Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1868-11-20
NO 8
A Notable Example Of a Heightened
Southern Gentleman.

a notable Example OF nlgn-E0neQ
Southern Gentleman.
In his history of General Buffers
administration in New Orleans, Mr..
Parton relates the following:
One Sunday morning while General
Butler was seated at the breakfast table,
Major Strong, gentleman who was
not given to undue emotion, rushed in
to the room. pale with rage and horror.
t't4eneraI, y he exclaimed, ,''there is the
most damnable thing out here ~
The General followed him into the Of
fee. There he found the staff assem-
bled, standing round a woman, gazing
on her with flashing eyes, their coun-
tenances betraYing mingled pity and
fury. The servants of the house were
croWding about the doors of the room.
The woman wha was the object of 50
much attention was nearly white, aged
about twenty-seven. Her face showed
at first glance that she was one Of those
unfortunate creatures whom some saw
ages regard with q kind of religious
awe, and whom civilized beings are ac-
custOmed to consider peculiarly entitled
to tenderness and forbearance. She
was simple-minded. Not absolutely an
idiot but imbecile, vacant half silly.
"Look here, General," said Major
Strong as he opened the dress of the
poor creature.
Her back was cut to pieces with the
internal cowhide. It was all black and
red-red where the Internal instrument
of torture had broken the skin, black
where it had not. To convey an idea
of its appearance, General Strong used
to say it resembied a very rare beef
stake, with the black marks of the grid
iron across 1t.
No one ever saw General Butler 80
profoundly moved as he was while gaz-
ing on this Pitiable spectacle.
"Who did this ?" he asked the girl.
"Master," I" she replied.
"Who is your master?"
"Mr. Landry"
Landry was "A respectable merchant
living near headquarters not unknown
to members of the staff.
'What did he do il for 2'' asked the
general.
wash, F" said she, "and I staid out late.
When came back, master kicked me
and said he would teach me to run
away"
''OrderIy, go to Landry's house and
bring him before me-"
In few minutes Landry entered the
oftce-a spare tall gentleman of fifty
five.
''Mr. Landry" said the general, ''this
is infamous. The girl is evidently sim
pie. It is the awfulest spectacle ever
beheld in my life.'
At this moment Major Strong whis-
pered in the Generals ear piece of in
formation which caused him to compare
the faces Of the master and the slave
The resemblance between them was
striking.
"Is this woman your daughter?" ask
ed the general.
Landry.
The insolent nOnchalance OF the man
as he said this, so infiamed the'rage of
all who heard il that it needed but a
wink from the general to set dozen
infuriated men at his throat. The gen.
eral merely said,
81 am answered, Sir"
The general for once seemed deprived
of the power to judge with promptness.
"He remained for sometime" says an
eyewitness, apparently lost in abstrac-
expression of his face. had been ae-
cUstOmed to see him in a storm of pas
sion at any instance of oppression or
hagrant injustice but on this occasion
he was too deeply affected to obtain re-
liefin the usual way. His whole air
was one of detection, almost listless-
ness his indignation too intense and
his anger too stern TO find expression
even in his countenance.
Never have seen that peculiar look
but on three or four occasions similar
to the one / am narrating when I knew
he was pondering upon the dreadful
curse that had cast its whitening blight
upon all around, until the manhood
and humanity we're crushed out of the
people, and Outrages such as the above
were looked upon with cOmplacency,
the perpetrators respected as worthy
citizens, and that he was realizing
the great truth that however man might
4 4. L =
vantage Of faVorite idea or sagacious
policy, the Almighty was directing it
surely and steadily for the purifica-
tion Of our country from this greatest Of
national sins.
After sitting in the mood I have de-
scribed, the general again turned to the
prisoner and said in quiet subdued
tone of voice:
f'AIr Landry, I dare not trust myself
to decide to-day what punishment
would be meet for your offense, for /
am in that state Of mind which I fear
would lead me to exceed the strict de-
mands of justice. I shall therefore place
you under guard until conclude upon
your sentence"
The next morning came troops of
Landy's friends to tell what an honor
able, what high toned, what an ami
able gentleman Mr.. Landry was, and
how highly he was respected by all
VINO knew MIN. L44Sy SalQ ne uaQ 4hu
his losses the war had half ruined him;
his friends had observed that he had
been irritable of late, poor man and no
doubt he had struck his daughter hard
er than he had intended. his wife and
his other children came to plead for
him. A legal gentleman also appeared
to see what could be done in the way
of argument.
General Butler decided the case thus
Landry should give his daughter her
freedom and a thousand dollars.
Being in mortal terror Of Fort jack
son, he gladly complied with these
terms.
The poor girl went forth that day a
free woman and a trustee was appoin-
ted to administer her little fortune and
see that no further harm befelI her.
It was light penalty for such
crime I wish the general had treated
the case a la WelLiTgton- n-rung for three
poles and a rope and had the wretch
hanged that Sunday morning in the
nearest public square. God and man
would have applauded the deed and
there would have been no more wo-
man-whipping in New Orleans while
the flag or the United States hoated
49,