The New Orleans crescent. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1866-1869, 1868-05-03
The De.,. OF 81. clair. the Colorea Orator.
[Bassrop Ia) Dispatch, April 2Ith.I

lBsstrop Ia) Dispatch, April 2ith-1
The news of the death of st. Clair, the colored
orator, who was sent among us by the radicals OF
Monroe and vicinity to hsrsngue our colored pop
ulation, has doubtless gone forth to the world,
touched of In regular radical style. In order that
the thing may be properly understood by all low
ers of truth, we will give the particulars Of his
death, prefscing the whole by what occurred in
this place before the event.
On Monday, the 18th inst, In accordance with
previous wide. spread notice, be spoke on the
steps leading to the court house square in this
place, to some five or six hundred negroes, gath
cred from all parts of the parish, who came. many
of them around, to listen 10 his speech. His style
and dctien were good, showing himself far better
educated than one in thousand OF his colored
brethren. but full Of vituperation towards the
whites, of whom many things were calculated to
chafe and irritate. Among others, be let fall the
following sentences" that slavery was dead and
buried in the grave OF treason and rebellion-he
thanked God that he was better than any rebel
he would call no white man master, not If he
should put pistol at his head and command him
TO do so-that the affairs of government could not
be intrusted TO traitors and rebels-told the ne
groes to always do the reverse OF what the whites
urged them to do, and it would be sure to be
right-that the Warmoth ticket had on it the
names of the men TO be trusted-that voting that
ticket would give them all the privileges OF white
men, etc., etc. He was allowed to talk all this
nonsense, well calculated to inflame his ignorant
hearers, uninterruptedy to the end our people de-
termining not to have difficulty grow out Of the
OemOnsudllon. Inere was anOtnef cOioreo yeH-
aenGn accompanying him, who likewise attempted
q speech IN moDgrel French and English.
On the 10th inst, st. Clair left here and went
into the upper portion Of our parish In company
with o negro preacher living here, calling himself
Henry Simms, for the ostensible purpose of maxi
ing another speech at Lind Grove. They went
above the village some mile or two, and spent the
night with another negro. Returning the next
morning they met with Mr.. j. 7. Payne, liv-
ing in that vicinity, who was going up the road
with his double barreled shot gun. He had been
hunting wild turkeys that morning, and had no
idea of such man as St. Clair being in the neigh
borhood. When Mr.. Payne met them. he first ac-
costed Henry simms, and inquired where he was
from, etc., TO which he politely replied, and
passed on, and then meeting st. Clair just be-
hind him, lie made similar inquiries. st. Clair.
according to the testimony OF Simms, and the
statement of Mr.. Payne, seemed highly insuted.
and par ticularly when he asked him with whom
he was living, etc., turned his horse across the
road and commenced drawing his pistol or at
tempting to draw it. The pistol caught In the
holster, in some way, Snd Mr.. Payne called to
him to put his hand down, which he did not heed.
Sill making the effort to get it out, Mr.. Payne
fired, the whole load taking effect in his side, and
killing him instantly.
These are the facts as we have them detailed BY
those who heard the testimony. both before the
jury Of inquest. and the magistrate, to whom
Payne delivered himself up to be tried. he was
acquitted and set at libery, having acted In self
defense. In addition TO the above, II was in evil
dence that st. Clair said the night before that he
expected TO be killed, and that he did not care q
d-n and that he intended to insult the first rebel
he met. So much for his rashness. st. Clair was
from Massac husetts, and was born free, and edu-
Gated at some Of the best schools and colleges in
the State, and amongst white men, so he informed
his hearers in his speech. He had been for some
time past teaching a school Of blacks at Monroe,
Louisiana,