Southwest Louisiana Biographical & Historical. Chapter II. St. Landry Parish Louisiana. Book by William Henry Perrin, pub. 1891 File prepared by Jan Craven ********************************************** Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ********************************************** TIPS FOR SEARCHING RECORDS ON THE INTERNET Netscape & Ms Explorer users: If searching for a particular surname, locality or date while going through the records in the archives or anywhere....try these few steps: 1. Go to the top of the report you are searching. 2. Click on EDIT at the top of your screen. 3. Next click on FIND in the edit menu. 4. When the square pops up, enter what you are looking for in the FIND WHAT ___________blank. 5. Click on DIRECTION __DOWN. 6. And last click on FIND NEXT and continue to click on FIND NEXT until you reach the end of the report. This should highlight the item that you indicated in "find what" every place it appears in the report. You must continue to click on FIND NEXT till you reach the end of the report to see all of the locations of the item indicated. PAGE 27 PARISH OF ST. LANDRY - BOUNDARY AND TOPOGRAPHY - TIMBER AND SOIL - WATER COURSES - RESOURCES, ETC.- CROP STATISTICS-EARLY SETTLEMENT - SOMETHING OF THE PIONEERS - THE CREOLES - INDIAN POSSESSION - MORE PIONEER HISTORY - PARISH ORGANIZATION - ST. LANDRY AS THE COUNTY OF OPELOUSAS - WHERE THE PEOPLE VOTED - ROADS AND RAILROADS-AGRICULTURE - SUGAR MAKING - RICE CULTURE - CHURCHES AND SCHOOLS - OPELOUSAS - ITS GROWTH AND BUSINESS - OTHER TOWNS OF THE PARISH - THE PRESS - THE BENCH AND BAR - PIONEER DOCTORS - SCATTERED THREADS, ETC. To gather up the raveled threads of the strange stories of the lives of the people that reclaimed the Attakapas country, and that made it to " rejoice and blossom as the rose," to catch their fleeting traditions and fireside histories, and hand them down to posterity, is worthy the ambition of any man. They were simple and unostentatious, and came here-many of them-not from choice, but from a force they could not resist. Sooner or later, by the pen of the wise historian, they will take their proper place in the history of their country. That they builded wiser than they knew, is granted. Few, if any of them, ever realized in the dimmest way the transcendent possibilities that rested upon them. As a rule, perhaps, their lives were aimless and ambitionless, with little more of hope or far-reaching purposes than the savages that were their neighbors. Yet, there stands the fact that they followed their simple impulses, took their lives in their bands, penetrated the desert wilderness, and with a patient energy, resolution and self-sacrifice that stands alone and unparalleled, they laid the foundation on which rests the civilization of the empire lying in the Mississippi Valley. When we contemplate the dangers to which they were constantly exposed, with a century and a half standing between them and us, the story seems almost in credible. In the pages following in this work it is intended, in an humble way, to raise a monument to their labors and their memory. To a portion of the Attakapas country now known as the parish of St. Landry, this chapter will be principally devoted. The original dimensions of the parish, when it extended to the Sabine River on the west, are more minutely given in the introductory chapter of this volume. As at present circumscribed St. Landry contains not far from sixteen hundred square miles, and nearly 40,000 inhabitants. It is bounded on the north by the parishes of Rapides and Avoyelles, on the cast by the Atchafalaya River, on the south by the parishes of St. Martin, Lafayette and Acadia, and on the west by the parishes of Calcasieu PAGE 28 and Rapides. The following parishes have been wholly or in part created out of the original territory of St. Landry: Lafayette, Acadia, Calcasieu and Cam- eron. Perhaps others drew on it for a portion of their territory. St. Landry is pretty equally divided between prairie and woodland. Much the larger portion of the land is susceptible of grazing and cultivation. It is well watered by numerous bayous, running streams, small lakes, etc. East of Opelousas the streams flow to the Atchafalaya River, and west of the town they flow to the Vermilion River, thus forming a portage upon which Opelousas stands. Along the streams is fine timber, and between the belts of timber are natural meadows or prairies, those vast treeless plains so common in Southwest Louisiana. They sometimes stretch away for miles and miles without a tree in sight, except the thick forests that bound them as the beach limits the sea, and present all the monotony without the dreariness of the deserts of Africa, Says Mr. Darby, in his work on Louisiana, published in 1817, writing upon the Opelousas prairie: "This vast expanse of natural meadow extends seventy-five miles southwest and northeast, and is twenty-five miles wide, containing more than 1,200,000 acres, exclusive of the numerous points of woods that fringe its margin on all sides. The prairie begins thirteen miles northwest of Opelousas, and, gradually opening to the southward, sends out various branches between the bayous. Here you behold vast herds of cattle, which afford subsistence to the natives and the inhabitants of New Orleans. It is certainly one of the most agreeable views in nature to behold from a point of elevation thousands of cattle and horses of all sizes, scattered over the intermediate meadow in wild confusion. The mind feels a glow of corresponding innocent enjoyment with those useful and inoffensive animals, grazing in a sea of plenty. If the active horsemen that guard them would keep their distance, fancy would transport us backward to the pastoral ages. Allowing an animal to be produced for every five acres, more than 220,000 could be yearly reared and transported from this prairie alone, which, at an, average of ten dollars per head, would amount to two million four hundred thousand dollars." Mr. Darby, at the time he penned the above (in 1817) estimated the herds of the greatest stock owners of the country, viz,: Messrs. Wikoff, in the Calcasieu prairie, Fontenot, in Mamou prairie, and Andrus, in Opelousas prairie, at twenty thousand head. In the upper part of St. Landry the country is somewhat hilly, and is "cov- ered with a dense forest of pine, oak, ash, walnut and other valuable forest trees. Here also are found some fine mineral springs, which are much resorted to by invalids, and possess great curative qualities. Here are considerable deposits of limestone, from which, for home consumption, is made very excellent lime; and a fine quarry of marble, which is susceptible of a beautiful polish, and is valuable for making into mantels, monuments, etc. The soil in the middle PAGE 29 and lower portion of the parish is excellent, resting on a subsoil of fine brown or greyish clay, which, when ploughed up, exposed to the weather, and mixed with surface soil, is as rich as the upper stratum. That subject to overflow, being rich alluvial, is inexhaustible, and adapted to all the products of this latitude. The soil of the prairies is generally mellow and easy of cultivation. Grass covers all portions of the parish, except the cultivated fields or the surface covered by forests or by water. More than half a million acres of grass in St. Landry is not under fence. The greater portion of the wealth of St. Landry has been obtained from cattle and horses on the prairies, raised without hay or shelter. On these prairies a hundred thousand tons of hay might be made yearly for the New Orleans and other markets." * Water Courses, etc.- As already stated, St. Landry is well watered and drained by its numerous streams and bayous. The Atchafalaya River, which borders its eastern limit, connects the parish by steamboat with the Mississippi River and New Orleans. The Bayou Courtableau, formed by the junction of the Crocodile and Boeuf, affords good navigation to Washington the entire year, except a short period in summer when there is usually extreme low water. The Bayou Boeuf is the means of transportation for the planter, and the Crocodile for the lumber men. The Plaquemine Brule, the Nez Pique, Mallet and Canes are fine streams for draining and for irrigating, but are not navigable. The Mermentau River is a navigable stream, and is formed by the junction of the Canes, Plaquemine Brule and Nez Pique. Vessels ascend it for more than seventy miles and load with lumber for outside markets, much of it going to Havana and to Mexican ports. Along these streams are timbered bottoms, affording the finest timber for all purposes of building and fencing. When the timber is cleared, the land, which is extremely rich, grows immense quantities of sugar, rice, cotton, corn, sweet and Irish potatoes, peas, melons, pumpkins, fruits, gardens, etc. No richer lands are to be found anywhere. To sum up briefly, the parish has nearly two hundred and fifty miles of navigable waters. The Morgan Railroad, which passes through the center of the parish, affords the planter competing rates with water transportation. While but little of St. Landry is subject to overflow, yet the bottoms along the Atchafalaya, and some of the bayous, now and then are overflowed, on ac- count of levees giving way. This, however, occurs at rare intervals. Even the overflowed lands may be, to some extent, converted into valuable rice planta- tions, which become the richest in the world. When the Mississippi and Atcha- falaya levees are made secure, some of the most valuable plantations in South- west Louisiana will be those in the bottom lands. Resources, etc.