Year: 1871

Importance than any mere political ques-
tons involved; TO be of direct interest to
all the people of the country, and to COM
plicate in no manner the President or the
national administration with either party
in this contest. We further submit, as
members of the great political party of
which you, the President, is the acknowl-
edged and honored leader, that in politi-
cal and party view, the action of Messrs.
Casey, Packard, Lowell, Joubert, Stock
dale and Herwig, all United States officials,
in driving the Republican party to a formal
disruption, and in using their official power
and patronage to this end, is a grfeyous
wrong TO the interests of the Republican
party, which has outraged and injured it
throughout the whole land; by which they
have forfeited the confidence of a large ma
jority of the party, and which demands
that their places be filed by less unserupu-
lous partisans, and more discreet and
judiciOus men.


We submit further, that the action of the
convention, which we have the honor to
represent, in retiring from the menacing pres
ence of armed United States troops and
marshals, and from a locked and barricaded.
United States Customhouse to an open pub
lie hall of the city, and there organizing;
and, in repudiating the aspersions and I'M
authorized assumption OF power made
by the Customhouse members of the
central committee. have been heartily and
entirely indorsed by fourffths of the Re
publican party of the State; that in making
this statement and request which we have
been instructed to present to you, we speak
for the large mass of the Republicans in
the State: that if tho United States officials
in Louisiana are permitted to wage war,
with the aid and patronage of the United
States government, upon the Republican,
party as organized under the lead of the
convention which we represent, the result
will probably be the loss of Louisiana to tho
Republican party, the success Of the Demo
cratic party, and the practical unioing of
the whole work of reconstruction in that
State.


We do not ask the President to take sides
with either party in this contest. We do
ask him not TO allow his name and official
patronage to be used as it has been, for the
purpose of a faction. If he will remove
these men for violations of law which they
have committed and appoint any good
Republicans in tn II places, leaving them
free, personally, to take which side they
please in issues of State policy, but only
prohibiting them from using the United
States patronage on either side, we pledge
the President that our party organization,
aided by the State administration and un-
impeded by federal officials, will elect both
the State and national Republican ticket
next year by a majority of $4,000.
The President frequently interrupted the
reading OF the document by comments,
which occasioned animated discussions be-
tween him and the members of the dele
cation In the most emphatic manner he
dlsavowed having given any authorization
for the use of the troops. To the remark of
| = delegate that Packard had claimed to be
acting under the highest sanction, and that
teiegrams had been sent to Washington,
asking for instructions, the President re-
piled that he had received no such tele-
grams. In fact, he was unaware of the
troops having been employed until it was
published in the newspapers.


General Reynolds, in his written report
to the government, claimed that he was
ignorant of the use to which the troops
were to be put The delegates were unani-
nous in ASSURING the President that unless
the authors of the outrage were punished,
the State of Louisiana was irrevocably lost
to the Republican party. Only by the re
moval of tie offending officials could the
public indignation excited by their conduct
be appeased The President assured the
delegation that strict inquiry should be
made into the truth of the charges and
suitable action taken in case they were not
disproved.


The interview throughout was of cor
dial character, and the delegates seemed
favoraby impressed by their reception and
treatment.