LOUISIANA. 



483 



deprived the people of the State of an opportunity 

 of bringing to trial the Chief Magistrate or the State. 

 i-li:iix'rd witli lii^li i-rimr.s und misdemeanors, and 

 \vitli rruniiiul neglect und violation of his official 

 duty. 



jfaolwd, That the members of the Senate, bavin? 

 formed and expressed their opinion that the said 

 accused is entirely innocent, are disqualified from 

 now sitting in jud-ninit on the trial of the impeach- 

 ment, and that this House cun proceed no further 

 in tin- premises, and are powerless to resent this fla- 

 grant outrage upon right, justice, and decency, and 

 can only relur the matter to the people of the State 

 for their consideration. 



The same day Governor Kellogg sent a mes- 

 sage to the Mouse, replying to the several 

 charges contained in the fourteen articles of 

 impeachment, and concluding as follows : 



In these fourteen frivolous accusations are concen- 

 trated all charges of wrong-doing which a majority 

 of the House of Representatives, actuated by the 

 strongest feelings of partisan enmity, have been able 

 to ooucoct against me after fifty-nine days' session, 

 innumerable investigations, and the utmost scrutiny 



of the records of the State, even by going behind 

 the barrier of the Wheeler adjustment. 



Only one other accusation has been made against 

 me, namely, that in a time of revolution, of great 

 public exigency, 1 sanctioned a temporary diversion 

 of the State funds, which could not and did not re- 

 sult in the loss of a dollar to the State, and took thia 

 course solely in the public interest, and to protect 

 the property of the city. 



If the Senate had not already acquitted me of high 

 crimes and misdemeanors, the accusations passed at 

 this late hour would have formed in themselves a 

 complete assertion of my official rectitude. Added 

 to this, I refer to the notoriously and often-repeated 

 propositions made by Democratic members of the 

 Legislature, and others authorized to speak for them, 

 that if I would secure the passage by the Senate of 

 the House election bill, and certain other laws to 

 further the partisan ends of my accusers, no effort 

 would be made to impeach me. 



I submit that these facts of themselves fully jus- 

 tify me in asserting that my accusers did not and do 

 not believe me to have been guilty of high crimes 

 and misdemeanors against the State. 



The delegates of the Democratic party of 





NEW OBLEAH8. 



the State to the National Convention at St. 

 Louis were appointed at the convention held 

 in New Orleans, on the 5th of January. (For 

 the platform and other proceedings, see ANNUAL 

 CYCLOPEDIA, 1875.) The State Central Com- 

 mittee, which was chosen at the same tim'e, 

 had a meeting on the 10th of February, and 

 issued an address to the people. The follow- 

 ing extract illustrates the spirit with which the 

 canvass was opened : 



The time for decisive action has arrived. The 

 issues are few in number, and simple in their char- 

 acter. The course is plain and straightforward. 

 There must be an honest government in Louisiana 

 a iState the fairest among all her sisters or Louisi- 

 ana, burdened with debt, exhausted by taxation, and 

 suffering from the supremacy of ignorance over in- 

 telligence, will become a colony for convicts and the 

 home of depravity. The people, for whom this 

 committee speaks, are resolved, in this centennial of 

 their liberties, to test the relative strength of intelli- 

 gence and ignorance. They will use no violence, 



but all the means hi their power will be employed to 

 defeat the further rule of tne vicious and ignorant in 

 this State. Happily, the people are united in advo- 

 cating these demands, ana this committee, as their 

 organ, promises an earnest canvass to secure their 

 rights. What remains to be done, is the perfection 

 of the Democratic Conservative organization in all 

 parishes of the State where action has not been 

 taken. 



The following resolution was also adopted 

 by the committee : 



Whereas, It is apparent that the radical party in 

 the State of Louisiana, despairing of success by fair 

 means, have resolved to pursue the same policv by 

 which in the post they have been enabled, against 

 the wishes and voice of a majority of the people, to 

 secure possession of the government of the State, 

 and by the aid of Federal bayonets to retain the 

 possession thus fraudulently and violently obtained ; 

 and 



Whereat, It is evident that they have determined 

 at every cost to perpetuate the Returning Board, 

 which has heretofore done so much to render futile 