- The resources of St. Landry are all that the planter ought to desire. All the crops common to this latitude grow in the most bountiful pro- * Daniel Dennett, in 1876 PAGE 30 fusion. Cotton, cane, corn, rice, fruits and vegetables are produced here with as little expense and labor, and in as great quantity, as in any portion of the South. Mr. Dennett gives some statistics in his work on Louisiana, which were compiled with great care, and though it was done twenty years ago, when the products were much below what they are now, illustrates to a considerable extent the capabilities of the country, and extracts from which will not be devoid of interest in this connection. "The surface cultivated in St. Landry yearly amounts to about 100,000 acres. About one-third of this is planted in cotton. Not a tenth part of the tillable land is under cultivation. With a working population like that of the Western States, and the same kind of cultivation, the parish might send to market yearly 100,000 bales of cotton, 50,000 hogsheads of sugar, 75,000 barrels of molasses and rice, tobacco, broom-corn, hay, beeves, horses, milk cows, sheep, hogs, hides poultry, eggs, rosin, turpentine, and other valuable products to the amount of from $10,000,000 to $15,000,000. So varied and valuable resources in a climate so salubrious can hardly be found anywhere else on the face of the earth. Elbert Gant's Experience - "The following statement we copy from a pamphlet published in Opelousas in 1869: 'I employed the past year twenty-two hands, to-wit: fifteen men, two boys and five women. Had in ninety acres of cane, one hundred acres of corn, and one hundred acres of cotton, besides sev- eral acres in potatoes and gardens, with the following result: Ground fifty-eight acres of cane in eighteen days, making one hundred and eight hogsheads of one thousand two hundred and fifty pounds each, which sold at ten cents....................................... $13,000 I made two hundred gallons of molasses, equal to eight thousand gallons, at seventy cents...................................................... 5,600 Also seven thousand seven hundred bushels of corn .................... 2,100 Also eighty-six bales of cotton, equal to thirty-eight thousand pounds, at twenty-two cents................................................... 8,514 ________ Gross receeipts..................................................... $29,214 My total expenses for provisions, repairs, hire of hands, sugar maker, hogsheads and barrels were ......................................... $10,000 ________ Which deducted from the gross income, leaves me net.................. $19,24 'ELBERT GANT.' * * * * * * * * In St. Landry, 1300 pounds of seed cotton to the acre, or about 400 pounds of lint, is a fair yield. In the true cotton zone, which is above the latitude of this parish, about 32 deg. north, 1800 pounds of seed cotton may be produced, or 600 pounds of lint. While it is admitted that the cotton plant is PAGE 31 liable to injury from insects, still, in the main, as many full crops are made as of any other product of the soil, and the chances of success are by many thought to be as favorable in this branch of industry as any which engage the farmer. One hogshead of sugar and sixty gallons of molasses may be considered an ordinary yield per acre in this parish; but we are assured by a gentleman for whose veracity we have high respect, that twenty-five hogsheads of sugar have been produced in St. Landry from six acres of ground. That is the best yield that has ever been known in any sugar producing parish of the State. Sixty gallons of molasses usually drain from a hogshead of sugar. Commercial manures will doubtless largely increase the average yield of sugar in all these parishes, and the facts hold good in regard to cotton and other crops. "The yield of corn in St. Landry is about thirty-five bushels to the acre. Potatoes, sweet and Irish, well cultivated, from 250 to 300 bushels to the acre. Pumpkins, peas, beans, pindars, broom corn, etc., give heavy returns, but owing to the fact that no one ever has made note of the yield of these crops per acre, correct statistics of them have never been recorded. "The cotton crop of St. Landry in 1869 was about 20,000 bales. But little sugar was made. The crop was short, and the planters have been more inclined to cultivate cotton than sugar since the war. Not more than a thousand hogsheads of sugar and fifteen hundred barrels of molasses were made in the parish. Most of the cotton planters made a bale of cotton to the acre. "Fruits do well in St. Landry, but little attention, however, is aid to fruit culture. Peaches, apples, pears, plums, figs, grapes, quince, blackberries, strawberries, dewberries, may-apple, persimmon, may-haw and pawpaw, all grow in the parish. Oranges may be successfully raised to some extent in the southern part. "The number of cattle in St. Landry in 1869 is estimated at 60,000 head; horses at 15,000; mules at 3500; sheep 3000; number of hog large, but not known." The reader will bear in mind that these statistics were compiled in 1869, and while the general yield of crops per acre are much the same now, the acre- age is largely increased. Fruit culture also is receiving much more attention, and the number of animals is greater. There are a number of stock farms in the parish that are devoting much attention to improvement of stock; the consequence is, that a better class of animals are to be seen throughout the parish than in former years. The crops of St. Landry for the past year (1890) surpasses, perhaps, those of any year of its existence, but at the present writing complete statistics can not be given, as the crops are not all in. The rice crop, however, is so nearly delivered as to venture a pretty correct estimate. PAGE 32 Mr. A. Levy, of Opelousas, gives the following of the rice crop, and its in- crease of recent years: "Rice has been grown in St. Landry parish for many years past, but very little, if any, was marketed, owing to the poor quality of seed used, a lack of facilities for shipping, and the ignorance of the planters as to its value. In 1884 a few sacks were shipped from Opelousas; in 1886 about 16,000 sacks were shipped, and the increase has continued from year to year, until this year's crop (1890) will reach, at Opelousas alone, 1,125,000 sacks, which will average $3.50 per sack, amounting to the sum total of $437,500. All rice planters who have taken the necessary precaution to supply themselves with water for irrigation, or whose locations make their places natural rice farms, have made considerable money during the past two years." Of the increase in the sale of farming implements, Mr. Levy gives for his firm alone, J. Meyers & Co., the following: " The sale of plows, harrows, reapers, threshers and engines used for the culture and harvest of rice and other crops, including wagons, has kept pace with the increase of products, and for the years 1886 to 1890 are about as follows: 12 steam threshers and portable engines, about................... $14,000 00 50 reapers and binders........................................... 8,000 00 40 harvesters and seeders........................................ 25500 00 300 two and four-horse wagons.................................... 12,000 00 Stationary engines and boilers, and other machinery used for cotton, rice and cane crops, besides extra number of plows, etc., about.. 20,000 00 "I append to this," says Mr. Levy, " a memorandum of the crop made last year (1890) by quite a young man and his wife. I can vouch for the truth of the figures, as I purchased, for my firm, the rice and cotton. This is no exceptional case, either, in St. Landry parish: 384 barrels of rice.............................................. $1,250 00 1 barrel of syrup................................................ 15 00 400 barrels of corn.............................................. 160 00 2500 pounds of cotton-5 bales.................................... 200 00 50 barrels sweet potatoes ....................................... 50 00 __________ Raised on 55 arpents............................................. $1,675 00 All expenses were................................................ 1,200 00 __________ Net income....................................................... $475 00 The above is given as the transactions of a single house in Opelousas. When it is remembered that there are several houses engaged similarly, and that, not only in Opelousas, but in Washington and other points in the parish, the mag- PAGE 33 nitude of the farming interests are not difficult to realize. Other facts and statics will be given under the head of agriculture. Early Settlement.- The settlement of St. Landry parish dates back to a period beyond the personal knowledge of any now living. Its population has been drawn from many sources. For years the possession of Louisiana alternated between the Spaniard and the Frenchman, the successors of the red Indians. To-day, we find in St. Landry, French, Creoles, Acadians, Span- iards, Canadians, an occasional Indian, Scotchman and Englishman, Germans, Italians, Israelites, Swiss, etc. Further, we find representatives from half the States of the Union. From North and South Carolina; from Georgia, Ala- bama, Mississippi and Florida; from Maryland, Virginia and Kentucky; with now and then a family from "bleak New England's shores." Of late years large importations are being received from Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Nebraska, and other States of the Northwest. No inconsiderable. element of the population of St. Landry is the " man and brother," who, as one of the results of the late civil war, has been placed upon political equality and elevated to the rights of statesmanship. Added to all these, we occasionally meet with a degraded remnant of the "noble red men," once the sole owners of the soil, dragging out a miserable existence by the sufferance of their conquerors. From old records of "church and State," and from descendants, the follow- ing names of early settlers in St. Landry parish have been obtained: Theoph- ilus Collins, D. J. Sutton, Louis Chevalier DeVillier, Claude Guilliory, Fran- cois