The Ouachita Telegraph - Voting Problems in Ouachita Parish Date: Jul. 2000 Submitted by: Lora Peppers * ********************************************** Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ********************************************** * The Ouachita Telegraph Friday, December 1, 1876 Page 2, Column 5 GOOD REPUBLICAN EVIDENCE We give below a sample of the Radical testimony presented before the Returning Board relative to the late canvass. Both of the witnesses are negroes, but swear with the endorsement of their white leaders. The report is copied from the New Orleans Democrat, that in the Republican is tenfold more virulent: Wells announced that the Ouachita case would be taken up. The Democratic Committee protested on the ground that it had been agreed that East Baton Rouge should be the first contested parish considered. Wells declared the ruling of the board changed. The witnesses were ordered to be brought in. Frank Morey, of the Republican State Committee, said that it was the intention of the Republican counsel to prove intimidation by the Democrats; that negroes were threatened with death if they did not vote the Democratic ticket; that the white Republican leaders were murdered; that the citizens massed at the different boxes, and that the negroes were intimidated into voting Democratic. BURRELL Henry Burrell was the first witness placed on the stand. He had seen armed rifle clubs in Ouachita, had been arrested and 1400 Republican tickets taken from him. These tickets he was compelled to burn. He was also compelled to swear that he would vote the Democratic ticket. There were eight or ten other colored men under arrest at the same time. He thought that the colored people of Ouachita were anxious to vote the Republican ticket, but feared to do so. At the time of Dinkgrave’s murder the party was well organized. It was rumored that Dinkgrave had been murdered for organizing the party. He knew five negroes that had been murdered in the parish since August 29. ELIZA PINKSTON’S STORY. Eliza Pinkston was then called. She testified that her husband had been killed in Ouachita Parish. “Dr. Young hand been one of the men that attacked the house. They burst the door in. Capt. Craig cried: “Gag Him! He votes no Radical ticket here. He may vote it in hell. He has voted thus far, and he may vote it no further.” They came in the house and they gaged him. That is when they cut him in the leg. I said: “Oh, Lord!” don’t kill my husband; that is all I have got.” One man struck me in the face, another on the head, with his pistol. They said: ‘Leave the damned son of a bitch.’ I said: ‘That is my husband.’ I grabbed Dr. Young, and he struck me with his pistol and knocked m down on the hearth. They tied my husband’s legs together, dragged him outside of the door and shot him seven times. “I was shot twice myself. My baby’s throat was then cut from ear to ear. They wanted to take something from me before they killed me; two of them had dealings with me before they shot me, and before they commenced dealing with me I ran under the bed, when they shot me in the leg, and pulled me out and broke the bed; they cut me with the ax. One man said: ‘If you are going to kill the woman, don’t be bothering with her;’ and they wanted to kill me, and he cut me with a knife; I struck him and it flew up, and they never saw it again; they got another knife, and they cut and stabbed me, and they cut me on the legs with the ax, and on the side.” At this point the woman either fainted or pretended to faint, and the examination was delayed for a few minutes. When she recovered she testified that her child’s body had been thrown in the lake. When questioned by Wells she insisted that they had cut her with an ax, then struck her over the head with a pistol, and, finally, stamped all her teeth out of her jaw. CROSS EXAMINATION Mr. Gauthreaux wanted to know whether the witness had not stated that a colored man had murdered her husband. The witness emphatically – “Oh no! They were not. There were two colored men there, but Tidwell told me not to tell who they were. Oh; no, oh,no; no, no, no. We ain’t going to have it that way. Oh, no, sir; they were white men. They all came back and tried to kill me, but they cannot have anything that way.” Wells objected to any cross examination of the witnesses; they could file cross interrogatories, but could not question the witness there. Gov. Palmer insisted on allowing cross examination. Senator Sherman and other agreed with him. Ray fought this question. He thought if the Democratic committees should be allowed to question the witness it would interfere with the counting of the electoral vote by Wednesday next. After some debate the defense was allowed to cross-examine the witness. NOTES: An article entitled “The Kinkston Prisoners” relates that two of the men, George Philips and Tom Lyons pleaded not guilty. (Ouachita Telegraph, Friday, December 8, 1876, page 2, Column 3.) # # #