The Lake Charles echo. [volume] (Lake Charles, Parish of Calcasieu, La.) 1876-1898, 1876-06-22

Southern white men as though
they were murderers and thieves.
They had seen nearly two hundred
negroes brought down from Grant
and Rapides parishes, kept here
for days and trained by District
Attorney Beckwith an1 others to
swear to the most Ciamnable lies
against the Grant parish prison
ers. They had seen the passage
Of this army Of negro porjurers,
paid, also their per diem and ex-
pensos by the Federal Govern
ment, and they bad seen the Fed
eral authorities refuse to make
adequate provision for the wit
nesses..sfor the defense, and the
impoverished prisoners left TO
their own resources and the gem
erosity Of their friends to defend
themselves against D yindiCtive
Court, q savage District Attorney,
u stocked jury, subsidized Wit
nessos, a lying and malicious press
and the denunciations of the whole
county.
And yet, these things were of
the past and might have been for
gotten. Indeed, when Merrill and
his marshals aud rough-riders ar
rived iii North Louisiana in the
midst of the canvass of 1874, but
few felt apprehension at their
presence. But when the deputy
marshals-thieves and ruffians-
followed by squads Of rufianly sol
| diers, began to scour the country
from Red River to the Ouacbita,
aFresting citizens without notice,
without exhibition Of authority,
and without warrants, Handwriting
them and dragging them along in
their march when The marauders
began entering houses by violence,
threatening and insulting ladies,
arresting men at midnight or on
the road, and refusing them even
the privilege OF seeing their fanli-
lies befofsj being carried off. a
reign Ut terror began. So effect
ually did Dog Merrill and his lieu
teuants Of the regular army, aud
the deputy marshals ID the civil
service, execute their infamous
mission in North Louisiana, tina /.
| it was only necessary for q deputy
marshal with a squad of soldiers
to enter parish aud givo out that
he had writs for several hundred
Of arrests. 10 drive hundreds Of men
/ from their homes. No one knew who
! Was to bB arrested, hut every one knew
that all who should ba arrested would
/ be outraged and iEsulted i'm every pos
| sibte manner. EVER white man, nearly,
was guilty Of the oifense for which the
| soldiers and civil authorities Of the Re.
public were making arrnsts--of being
| democrata-and consequently every
man was apprehensive of arrest and,
not Of trial, hnt of vindictive persecu-
| tion.
Gentlemen Of The committee, these
| are g0ne OF the reasons why innocent
white oitizens Of North Loaisiana Aed
their homes III 1874, when they were
threatened with arrest by the Federal
authorities. 10 was not that they feared
the Justice Of the law, but because they
dreaded the rnerci,css prosecutions OF
| the Republic. These ara some of the
reasons why Louisianians, who love
the Union, and would rejoice to con-
| tribute To its honor and glory, have
sometimes felt that they were the holp-
less slaves of M infamous dcspotisn.
These ara some OF the reasons, gentle
| men oil the COMMITTEES, Why Louisiani-
ans, who should look with pride and
cxultation upon the national flag as the
emblem Of civil liberty, have some
times been forced to contemplate ita
stars with something Of that sulien de-
spair which fills the hearts of the fe-
vered wratches OF pestilent sniittan dis
tricts when they turn their eyes upon
the sCorChing sun. whose haleful rays
seem laden with misery and deafh.
Mr. Kerr has now been in pub
lic life for a dozen years. This is