Brignac, Pierre Doucet, Baptiste Vidren, Michel Cauman, Joseph Daigle, Honou Delachaise, William Shields, Perin Malveau, Jacques Fontenot, Pedro Fontenot, Antoine Fontenot, Joaquin Ortega, C. Voorhies, Flouintin Poiret, Simon Hook, Adam Tate, Jean Baptiste Figurant, Leonard Claiborne, Jean Henry Lastraps, Wm. Haslett, Leonard Claiborne, James Reed, Auguste Soi- leau, Wm. Blake, George King, Antoine Marcelin, Jonathan Seaman, John Mc- Daniel, Soileau Fuselin, George Hudson, John Bourg, Isaac Baldwin, William Wikoff, Joseph Andrus, Louis Fontenot, Theophilus Elmer, Benjamin Smith, Daniel Calligan, John Tear, Christopher Adams, Austin Blard, Joseph Roy, William O'Dorrigan, Patrick Jurinet, Baptiste Marithon, Antoine Simeon, J. B. Fiourant, Chas. Lacasse, Rewleu T. Sacket, John Lee, Michel Armand, Au- gustin Frug6, Joseph Lejuene, Joseph Landry, Michel Perault, Joseph Young, Sr., John Fruge, Michel Prud'homme, John Bihn, John B. Young, Frederick Miller, Jacques Fontenot, Antoine Boisedore, Joseph C. Poree, Joseph Bein, Philip Lacasse, JQseph Moreau, Martin Donato, Joseph Armand, Louis Carrier, Francois Lemel, Joseph A. Parrot, Chas. Norman, John Gradnigo, Joseph Johnson, John B. David, Charles Johnson, Joseph Cormier, George Bollard, John Dinsmore, Joseph Grange, Pierre Richard, Baptiste Tisenau, Blaise Bas- seur, Hubert Tanney, Jacques Roman, Charles Barre, Luke Hollier, John Midler. PAGE 34 Martin Durald, Jno. B. Staley, Bennet Jopline, Michel Carrier, John Frazee, Francois Roze, Thos. Bedsoe, Pierre Gourrinat, Thomas Lee Brun, Chantila Rouvassa, Daniel Clark, Sylvanie Saunier, Louis Logee, Pierre Frahain, Col. Francois Neda, Jacques Dupre, Col. William Offet, Gen. Garriques, J. J. Louaillier, Francois Audillard, Louis Vauhille, Pierre Louis Cahaune, Francois De Villier, Maj. John Preston, etc. These are some of the names of early settlers in what is now the parish of St. Landry. They are taken from the early records, and many of them now, particularly those who are without descendants in the parish have passed out of remembrance of any now living. But of a number of them some interesting reminiscences have been obtained. Gen. John Preston was a Virginian, and came to this parish many years ago. He was a man of vast wealth, and brought a large number of slaves here with him. He became an extensive planter, and was a man of considerable prominence in the community. He was a fine specimen of the Virginia gentle- man of the past century, and was related to some of the ablest and most influential families of that State and Kentucky, notably those of the Breckinridges, Cabells, Pattons, etc. He died many years ago. Joseph Andrews, an early settler, was a hatter by trade; made hats of furs of different animals found here ; made fine fur hats of rabbit skins which would last a man a lifetime. He accumulated great wealth, and was well thought of by all. Celestin La Vergen was a native of France, and was very wealthy; he owned a great deal of land, large numbers of slaves, and was an extensive planter. He was eccentric, honest, high toned and popular. He decided, after a residence of many years in St. Landry, to revisit his native France, and spent a week packing and arranging his trunks, which outnumbered those of a modern Saratoga belle. Upon his arrival in the old country, the customs officers in making an examination of his trunks emptied out the contents, and then told him, when satisfied they contained nothing contraband, that he could take them and go on his way. " No, sir," said he, "I will not receive them until you replace everything as you found it. You pack them as they were and send them to me ________, Paris," and he made the customs officer repack them. Michel Prud'homme was an early settler, a good Catholic, and a man of broad and liberal benevolence. He gave four acres of ground to the Catholic church of Opelousas, where it is now located. His father was a Hessian soldier, and came to the United States as a soldier in the British army during the Revolutionary War. His good sense, and sympathy for a people struggling for liberty, prompted him to leave the army by fair means or foul, and it is said he withdrew without leave. He had been sold by his own prince to the English monarch to help crush out the rebellion among the American patriots, and his nature revolted at the idea. He came to Louisiana and settled in St. Landry. He would PAGE 35 never give his true name, but admitted it was not originally Prud'homme,' but that the latter had been assumed to disguise his identity. He was somewhat illiterate - could not read or write - but was not ignorant, and became very wealthy. Louis Chevalier de Villier, Francois de Villier, ________ Baldwin and Major John Klose were early settlers. The last named died just before the late war. fie was in the battle at New Orleans in 1815. He was a wealthy planter in early years. Francois de Villier settled about ten miles in the country from Opelousas, and has descendants still living in that section of the parish. About 1800, a number of families came from France, who fled from the hor- ror's of the French revolution. Among these were Louis and J. J. Louaillier and Florentin Poiret. J. J. Louaillier was the first merchant in Opelousas, and sold goods in the place when it was but a French post, and a station for soldiers to protect the citizen from the savages. Major William Prescott came from Kentucky early in the present century. He was a very wealthy man and brought a great many slaves with him. He planted on a large scale and made money. He turned his attention to politics, and served both in the State Senate and in the House of Representatives. He was a man of education and intelligence, was very popular, and described as a typical old Kentucky gentleman; had a high sense of honor, aud despised a low, mean act. Col. Francois Neda was from Spain, and came here about the close of the last or at the beginning of the present century. He had been a soldier under the Spanish government, and was an accomplished officer. He was one of the early merchants of Opelousas, was several times Mayor of the town and altogether a man of much local prominence. He owned a large plantation in the parish, well stocked with slaves, and had the respect of the entire community. Col. William and Nathaniel Offutt were natives of Kentucky, and belonged to the intellectual Offutt family of the Blue-grass State. Col. Offutt owned a large plantation and a number of slaves. He was finally killed by one of his negroes. His brother was also a wealthy planter. Jacques Clement Hollier was born in New Orleans in 1776; came to this parish and died in Opelousas at the age of eighty-one years. Col. Benjamin Rogers was a prominent man in the early times of St. Landry. He served several terms in the Legislature, and held other important positions. He and three of his friends were once sued for libel. They were defended by Hon. Sergeant S. Prentiss, the brilliant and eloquent Southern orator, who spoke three days on the case, and succeeded in having his clients acquitted. Robert Rogers, the father of Col. Rogers, was an early settler of the parish. He was from Kentucky, and brought his old Kentucky rifle with him, and, like Daniel Boone, he knew how to use it. It is told of him that he was once challenged to fight a duel, and, as the challenged party had the choice of weapons, he chose PAGE 36 rifles, which so frightened the challenger he withdrew his belligerent proposition. The Dupres were a prominent family. The original, pioneer, and first of the family in the parish was Jacques. He was at one time Lieutenant Governor of the State. He took great interest in politics and wielded considerable influence. Representatives of the family still live in the parish. He is mentioned in connection with the bar of St. Landry. Gen. Garriques was an early settler and a very prominent man. He was in the battle of New Orleans in January, 1815. Charles Garriques was a son. A number of prominent and wealthy families came with Gen. Garriques. Francois Audillard was an early settler. He also was at the battle of New Orleans. Gen. Jackson placed him under arrest on the charge of being a traitor, but afterward discovered his mistake and released him. The Fontenots were also a prominent family, and a numerous one, and pos- sessed great wealth. Many of them still live in the parish, and are among the wealthy and influential citizens. Such were some of the first settlers who came to St. Landry. Except the Spanish and French soldiers, they were the first white men to tread the soil of Louisiana. Longevity.-Mr. Dennett gives some interesting statistics of longevity in St. Landry parish that show pretty conclusively the healthfulness of the climate. He says: " By the assistance of intelligent citizens of St. Landry, we have a list of names of white persons in Opelousas and the parish above the age of sixty-five years. We find that there are twenty-two in Opelousas, and fifty-six in other parts of the parish, making seventy-eight in the parish of St. Landry above the age of sixty-two, the oldest having arrived at the remarkable age of one hundred and eighteen years. In Opelousas there are forty-one white persons between the ages of fifty and sixty-five years, and doubtless there are others who belong to the list, but we have been unable to obtain their names. A partial list of these aged ones is as follows: "The widow V. Dufrene lives about fifteen miles from Opelousas, and has attained the age of one hundred and eighteen years. She weighs less than one hundred pounds, is tall, straight, has a very good eyesight and walks briskly for one of her age. Joseph Cheasson, alias Joannes, died several years ago in this parish at the advanced age of nearly one hundred and thirty years. When he was one hundred and fifteen years old he moved to Texas, and after living in that State several years returned to St. Landry. Mr. Thomas died in this parish several years since at the age of over one hundred years; Joseph Young died in this parish thirty years ago, aged about one hundred and fifteen years. He married at the age of ninety years and his wife had a son whom he lived to see married. His widow still lives in St. Landry. Mrs. Blaize died a few years since, aged nearly one hundred years; Mrs. Daigle, aunt of Mr. Choteau, who PAGE 37 has a lease of the Avery salt mines, died in Opelousas, aged nearly one hundred years; Jesse Andrus, aged ninety, and Maj. John Clac, aged ninety died recently. A respectable physician informed us that Madame Guillory, an old lady of St. Landry, before her death, could count up over eight hundred lineal descendants, all blood relations. Mr. Joseph Langley, ninety-five years old, lived in St. Landry forty-two years; his twelve children are all living. He had no physician in his family for twenty-five years." The Creoles.