ALABAMA. 



turpitude in tins transaction, they induced Senators 

 of their own political faith to charge on a majority of 

 this Senate a willful purpose to take away from the 

 colored man his liberty, by enacting stringent laws 

 against the crimes of larceny and burglary ; while the 

 record as well as the statements of Senators, show 

 that these measures were supported by several Ee- 

 publican Senators who signed said memorial. 



How laws punishing the crimes of larceny and 

 burglary, applicable to all parties irrespective of race 

 or color, could be construed to operate upon the Ee- 

 publican party more oppressively than the Demo- 

 cratic party it is difficult to perceive, in the absence 

 of an admission that there are more thieves and bur- 

 glars in the Republican than in the Democratic party. 

 The statements made to your committee show that 

 the memorial forwarded to Washington does not ex- 

 press the sentiments of a single one of the Senators 

 whose names appear attached thereto. As to some 

 of them, a palpable fraud seems to have been com- 

 mitted in tne use of their names. As to these Sen- 

 ators so situated with regard to the memorial, your 

 committee feel that they are the victims of designing 

 men and are to be excused rather than condemned. 

 As to those Senators whose names were actually ob- 

 tained on false pretenses, while they are not to be 

 condemned for any malicious attempt to defame their 

 fellow-Senators, they are censurable for allowing the 

 use of their names without first obtaining informa- 

 tion of the contents of the paper signed by them. 



This memorial is unjustifiable in every respect in 

 which it can be regarded. It is false in its inferences 

 and allegations. It is a libel and a slander, and its 

 perpetrators should meet with the scorn and con- 

 tempt of all honest men. 



The report was adopted, and, shortly after, 

 resolutions were passed declaring that " where- 

 as, in the opinion of the General Assembly of 

 Alabama, Hon. George E. Spencer does not 

 rightfully occupy a seat in the Senate of the 

 United States as a Senator from Alabama, a 

 joint committee to consist of two Senators and 

 three members of the House of Eepresentatives 

 be appointed to investigate, examine, and re- 

 port to the two Houses of the General Assem- 

 bly the facts relating to his alleged election as 

 Senator, and the means by which such election 

 was procured, and his credentials as a Senator 

 were obtained." 



The committee were empowered to sit dur- 

 ing the recess of the Legislature, to send for 

 persons and papers, and examine witnesses 

 under oath, and were required to report the 

 results of the investigation together with all 

 the evidence taken. Their report was not 

 made during this session of the Legislature. 



A joint committee appointed to examine in- 

 to the affairs of the Auditor's and Treasurer's 

 offices reported that everything was found to 

 be regular and satisfactory, except so far as 

 related to the drawing of three warrants for 

 the payment of interest on the public debt, one 

 for $228,000, one for $221,180, and the other 

 for $35,346.76, making $484,346.76 in the ag- 

 gregate. No evidence was found that this sum 

 had been appropriated to the object for which 

 it was drawn. It was found that a debt of 

 $441,733.50, due to the financial agents of the 

 State, and incurred by Governor Lewis, had 

 been paid in part by the sale of $260,000 of 

 bonds issued in 1873. The balance of this 

 debt, amounting with accrued interest to $243,- 



297.13, was settled by the payment of $25,150 

 in cash and the giving of a note for $227,203.15, 

 now past due and unpaid, secured by the hy- 

 pothecation of $228,000 in bonds. In this 

 transaction was traced the use of $253,150 

 credited to the payment of interest. It was 

 further found that the payment reported of 

 $260,000 of hypothecated bonds had been 

 effected by the purchase of the bonds at 60 

 cents on the dollar, and paying for them in 

 new obligations at par, making their cost 

 $150,000. From this it appears that no part 

 of the $484,346.76 was legitimately used for 

 the payment of interest, and that $75,196.76 

 remained wholly unaccounted for. The trans- 

 action is condensed as follows : 



1. Money was drawn from the Treasury for the 

 ostensible purpose of paying interest on the bonded 

 debt, and was otherwise used. 



2. Bonds were purchased without authority of 

 law. 



3. Funding obligations were used in purchasing 

 bonds in violation of the act under which they were 

 issued. 



4. The sum of $75,196.76 was used in some way 

 not disclosed by the records and papers in the Treas- 

 urer's office, in which vouchers and papers for dis- 

 bursements ought to be filed. 



It was also found that an unreasonable 

 amount had been expended for stationery, sup- 

 plies being purchased in New York at two or 

 three times the cost at retail in Montgomery. 

 Another committee appointed to inquire into 

 the use of the contingent fund reported that it 

 had been used very lavishly under Governor 

 Lewis, and in some cases illegally. The Gov- 

 ernor had himself been paid $800 for services 

 while visiting New York, and $800 for ex- 

 penses in traveling in Florida and New York, 

 and his private secretary had received $1,600 

 for services in distributing bacon donated by 

 Congress to the people of overflowed districts. 

 One W. H. Smith had received $500 for ser- 

 vices in Georgia, the character of which could 

 not be ascertained, and the State Treasurer 

 had been paid $1,200 for expenses in visiting 

 Mobile and New York. These were a few of 

 the items showing the extravagant use that had 

 been made of the contingent fund. 



A new act to regulate elections was approved 

 on the 3d of March. It designates all the 

 officers to be chosen by an election of the 

 people, and makes elaborate provision for the 

 conduct of elections. Three inspectors and 

 one returning officer for each voting precinct 

 must be chosen by the judge of probate, sheriff 

 and clerk of the circuit court of the county or 

 any two of them, at least thirty days before 

 the election. The inspectors and clerks are re- 

 quired to take oath for the truthful perform- 

 ance of their duties, and are placed under pen- 

 alties for any violation of the law. Although 

 every voter must be registered after taking 

 oath as to his qualifications, the inspectors are 

 required to make a list of the persons voting, 

 writing down- their names and the order in 

 which their ballots are received! Any quali- 



