
greatest knave held the highest place !;
in fact, TO tell a man that person was
an Officc-hOldcr was to convey the idea
that the person alluded to was some
miserable scoundrcl from the North,
or some ono more degraded, if possible,
Il Louisiana scaIIawag. They could
steal, swear lies, make bonds, call the
troops from the great state-house Mt
Washington, where Louisiana's Gov
ernor, Grant, lived for the sole purpose
OF helping these men after his own
heart. Nothing was said of honor by
these bondholdcrs when they lent
makers to perpetuate their diaboIical
scheme of raising money. They could
not hold the people when they met
en- nsasse and resolved not to pay these
bonds, who went SO far rs to have cir
culars issued and sent to the cities of
the North and Europe warning mon
eyed men not to invest their money in
these bonds, and that the people would
not pay them.
Did we not have rs much right to be
heard then as they have now? Did
we not hope that they would fail to
raise money on their bonds and that
we would soon get rid of them? Did
we not appeal to these capitalists, in
the name of humanity, in the name of
Justice, not to lend Il helping hand to
| our prosecutors to prolong their domin-
ion over US? Did we not do every
thing II people could to induce these
men of money and influence to hold
aloof from the destroyers who were
sacking our wealth and demoralizing
our people? We did all this, and
much more!
We were not listened to. But when
the balance OF power begins to change
and the people who pay the taxes have
control of tho State, when they call a
convention and send men to frame
a constitution and wipe out what has
been done by that foul and polluted
Radical body, now thank God! de-
funct, they como forward, after having
done us all the hurm they could with
their money, and talk of sacred honor,