-A large element of the population, not only of St. Landry, but of the whole Attakapas district, is what is commonly called Creoles. - The impression seems to prevail in many sections of the country," says a late writer, "that Creoles are a mixture of the white, negro and Indian races. This is a mistake. Webster defines Creole as, first, ' Properly created, nursed, grown up.' Second, ' One born in the West Indies or America of European parents,' Third, 'Born within or near the tropics, of any color.' " The first definition given is purely philological. " The second and third definitions are those derived from usage. " Here in Southwest Louisiana we have still another definition, derived from local usage, which is, 'a descendant of any degree from French, Spanish or Acadian parentage.' The main body of those who are called 'Creoles' here are only such under this last definition. They are not born of European parents, nor within the tropics, but are descendants of the Acadians who came here from Canada in A. D. 1755. They are a quiet, hospitable people, and while their educational advantages have been limited, they are not by any means wholly an illiterate people. Many of them can read and write well, and some of them are classical scholars. They are almost universally alive to the importance of educating their children and are starting and sustaining schools in every place where they can be sustained. The true Creoles are among the most intelligent and substantial citizens of the South. They give great attention to the education of their children, but have been heretofore giving their attention and patronage to private schools. Since the influx of Northern immigrants into this country, and the agitation of the public school question by them, the 'Creoles' have taken hold of this question with them, and are working together with them in these lines. "Northern people are almost invariably agreeably surprised when they come to know the 'Creoles' well. They find them warm hearted and accom- modating and social, and soon get to liking them well." The Indians.- If not the first settlers the Indians were the first possessors and the original owners of the "Opelousas country." As a late writer puts it, "the land of enchanting scenery, of beautiful bayous and glassy lakes and bays; of splendid prairies and noble forests; of pleasant skies and gentle breezes; the land of flowers, of beauty, and of health,"-yes, this fairy land was once the PAGE 38 home of the red man and his kindred. But he is rapidly disappearing before the advancing tide of civilization and refinement. They are, as a race, doomed by the inexorable laws of humanity to speedy and everlasting extinguishment. But less than a hundred years ago the combined strength of the red man might have driven the white into the sea. Fifty years hence, if not in a much shorter period, he will live only in the pages of history and the brighter immortality of romantic song and story - such as is found in the sentimental pages of Fennimore Cooper. He will leave nothing behind him, for he has done nothing - been nothing. The greatest redeeming feature in his career is that he has always preferred the worst sort of freedom to the best sort of slavery. Had he consented to become "a hewer of wood and drawer of water " for the superior race," he, might, like our Americanized Africans, be now enjoying the blessings of Bible and breeches, sharing the honors of citizenship and the delights of office, seeking and receiving the bids of rival political parties Whether his choice was a wise one is left to the reader in his wisdom to determine; but it is impossible not to feel some admiration for the indomitable spirit that has never bowed its neck to the yoke, never called any man "master." The Indian is a savage, but he never was, never will be a slave. When resisting the encroachments of the whites upon his hunting grounds he has been characterized as a fiend, a savage, a barbarian (all of which he is), whom we might rob, mistreat and even murder at will. This whole North American land was the Indian's. How it became his is no business of ours, nor is it material to this subject. It is ours now, and whether we obtained it in a more honorable way than did the Indians before us, is a question that has two sides to it. We have driven him from the Atlantic Ocean to the distant shores of the Pacific, where he hears the roar of the waves that must ere long close over him forever. A few more such outbreaks as that of the present in the Northwest, and his fate will be unalterably settled. Even now he may, in the figurative language of Sprague, "read his doom in the setting sun." In the chapter introductory to this work is a brief sketch of the Indians who, originally inhabited this region, with something of their legends and traditions. There were plenty of Indians here when the first settlements were made. An old gentleman of Opelousas informed the writer that within his recollection there could be seen in the streets of Opelousas more Indians than there can be seen negroes at the present day, which would indicate they were rather plentiful in those early times. More of Pioneer History.- The attempt to settle these beautiful lands was not without its perils and dangers. But they were such that the Jesuit priest and the Capuchin monk did not shrink from them. Bearing aloft the Cross they went forth to convert the savage and reclaim the wilderness. But nothwith- standing the many dangers by which they were constantly surrounded, their PAGE 39 glowing accounts of a land, figuratively, at least, "flowing with wine and milk and honey," soon attracted followers to them. Brave hearts were found, willing to leave their patrimonial houses even in "Sunny France," and hazard their lives amid the frowning forests and wild prairies of Southwest Louisiana. To picture in the imagination a more lonesome and dreary waste than a country without a human habitation is not an easy task. The broad expanse of prairie stretching away beyond the power of vision, and the gloomy forests almost impenetrable to man, is not very inviting, beautiful though the land may be. Often in autumn, when the leaves and grass became sere, the plains, for the better facilities for hunting, were burned over, and the atmosphere, filled with smoke from these fires, darkening the face of day, hung like mourning drapery upon the horizon. Recalling the days when monotonous solitude was all that was here, is to modern people but ringing the changes on the story of the "Lost Mariner," when the poet tells us he was "Alone, alone, all, all alone, Upon the wide, wide sea." If great and beneficent results are the proper measure of the good men to do, then who is there in the world's history that may take their places above the settlers of St. Landry and the surrounding country? To point the way for the present advancing civilization was the great work of these adventurous people. For the grand simplicity of their lives they achieved recognition and fame, as Enoch Arden did, after death. Sneer at them as we may, yet, in their little space of time, they made greater progress than ten centuries had witnessed before them. The work thirty generations had not done, they did, and the Abyss between those of to-day and the old French, Spaniards and Acadians, is wider and more profound than the chasm between 1815 and the battle of Hast- ings. Then their names and their fame should not be allowed to pass into oblivion and contempt. Should it be so, the act would stamp their descendants as "degenerate sons of noble sires," unworthy the inheritance they gave them. To say that in this work it is proposed to write the history, in the broad and large meaning of that word, would be a careless use of language - would be promising more than it is possible to do; for history in the true sense is philosophy in the highest type, teaching by example. But to gather such facts, incidents, statistics, circumstances, etc., trifling or important, and place them in a durable form and transmit them, ready to hand, to the future and real historian is all that one can hope to do in a manner satisfactory. To tell their simple annals, to secure something of the "substance ere the shadows wholly fade" is enough to attempt now. Parish of Saint Landry.