The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1901-12-26

brother u.s." Laure said, fondling the
crescent lovingly.
II left him at New Orleans talking
politics. One hears nothing else there
now. The supporters of Breckenridge
encourage Horace to run for congress,
and he is quite willing to do so, though
he tells them he IS opposed to the ex-
tension Of slavery. They regard the
race as being entirely between Mr..
Breckenridge and Mr.. Douglas. Lin
coins candidacy is laughed at"
IF the lawsuit should be decided
against, NJ. Horace, he will be bitterly
opposed in this parish" Laure OBJ
served.
''That is a very big it, Evariste re-
piled.
"And if Lincoln should win a great
many plans will be upset. know
nothing Of politics, but they say these
things on the highlands" Laure smii-
ed alphabetically.
''You must make that if still larger,
Laure. The great heads in the city will
hardly admit that Lincoln is runnin::~-."
81 have heard my grandfather say
here were just two smart men in this
.arish- Baldouino and Quillebert-one
gifted as if from God, the other as il
by the DEVIL
"Well?'' queried Evariste.
II have also heard that Baldouino
said not long ago that if both Douglas
and Breckenridge are candidates to the
end Lincoln will be elected president,
and Quillebert has said that he will
win the suit in the supreme court"
Laure had spoken with a positiveness
that was not without it's effect upon
Evariste, and as he pursued Lis jour-
ney homeward he seriously revolved in
his mind these possibilities and their
bearing upon his own aims and inter-
ests
| Oakfel returned q week later, and
his supporters set actively to work to
secure favorable delegation to the
convention called to met at Baton
Rouge on the 10Th day Of October. They
were successful, though considerable
strength was developed against: him.
1t was believed he would receive the
nomination, which would be tanta-
mount to election. His friends proud
ly anticipated the distinction his career
in congress would give to the parish
and had agreed upon three representa-
tive citizens to accompany him in a
short canvass of the district after the
convention. He had spent a happy
hour with Estelle and was sitting in
his plantation Office thinking of her
when Leon brought letters and papers
from New Orleans just arrived by way
of the Red River landing. One bulky
envelope bore the card of profess
sicnal friend of whom he had request
ed the earliest possible news of the
courts Judgment. The letter said:
II caused copy to be made of the
opinion handed down by the supreme
court this morning in the suit of Leon
| Queyrouze versus Quillebert for free
dom and mail it by today's boat in
order that you may know the result
before tomorrow's newspapers can
reach you. The chief justice was the
organ of the court and had the con-
currence Of three of the associates.
One justice, as you will notice, dis
sented."
Quivering with interest, he read the
following dictum Of the highest court
of the state, penned by it's chief justice:
"The plaintiff, with his mother and
other children, were inventoried as be-
longing to the estate Of Queyrouze.
One Poydre. acting as agent for the
heirs, made sale of the property, with
the exception of the boy Leon. He sold
the mother Of the plaintiff and her 9TH
er children to the defendant Quillebert.
Leon himself was expressly exempted
from the sale, being then in the keep
ing of one Mrs. Wyley. to whom he
had been sent by the expressed wish Of
Queyrouze. About nine years after
the defendant obtained possession of
the plaintiff and enjoyed the benefit of
his labor until he ran away after the
institution of this suit.
"There is testimony in the record to
show that Queyrouze and his heirs in
tended that Leon should be free and
some conversations in which he said
he was free. The plaintiff, however,
never asserted his freedom and never
left the service of the defendant until
he absconded after the bringing of
this suit. On the contrary, he admitted
he was slave to a person whom he
wished to bargain for him.
"However DESTROYS the heirs of Quey-
rouze may have been that the plaintiff
should become free, their wishes alone
could not make him so. This being
matter affecting the public order, it
required the action of the public au-
thorities before it could be brought
about.
1T is apparent that in this contro-
versy it is a matter of no consequence
who is the owner, whether Quillebert
or the heirs Of Queyrouze. The only
question which we can consider is
whether the plaintiff had acquired the
status of free person of color prior to
the PRONUNCIATION Of the act of 1857,
which now prohibits emancipation
Sc ~ H.