New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-02-18

L
1868 are there yet "
But now Dir, We come up to 1873. Il vii
not detain the Senate tonight, but hay
the evidence here to show that John Nc
Emery organized the mob in New Orlean
who made the assault on the police sta
tlons on the night Of the fifth of March, 1873
where number Of men were killed. Why
MT resident, are you aware of the atroci
Ties OF the COlfax massacref How was il
Colfax is the county seat of Grant parish
Is was proven before this committee in tn,
very report that the Senator read from tina
the returns from Grant parish, what ht
calls official returns, were fOrgeries ont
right. When talked about forgeries here
this afternoon, the Senator said he had
never heard of them. Why. sir, there
Is the evidence that the returns from
Grant parish were forgeries. The Lynch
board returned the sheriff and the parish
officers who were on the Republican ticket
as being elected. They were commissioned
by Pinchback in the month of January
1872; and more than two months afrerward.
about the first of April a man of the name
of Nash, who had been the Democratic can
| didate for sheriff Of Grant parish, com
menced collecting forces as he avowed, for
the purpose of taking fOrcible possession Of
the sheritf's office. and of all the parish Of
fees in that parish He continued this col
| lection of forces until the thirteenth of
| April In the meantime, the sheriff hear
ing of this, collected a posse for tho pur-
pose of protecting himself and the other
| parish officers, composed almost entirely OF
colored men. They gathered 10 and about
| the courthouse, and threw up a little in
| trenchment a mere trifie of fertilization.
| On Easter Sunday, thirteen days after.
| Nash commenced bis operations, he and
Hadnot the other leader, surrounded the
courthouse and these cOlOred men in the
fortification. The cOlOred men at once re-
tired to the courthouse, and, when driven
| into the courthouse, they offered to surren.
| der, provided they would be allowed to go
| home in safety. Nash and Hadnot refused
| TO receive the surrender unless it was IN.
| conditional. They refused to surrender un.
| cOnditOnally, because they expected to be
murdered. Firing was had upon the part
of the assailants. They finally approached
the courthouse on a side where there was
no window. They set fire to the roof, and
when the flames had spread throughout the
building the cOlored men in the courthouse
held ont white hankerchiefs and other en-
blems as a token of surrender, and when
they could stay there no longer they rushed
out, some OF them covered with fire, and as
they went out of the courthouse they were
met at the door and murdered and sta bbed,
and mutilated. The evidence before the
grand jury, of which have an extract here,
sHOWb uHdl lHTeo OF IOUF ule0 WOulu Sc1Z0 a
cOlOred man and another man put his pistol
in his mouth and blow his brains ont: and
that they were mutilated and their abdo-
mems ripped open after they were dead.
And the evidence shows further that
scarcely a body. was found there that
had not from three to dozen wounds
upon it. Some thirty of them were
captured and were marched back in front
of the courthouse after dark, and there
10Y yvnv INIT v,I ty,na Achn Lo
ginius prisoners were shot in Cuba. A
large number of them were taken TO the
bank of the river after dark, and there they
were shot, and their bodies thrown into the
river. One was only wounded. and he
managed to swim across the river and
made his escape. The evidence further
shows that when this massacre took place
at night on the bank of the river, they tried |
experiments on them with their arms. They |
put them breast to back, three or four or
five each, and then a man would stand at |
the end of the line to zee how many bodies |
he could send bullet from his rifle through. |
Inc testimony Is that over one hundred |
men-they can not tell how many, but the
number is known to exceed one hundred
were murdered on that occasion. Colonel
DeKlyne and Colonel Wright, who after.
ward went there by order of Governor KEEL.
logg, found fifty-seyen bodies still upon the
ground in aud around the courthouse, three
DAYS atterward, that they buried.
why. Mr.. PRESIDENT. the whole wcr.d
Was suoeheu Dy inc murder of
hlty-three Hilousters captured with
inc 'rginius-nen "h0 were going |
npon a hostile. an unlawful expedl.
.ioh. bIt because they were tried by u
'n "a Ma rt!ai anu hurried ont OF existence.
ihnouSh .lihe was allowed them to make
'heir confessions and TO say their prayers,
+ was regarded by us "a callse of wa. nm
ess satisfaction was made to US by the
'eVeIhmens OF Spain; But here were 100
u our own people Killed on the thirteenth |
lay OF April iast. and have heard OF no.
'oay proposing to 60 to war upon that ac-
omit. One OF the leaders. and the princi-
ID leaegr' OF that noo was man by the {
7 ai me Oh Iadn3f, a member OF the so called
=. ae legislature. d resident Of the par
81 ol Wfaht. lie was Killed, and the only 6
ian Killed upon tina: side; over 100 killed
pon tnr otner: and when this so-called Nc. !;
,nefS LeSisiature met in New Orleans :
oouV 'our weeks ago, IN session. they | !
asseu resolutions declaring that Hadnot ,
az peiished III his attempt to enforce ..
sai authority, and that lie was MUIR. :
cred by a mob. thereby recogniz- ,
z upon the part OF McEnerv and bis !,
lends that that massacre at Colf4x was .
,ns oE aneis authority ana 10 TIC name .. :,
90. 80. v
from loo. to 1913 there have been se. u
IS OF murders continually. The life o: "a {
iored man IN Louisiana is considered OF S
more account than tina: Of a mad dog. n
!u VI an the murders that have been com. e
itteu III thaG state from 1866 20 1873 not | V
g OF the mnrderers has been punished. Il
AZ SAD before, every question that has
lseh IN TINS case has arisen under the laws | o.
Tue state and has been decided by the ii
nreme Court OF that State. has been set. |.
a by the tribunals provided by the State, :,
q according to the admission of the Sena. if
III the very conclusion Of his argument ST