The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1866-08-03
More Concerning the New Orleans
Riots.
Special TO the New York Times.
New ORLEANS, July 80.

disconnected dispatches relative to today
fearful carnage, and now propose to give
Won more connected account. | only
write what | can substantiatc On the best
authority. The Convention met ut II
O'Clock, twcnty-Six members being pre-
sent, Judge L. X. Howell, since missing, in
the chair. II. King Butler, also missing.
moved ali adjournment OF an hour, during
| which time the sergeant alarms was dl-
| rcctcd tocompel the attendance of abscn-
tees. The hall was dcnsely packed with
freedmen and whites, the former having
armed themselves extensively since their
; Fridays demonstrations. just after the
adjournment, procession containing about
hundred freedmen, carrying United
States flag, and marching the streets with
martial music, arrived at the Institute,
! having had slight disturbance on Canal
street. At this iuncturc the merchants all
over the city, fearing the coming riot,
closed their stores. When the procession
! entered the building, squad of police fol-
lowed, and attempted to make arrests. y
! scene of the widest confusion followed :
pistols were fired, clubs and canes were
| used, and brickbatS flew in every direction.
| The policemen claim that they were merely
attempting to arrest the Canal street riot
ers, above mentioned; but certain it is that
they mounted the platform, where u small
! body of the members yet remained, and
one of them presented pistol upon their
using offensive language. The policemen
were finally driven out of the building,
leaving inside Governor Hahn, Judge
Howell, Mr.. Dc Costc. and other gentle.
men, with Clark, attached to the State
government, beside about fifty freedmen.
Fortunately, Governor Wells had just
left the building for the purpose Of con-
shifting with General Baird about calling
out troops, General Sheridan being ont OF
town,
! The institution used now rs the State
capitol is located in Dryadcs street, be-
tween Canal and Common, and when the
! policemen were driven ont, they were met
! hv large body of freedmen, who caused
! them 10 fall back to Canal street. Hiring
furniture cart. used it as an obscrva-
| tory on Canal street, looking toward Com.
! mon through Dryades street. The police
men rallied, and drove the freedmen and
their friends back 10 Common, and, i'll
turn, were driven back to Canal street,
! leaving DryadcS street perfectly clear ot
any vcStigc Of humanity except the bodies
Of three dead freedmen. Up TO this time
one police officer had been mortally
wounded, one severely others We're slightly
hurt with clubs and pistol ShotS. Police
reintorccmcnts soon appeared in Canal
street, and the crowd OF rioters accompa-
nying the police approached the Institute
and commenced throwing stones through
the windows and firing pistols at any one
they could see inside the building. At the
same time, 4 detachment of police attacked
the crowd Of freedmen on Common street.
and after sharp firing, and woundinG scve-
raj Of the blacks, they drove them away.
This gave the police and the mob which
accompanied them full control Of Dryadcs
/ street.
4 tirc-cnginc was brought out and placed
in front of the Institute for what purpose
| do not know. Several attempts were
made by the police to enter the hnilaing,
but they were repulscd. The ammunition
Of the men inthc Institute seemed 10 give
ont about this time, a> they did not lire any
| moro. They attempted Ia escape through
! the rear OF the Institute into Baronnc street,
, but were met, and either arrested or shot
down. They also tried to escape through
an alley which runs from DryadcS to
! Baronnc, on the Canal street side. | do
not know that any freedmen succeeded in
! getting away from the building alive,
although | saw several at distance from
it being marched 10 police headquarters.
| think that every one who tried to escape
from it was killed, and saw several brought
in the alley aforementioned and after
they fell | saw crowds of rutiianS beating
them rs they were dying.
! The policemen, whatever their orders
were, behaved well toward the white pri.
soncrs, comparatively speaking. \. VI
! Fish was the first member Of the Convcn-
tion captured, and AIN happy 10 say tha,
although the police could not prevent the
crowd from abusing him badly, they did
J keep him from being lynchcd. \ man
mounted lamp-po>t I'll Canal street as
Fish was being carried hy under guard, and
got a rope ready 10 hang him, but the guard
drove the crowd away with their pistols. The
next member arrested was Captain Haynes
4 Texas scout for our army during the war
The crowd had been taught a lesson, and
did not interfere with him, although they
grumhlcd deeply as he passed through
calling them rebels, traitors, and other pet
names.
Governor lIahn succeeded in getting into
the hands of the police unllurt from ouI
of the building where he had been, not a.
a member, but as one of the most promi
nent equal rights men in the State. While
he was under guard, however, some COW
ard shot him through the back of the head
inhictng 4 dangerous wound, and he was
also stabbed. He was then placed in a hack
and carried to police headquarters, where
saw him sent into confinement. He wa,
very pale, and the blood trickled down hi.
face from q wound which seemed 10 have
reached his left temple.
Mr.. DoStic, who had the reputation o
being the most violent negro-sufiragc mar
in the South, and who certainly was the
most violent speaker on Friday last, was
killed while attempting 10 get away. | am
told that policeman shot him in the back
and that after he fell crowd jumped on
him and cut him horribly with knives.
John Henderson and other members o
the Convention were also captured, and
were wounded-by stray shots, the locaI
papers say, but more likely by cowardly
riotcrs-while on their way to the station.
house.
The riot commenced at 1915 and ended
at $3.50 o'clock. At 2:45 o'clock the mill.
tary, under General Baird, appeared on
Canal street, and finally took possession Of
the whole city. Before night the riot wa,
confined to Dryades, Baronne, Common
Carondalet, and Canal streets, and the
buildings and yards all around the Insti.
tute. | saw freedmen shot dead on all ol