- The territory originally embraced in the parish of St. Landry, as has been already stated, was almost an empire of itself. Col. Voorhies, of St. Martinsville, tells how this portion of the State was once PAGE 40 called the Attakapas Country, and how, as its population and wealth increased, it was divided and subdivided, forming new districts under new names and titles. More than a century ago it was the District of Attakapas and Territory of Orleans. In 1805 the Territory of Orleans was divided into ten counties, one of which was called the County of Opelousas. For several years it bore this title. The old records in the clerk's office show the heading- " County of Opelousas and Territory of Orleans"- to all documents, such as deeds, wills and other testamentary records. On the 8th of June, 1807, the County of Opelousas is dropped from the records, and Parish of St. Landry is substituted in its place -, but for many years afterward the Territory of Orleans was kept up. Finally, the Territory of Orleans is dropped, and it became, as now, the Parish of Saint Landry. When Saint Landry was the county of Opelousas the town of Opelousas was the capital of a large district. The scattered settlers from the Atchafalaya River on the east to the Sabine and the Calcasieu on the west were under the necessity of going to Opelousas to vote and to attend the courts of the district. Appreciating the fact that the undertaking, for that day, was an onerous one, they strove to combine pleasure with business. When, for instance, an interesting and stirring campaign was inaugurated our pioneer fathers took pretty much the same interest in it we do to-day. They would, as the election drew nigh, make their preparations to attend it. A number of them would get together when time came to start, and, well supplied with the necessaries of life, mount their horses or broncho ponies, and start on the eventful journey. From a week to ten days were required to make the trip, cast their ballots and return. As there were no houses or taverns along the route they would camp where night overtook them, and, "with the green earth for a couch and the blue sky for a covering," they would "repose themselves" till the morning light aroused them, when, partaking of their "frugal fare," they would mount and resume their journey. This will seem strange to many, but it is nevertheless true. There are those still living who well remember the occurrences of these periodical trips of the western citizens to the capital to exercise their rights of freemen, to cast their ballots for the men of their choice. Their journeys were not devoid of pastime and excitement. They would, hunt, cook their fresh meats, and around the camp fires tell stories of wilderness life, perhaps gamble a little by way of relieving the tedium of their encampment. Upon their return to their homes they had much to tell. As Charles Dudley Warner says, in his interesting, article on the Acadian Land: "To the women and home-stayers it was an event. The men had been to the outer world and brought back with them the news and gossip of the capital, and the simple incidents of their camping on the road." The details of the trip afforded a delightful entertainment for many an evening PAGE 41 around the fireside. But as settlements increased, and new parishes formed and new towns laid out, these exciting episodes ceased by voting places being established nearer home. A few of these old landmarks still remain, and delight to fight their battles o'er again," and shake their heads and say, "the old times were better than these." The writer has heard them tell of these early scenes, and in the excitement the recital inspired, they almost seemed to grow young again. But "Long years have flown over these scenes of the past, And many have turned gray in the winter's cold blast, While others only dream of the times that are gone; They are bent by the years that are fast rolling on." Highways, Railroads, Etc.- St. Landry is significant for good roads in good weather, but when considerable rain falls they become almost impassable, that is to say, " when they are good they are very good, and when they are bad they are horrid." The first roads of the parish were the trails made by the Indians through the forests and prairies. The trails, the highest effort of his genius at internal improvement and the type of his highest civilization, were the paths along which he pursued his game or his enemy, or took his stealthy march from point to point. The first roads were laid out on the trails, or rather the trails were made into roads by common use, until the tide of immigration swelled the population and necessitated more roads and better ones, when they were improved by the hand of the white man, and others made to the different communities. Like all the early improvements of this section, road making progressed slowly, and even at this day the roads are nothing beyond common "dirt roads." In dry, fair weather they are good, none better; but on the other hand, in protracted wet weather, well, the bottom literally falls out. Turnpikes and macadamized roads seem to be among the lost arts in Southwest Louisiana, or among those not yet discovered. There is only one thing more to add of the public roads in St. Landry. It is but a repetition of the same old tale of the Arkansas Traveler: "Neighbor, why don' you cover your house?" "'Cause its raining." "Why don't you cover it when it ain't raining?" "'Cause it don't need it then." Railroads are a more important factor. Nothing adds more to the wealth, power and commerce of a country than railroads. No country ever yet had too many railroads. Several railroad projects were contemplated in this section of the State before one was carried through to successful completion. Morgan's Louisiana Railroad and the Texas & Pacific pass through St. Landry parish. There is nothing so far as St. Landry is interested that at all compares with the building of these railroads. All other things are merely events; some of them of great importance, and others of less importance, but all placed together are insignificant to these railroad enterprises. The railroads of Southwest Louisiana, and the waterways that can easily be rendered navigable, with enterprise to back them up, ought to place every known market of the world accessible to this PAGE 42 rich and productive country. In a preceding chapter, a more detailed history of railroads penetrating the parishes embraced in this volume is given, and to it the reader is referred. Agriculture.- This is the one great calling in which the people of St. Lan- dry are more interested than any other. Agriculture is the source of prosperity of all trades and professions. It is the parent of all industries, and as such claims precedence. From it have gone forth the brawn and brain that have subdued the earth, built cities, chained the lightning, linked the continents and "made all the world akin." All thriving interests, all prosperous industries, all trades and professions receive their means of support either directly or indirectly through agriculture. It is, therefore, by right of primogeniture and paramount importance the most indispensable of all other industries. The progress of agriculture was slow and made little progress for many years after settlements were commenced in this section. The early planters had few implements of husbandry, and they of the rudest kind. One of the chief implements was the hoe. In planting time, an inch or two of the top of the ground was scratched off with a plow that, compared with the improved plows of the present day, scarcely deserved the name. The crops were planted and the cultivation was done principally with a hoe. At first little was raised here except cane and indigo, but the latter proving to be somewhat unprofitable, cane became the staple crop. The following newspaper article will be found of interest to the sugar planter: "Producing sugar from cane is one of the most important industries of Louisiana ; and yet this industry is in its infancy. True, sugar has been pro- duced here for many years, but it has been done in a crude, unscientific way, by which fully one-half of the saccharine matter has been lost in manufacturing. "Recently there have been wonderful developments in this direction. The discoveries and inventions of the last few years that have made it possible to produce sugar from sorghum, in paying quantities, have improved the processes of manufacturing the Southern cane into sugar in such a way as to double the profits of the business. "Under the old processes of cultivation and manufacturing, with the three- roller mills and open kettles, the cost of producing cane and sugar was about as follows: It required one acre of cane to plant four acres, and one planting would last three years; so it required one-twelfth of the crop for seed. The average production under this system was twenty tons of cane. This made an average of 2209 pounds of sugar and three barrels of molasses per acre. The sugar was worth 4 1/2 cents per pound, or $99 per acre. The molasses was worth $20 per barrel, or $60, making the production of one acre bring an average of $159. Deducting one-twelfth for seed, we still have $145.66 for every acre of cane produced. It cost to produce and manufacture, etc., an average as follows: To PAGE 43 cultivate, $12 per acre; fertilizer, $5 per acre; to manufacture, $15 per acre; or $32 per acre all told. Deducting this from the $145.66, we have as the net profits $113.66 per acre. "Under the new system, which includes improved machinery for cultivating and manufacturing and better drainage, etc., the results are simply astounding. The average per acre under this system is as follows: Twenty-eight and one-half tons of cane per acre, producing 225 pounds of sugar per ton, or 6412 1/2 pounds per acre, worth 5 1/4 cents per pound, or $336.65. Besides this, it produced five barrels of molasses, worth $7.50 per barrel, or $37.50 per acre; total per acre, $374.15. Deducting one-twelfth for seed, we still have $342.77 per acre. The cost of cultivating and of manufacturing under this system is about the same as under the old system; but allowing $10.97 more for expense, we have as the net proceeds of one acre $300. These figures look large, but they can be verified fully. One of our responsible citizens offered to enter into bonds with a Northern man who was skeptical, to pay the expenses of a man, and pay him $100 per day in investigating, if he did not find the above figures correct and fully proved. The question arises at once, when these facts are claimed, why has