The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1871-11-25
Louisiana Items.

days ago in our town, the aged and Vcnera-
BILE patriarch Of Calcasieu parish, Michel
Pi!on. Michel Piton was born in Savoy,
was a courier in the campaigns of Napoleon
I, and as such took part in the disastrous
retreat from Moscow, and since then led a
life of adventures, with which many of our
citizens are acquainted. He is o settled
at Lake Charles, in the parish of Calcasieu,
where he has one of the finest orange groves
in the State. Mr.. Piton is ninety-eight
years of age and is in the full enjoyment of
all bis mental faculties, having a vivid and
distinct recollection of the mostdistant trans
actions in his e~ventful career; he has good
health and daily walks nine or ten miles.
In passing through our town he is on his
way to visit his native land. Our best wishes
accompany him in his voyage Lafayette
Advertiser, Nov. Is.
At this term Of the Court came off the
long standing cases of Charles Davis 4 ais,
for burglary in various stores of our town,
and arson on the office of our worthy cltl-
zen, NJ. E. Girard, Esq. 81 He was acquitted
in one case, and in the other, wherein he
was tried, there was u mistrial but Mr..
Charles Davis, perhaps, thought law and
lawyers were too slow, or that law might
be too rigid in the end, and, with a regular
desperate Baldini spirit, on last Sunday
night between the hours of 7 and 8 o'clock,
after having unshackled his fellow prisoners
and taken off the locks of the in and out
door of the cell, unaided by bis comrades,
who. finched in the attempt, made a sortae
on the guard of the Jail, stood the fire of the
guard in the shape of three loads of buck
shot, and made his escape. His whereabouts,
nov, are not known. lie is a daring and
dangerous character and should be guarded
against in all adjoining communities. lie
has been a curse to our parish and will be
so in any other, to which he may move.
We are sorry to notice that IN this daring
attempt to escape, Evariste Tino, one Of the
prisoners, was killed-de mortuis nihI nasl
bonum. In our next issue we will in full the
evidence in thceAe:-[Lafayette Advertiser,
Nov. IS.
Frank Blair has taken a very strange po-
sition in politics. lie says the New Dcpar-
ture has ruined the Democratic party, and,
therefore, they should meet in convention
and nominate a Republican for President in
opposition to Grant. Blair himself is a
very heavy load to carry, and if we put him
to dris the wagon, we are certain to break
down.
Many influential papers of the old Demo
cratic school, as the St. LOUIS Republican
and New Orleans Times, are advising the
simple dissolution Of the party, whereby,
they say, the Democrats will ally them
selves with the Liberal wing of the Rcpub-
licans, and thus defeat Grant, This is in
deed a far better scheme than Blair's and is
nothing but a coalition between parties now
differing but little only in name. The Radi-
cal Republicaea is quite a distinct animal
from the Liberal. The first would continue
our punishment as defeated enemies for ever;
the second would relieve us of all disabili-
ties, and cure US of our spleen by kindness.
Carl ScburZ, the Dutchman, now leads the
Liberals. His reputation has become so
great, that his friends are proposing a Six
teenth~ amendment, allowing foreigners to be
President in order to give him the posi-
tion.-[Bossier Banner, Nov. II.
TERRIBLE SToRM.-On last Monday a tre-
mendous hurricane passed over the planta-
ton of Mrs. Thomas Pugh, near Napoleon
vile in the parish Of Assumption, blowing
down the pLrgery and cooling room, in
which were some 40 h%ogsheads of sugar,
part of it in the coolers, the cane shed, part
Of the overseer's house, stable, corncrib,
several cabins and other buildings, killing
one man and ~iniuring Sc, eral others. This
gale did not do any other serious damage
in the vicinity. The sugar making was
going OF at the time, and it is wonderful
that no moro persons were killed. The
wind in this parish was severe occasionally
but we have heard of nothing serious having
been occasioned thereby.
Since writing the above we learn from Mr..
D. B. Pugh some further particulars Of this
singular cyclone. 1t was formed in front OF
the residence and did not travel more than
20 arpents and was about 200 yards wide.
The venerable Madam Pugh was standing
on the front gallery, with her hand upon a
heavy wooden bench. The old lady was
lifted up and carried very nearly 100 feet
before striking the earth, and escaped with
some severe bruises, whilst the bench was
smashed into a thousand pieces. One white
and one colored man were instantly killed
and two others will probably die from in
juries received. Several were caught within
the falling buildings and miraculously es-
capped. ri r0.-
A small roof extending from the main
building to the bagasse burner was carried
some 40 or so yards killing q man in its
course.
The walls of the buildings overthrown are
flat to the ground. The cyclone apparently
passed around the Engine and boiling room
which received no injury.-[Thibodeaux
Sentinel, Nov. Is.
From the best information we can obtain,
the yield of sugar during the last 10 days
has been much better than the previous
yields. We hear of several planters who
are obtaining two hogsheads per acre, whilst
others not getting more than from three
quarters to one hogshead per arpent.-[Thi-
bodeaux Sentinel. Nov. Is.
ST.. LANDRY CoNDEMNING LAwLEssNEss.-
One hundred and four intelligent and res
pectable citizens of st. Landry, including
men of all parties, have united in signing
the following call which is published and
heartily endorsed by that liberal and con-
sentative paper, the Opelousas. JOURNAL,
and we republish it to commend:
To properly understand this call, it is
we'll to remark, that three years ago we
used our humble efforts in the columns of
Of the St. Landry Progress, to secure a
union of citizens for the same purpose, but
the mob element was too strong, and as the
result we were compelled to fee the parish.
We rejoice, therefore, not over a personal
vindication alone, but at the fact that a
commanding number of our former op-
ponents should have the sagacitv and man.