The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1868-12-23

lQ-ChleL Oh all GIl0 EESlCu anu H0SIO
military forces. When the Jacobins
in Paris saw the mistake they had |
made with their premature emanci-
patton proclamation they revoked it
and declared the negroes all slaves
again. 1t was too late. TousSaint |
EOuverture, placing himself at the |
head OF the negroes and mulattoes, |
declared the independence of Hayti. |
The effect of the proclamation had |
been to rob many of the c0lonisLs of |
their lives as wei as their slaves its |
revocation cost the French Govern
ment its colony, and second massa-
ere put an end to the whites Who had
not fed to inaccessible mountains.
Bonaparte, in 1902, sent his brother-in
law, General LIE Clerc, with an army
of q, 900 men, to put down the insur-
rectiOn, and after a time Toussaint
was captured and sent to France, and
England became involved in the war
as the allies of the negroes. General
LIE Clerc and part of his army died OF
yellow fever others periShed of Starv-
alton, and the remainder, some 5000
men, under General Roehambeau,
surrendered to the British Admiral
DuckwOrth. Thus was the French
army defeated, not by the emancipa-
ted slaves, but by the climate and the
English naval forces. The defeat of
the French and the retirement of the
English left the island in state OF
anarchy. The negro army was dI-
vided into factions in the interest OF
numerous self-made generals, and at
once began quarreling and hghtlng
with each other, until the black gen
eraI Dessalines, in 1904, declared him
self Emperor of South Hayti under
the name of James l.
Dessalines was a native of Congo in
Africa, imported as slave when very
Young. and afterWard employed in
pottery. At the beginning of the IN
surrection against France his COM
rades made him a general, in which
| position he fought under Toussiant,
| whom he betrayed to the French.
| After his assumption of the title of
I Emperor he invited all the white in
| habitants who remained concealed in
! the mountains to return to their
| homes, promising to protect them.
| When, however, the unfortunate peo-
pie, trusting to his word, again took
| possession of their homes Dessallnes
| marched his soldiers at midnight To
the houses of the whites, entered them
by force, and put the whole white
/ population to the sword. With the
white population eXterminated and
the blacks having nothing else to do
for it must be remembered that during
this time all trade and industry had
been at a stand still-the negroes and
mulattoes came to blows, and under
Dessalines' reign executions of the
latter were of daily occurrence. The
outrageous conduct of the blood
thirsty tyrant at length became nc
longer bearable, ahd mulatto Gen
eraI named Petition conspired to have
him shot. The Emperor marched II
1906 against General Christoph, a ne
gro who had revolted in the north
and when leaving Port-au-Prince {
discharge of musKetry from his owl
soldiers stretched him dead on th'
road, on the Pont Rouge, two mile
, from Port-au- Prince. No inquiry
was ever made for the perpetrators
no one cared to know; the corpse wa
, insulted and mutilated, and then car
, ried to his town dwelling, which wa
pillaged by the soldiers, and his wife
: the unfortunate but innocent Empress
| was left a beggar. This ex.empress
once considered the most beautiful c
: negro girls, and generally known a
: sIIa Belle des Antilles, I" was a yer.
! worthy, kind hearted. benevolent an,
{ intelligent woman. She saved the lif
: of many hundreds of both-white an
= colored persons whom her husban
! had ordered to be executed, giyiu
4 them secret notice or assisting theL
4 with money to escape. Professor Ja
| ger visited her in 1927 in compan
: with the French COnsul-General, N
l Malere. She was occupied at the tim
z in making soldiers shirts for living
s She related to him several anecdote
| I,,zE@o-A N -
: teresting of which was IN regard
3 the method he employed of riddin
: himself of the numerous Ofhce-seel
i ers who troubled him day and nigh
/ The bare footed, half-naked sans CT
= totes, his former comrades, addFesse
q themselves to him after a mannt
o even more familiar than the America
saying:
r, :cNir. Emperor. I have come to as
d YOU for an office"
?, ''Well, my friend, J" his-wOolly heaC
a ed majesty was accustomed to repl.
r EI will give you one with great plea
& ure if you are acquainted with II
h Latin language as required by II
n laws of the government" The resu
L can be imagined by the general pul
II lie or fully tested by General Gran
d if disposed. After the death of De
d salines, General Petition established
n republic of which he became the fir
to President, being elected by pluFali
,e of negro votes. When he cOmmen6C
a. his administration, the governmel
In civil and military fnnctionarleS, con
8, posed of mulattoes and negroes, form
n ed two antagonistic parties, each e.
r deavoring to control the poor, veal
to minded President. The negro par
le being the stronger, Petition general
e. favored it, but at the same time
or came a perfect tool in its interest, A
ne bitraFy arrests and prosecutions f
Il. lowed. and every one not fqll-bloo
IN ed negro soon came to be considered
NJ traitor. There was no such thing
he personal security under such a mis-
al able government thefts, robberi
er and assassinatiOns- were commit
er day and night. The President hi
q, self on rising one morning found
he had been robbed OF his money, all
a. clothing, boots, linen, sword, and h
of the black officers of his body-gua
Ii were known to be the thieves, J
TX Petition had neither the courage
NJ accuse them nor to claim his oV
again; he merely remarked, good
- moEedly, s.Certainly, the poor fello
oI were in need of the articles" Faili
I to command respect or obedience, pC
# Petition eventually died, 1913,
I'I sheer chagrin as was supposed, Il
- ~ Madame Dessalines assured PrOfes
L JeEer that he voluntarily killed hi
:, self by starvation.
bic On the death of Petition the inte
he gehce, military Val6F and honesty
M Jean Pierre Boyer secured his elect
ne as President of Hayti for life, with
is. annual salary of 100000; this reu
en- neration, however, he generously
lu- elined, being, on account of his " ca
ty, in no need of it. Boyer was stud
his in ParIs when the emanclpatioI
{a- the slaves was announced, and b
loR tened home to save what he could
the his father's property. His father '
rs; a French planter and his mother
Of African, He Joined the army
ath ToussaInt and fought through
her seyera! revolutions until his elevat
the at the age of forty-five to the Pr
len denoy, His Arm and decided ghaI