not every man got rich who is in the sugar business? The answer to this is that the above results are obtainable with good, honest laborers; and the most of the work heretofore in this country has been done by negro labor, which is generally very imperfect. If we had the industrious farmers of the Northwest to cultivate the lands, selling their cane to the mills at $4 to $5 per ton, which is the ruling price, this country would produce more wealth than any other State in the Union." Since the war there has been a rapid advance in every branch of agriculture, not only in the mode of farming, but in the cultivation of crops almost unknown here twenty-five or thirty years ago. Rice is fast becoming a staple crop in this section of the State. Says a late writer on rice culture: "Every farmer should plant more or less rice. An acre of land can generally be found on the farm unsuited for any other crop, and can be utilized by planting it in rice, and will produce from forty to sixty bushels, perhaps as much as 8oo pounds of clean rice. This 800 pounds of clean rice will go further in a family of children toward feeding them on wholesome food than any other production from the same amount of land. It is safe to say that no crop will yield a greater amount of food for the amount of labor and land used to produce it. "There are many farmers, however, who have no lands that can be flooded, but this will not prevent them from growing rice. It may easily be grown on upland, using the same seed that you would on lowland. There are different varieties of rice, but no distinct species. The rice grown by irrigation, if planted on upland, is upland rice. A planter last spring, after he had planted his rice and it had come up to a stand, had a very hard rain which threw down his levees. He put them up again, but had no way of flooding his rice, which PAGE 44 grew to maturity without any water or cultivation, and made a very fair crop. If planted in rows two and a half feet apart and worked one time while small, it maker, an excellent quality of rice. It is best to plant about the middle of March or the first of April, but it has been planted much earlier, and may be planted as late as June and mature before frost. When rice lands can be obtained that can be flooded as easily and as cheaply as some in this section, it makes it very prof1table to grow rice, and by the use of machinery in reaping and planting, large fortunes may be made at this industry." Every year St. Landry and all the surrounding country have been increasing rapidly in the diversity of crops. Few farmers now confine themselves to a single crop, but raise cane, cotton, too, and perhaps, rice, corn, potatoes, etc., while many raise fruits successfully. Churches, Schools, Etc.- The religious history of the parish of St. Landry is nearly as old as its settlement by white people, for churches were established soon after white people came to the country. In 1777 a Catholic church was organized near where the town of Washington now stands. It is claimed to be the first church established in Southwest Louisiana, and perhaps the first in the State. This pioneer church is the same that is now in Opelousas, known as St. Landry's Catholic Church, and years later, when the county of Opelousas was extinguished by the formation of parishes, this became the parish of St. Landry, in honor of the first church in the country. The church records, from its organization in 1777, to December 18, 1803, are in Spanish; after that they are in French. The church was originally organized by the Capuchins, or religious priests of Spain. As stated, the church was originally established near where Washington now stands, but some years later, in consequence of a donation of four acres of land to the church by the old pioneer Michel Prud'homme, a rude wooden building was put up for church purposes, and Saint Landry's Church was then permanently established in Opelousas. All the Catholic parishes and churches of Southwest Louisiana are offshoots of this old church and that at St. Martinsville. More particulars are given of this pioneer church in connection with the town of Opelousas. The first Protestant minister in Southwest Louisiana was Rev. Joseph Willis, and he preached the first Protestant sermon in November, 1804, at Vermilion. He was a mulatto, born and reared in South Carolina, but showed scarcely a trace of negro blood. Rev. W. E. Paxton, in his "History of Louisiana Bap- tists," says of him: "He was a mulatto, and came to Mississippi previous to 1798, as a licensed preacher. He was a man of some education, full of the Holy Ghost, and was a sound gospel preacher. Some of his productions in my possession indicate that he was a simple-hearted Christian, glowing with the love of Jesus, and an effective preacher." He remained but a, short time on his first PAGE 45 visit and preached only three or four sermons. His color, and being a Baptist, rendered him obnoxious, and exposed him to strong prejudices, and he was threatened with violence. He returned home after a brief visit, but he felt it to be his duty to come to the country he had visited and labor for the good of the people. He chose a location, returned to Mississippi, made his arrangements, and the year following returned and located permanently in Louisiana, on Bayou Chicot, in the parish of St. Landry, Here, on the 13th of November, 1812, a church was constituted by him, the first Baptist church in the State, and Rev. Mr. Willis became, at the request of the church, its pastor. The history of this man and his missionary work would form an interesting chapter in the religious history of Southwestern Louisiana, but space in this volume can not be given him. Father Willis, as his people call him, in 1816 established another church in St. Landry, at Bayou Boauf, most of the members having recently moved there from other contiguous settlements. In 1817, Yet other members, dismissed from the mother-church at Bayou Chicot, formed churches at Vermilion, Plaquemine Brule, and Hickory Flat, now Aimwell in Catahoula parish. In May, 1824, Rev. Willis, assisted by Elders Wm. B. Wil- burn and Isham Nettles, who had lately located in St. Landry, organized a church at Beaver Creek in St. Landry parish, and Rev. Isham Nettles became its pastor. But we can not follow this pioneer church further. The Methodists came to the Louisiana Territory contemporaneously with the Baptists. In 1804 a Methodist minister, whose name is forgotten, came to St. Landry. He formed a society at Plaquemine, the first Protestant church in this part of the State, and in fact, west of the "Great Father of Waters." It is not known where this pioneer of Methodism came from, but from the Natchez Country, doubtless, where there was a Methodist station as early as 1799, the ministers of which were sent there from the South Carolina Conference. Other Protestant churches have followed in the wake of the Methodists and Baptists, until St. Landry can boast of Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian and Episcopalian churches, dotting her territory in almost every direction. As to educational facilities, the Southern States are far behind the Northern and Western States in schools, particularly in public schools. No question is of such vital importance to the people as that of education. Nothing for which a State pays money yields such a large dividend upon the cost as the revenue expended upon schools. A few words, perhaps, of the public school system, and when and how it originated, will prove of interest to the general reader. It is just possible, however, that there are those who will not think more highly of it by a knowledge of its birthplace, on the same principle that the ancient Hebrews believed that nothing good could come out of Nazareth. But there is no reason why a good thing should be frowned upon on account of its place of origin. This is one great country and should know no dividing lines. PAGE 46 The question of educating the masses through the medium of common schools was agitated as early as 1647, in New England. An act was passed that year to enable "every child, rich and poor alike, to learn to read its own language." This was followed by another act, "giving to every town or dis- trict having fifty householders the right to have a common school," and to "every town or district having one hundred families a grammar school, taught by teachers competent to prepare youths for college." A writer, years afterward, commenting on the act, states it to be the first instance in Christendom wherein a civil government took measures to confer upon its youth the benefits of an education. There had been "parish schools connected with individual churches." continued he, "and foundations for universities, but never before embodied in practice a principle so comprehensive in its nature and so fruitful in good results as the training of a nation of intelligent people by educating all its youth." When our fathers, nearly a century and a half later, declared in the ordinance of 1787 that "knowledge, with religion and morality, was necessary to the good government of mankind," they struck the key note of American liberty. "The governing power in every country upon the face of the globe is an educated power. The Czar of Russia, ignorant of international law, of domes- tic affairs, of finance, commerce and the organization of armies and navies, could never, but for education, hold under the sway of his scepter seventy millions of subjects. With what scrupulous care does England foster her great universities for the training of the sons of the nobility for their places in the House of Lords, in the army, navy and church? What then should be the character of citizenship in a country where every man is born a king and sovereign, heir to all the franchises and trusts of the State and Republic? An ignorant people can be governed, but only an intelligent and