The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1877-08-08
SOUTHERN NEWS.
Louisiana.

/
The cotton in some parts of Catahoula
shows signs of rust.
Some planters in Pointe Coupee have
commenced picking cotton.
| August 5th was the anniversary Of the
battle Of Baton Rouge, fought in 1862.
The German camp meeting, five miles
from Covington, on the Columbia road,
will come off on the 10th inst.
The Pointe Coupee jail is so unsafe
that the sheriff has to keep a guard Of
four men over it day and night.
The extraordinary heat of the past
week is having a good effect on the cane,
which Is springing up like magic.
The cotton crop in Catahoula has de-
clined 20 per cent in the past month, in
consequence of the drouth prevailing
there.
The Plaquemines parish school cen.
sus shows 35g7 children Of the seheel
age in the parish OF whom 1926 are
white and 2071 colored.
The lower coast packets are going to
contest for champion flag to be pre-
sented by Father Chabner Of st. Cecile
church, Plaquemines parish.
An unknown man attacked Mr..
! Madden, q school teacher, on steam
boat In Plaquemines parish on the 23d,
and beat him so severely that 1t is not
thought that Madden can recover.
Mr.. Charles Parlange, of Pointe Cou-
pee, has 400 bee hives. He has taken
| already seventy-fve barrels of honey
from his bee hives this year, and expects
to take one hundred and fifty more.
On Sunday, the 18th ult., the stable
on the Woodlawn plantation OF Bradish
Johnson, Esq, In Plaquemines parish,
was struck by lightning, and seven
mules therein were killed and seventeen
injured more or less.
Burch presided at u colored picnic in
Baton Rouge last Wednesday. He is
taking advantage Of the, indictment
against him to ingratitiate himself with
again. Too late, Burch.
A colored woman who was bitten by a
highland moccasin snake in Madison
parish was cured by "a quart Of ben
zine, a small cord and q poultice Of
moistened tobacco leaves" The Madi-
son Journal reports the recipe.
Marion Taylor and j. A. Swayzee
quarreled at Mr.. John Heard's house in
Catahoula parish and attacked each
other, one armed with an ak and the
other with pistol. The pistol was vic
torious, and Taylor was mortally
wounded.
The citizens of Newroad, Pointe
Coupee, had meeting July 20, to take
means to guard the town against any
future attempts to burn it. A commit
tee Of citizens was appointed to report
measures on the subject. Citizens were
also chosen to watch and guard the
town, and a board Of inspectors ap-
pointed to supervise this guard.
The road and levee laws Of the police
jury Of Ascension parish met with such
popular disapproval that the jury met
pealed them. At the same time 1t adopt
ed resolutions calling upon the people
of the various wards to elect delegates
to parish convention, which body will
devise plan to be submitted to the
police jury for the maintenance and re-
pair Of roads and levees. Each ward Is
to choose four delegates, the election to
take place on the Goth instant, and the
convention to meet on the following
Tuesday, the 4th day of September
The meeting to devise means to repair
the dam at Tones bayou was held in
Shreveport last Thursday. Resolutions
were adopted authorizing committee
of three to telegraph to the Secretary Of
War of the United States and Gov.
Nichols, urging them to take such
action that will effect the immediate
closing Of the break in Tones bayou,
and thereby sustain the navigation OF
Red river.
The committee reported and sent the
following telegram:
To the Honorable Secretary Of War, Washing
ton, ID. c.:
The navigation Of Red river during
the present low water season is serious
ly imperilled by the break in the dam
closing Tones bayou. The stoppage Of
such navigation would incalculably
damage the commercial interests of
Shreveport and large section OF Lou
isiana and Texas. We would respect
fully ask that Major Benyaurd, Of the
engineer service, may be Instructed to
close at once the break.
u. HoRAN,
HY. FLoRsHEIN,
w. B. HAMILTON.
A telegram Of the same tenor was sent
to his EXcellency Gov. Nichols.
The negroes in Harrisonburg, Cata-
houla parish, are greatly excited over a
colored girl who, at a prayer meeting,
worked her religious feelings up to such
a point that she fell into q trance, In
which she remained for two days. When
she awoke she had wonderful stories to
tell of her visit to heaven. The negroes,
of course, crowded around her and
anxiously inquired about their departed
friends. All the negroes believe the
girls stories, and she, finding herself a
person of Importance in consequence.
is rafting them off as fast as her imagi-
nation will allow.
Crops are reported generally as excel
lent through the State. The corn crop
will be the largest since the war; the
weeks behind last year, but rapidly
catching up, owing to warm weather
and lucky rains. Cotton worms are re-
ported in most of the North Louisiana
parishes, but seem not to arouse the
slightest alarm on the part Of the farm
ers, who do not even judge it necessary
to use poison yet. In Catalonia, a