New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-10-03

HOW pEno01Au0 CONVERTS ARE MADE.
4 ooloesd mm. lnasly in the South, has
given some interesting facts to reporter
Of the OisSinnaH Oommerc;al concerning
the manner Of forcing colored men into
the ranks Of the Democratic party. He
had frequently heard Democrats say that
they would carry every Southern State,
even if they had to kill every negro in the
South. The colored men pointed out to
him as Democrats, would tell him, when
they had chance to do SO, that they
were not Democrats, but they must pre-
tend to be, in order to secure their lives.
In Louisiana he found L W. Davenport
making Democrat speeches on the same
platform with W. W. Farmer. Demo-
cratic nominee for Congress from Ouachita
parish. Mr.. Davenport is notorious
for having been leading Republican
and Office holder in Mississippi. Few
men have suffered more than he has
from Democratic persecution. While
in Office he was branded by the White
Line press as a thief liar and forger,
and had applied to him all Of
the choice epithets found in the black
guard vocabulary of the Democratic party.
Finally the hungry mob demanded his
life or his Office, according to the style of
Mississippi political highwaymen. One
night several of the reformers called at his
house, and told Mrs Davenport that her
husband was wanted at Republican
meeting near by. She caused her hus-
band to leave the house by back door,
and sent her brother out to see the men.
supposing he would not be harmed; but
the brother had no sooner opened the
front door then he was completely riddled
with bullets. The fiends then cut several
pieces of flesh from the warm body of
their victim, and threw them into
the house; after which they wrapped
the body in sheet, poured kerosene
oil on it and set it on fire. Davenport,
in the meantime had escaped to the woods,
and remained hid away for some months,
OF until he obtained permission to return
upon conditions that he should speak
openly in favor of the Democratic party.
Davenport now goes before the colored
men who are ordered to attend Democratic
meetings, and in the presence of Mr..
Farmer tells them that it is greatly to
their interest to join the Democratic
party. He appears as one whose Re-
publican principles have been completely
blown out of him with . shotgun. Nor
do the Democrats who bring Davenport
forward as model reformer allude to the
charges that he was one of the most
corrupt and vicious of colored men
in the South. It is all the same
to the Democrats; all of their speak
ing parties, making stumping tours,
have a colored figure head along with
them to show how cheerfully black men
spouse the Democratic cause. Some of
these colored recruits come from the
prisons, some are captured in the swamps,
some are bribed and frightened into de-
claring themselves as Democrats, others
are boys, taught to speak pieces, having
themselves no personal influence. Of the
end man travelling with the Wilt and Nc
Emery combination, the Democratic Sugar.
Bo,o!, referring to the performance at New
Iberia, says, frankly:
Nicholas Blood, q young colored man.
was the last speaker, and did pretty we'll.
but lacked the age and gravity requisite to
make an impression upon the negroes, who
are many of them open to conviction, but
are too sensible themselves to take pertness
and vapid fippancy of the tongue for sound
doctrine.
When man like Davenport, driven to
the woods in nakedness by his Democrat
ic neighbours, comes from the resting
place of brother murdered by Demo-
Gratis, comes from the ruins of home
made desolate by Democrats, comes from
being hunted as q wild beast by Demo-
Gratis, and with pistol leveled at his
head mounts the platform and says that
t is better for colored man who wants |
o live in Mississippi to be Democ rat.
lis words have double meaning easy to
Of such is the kingdom of |
Democracy.