educated people can govern themselves; that is the experiment being now solved in these United States. A recent writer upon the subject of common school education thus truth- fully remarks: "A State plants its right to educate upon the foundation, that intelligent citizenship is the bulwark of free institutions. It educates for its own protection. Each free elector holds in the ward of his ballot the measure of the State's interest. An uneducated ballot is the winding sheet of liberty. The principle of sovereignty in a republican government resides in the individual citizen. The expression of the popular will by a majority at the polls, in a fairly conducted election, is but the aggregate expression of American sovereignty. The people, by their votes, determine who shall represent their sovereign will. How to wield the power for good, is the supreme question for the States. An ignorant people, manipulated by corrupt leaders, becomes the worst of all tyrants. The idea that the majority can do no wrong is only equaled by that monstrous political dogma of imperialism, I The King can do no wrong.' Nothing is so wrong as a deluded, demagogue-directed majority. PAGE 47 It holds power, and when it determines to run riot over the peace and pros- perity of society, a political wolf howls hungry for prey along our highways, and a roaming leopard keeps ward and watch at the crossings of the streets in our towns and cities. No maxim ever embodied a more pernicious error than the trite proverb, 'The voice of the people is the voice of God.' This would be true, if the people were God-like. This can only be true, when intelligence determines public questions and patriotism executes its verdicts." The foregoing extract is true to the very letter, and the Southern people are able to fully realize it. The greatest crime of the century was the sudden enfranchisement of four millions of unlettered Africans. Those who perpe- trated the outrage upon our republican institutions did it in the face of all the social science they had propagated. The North had emphasized the, doctrine that virtue and intelligence are essential to the perpetuity of the Republic yet, in an ill-advised hour of heated passion, rendered hot by the fires of civil war, they made a horde of ignorant slaves the peers of their intelligent masters, and thus provided the conditions that prostrated the South, and subjected its people to the most destroying despotism that ever ground into the dust a free citizenship. The only indemnity for this stupendous wrong is their education at the national expense. To require the people they impoverished by this act of folly to bear the burden of their education would be a continued piece of injustice, which no political casuistry can justify, no species of sophistry disguise, and maudlin philanthropy dignify with a decent apology. The public school system of Louisiana is susceptible of vast improvement. A great State, of the wealth and material resources of this, can have no excuse for a poor system of public schools. As the editor of the Courier very truthfully remarks: " Northern immigrants are wanted to assist to develop the vast resources of this section. Such immigrants are loth to come into a country not provided with good educational facilities, however inviting it may be in other respects. For these reasons, and because we recognize the fact that ignorance is a badge of inferiority everywhere, we have persistently urged the establishment of an efficient public school system. With taxation up to the constitutional limit of sixteen mills, with every industry heavily burdened in the license bill, but with an enormous debt absorbing almost half of our revenues, our rulers have thus far failed in this all-important work, and Louisiana still lags behind almost every other State in the Union." The general school fund of the State is derived from the following sources: Annual poll tax of one dollar per capita on every male inhabitant over 21; the interest on the proceeds of all public lands heretofore granted by the United States for school purposes, and that which may be granted, bequeathed or do- nated hereafter for that purpose; all funds or property other than unimproved land bequeathed or granted to the State, not designated for other purposes; the PAGE 48 proceeds of vacant estates falling under the law to the State of Louisiana; a certain amount set apart from the amount of State taxes collected; besides, a certain amount set apart from the amount of parish taxes collected. The parish school boards are appointed by the State Board of Education. They are empowered to appoint parish superintendents, who are ex officio sec- retaries of the board. Their duties are to divide the parishes into school districts, to apportion the school funds among the several districts in proportion to the number of children between the ages of 6 and 18 years, to require from each member a quarterly report to the board of the actual condition; prospects and needs of the schools in the ward in which he resides; to appoint committees to examine personally all candidates for teacher in the schools; to provide school houses, furniture and apparatus for the schools; to adjust and fix the salaries of teachers, and make annual reports to the State Board of Education. The following is the present School Board of St. Landry: Laurent Dupre, Dr. V. K. Irion, C. N. Ealer, C. J. Thompson, E. V. Barry, Dr. W. W. Lesley, Charles Antonio and Frank Wharton. The first named is president of the board, and the next secretary and parish superintendent. There are 55 Public schools in the parish. The Press.- The press of St. Landry is as able as that of any parish in Southwestern Louisiana. The record of the newspaper press of a country, if it has happened to fall into the hands of men competent to make it fully discharge its duty, ought to be the one most important page of that country's history. One of the greatest things that could always be said of our nation was, it has a free press. No man has to be licensed or selected by the government either to print a book or publish a newspaper. It has been circumscribed by no law except natural selection. Any one who wished could start a paper at any time, and say anything he desired to say, barring only an occasional boot-toe and the law of libel. If lie chose not to be suppressed there was no power to suppress him - except a "military necessity," and once in a great while mob violence. If he was persecuted or threatened by some outraged citizen, it is not certain but that he always got the best of the difficulty, especially when he would begin to prate about the "palladium of American liberties." The wisest act of our government in all its history was the unbridling of the press. It was the seed planted in good ground for its own perpetuity, and the happiness and welfare of its people. To make the press absolutely free, especially after the centuries of vile censorship over it, was an act of wisdom transcending in importance the original invention of movable types. A free press makes free speech, free schools, free intelligence and freedom, and when political storms come, and the mad waves of popular ignorance and passion beat upon the ship of state, then, indeed, is a free press the beacon light shining out upon the troubled waters. As an enthusiastic writer recently put it: PAGE 49 "By means of the press, the humblest cabin in the land may bid enter and become a part of the family circle, such as the sweet singing bard of Scotland - the poet of Bonny Doon. The immortal Shakespeare or Byron, who touched his harp and nations beard entranced.' Here Lord Macaulay will lay aside his title and dignity, and with the timid children even hold sweet converse in those rich, resounding sentences that flow on forever like a great and rapid river. Here Gray will sing his angelic pastoral, as I the lowing herds wind slowly o'er the lea, and leaves the world to solitude and me;' and Charles Lamb, whose sweet, sad, witty life may mix the laugh with the sigh of sympathy, set the children in a roar, as lie tells the story of the 'invention of the roast pig;' and that human bear-Johnson-his roughness and boorishness all gone now, as in trenchant sentences he pours out his jeweled thoughts to eager ears; and the stately Milton, blind but sweet and sublime; and Pope, and poor, unfortunate, gifted Poe, with his bird of evil omen perched upon the pallid bust of Pallas;' and Shelley and Keats and Dickens and Thackeray and Saxe and Scott and Hood and Elliot and Demosthenes and Homer and Clay and Webster and Prentice and all of earth's greatest, sweetest and best, are at the beck and call of mankind, where they will spread their bounties before the humblest outcast as munificently as at the feet of royal courts of kings." But the coming of the printer, with the black letter, the stick, the inkpot, "pi" and the "devil " is always an era anywhere and among any people. It is an event of great portent to the future of any community, for here, above any other institution are incalculable possibilities for good, and sometimes well-grounded fears for evil. A free press, in the hands of a man aware of the great responsibilities resting upon him, is a blessing like the discoveries and inventions of genius that are immortal. In the dingy printing office is the epitome of the world of action and of thought-the best school in Christendom-the best church. An eminent divine has truly said "The local paper is not only a business guide, but is a pulpit of morals; it is a kind of public rostrum where the affairs of State are considered; it is a supervisor of streets and roads; it is a rewarder of merit; it it is a social friend, a promoter of friendship and good will. Even the so-called small matters of a village or incorporate town are only small to those whose hearts are too full of personal pomposity." Opelousas Courier.