St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1897-04-24

Y
THE MAluN0EONS.
! ieoe0liaP kentuek1aas WAo CoDG
froa Portuguese EDlgFanta.
Just across the Kentucky line in Ten
ncssee live a peculiar people. They art
known rs the Malungeons. They are
copper-colored. with high cheek bones
straight noses. black hair rather coarse
and straight, black eyes. and more in
telligence than the ordinary mountain
eers.
Their color and their customs have
caused them . great deal Of trouble.
They number between 200 and 200. They
live ON Black Water creek. in Hancock
county, and they have lived in this
section for more than 100 years. The
records of Hancock county show that
their ancestors came to Powell's. Val.
ley a. early as 1859. when they took up
lands ON Black Water. Tradition says
that they held aloof from the white
settlers and spoke . strange language
which none Of the pioneers understood.
Some Of them could speak broken Eng
lish. and by this means communicated
with the white merchants to the ex-
tent of buying arms and ammunition
and other supplies which they could
not procure in the valleys of their noun
tain homes.
Before the war the Malungeons had
= hard time in obtaining the right to
vote and to send their children to the
public schools. The white citizens de-
ciared they were negroes, and the mat
ter was finally carried into the courts.
II was developed that the ancestors Of
these people emigrated to America
about $50 years ago from the interior
Of Portugal, and had spent some time
in South Carolina before going to Ten
nessee. They declared On the witness
stand that there was not . drop Of
negro blood in their veins, and after
long and tedious litigation they were
allowed to vote and to send their chill
dren to the schools.
When the war broke out in 1861 the
Malungeons cspoused the cause Of the
union. They fought in the usual noun
tain fashion = bushwhacling = and
many . confederate soldier was sent
to his long home by the unerring bull
lets Of these Portuguese-Americans.
Whenever the confederates captured
one of them he w1s shot ON the spot
After the war closed and the Nalun-
geons returned to their old pursuits
they found that the government was
interfering with one of their Oldest In
eustries-whisky-making. They had
been distillers back in South Carolina,
and some Of the early stills in Tennes-
see were brought by their ancestors
over the mountains from their first
named state. Not few revenue officers
were killed By them for making waz
ON their moonshine stills. OF late years
the revenue men have been 20 persistent
in their work Of hunting the moon
sinners down that the Malungeons have
sold but little whisky openly. They
still continue to make mOonshine whis-
Ky in large quantities, but they have
adopted the methods Of other illicit dis
tillers in the mountains of Kentucky
and Tennessee, and they are rarely
caught now. Notwithstanding railroads
have penetrated eastern Kentucky and
eastern Tennessee, the Malungeona
never 60 far from home.
Parad0xical a it may seem, these
people, who have shed much blood and
otherwise violated the laws Of their
country. are deeply religious. During
their meetings they will sing and shout
and seem to be beside themselves with
religious fervor. One of the patriarchs
Of the Malungeons was "Uncle" Ward
Collins. One night in June, many years
ago, DR.. Frederick A. Ross, noted
Presbyterian minister Of eastern Ten
nessee, was travelling through the Black
Water country. He accidentally came
upon Uncle Wards house and asked II
he could stay Ill night. The old noun
taineer told him he could. After the
guest had eaten supper the old man
asked him his business. He told him
he was . preacher. Tho old man said
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