New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1879-01-24
THE LOUISIANA ELECTION.
ClIrSEs or ITS RESULT.

60, ,.rrcr,t CORRESPONDENT or THE TEGBrNEl
Nrw-OMrANs Jan. 1G-Nhen the political can
,os. -, Lonisiena opened last FAN, the Republicans
were hopeful Of q peaCcah'e campaign ana laIr
election There had been quiet and good feeling
h,,,l,out fine State for nearly two years, and the
two races had got along amicahly together IN u'H
industrial and social relations. The Nichols Gov
orpn.nt had been more partisan than was expected
and had ccGpcratcd with the extreme Democrats
in the Legislature IN objectionable schemes l"r
excluding the Republicans from The management
of local affairs 10 which they were fairly eEuIl'u'
still il was generally believed that Its promises To
maintain law aud order would be kept so far az TO
insure the people faIr orderly election. lnlS oe
lief orcasoncd Il very full registration. me num-
berof whites registered WAS 1881, ana OF '"ioIeu
1.ote,. = 123 There was hut one state oihcer {"
elect-tlc TreaSurcr-bUt congressman, membeT'o OF
the LEGISLATURE and parish officers were 10 "e
chosen so the canvass was an important ore
Accor iup 10 the best evidence the relative str hSl
ofthe Republican ard Democratic parties Is about
the same as that of the two raccS-'oJ iha' Inc
color Inc is absolutely the hne between rartIe''
bnt the small number Of colored men VolinH me
Democratic ticket Is count !ba'anc'd by 'he small
number Of white, voting the R.puhhr@n U'-rt' AT
the canvass of SIS the Republicans had Che assist
ancc of two new party movements thr N",''l"'
ond the Workingmcus, winch dew about 1000
in the City of Now-Odcans. Il would
howcvcr. be far TO estimate that 'r
cnori. of the whites to "control' co'otec
voters by persuasion or threats made good Z" the
democrats this loss. The reasonable exp cf"ti"n'
- vii! hc seen from the above premises, WAS jha'
the tvo old parties would hc pretty evenly balanced
nj the election: but The returns, n exhibited by Inc
Secretary OF State. show very DIN rent result
Burke Democratic candidate for Secretary OF Hta'c'
received 7~I76 votes. aud Gardner, Republican
capd,d1to. ONLY 35.IGI. The candidates Of the
miuo, factions po.lcd about 5000 votes. Thus
a. appears that the Democratic vote cx-
cpcdcd the registration OF whites by
nearly 900 WbIc the Republic can vote fell
below thc registration OF coiorcd men about $1,000
These ii cures speak for themselves. Til" negroes
in many PARISHES after registering with the IAN Ill
tcntion of voting. were inundated, or II they
voted their votes were not counted. Nearly one
half Of the colorcd voters OF the state were pIac-
tcally DISTINGUISHED
An attomp, has been made to explain away these
significant figures by referring TO the yellow fever
epidemic, which to some extent disoiIahlH'"
eoclctY and iutcricrcd with the REGULAR
prosecution Of the political canvass, bat it
j. fact universally known tia; tie whites
are i,uel more liable to he attacked by the fever
than the hla Ks aud as the full white vote was
pocd in spite OF the pcst!iencc, the ialng-oii on
the black vote must Dee due to some other causes
The investigation Of the Teller Committee has
thrown light upon these causes. II has shown That
they wen, of four general descriptions: expulsion
of Rcpubcan leaders and destruction of Rcpub-
lean examinations rs in NatchitochcS Parish;
hanging, shooting aud raidng 10y large
bodies of armed men under prctence Of
oncllpg negro rising, as in Tensas and
CoDcoriia threats terrorism ana ritc clubs as in
Caddo. and election tricks and frauds Is IN Orleans
and The method was raised 10
huit the locality, hut the purpose was the Sanc-t0
prevent the Republicans from obtaining The political
power TO which their voting strength entitled them.
II should not be understood, however, that mtim-
fdatJn and fraud were praclIsed III all parts OF the
State In many parishes the election seems to have
been honest Twenty Republicans now SIT III the
lower House of the Legislature eighteen OF whomaIc
colorcd men. TINS fact alone shows tnat IN some
3oralltir, race antacouisn l. not carried TO such
mitch q, 10 induce tic whites to resort to unlawful
mean, 10 exclude the bla, * from political power
j think an examination OF tie returns would show
that the parishc, which returned cOOrcd repre-
srntaiivrs last Fail and elected Repnbhcan parish
officers. were mostly those where the whites are
French crcolcs. The Latin races have no such
strong antipathy to the negro rs seems 10
he inherent III AngO-SaXon character. In
fermarrares legitimate Iilcglimatc, be
tween tho French crc'ics in Louisiana
and persons of variou7 degrees Of negro blood have
ALWAYS been frequent, and many Of the wealthy
creole famlic, could not go back far i'll their gene
ology without finding a trace of African ancestry.
The section. where the French population is strong
est are the SugargTOwng regions, and there the poor
white element is almost wholly wanting and the
community is composed of the planters and Their
laborcr, and few hundred people engaged IN trade
and the professions III the country towns. These
parishes ia have been conceded to the Repnb-
Ncans There was 10 bulGozing element to
cali in and the planters were not the sort
OF metz to resort to election frauds. In the cotton
country. however the situation is different /
Where cotton grows, corn houri,hos, and corn !
country IN the South always sustains, beside the
rich laudhOdeTs aud the negroes. a poor white |
population With larger white population there !
are more towns and more crossroads groceries, |
where the Young men cOngTcgato TO drink |
wluskcy. pitch QuOts and curse the negro. !
The material for bull-dOLing mob Is al !
ways 10 bo found in such country. As /
an election draws near, the feeling Of race !
autagonism is intcnsii I'd. the reckless young white
men organize themselves into semi-mlhtary c.m-
panic and ride about the country troops 10 at |
tend the meetings Of their own party dispense !
those OF their opponents, aud thus working them /
selves up into state of contagious excitement they
come is look upon the poor negro, who at other I
times i, their faithful friend and heir sole depend
encc for the cultivation Of the fields. enemy /
" lGm Il i, heroic to attack
All the parishc, lying above Red River were,
without exception, if am not mistaken carried by !
the Democrats last Fail. They are all cotton and
corr regions and the white population is similar TO
that a.! Mississippi and Alabama. Ia more than half
of them the ucpiOcs considerably prcpondcratc ana
wouid have given Republican naioriles il they tad
been hermit to vote a. they desired and their
VOTES had been fanny couatcd. Had the election