The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-02-16
THE CAUCUS.
THE DEBATE In TIE DEMOCRATIC
CAUCUS ON THE TEST GATH AND
ELECTION LAW.
Rayard's strange Position on the Elec-
tiOn Law-H0w the Republicans
Propose 10 Use This Law.


Do reason for satisfaction with the growth Of
Democratic nerve and the quicken Of DEM
ocratlc resolution. At aII events. a'ter twelve
years os steady kicking and cutting, being spit
upon-not 10 speak Of still vlIer indiQnities--
after to insult and calumny had been added
the injury OF actual spoliation: and 40 long
after forbearance had ceased to be q virtue that
patience had become the next thing 10 crime.
the Democratic party appears 10 have got it's
back up" as they say. The occasion of these
not altoe ether original reflections is
THE CAUCUS or LAST MONDAY NTGHT.
This caucus met und r peculiar crcum-
stances. Its province was to consider the pro-
priety OF accepting sort Of com promise offered
by the Radicals on certain disputed points in
legislation. This compromise. like all other
Compromises" offered by the Radicals TO the
Democrats, is On the principle of all the turkey
TO the former and all the crow TO the latter.
There are on the statute books two laws; ono
called Federal election law. which. az con-
strued by certain base and degraded ministers
OF partisan Injustice called either By courtesy
Or la grim sarcasm. as you lease. United
States judges" makes 1t felony 10 vote the DEM
ocratic ticket or be active Ia the councils Of the
Democratic party. The other Ia called a test
oath" for Jurors
THE ELECTION LAW
enables the aforesaid bots upon the history OF
Anglo Saxon judicature to indIet, arrest and
imprison honest mon for honest exercise Of Do
lItical privileges. The jurors test oath enables
the same foul creatures OF the bassst party that
ever dragooned a nation TO pack jurles with
the ignorant, ilIiterats. viIs Or deDraved scum
Of communities. black. white or pisbald as the
case may be. to work upon political opponents
a species OF persecution which this nineteenth
century does not witness elsewhere outside the
barbarous despotism, Of autoerati3 Russia The
two work into each other like the cog wheels Of
the rack OF the Induisition.
It is plain. however. that of the two
THE TEST OATH
ls the one altogether secondary, subordinate
and accessory; sustain ng TO It's principal In
crime. the election law. the same relation that
the man who holds the dark lantern sustains 70
the midnight cut-throat who murders By it's
glare. These laws are the last remnants OF that
| long series of sectional. partisan and
| proscriptive enaetments which Radiealism
| during the period of reconstruction, fastened
upon the country with the design Of
perpetuatina 10 peace license OF power that
had its rise Ia war. .snd for the purpose Of pro-
| longing under another name, the state of siege
| which logically ended with the subsistence of
| the revolution that had invoked IL. All these
1
and patriotism = phrases behind which the
| Radical party has masked unparalleled scoun-
drellsm. until the terms have lost their primary
signif eanee and become By words In the mouth
| OF generation.
Bot despite all this enginery Of malIgnity. all
this subterranean strategy. all this cool, cruel.
systematic perversion Of the powers Of popular
government TO the destruction of popular
| rights.
| RADICAIIsM HAS STEADILY LOST GROUND
| until the last election proved that IL bad sunk
| from two thirds majority Of the popular vote
In 1877 10 3 minority Of 900 Ia 1873. losing
control Of the Senate as 1t had already lost that
Of the House. and holding control OF the Exeeu-
tive only by sort Of sufferance. based upon
the queer theory that crimes which are rated
felonies when applied to the ordinary affairs OF
men. become virtues when applied to the SUBJ
version Of the popular will at large and the
theft Of Presidency.
Il has been said that crime and rats breed
every ak weeks. Thus We find a so-caIled
President holding his tenure By virtue Of felo-
MES which. II they had been exercised upon Mr..
/ Tilden's pocket-book as hey were upon his
rights az President-elect, would have landed
both the thieves and the receiver Of the goods
In the nearest jail thus we find this sort Of a
President engaged In prosecuting the honest
people of the country. The two laws under
consideration form the instrumentallties OF
this persecution,
THE TOOLS EMPLOYED ARE
Tristan Attorney General who. when be
left the bench In Massachusetts,. was an hon.
ored man, but whose mental and moral System
mas ass Pesh II bs mofb Sy II rsnd ns1
jury and forgery In which be ts compelled 10
live and move.
Second
EEvY OF JUDGgs
one of whom long since made his name tBondl
synonym 10 Of a that is unf air. u0Iudictai, par
tisan maagnan, base snd erne n4 Il ahetasf me astr er
! and put upon the bench ny mistake for an ln-
! ebriate asylum: and third who. having run
the dirty gamuL OF louisiana carpet oagGeEys
took the degree Of A. NJ in the college Of gnlsEy
ring sneak thievery, and was appointed Fsa-
eral District Judge n Louisiana on
, that he would keep Grants relatives anu Irienos
Third-A gang Of carpst-baggeFs: s scaaWaes afb,s
az al aa noIitjcaI VINO being banished from
the occupations TO success 10 WnIcn some sofs
Of social status is prereqa isn s e ~ers saaen uD
{ and made district attorneys anu niafSaals VI.
. And fourth and last
HORDE OF PROFESSIONAL PERJURERs.
who nractiee as grand Jurors or petit Jurors
nr a. yituesses % indict or convict their rsspec-
tabae nafohbOrs fnrerchangeabiy according 70
.6S eon nvsnieucs Of the unique regime under
-bteb nv some mystSI tOu5 ni=pensafton OF
Providence. the american people manage 70
5 4 This Will serve as a suecinct descriutfon Of
z tha pIan, the matsItdl and the nsodaGs operdadi
I nv when Radicalism. IN lis last hours is con-
: irving to make tne scenes about its deathbed
as hdeous as the incidents OF its strong life and
; activity in other days have been revolving.
|. THE PRESIDENCY
whieh Grantism filed with Ioathsome ulcers
2 has become putrescent In Hayes.
,fss the corruption F q the flesh IN Landa1is lie
osseous structure tertiary 10 Devens-
Instead of midnigh- orders 10 drunken Du
rells for the subversion Of State governments
y we now have secret Instructions after prayer
2 and psalms at the White House 20 beastly Bill
:, lingses for the issuance Of let'res de cdchet.
8 But It is not possible 10 describe this regina
e | in words. pen gifted with the seorn of Vol
4 taire the invective OF Maeaulsy. the sarcasm 9
h Carlyle. and the cont-mpt Of Beaeansdeid al
fused In one impossible mastery OF the art 9
word painting, could no more do Ius tiee 20 tni
case than sehoolboy could copy one of Tur
: ner's eonfagr rations with piece OF ehareoa
u upon board fence. It Ia simply the su6lima
ton of all that Ii low base. vile. cruel and Gov
ardly In human nature grouped II an adm nl<