The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1873-04-26
The origin Of Those Arrests.

vi Iile CoulpLdInt Oh LOUIS Allomand an(
taken to New Orleans last Wednesday
The Marshal went to their homes anC
simply notified them, and they promised
him that they would be at the boat be.
fore it left on Wednesday morning-ex.
cept, of course, the one in Texas. They
arrived at OpelOusas on Tuesday, anG
went to the boat at Washington the same
evening, leaving the Marshalhere to fol.
low them next morning. We believe
they all are, and we know SOME of them
to be, substantial citizens of this parish
Mr.. Jefferson Lyons we have known
since before the war, and from him we
got a history of the affair.
1t seems that sometime during De.
cember last, Louis Allemand, the COM
plalnant, and two of his brothers, were
discovered penning a COW that did not
belong to them. That night several OF
their %neighbOrs went to the house where
the COW hadbeen penned, and found that
she had been slaughtered, and the three
Allemands in possession of the meat and
hide. The brand on the hide showed
that the COW had been stolen. The ALE
mands acknowledged themselves guilty
They were arrested, brought before a
magistrate at O~pelOusas on preliminary
examination, and sent before the Dis
trict Court for trial; where the case is
now pending, and will come up at the
term to begin next Monday.
The Allemands, it seems, tried to have
a bill found, at the last session Of the
grand jury, against the parties who ar
rested them because they arrested them
With"Ut q wdrrant. A warrant was not
procured because the nearest MAGISTRATE
resided beyond a stream that was Sc
swollen from rain at the time as to be i'm
passable. fthe rresthadbeen DELAYED
the evidence of guilt might have disap-
peared.
The grand jury ignored the charge
against those who arrested the Allie
mands; and IL of them, it appears, has
taken the matter before United States
Commissioner Shannon. The warrant
calls for eight, while only four were
complained before the grandiury
1t appears from the warrant that the
charge before the Commissioner is that
these men had conspired to deprive the
Allemands of their rights under the laws
OF the State and United States. If this
conspiracy consisted in arresting them
in possession of stolen property, arithowt
a Wd9Tant, they will not be apt to receive
any punishment beyond the loss of time
and money, and the neglect of their
crops which now above all other times
require their constant attention.
1t is surmised, however, that the prin-
cipal object Of the Allemands in having
them arrested and taken to New Orleans,
was that they might not be present here
as witnesses when their own case comes
up before the District Court, to begin
next Monday. 49,.
Be that as it may, there is no political
question involved in the case; and it will
have a bad effect on the administration
of justice here, if good citizens are taken
away from their crops at the busiest sea-
son Of the year, and put to great trouble
and expense, by the frivolous charges of
bad characters. No doubt the Commits
sioner, under the law, was bound to re-
ceive the complaint and issue the war;
rant. What we mean is, that when hon
est citizens arrest thieves and turn them
over to the legal authorities, and the
thieves afterwards persecute them for
so doing, that the tendency is, in our I'M
state Of society, to cause such
citizens in the futureto lynch thieves
when caught in the act, in order to make
their punishment certain or stop the
stealing, and escape persecution them
As to the bad character Of the Allie
mands, the person we interviewed states
not only that they We're caught with the
COW, but that one of them had
three wives, sO-called, one of whom has
died, leaving him two; and the other two
have three wives, sO-called, between
them. Our informant says that he re-
marked to them, the Allemands, that if
he had as many wives as they had he
would have to steal too; for he found it
rs much as could do to honestly take
of one. One of them laughed and
that his wives were useful, he
made them work for him.
j. Frank Knox, Esq, of the Opelousas
Bar, went down as counsel for them.
ORGANIZATION OF OUR New Town
COUNCILLOR Monday, April 18th, Mes
Sis. H. Latour, Louis Lejeune, John Po-
sey, Victor Lastrapes, F. A. King, L. B.
Quincy and Edgar Vanhille we're elected
members of the Board of Police of the
town of Opelousas, for the ensuing year.
On the Monday following they met, but
lid not organize, thinking it prudent to
wait untilthey received their commits
,ions. Last Monday their commissions,
rom Gov. Kellogg, arrived. They quail
led, and on Wednesday last proceeded
% organize, ii. Latour was elected Pres
dent; John Posey, Treasurer; P. L. He
orard, Clerk; ). w. jackson, Printer.
Laurent Dupre, Attorney; Octave Pru-
Constable.
The vote was as follows:
For President: Votes.
IT,. - -