The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1895-10-26
COFAx GRANT PARISH "A sAupnAv oToprn o. ,oo :

- - AAS - a AVAO -
Law and Order VS.. IRRESPONSIBLE
Leagues and Cliques.
We find the following remarkable lei
ter in the Demands of last week:
Pollock. L.. Oct "A, 1895.
Editor People Demands:
In the Last iseae ct the Colfsx Chronicle nc
tice the Editor b. g. Goodwin 10 on his head i
am member. Am glad that M. Goodwin hs
done % much good ~ the parieh in reportin
| yiolatos. 20 he says. He Gays there is no nee
for calling our meetings secret and star s cham
Dor methods. We leave Il to anybody that want
e SO the law enforced il We deserve the name
We are , w,liins to let our work g before an
| even crltlcise it - he has done. Ifor one know
why Mr.. Goodwin il kicking and can assure hin
We expect to help enforce the Law, matters NO
VINO u laiie on. He for one ought to be the las
one to kick. - he claims to 81 law abidinI
c1tisen. A. Tor nerve there 10 men in our Leagu,
mat has more nerve in one minute than he ha
Jury and report yiolators. but do it open snc
above board, and will continue to do 90. W.
don't want any controversy with Mr.. Goodwyr
work ye expect to FIRE back at him every time
Law abiding citizens are not afraid of Law and
Or9er Leagues, therefore We hope NJ. GOODWIN
Thanking you in advance for the space m youl
valuable paper. remain. J. e. WALKER.
Our friend says he don't want any con.
troversy, but he has a very poor way o:
showing it, when he gets his back up ia
such high dudgeon and deliberately
provokes controversy because a public
naidiscusses public affairs. Now, we
do not know, nor do we care. who is the
head and front of the Pollock Law and
Order League. We consider it an i'm
proper organization in law abiding COM
munity, and believe the majority of the
people in this country will sustain us in
the proposition.
1t is altogether foreign to our desire to
parade our individual and personal acts
beforethe public, but. since our statement
of facts is questioned. we will give our
fellow-citizens the opportunity to judge
between the method this editor has pur
sued, and that OF this boasted law and
order league. So we mention some of the
cases referred to-. Upon it's becoming
necessary to put down the liquor traffic
in this community, this editor on his own
responsibility went before Esq. A. L.
Grow and swore out affidavits against j.
v. LeSage, S. M. Lacroix. Sam Burton
and John Ingram, and had them put un-
der bonds to appear at district court.
Also, we went over into ward two, where
'ur friend Walker lives, and by way of
'etting him a good example, swore out
IN affidavit against j. X. McWilliams, for
illegally engaging in the liquor traffic.
All these parties. we believe, were indict-
ID by the grand jury, and in every in
tance their traffic in whisky was stop
'ed, by the legally constituted authori- |
iea, and at moderate cost to the parish. !
Now, please contrast the difference in |
n our method of enforcing the law with |
hat of those who compose this vaunted |
eague. After all their fuss and feathers,
4 swearing in twenty or thirty men, for
he purpose of "upholding the majesty of |
he laws" land for self protection) they
ave shut up two or three whisky shops,
fter two or three men had been killed,
nd at cost to the parish of thousands
{ dollars. And yet, we are told. there
re several places at Pollock and along
cad, where whisky is still being
old, in. defiance of law, and in the very
ace Of the league.
Some of the acts of the league" as re-
orted to us, are prefectly farcical and
idiculous in the extreme, to say nothing
their illSgality. They pretend to hold
sgular trials and prnceed under the
'rms Of law. when they haveno authori-
: under the sun, and their acts instead
beng Official" are simply "officious,"
nd they are guilty of breach of the
W when they arrogate any such right
: power to themselves.
No, friends, your league is mistake;
ut we are perfectly free to say that we
slieve you were honest and intended to
It for the best. You are an aggregation
irresponsible citizens. not under bond,
no propose to do the work assigned to
hcers of the law, duly elected, qualified
nder bond, and sworn to perform the
Try work you arrogate yourselves. As
tizens. in private or in mass, you have
le right to assist the officers, but not to
restall them in the discharge of their
tiles. There ia no need for your leac,1e
or legally constituted authorities, aided
I'd assisted by all good citizens, are will
G and amply able TO enforce the laws
this country. All such organizations
Q foreign to our institutions, and con- {
airy and subversive to law and order.
hey should never be resorted to, unless
q law has first been appealed to and ]
und to be totally inadequate. It is but
step from such organizations into mob ,
". oppression and violence. The days .
I Ku-Klux, White Cappers, Knights of
q White Camelia, and all that, have
mo- aince uasaed. and vhile vo,,r T .naor,o !