Omaha daily bee., 1889-09-11
THE LOUISIANA PLAN.


men who went down TO tho Third con-
gressional district OF Louisiana to assist
the republicans there in the recent
election for member OF congress, had
an interesting experience of the demo-
cratic method OF campaign in thatquar-
ter. There is really nothing very new
in what they saw and heard, for SOUTH
ern democratic intimidation and vio-
lence are repeated at almost every
election, but it is none the less
important that this latest evil
dence OF the spirit and meth
DDS OF the southern democracy shall
receive the widest publicity. 1t is de-
sirable that the country shall be given
the fullest possible Information as to the
way in which citizens are deprived of
their constitutional rights in the south,
and the rule Of the minority is ihain-
tanned in localities OF that section by
means of the revolver and bludgeon.
One OF the visiting congressman TO
Louisiana is Mr.. Rowell, of Illinois, and
in apublished interview that gentleman
gives some of his experiences in
the Third district OF that state.
Personally he and his associates
we're we'll treated, but they immedi-
ately discovered that their errand was
a hopeless one and that republican de-
feat, although the republicans are in a
majority in the district, was certain.
cratic regulators were thoroughly Or
ganized and were actively prosecuting
their work of terrorizing the colored
voters. 1t is the testimony of Mr..
Rowell that in numerous parishes
these voters were being whipped
and otherwise intimidated, while
the democratic speakers were
persistent in inhaming public
sentiment on the race issue. Mr..
Rowell saw the lacerated body OF the
colored United States supervisor, who
had been brutally whipped by the reg
ulators, and he states that he was in
Franklin when a colored man was
whipped by regulators for distributing
republican tickets among the colored
voters. There were daily reports OF sim
liar occurrences from the bulldozed par
ishes. Almost every white demo-
crat carried q revolver, and the
shooting OF Jacobs, the white re-
publican deputy sheriff, was
done, Mr.. Rowell says, simply because
he was attending to his duties as a
sworn officer of the law and endeavor-
ing to protect voters In their rights.
Such was the condition of affairs that
enabled a democratic minority to elect
its candidate to congress by about five
thousand votes over the republican cam
didate. IL is but one of numerous ex-
amples supplied by congressional cleo
tions in the south, suggesting and Civ
ing warrant to the demand that there
shall be legislation looking to the
prevention OF such wrongs against the
whole people and such violence to our
political system. 1t is experience like
this in Louisiana that will sooner or
lafer compel the most conservative to
agree to course on the part of the
government that will at least insure
the rights OF the majority in the cleo
| tion of representa- tatives in congress. 1t
| may not be possible to solve the race
problem by legislation. The pr eju-
dices OF men may be curbed
and restrained. by law, but
they can not be removed. There
is the power IN the govern
ment, however, to compel obedience to
its laws or punish those who will not
obey, and if it is to stand without i'm
pairment of its functions and its au-
thority, without losing the confidence
OF the people in its ability to protect
them, without surrender of national
sovereignty, such outrages as those in
Louisiana cannot much longer be
tOlerated