The Meridional. (Abbeville, La.) 1856-1906, 1880-07-31
The Third Congressional
District Nomination.
A LETTER FROM GEN. BILL1U.

A LETTER FROM GEN. BILLIU.
From the New Oceans Times.
THIBoDAux, La. July II, 1880.
find in your issue of the 10th
Inst, resolutions which purport
to have been adopted by a mass
Injecting held in the parish OF st.
Martin on the 18th inst. and also
a letter from Mr.. j. II. Acklen,
in which his great generosity IS
sought to he made manifest to the
voters of the third congressional
district.
The resolutions charge in
substance
|. That my nomination as can
didate for the third congressional
district was irregularly made IN
what respect or particular, how
ever, is not stated, save in a gen.
eral way.
2. That | wrote out and sign
ed, without authority, credentials
for person in St. Martin parish
who were not delegates ; bnt The
resolutions are not clear whether
the charge applies to credentials
!, for the State or for the congress
. sional convention.
:, /. I was regularly nominated
bv a convention which Mr.. Ack-
len openly recognized as being
regular and authorized. The
nomination was unsolicited on my
r part. Mr.. Acklen was the first,
e and for may weeks the only per
son in the district to complain of
u nv nomination. When | was
reliable informed that he propos-
ed to contest my nomination to
the bitter end, and had rented
parlor P of the St. Charles Hote'
:, for his headquarters, and had
= secured a full force of clerks, sc
as to carry on his d~isinterested e.
y warfare against me, | realized
that his reckless course nigh.
) imperil Democratic harmony .aht
:. success in this congressional dis
n trict ; and | at once addressed
letter to the Hon. r. N. Sims, o
d Donaldsonville, chairman of GU
w congressional committee, expires
= sing my perfect readiness to sui
d nit to any action the committe
n might deem proper to adopt il
er the premises.
~ Mr.. Sims reply stated that n
=. one complained of my nomination
except Mr.. Acklen, who wa
bormd by his admission, made il
to open convention that the CONVEX
ton was regular and had fu]
authority to nominate. This Ut
qualified admission was made i
presence and within hearing c
~ the self same delegates who con
a posed the convention by which
ce was honored with the nomin,
10 ton.
2. IF it be implied that | wrot
On out and signed credentials for S
Us Martin parish. to be used or while
Us, were used, in any COMPRESSION;
us convention to further my int
ests, | have to say that the il
putation is untrue.
At the personal solicitation
~ honorable gentlemen from S
&c? Martin parish, | wrote out crede
ess tails for that parisl. and cmbodit
it's such names as were dictated to m
of | have no knowledge whatev
that those credentials were ust
even in the State convention.
go, Those who know me know f,
Mt. well that | will not stand in Il
bio way of Democratic harmony
success that my interests r
'oe nothing compared to those Of II
ons people, and that if a new conve
Of ton be necessary [ would
led the last to oppose the calling
r. snch a convention.
In the meanwhile I assured
people Of St. Martin that | ha
de- no petty personal ambition to 81
nix, serve, but that on the contrary
n chief ambition is to advance
material interests Of the people
all occasions by every honora'
est means. and always without wiz
on. ing to court notoriety | MI
hat also assure them that [ would
oro far prefer the shades of obscur
rather than ! should ever be c.
c'ai yicted of having so much as TT
ted passed upon the rights of the hu
and blest individual, to say nothing
her a general onslaught upon the rig
of a whole community.
/ beg you Mr.. Editor, to p
eho' fish the foregoing, although
comes after the trial and con