Year: 1874

A few days after the conferepo'


committees perfected their agreemen


relative to the conduct of the election


and the composition Of the Returning


Board, the Democratic State Com.


mittre issued an address to theil


party which seemed intended to pal.


late and excuse the part they had


taken in the conference, aud was Sc


grossly at variance with the spirit OF


the adjustment arrived at that Gov,


Kellogg felt called upon to give the


gentlemen who uttered tho document


rather severe lecture, which he does
in the following letter addressed to
chairman Mari on the 9TH inst:


Hon. r. II. Mari, Chairman Democratic


State Central Committee: ' ..'r


S1R-I have just read with surprise
and regret, the address of the coln-
mittee Of which you are chairman.


The occasion Of your address is the
announcement of your acquiescence
in the proposition with regard to the
method of holding the coming cleo
tion recently agreed to in conference,
both BY the Republican State Central
Committee and by your committee.


| ask you to contrast the manner
and spirit in which this proposition
has been received and acted upon by
these committees respectively.


The Republican committee, actu-
at.d by spirit which was naturally
supposed to inspire such measures Of
adjustment, refrained from any al
lusion to recent occurrences in this
city and State, and abstained from
any denunciation of their political OPP
ponents. In your address you take
occasion to recapitulate the old char
ges of oppression and corruption
brought against the Republican party
and the present State government,
Notwithstanding the uncontradicted
and incontrovertible statements in
my published address of the thirticth
ultimo show that the present State
government is not responsible for
either the present State debt or tax
alton, but has reduced both, and al
SO show that for most of the debt and
taxation of both State and city tile
Democratic party is directly account
able. r.-


You complain that the police juries
in the parishes are swelling the taxes,
but YOU fail to state that the taxes
are highestiu some Of the Democratic
parishes. You assert as reason for
the recent disturbances that We have
engaged in.inciting hostilities between
the whites and blacks, and that arms
had been and were being furnished
the latter. This emphatically deny.
and challenge you to produce any
proof to sustain the assertion. On
the other hand, you are fully aware
that large quantities of arms have
been shipped to this State for the
purpose Of arming the whites against
the blacks, with view not only to
the colored people, but
also to overthrow the constituted au-
thoritics of the State. But, perhaps,
the most extraordinary statement.
in your address is the fol-
towing:


"Hence, the presidential procla-
nation was no sooner heraldcd but
he referring to myself managed to
inaugurate conferences to adjust the
A committee of conference
by him met a similar COM
mittee selected by Governor McEnery
and Lieutenant Governor Penn"


So uncalled for, 80 groundless is
this statement, that | can not for !.
believe that those who repre-
sented your party in the committee
of conference were consulted before
this publication was made.


was not present when acommittee
from your side first called upon Mr..
Packard and others at the Custom
house, directly after the events Of
the fourteenth of September, though
was much gratified at the prospect
which the conferences SO held seemed
to offer to fair registration and of
IN election uninf1uenced by violence
or fraud. This l have
from the first desired and still earnes-
tly wish to see. took part for few
moments, by invitation, at two or
three of these discussions, entered |
into with this object i'll view, but the
that | managed to in-
augurate conferences is entirely
untrue, as is also the assertion that / |
selected the committee who acted in |
behalf of the Republican party.


l refrain from saying more on this
point, except that l and my friends
will faithfully carry out the terms of |
the agreement we have entered into,
which ! desire to remind you was
strictly confined to matters of regis
tration and election and | trust Your
party, who virtually assumed the re-
sponsibility Of the violence and in
tlmidation heretofore existing in the
State, will carry out your part of
agreement, by suppressing the same.


In your address l perceive you say +:
90 We merely pledge ourselves to
lend Our aid and influence. to urcSerye