The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1880-02-27
THE sPOFFORD-KELLOGG CASE.
of the Seating Of sponord
Especial to the Picayune.l

WASHINGTON, Feb. 1.-THE briefs
of counsel in the case of Spofford
versus Kellogg are about being filed,
and the report Of. the, Senate COM
mittee will soon be made. The ar
gument of Mr.. Merrick, counsel for
Spoford, is in substance as follows:
The proceeding is analogous to q
motion in court Of chancery to
rehear q case which has been decided,
or to bill of review to revise q decree
after it has become final ON the ground
of error in law and newly discovered
evidence. The argument on the legal
and constitutional question of the
Jurisdiction of the Senate to revise
Kellogg is very full, and after. estab-
fishing the existence of the jurisdiction,
the justice eandimpOrtance of Exercising
it in this case is discussed. : fip: -!
The position is made to rest upon
these grounds:
I l. That the Packard Legislature
was not the Legislature of the State,
but an organized conspiracy, one of
whose objects was the election of
Kellogg. ~" +t
2. That kellogg directed and through
Lewis j. Souer and others acting in his
behalf kept the conspiracy alive and
kept the members of the. organization
together by payment of money and
promise of official patronage.
3. That Kellogg bribed at least
him. .. $3.50. .... -.. ..a
In support of the first position it is
shown that there never was quorum,
of duly elected members in either
House, but that the men who COM
posed the two Houses obtained their
certificates by the frauds of the Re-
turning Board, to which frauds it is
shown that Kellogg was party, and
under this head the report of the COM
missioners sent to New Orleans by the
President in the spring of 1877 is used
very effectively. The second and third
points are shown to be fully sustained
by the evidence, and the testimony of
Lewis Souer himself is confidently
relied on. It is shown that members
of the the so-called Legislature, after
making afhdavits that they had been
bribed by Kellogg, were appointed in
the Custom-House and when on the
witness stand, whilst admitting that
they had made such afidavit and
knew what they were swearing to,
stated that their af6davits were false
and admitted that they had lied.
Whether they lied when making the
afhdavits or lied when testifying, is a
question which must be determined
by the circumstances. These circum-
stances are grouped and the conclusion
is inevitable that the witnesses told the
truth when making their affidavits and
were bought to lie when put on the
stand. 1t was shown that of the eighty
three men who voted for Kellogg thirty
six have been appointed in the Custom
House, one is Consul at Kingston,
Canada, and one is Postmaster at New
Orleans, whilst the Sergeant-at.Arms
of the Packard Senate is Collector of
Customs at New Orleans, and that
nearly all of these appointments We're
made in the Custom-House since the
present investigation was initiated.
They were evidently made, as one of
the Custom-House men said, to keep
the members from squealing on KEEL
logg. That Spofford will get the seat
if Kellogg is to be turned out is
conceded, and there seems now to be
no doubt that kellogg will be made
to go.