Pointe Coupee Democrat. [volume] (False River [i.e. New Roads], Parish of Pointe Coupee [La.]) 1858-1862, 1859-09-03
Another Jail Delivery.

i'@S hfSAt jan, "A1 W
~stillsat large.
For The last eight years it has been
the constant custom Of the Grand Jury
of this p2risf, 10 report to the District
Court the unsafety and i~nsalubrity OF
the jill, and the Court invariably order
ed 4 copy Of the report to be served on
the To'iue Jury. But all this has proven
to be unavailins. The jail remains in the
lsamc unsafe and uninhabitable condi-
ton.
On Saturday last, after the conviction
Of the slave William, the Sheriff desired
to transfer all the prisoners to the Jail at
San Francisville; but it required all or
der from the Court, which could not be
obtained before the following Monday.
But ere that day had arrived, William
had taken his leave of absence, having
10 desire to emigrate to "the other side
of Jourdan." Since then, the Sheriff
and his posse have been constantly on
the search, but to no purpose,
Hence in this part of the parish, we
are at the present time almost in a state
of Instruction. A convict is at large;
another slave accused of a capital crime
remains unapprehended: we hear that
on a plantation a slave attempted to
strike the overseer with an ak, but was
prevented by receiving the discharge OF.
a u in his body; on another planta-
ton, another slave fired q pistol at his
loverseer. Such is the state OF society
in which we now live. And during all
this time where are the patrols, organ
lied by law to protect the lives, the
homes and the property Of the citizens,
as far as it is in their power:
At least an attempt should be made
not to allow SO many slaves to ride to
and fro at every hour Of the night, car
rying their plumber with them. Though
it is against the law for slaves to own
horses, yet here most of the negroes have
them in their possession, and call them
their own by q free use of them. Such
things will have to be stopped. or else
it will be cur painful duty to record such
deeds as those which have taken place
during the last few weeks.
But let us return to the subject Of our
parish jail, a place unfit for a human be-
ing to live in for 9 single hour. Ina
CINE, reader, a ms confined in an iron
cage fifteen feet square, placed in a
room twenty feet square, with a cement
floor and damp brick walls. In that
dungeon, the only aperture for the in
gress Of pure air, is a small door, open
ii day time but closed tightly during
the night, and a small hole near the
ceiling of two inches in breadth by Gf-
teen inches in length,-imagine that hui
man being confined therein, with three
or four others, without distiction Of sex
or color, inhaling the staunch Of that
dungeon! and what would you give for
his health after a month or two of con-
inement2
Such is the jail prepared for the re-
ceptien of any person who should unfor-
tunately commit an infraction Of the
laws, and ordered by an honest andshon-
orable Judge to remain in safe-keeping
to abide a speedy trial and the sentence
Of the law.
Such things ought not to be allowed
to exist, no matter where the fault lies.
It is enough for a prisoner to be deprived
Of liberty, without being deprived Of the
the light Of heaven and a pure atmos-
pherc. This at least is free, and should
be refused to no human being, no matter
how base and stepped in crime he may
be.
Whose fault is it then that such nuts.
ance should be allowed to exist? This
we know, it is not the fault Of the PEG
pie; for they are taxed freely, and thcil
pockets are made to bleed at every pore
for the public good. Appropriation af
ter appropriation have been made by
the Police Jury, to repair the Coar1
House and jail-a monument at mos