New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-06-04
THE GRA Vt PARISH PRISONERS.
Trial in the United States Circuit Court

William d. Irwin indicted as w. B. Irwin ],
Austin p. Gibbons Indicted as Oscar
| Givens), Clement Penn, Denis Lemoine and
| PrudhOmme Lemoine, on trial for con-
| spiracy and murder in Colfax, Grant parish,
| in April, 1873, when Alexander Tillman
| and Others We're killed.
TESTIMONY FOR DEFENSE.
Defense felt aggrieved because all their
witnesses had not been found or brought
| into court. This was in part remedied by
| permitting them to introduce the testimony
Of three witnesses, E. Prewett, Victoria
Irwin and Louisa Mackie, who tettified on
the fret trial. That testimony was given
TO the jury. .. v...
T. l.. Railey. formerly clerk of Grant
parish district court. now under Indictment
for obstructing the United States marshal
III his attempts to arrest Nash, was placed
on the witness stand. He stated that he
had heard colored people in COlfax make
threats against white folks. The following
was drawn out of him by District Attorney
Beckwith, on cross examinations:
Saw Brantley, Register and Flowers, and
heard that johnson and Ward went on the
| steamboat st. Mary to New Orlaans; re-
mained there about month; was present
in April when the courthouse was broken
| open; it was before HadnOt visited COlfax;
wrote out appointments for deputy sheriffs;
| was clerk Of the court; remained in that
position two or three months; after that
was deputy coroner, the same as deputy
sheriff; do not know what the income was;
can't say how long was deputy coroner,
and can't say how much it paid me; have
been idle tor some time; made money
gambling since left the position of deputy.
Direct exsmination-I was charged with
Obstructing the process Of the United States
court when the deputy United States mar
shal went up to Grant parish last October;
! was cleared OF that.
Major j. II. Smith-Am an officer in the
United States army; was stationed in Grant
parish in April. 1873, and remained until
May; about the first Of May Judge Cazabat
aeked me for the use of building l was
using; Nash was then claiming to be sheriff;
his acting deputy was Tore.
Cross examinatiOn-CaZabat was at my
quarters quite often in Colfax; the building
spoken of is in front Of the burned court
house; l was in Cazabat's court an hour;
can't say that there was any business trans
acted; Cazabat asked me for privilege of
the building; Register was holding court at
the same time in the same building; there
was small partition; had never been in
civil court before; occupied the whole
brick house
William Beattie-I reported in short.
hand portion Of the proceedings OF this
court, T0du LuC IcstluOny VI w dIu W
Ward, and he made some corrections; l
read it all to him: Flowers was present and
made some alterations.
Daniel Shawn March and April, 1873,
lived in COlfax; lived there in Mr.. Shell
by's house; from the first to the third of
April was in COlfax; was q candidate for
sheriff there in 1872; remember when the
courthouse was taken possession Of by my
self and Register IN the end Of March;
Ma 1oiv IN ho shQriff. (Nazahaf had
held court, and Nash acted as sheriff: since
the fight, in May, think, there were two
courts held at the same time; l remained in
Colfax until the thirteenth of April; on the
first of April I appointed twenty deputy
sherifs; Register ordered me to make the
appointments, because Hadnot and his
party were coming to take the courthouse;
Register said he wished to repel force by
force; the deputies were commissioned for
that occasion; ! never gave them orders to
make arrests or bring In people; did not
give them orders after the first OF April;
did not order guards posted; tried to leave
from the eighth to the thirteenth, but was
prevented; when / saw the white men ap-
preaching, Easter Sunday morning, spoke
to Levin Allen. when he told me to leave
and save myself if could; before l left
saw Allen, White and another man drill
the men in three companies; heard Tillman
tell the men not to shoot at the whites until
an order was given; heard only one roll
call. That letter was shown to witness for
him to identify Wards signature, but he
failed. A second letter was shown and
witness Thought" it was Wards writing.
saw the pipe cannon; was at a conference
when constable from Montgomery ar
rived to take some prisoners for rObbing
Rutland's house; while we were talking
Meekin rode up and said that Jesse Nc
Kinney had been killed; he drew q pistol
on one of the men from Montgomery, but
Flowers persuaded him off; the earthwOrk
was commenced the Friday before the
fight and finished next day; Tillmap and
White told me that l could not 60 out
because would tell Of their condi'
ton; got out of Colfax before
the fight began stopped at
Kearnon's house, on the Mirebeau place,
and remained there until near sundOwn;
then returned to Colfax; did not see VIII
liam J. Cruikshank there, but saw Andrew
Cruikshank, who resembles William some
what; after dark l heard firing; friend
furnished me horse and rode OH with
lot Of men, accompanied by Jim Daniel;
before l left Colfax saw HadnOt, badly
wounded; his clothing above the abdominal
wound was burned; Register, the morning
after Rutland's house was robbed, met me
and offered some wine; refused it, saying
I did not like stolen wine.
Cross examination-Went to Grant par
ish in 1868; lived with one A. Cruikshanks
after the fight; know some of the colored
men who prevented me leaving Colfax;
White and Tillman told me must not go
out; Shelbys house, where l slept during
April until the ninth, is one and half
miles from the courthouse, and nothing
pre- vented me passing to and fro; could
have gone away from Shelby's had l de-
sired; Register told me on the eighth OF
April that l, as sheriff, should see that the
peace was preserved. and if any arrests
were to be made that should make them;
after the fight remained away from Col.
fax over one week. then l acted as sheriff
again. continuing until July; resigned the
office in September or October; my letter OF
resignation was published in the New Or
leans REPUBLICAN,, and this is the original
COPY now in my hand; Judge Phillips
wrote q portion of it; did not see William
Cruikshank in COlfax on the day of the
fight; when / met Governor Wells and the
district attorney did not say that had
seen seen William j. Cruikshank in the fight;
never told Smedley so; never made such
statement to any one; | assisted In compil-
ing a pamphlet about the Grant parish
trouble.
Bv juror-1 was commissioned as sheriff
in January and qualified shortly after;
demanded the key and books from Nash.
w. NJ. Robinson-Had charge OF the news
department of the New Orleans REPUBLICAN
in April. 1873; witness was shown a copy
of the REPUBLICAN, of that date containing
statement signed by Register. G. D. Brant.
ley, E. H. Flowers and Charles SnOwden,
and was asked on whose statement he wrote
the Introductory remarks. The court ruled
out the question:. The document was
handed in by several men, strangers, and