The Opelousas courier., 1892-04-09
Political Robbery.
/, o. Times.Demoorat, April S,


last night by the Foster majority of the
committee of seven to disfranchise
nearly 5000 Democratic voters of the
City of New Orleans, and by that
means TO steal the nomination from
Gov. McEnery and bestow 1t on Mr.,
Murphy j. Foster, is one of the most
| flagrantly iniquitous decisions on rec
ord. It is political outrage of the
most atrocious character, devised and
executed in the interest of q rebellious
| faction of the Democratic party, and
perpetrated In utter disregard not only
of Justice but of common dccency
There was neither irregularity nor
fraud to speak of in either the 9th
or the 9th ward of Orleans there
was neither irregularity nor fraud
in either of the three contest
ed wards of so fagrant a character
or of so extended dimensions but that
the polling boxes could easily have
been purged of it, and the honest votes
counted for the candidate for whom
they were cast and there was neither
irreguarity nor fraud which was not as
fully participated 10 by the one set Of
poll commissioners as by the other.
In the country parishes, like Sabine
and others, in which irregularities
and frauds were committed of quite
as gross nature as in New Orleans,
there was no throwing out or attempt
to throw out entire polls. The polls
were purged of the fraudulent or irregu.
lar votes, and the remainder of the bal.
lots was counted for either the one
ticket or the other. But in these
country parishes, where the frauds
were mainly discovered, the majorities
were in favor of Foster; and the Fos-
ter majority of the committee of seven
did not see Its way to throwing ont
these entire polls, as their candidate
would have suffered in the process.
That is the reason, of course, that
one line Of action was adopted by the
very honest committee of seven 10
counting the votes of the Foster coun
try parishes. and the opposite line of
action adopted in counting the Nc
Emery city wards. The majority of
equity and of principle. to count in
their man, and they We're not over
| scrupulous or nice as to the means by
which they did it. All they wanted
/ was pretext, under shelter of which
they could enact the egregious wrong
which they contemplated and the cry
of ''fraudn in the wards referred to an
swered the purpose as we'll as anything
else.
A Not the least black and ugly part OF
the whole thuggish performance was
certainly that in which Chairman
John S. Young conspienlousiy figured
with regard 10 the ballot box in the
first precinct of the sixth ward. Mr.
Young, who, throughout the whole
count up to Sunday night, maintained
an appearance of judicial impair
, tiality, as well in his manner
as in his rulings. stopped Meessrs
Boatner and Jonas, it will be re
, membered, when they were proceed
! ing to prove that there had been M
, fraud in the balloting in the precincI
} and ward referred to. He told then
that no fraud had been charged agains
the polling 10 that precinct, and that j
was unnecessary for them, therefore,
to undertake to prove a negative. Ant
vet at the very moment when th'
+ IEtldlIElRu was kA4ibS tnouh esSS~A
ance, be must have had it IN his mind
as he was lulling them into state Q
security, to throw out the entire pol
: against which he was forward to tel
d them that there was no charge Q
= fraud. No colder blooded piece Q
!. rank treachery than this on the part o
/ Chairman Young is recorded since th
D days of King David, when .Ioab, unde
the guise Of solicitonsness for th
9 health of Amaea took hold Of that war
J, rior BY the beard as TO kiss him, ant
{ with his sword smote him under th'
,fl fifth rib 80 that lfa died. The traach
q cry OF Joab las re- enacted by Chaii
]. man John 8. Young toward Messrs
q Boatner and Jonas.
e The conduct of the chairman, as
Il came out at yesterdays session OF To
Il committee, equalled 10 atrccfty tn
acts Of Thos. G. Anderson and Madiso
Wells.
% II cannot be forgotten by US, n
by ten thousands OF Democrats in th
State. that Mr.. Foster has obtained II
j nomination over a man whose sllo'
] latcllee he is not worthy to unloose, 3
r. precisely the same methods by Wtle
e Rutherford B. Hayes conveyed Il
le Presidency from Samuel ] Tllden
la 1876.