The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1886-12-02
LOUISIANA 'cAIJANs.
Remnant of tho Arcadians Who wex
Idealized by Longfcllow.

Remnant of the Arcadians Who wers
IdeaIlzeA by Longfcllow.
'The Louisiana 'Caijans," ssid a
Southerner to reporter, "are pecu-
liar class. They were originally French,
coming to this country long years ago
and settling in what was then called
Arcadia, in Nova Scotia and in Upper
Canada. They were driven out b. the
British and were afterward immortaliz-
ed by Longfellow in his 'Evangeline.'
Gaunt, yellow and black-haired, they
are at all times distinguishable from the
other residents of the Mississippi re-
gions in Louisiana, where they have
lived since their expulsion from the
North.
'.They do not seem clannish. They
generally manage to have an acre or
two of land with little shanty. Oc-
casionally one becomes the manager of
a small store where the negroes get
their tobacco and drink. There is much
affinity between a 'Caijan and negro.
Neither is satisfied without dog, but I
think negro treats his dog better than
the 'Caijan does. Neither of them
will do any more work than is alb
solutely necessary for subsistence, while
both of them place great faith in the
river as provider.
'.In the spring the 'Caijan first mends
his nets and lines, then cleans his gun,
and then, if he has time between fish
ing and hunting, looks after his crop.
Rice is all he cares to raise. The grain
is sent to the nearest mill, where it is
ground at the rate of three for one.
As he has only to SOW his rice broad
cast in the spring and wait for it to
ripen, his agricultural labors are not
exhausting. The most laborious time
is when the blackbirds get at the rice.
The large planters employ regular forces
of men and boys to kill or frighten them
off. l know of one man who last year
paid $1,700 for services and ammuni-
ton in keeping the ricebirds and black
birds out of his fields. The 'Caijan
manages better than this. As his field
is small he does the work himself, and
the birds he kills serve as food for him.
self and family. He takes his position
in fence-corner and sits there all day,
his dog fetching in the birds as he kills
them. He uses less than a thimbleful
of powder and about twenty-five shot.
With this load he will bring down a
bird at every shot, and sometimes two
OF three.
''The bird season having ended, he
turns his attention to the 'sardines' that
begin to run in the river. These, with
the addition of crawfish and little
game, keep the pot boiling till the crop
is ripe, on the proceeds of which the
'Caijan' lives out the winter, only to
go over the same routine the following
year. If he raises colt it is sold to
some steamboat man, who, in return,
brings up calico or clothing from the
city and reta:ls it at about double its
cost.
elf the 'Caijan goes to church at all,
it is to one of the many little Catholic
churches that line the banks of the
Mississippi all through louisiana
''The 'Caijan's horse is always a
small one. He rides in long lope,
and spreads his feet at every jump in a
manner that has made current the
phrase rides like 'CaJan.' The ami
NAL is never fat and never clean-two
characteristics in which he closely re-
sembles the rider. Like his master, he
is the personification of endurance.
''The language of the class is a
French patois, and as ungrammatical
as is negro's Engl sh. In spite of
poverty, filth, idleness and the ever
present fever and ague, they are con-
tented and peaceable. Chicago Ne,0s.