LOUISIANA. 



r.-iird nil tlio books, records, property, etc., 



../ t Ihrir oUif.-s and diiti.v-). 



I'. II. SIIKIMhAN. 

 \-l.j. -(Jon. 



A]']iliratiuii was thereupon madti to the 



nt of th States by Governor 



and others for the revocation of tin; 



order. The Secretary of War then di- 



! :i su-peii-ion of all further proceedings 



, and :i report of the facts at tli<- 



be commander of the Fifth District. 



M! Sheridan replied to this demand by the 



. inj,' telegram : 



HEADQ.CTARTBR9 FlFTH illl.TTARY DISTRICT, I 



NEW ORI.EANS, LA., June 8, 1 867. f 

 The Hon. . M. Stanton, Secretary of War, Wash- 

 ington, D. C. : 



Sn: : I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt 

 of your telegram of this date in reference to tlio 

 Levee Commissioners in this State. The following 

 were my reasons for abolishing the two former Boards, 

 although I intended that my order should be suffi- 

 ciently explanatory: 



. ious to the adjournment of the Legislature last 

 \vintir. it passed an act continuing the old Levee 

 Board in office, so that the ($4,000,000) four millions 

 of dollars in bonds, appropriated by the Legislature, 

 might be disbursed py a Board of rebellious ante- 

 cedents. After its adjournment, the Governor of the 

 State appointed a Board of Ms own, in violation of 

 .1 made the acknowledgment to me in 

 person that his object was to disburse the money in 

 the interest of his own party by securing for it the 

 vote of the etnployds at the time of election. The 

 Board continued in office by the Legislature refused 

 to turn over to the Governor's Board, and each side 

 appealed to me to sustain it, which I would not do. 

 The question must then have gone to the courts, 

 which, according to the Governor's judgment, when 

 he was appealing to me to be sustained, would require 

 one year for decision. Meantime the State was over- 

 i . the Levee Boards tied up by political chican- 

 1 nothing done to relieve the poor people now 

 the charity of the Government and charitable 

 associations of tne North. 



To obviate this trouble and to secure the overflowed 

 districts of the State the immediate relief which the 

 honest disbursement of the ($4,000,000) four mil- 

 lions would give, my order dissolving both Boards 

 was issued. 



I say now unequivocally that Governor Wells is a 

 political trickster and a dishonest man. I have seen 

 him myself, when I first came to this command, turn 

 out all the Union men who had supported the Govern- 

 ment, and put in their stead rebel soldiers, some of 

 whom had not yet doffed their gray uniform. I have 

 .in !'.'_':un, during the July not of 1866, skulk 

 .vhere I could not find him to give him a guardj 

 ! of coming out as a manly representative of 

 the State and joining those who were preserving the 



Eeace. I have watched him since, and his conduct 

 as been as sinuous as the mark left in the dust by 

 the movement of a snake. 



I suv airain that he is dishonest, and dishonesty is 

 more than must be expected of me. 



P. H. SHERIDAN, 

 Major-General U. S. Army. 



On the same day the following order was 

 i"ii. d. removing Governor Wells from the ex- 

 ecutive chair of the State: 



Special Orders, Jfo. 59. 



llr. vi... r \i:r; M Firm MILITARY DtsiniCT, | 

 NEW ORLEANS, LA . 17. ) 



{Ertrart.} * His Excellency the 



Governor of Louisiana, J. Madison \\Vlls, having 

 made himself an impediment to the faithful execution 



Of tho Act of CongreM of March 2, IMJ, by directly 

 and indirectly impeding tho general in command in 

 the faithful MEMO) luw.ia hereby removed 



from tho office of Governor of Louisiana, and Mr. 

 Thomas J. Durunt appointed thereto. 



Mr. Duraiit will bo obeyed and respected accord- 

 ingly. * * * * 



By command of Maj.-Gon. P. H. SHERIDAN. 



Gxo. L. HAKTSUFF, A. A. G. 



Mr. Wells addressed a letter to the command- 

 in-- general, protesting against his removal, in 

 which he accused that officer of being actuated 

 by personal enmity, both in the present instance 

 and in his past relations with the Governor of 

 Louisiana. The President of the United States 

 also received a telegram from the ex-Governor, 

 earnestly protesting against the action of 

 General Sheridan " as a usurpation of power 

 on his part to gratify a feeling of personal 

 malice." This telegraphic dispatch was followed 

 by a written protest bearing the same date 

 (Juno 4th), which contained specific denials of 

 ( icneral Sheridan's charges, and requested that 

 tho case of this removal be referred to the 

 Attorney-General, who then had under con- 

 sideration the question of the removing power 

 of the district commanders. 



Thos. J. Durant having declined the appoint- 

 ment of Governor, Benj. F. Flanders was ap- 

 pointed in his stead. The next day the follow- 

 ing order was issued by tho district commander. 

 It explains itself. 



HEADQUARTERS FIFTH MILITARY DISTRICT, [ 

 NEW ORLEANS, LA., June 7, 1307. ) 



Mr. J. Madison Wells, ex-Governor of Louiiana: 



SIR : General Flanders has just informed me that 

 he made an official demand on you for the records of 

 the office which you have, hitherto held as Governor 

 of Louisiana, and that you have declined to turn 

 them over to him, disputing the right to remove from 

 office by mo, which right you have acknowledged 

 and urged on mo up to the time of your removal. I 

 therefore send Brevet Brigadier-General James W. 

 Forsyth, of my staff, to notify you that he is sent 

 by me to eject you from the Governor's room forcibly, 

 unless you consider this notification as equivalent to 

 ejection. 



P. H. SHERIDAN, Mai.-Gen. U. S. A., 



t Commanding Firth Military District. 



The office was given up, and Mr. Flanders 

 entered upon his duties without any ceremonies 

 of inauguration whatever. On communicating 

 to General Grant the removal of Wells, General 

 Sheridan said: "He has embarrassed me very 

 much, since I came into command, by his sub- 

 terfuge and political chicanery. This necessary 

 act will be approved by every class and shade 

 of political opinion here. He has not one friend 

 who is an honest man." Two days later, on 

 announcing the appointment of Mr. Flanders, 

 he adds: "I think yon may not hereafter have 

 any anxiety about the condition of affairs here. 

 The backbone of the trouble has been broki-n 

 by the removal of Wells." Again he said, on 

 the 8th of June: 



General Flanders assumed the duties of his office 

 this morning. He is a man of intcirrity and ability, 

 and I now feel as though I was relieved of half my 

 labor. As it has heretofore been, there was no sacu- 