- The Opelousas Courier is the oldest paper in the parish of St. Landry. It was established in 1852 by J. H. Sandoz, who con- ducted the paper as long as he lived, and at his death his two sons, L. and L. A. Sandoz, took charge and are still editing and publishing it. Its issue of December 27, 1890, is Volume XXXVIII and No. 14. It is a four-page paper, and is neatly printed, showing considerable mechanical taste. Upon the closing of the thirty-seventh volume, the Courier thus salutes its friends and patrons: This issue of the Courier completes its thirty-seventh volume; the next PAGE 50 will begin its thirty-eighth. It was founded in December, 1852, and hence will soon be thirty-eight years old. But, unlike some of our contemporaries, we reckon its volumes on the basis of the weekly numbers issued, not from the date of its establishment. Its publication was interrupted for several months during the war and subsequently, in 1870, when its friends were denied the privilege of giving it their patronage and support; hence the discrepancy between the date of its establishment and the number of its volume. "The Courier has always been Democratic. It has always been a friend of the people. Under our management it will remain so. It has a record of which we are proud. Its future is in our keeping and we propose to transmit that proud record, undimmed and untarnished, to our children. While the Courier has always advocated every cause which in the opinion of its managers would promote the welfare of the people, it has specially devoted its attention to education and immigration. In the furtherance and development of these objects lie the dearest interests of our State. We need white immigrants to assist us in the development of our vast resources and to maintain the supremacy and preponderance of our race. "To the friends who have stood by us in the past we return our sincere thanks. With their kind assistance and encouragement we hope to successfully weather the coming storm as we have weathered many an one before; and we promise them that we will continue in the future as in the past to advocate every measure conducive to the greatest good of the greatest number, whether our course suits selfish and self-seeking politicians or not." The St. Landry Democrat was established by James N. Jackson in 1876. It is the official paper of the town of Opelousas, and the parish of St. Landry, and one of the ablest in Southwestern Louisiana. It is and has always been Democratic in politics, and its opinions carry weight in the party. Number 50 of Volume XIII bears date December 27, 1890. The paper is at present published by Mr. L. Sandoz, and edited by Hon. E. North Cullom. It is a folio, with seven columns to a page, and presents a handsome appearance. Judge Cullom is too well known in this section to need any introduction to the people. He is a native of Southwestern Louisiana, and was educated at old Center College, at Danville Kentucky, one of the oldest and most eminent institutions of learning south of the Ohio River, having been chartered in 1819. Judge Cullom had as classmates there some of the flower and chivalry of Kentucky and the Southern States, men who have become great in church and State - who have adorned the bench, the bar and the pulpit, and have left their impress upon the statesmanship of the country. As a lawyer and jurist, Judge Cullom has few equals in the State. It is upon the bench, perhaps, where he has served several terms, that his talents best fit him. As a jurist, his judgments were always marked with impartiality and even-handed justice. He believes in PAGE 51 those fundamental principles embodied in the organic law-that every person ought " to obtain right and justice freely, and without being obliged to purchase it," and that he ought "to find a certain remedy in the laws for all injuries and wrongs which he may receive in his person, property or reputation." Judge Cullom takes an active interest in politics, but is no office seeker; on the contrary, he has frequently declined political nominations when a nomination was equivalent to an election. He is a writer of more than ordinary ability, and wields a pen that is equaled by few in Southwestern Louisiana. The Clarion is a paper established during the summer of 1890, and is a spicy little sheet, published by the St. Landry Publishing and Printing Company. Its mast head shows no colors or ensign as to who is its editor, but that it has one, its sturdy blows in matters of right clearly manifest. The only paper in the parish outside of Opelousas is the Washington Advocate, quite a lively and interesting sheet. The present paper was established in the summer of 1889, and is owned and edited by Mr. Carlos Grieg. The first paper in Washington was called The Enterprise; this was succeeded by The News, and it in turn was succeeded by The Advocate, which, phoenix-like, has risen from their ashes. The parish of St. Landry is laid off into eight jury wards, one member from each ward, but one, which has two, who are called police jurors. They transact the business of the parish, as the Board of Magistrates, the Board of Supervisors, or the Board of Commissioners transact the business of the counties of other States. The police jurors of St. Landry are as follows: E. M. Bagmi, president, first ward; H. 0. Durio, Dr. H. Berry, T. C. Bihn, P. Robin, C. W. Ward, E. E. Milburn, Paul Stagg, Capt. Sam'l Hass, and L. J. Dossmann. H. E. Estorge, clerk, and J. J. Thompson, treasurer. The two last named are not actual members of the police jury. The first court house in the parish was built soon after the State was admitted into the Union ; the second one in 1846, and the present beautiful temple of justice was erected in 1886, and is one of the handsomest in the State. Opelousas.- The town of Opelousas is one of the oldest places in Southwest- ern Louisiana. The date of its birth as a town is unknown. Its records run back into the last century, and whether it was ever laid off as a town, or, like Topsy, "just growed" no one can tell. It was originally a military post, where soldiers were stationed to overawe the Indians and protect the white settlers in the vicinity. As people settled near the protecting walls of the station, it soon became a sort of trading post for furs and pelts from the Indians and white hunters and trappers. As this trade increased stores were opened, and the station began to assume the airs and attributes of a town. Mr. Alfred Louaillier states that within his recollection there were more Indians to be seen in the streets of Opelousas than there are negroes at the present day. PAGE 52 The first merchant in Opelousas was believed to have been Mr. J. J. Lou- aillier, who opened a store while the place was still a military post. He fol- lowed the business for many years and amassed a fortune. Col. Francois Neda, one of the prominent men of the parish, who has been extensively mentioned among the early settlers, was also one of the pioneer merchants of Opelousas. So was Col. William Moore, and also John Merimond. Pierre Wastelle was an early merchant. Antoine King was among the pioneer merchants, and sold goods in Opelousas early in the present century. He has a son, now seventy- two years old, living in the town, with a memory clear as a bell, who was also a merchant for many years. Thus, as the population increased, business in all its branches increased proportionally, until at present Opelousas is one of the enterprising and wealthy towns in this section of the State. There are no extensive manufacturing establishments in the town, and the business is confined principally to mercantile, and the buying of the products of the farms and the selling of farm machinery to the planters, which annually amounts to from $50,000 to $100,000. Nothing shows more conclusively the improvements in modern farming than the increase in the sale of agricultural implements in Opelousas and other points in the parish. The First National Bank of Opelousas was organized last year, of which Mr. A. Levy is president, Mr. S. J. Wilson, vice president ana Mr. J. T. Skipper, cashier. It has been of great benefit to the town and the parish, and has given them important financial advantages by securing the people and the planters against the extortions of the professional money lenders. The Southwestern Louisiana Land Company is an institution located in Opelousas that has probably done as much toward developing the resources of this rich country as anything that has been brought to bear in that direction. It has been the means of bringing hundreds and hundreds of immigrants to the parish and of securing them good lands and desirable locations. Its prime object is to induce immigration, and thus, by inducing immigration, to develop the vast resources of the country. And the company has struck the proper method to attain that end. Another wonderful improvement to the town and parish, and a great factor in their development, is the railroad. It was a great triumph for Opelousas when the road was completed and she found herself connected with New Orleans by rail. The people doubtless wonder how they got along without a railroad as long as they did. The advantages resulting from plenty of railroads is, they bring every market of the world to our very doors. We read that it used to take from two to six weeks to make a trip from St. Martinsville, in the adjoining parish, to New Orleans and return. That was well enough for the good old times before the war," but this is an age of improvement and invention, and he who would not be left behind must march with the procession. It is energy and enterprise PAGE 53 that has made this great country of ours what it is. Opelousas and St. Landry are better off than some of the other parishes of the Attakapas country, for St. Landry has two railroads, while some of the others have but one, and yet others none. The Morgan division of the Southern Pacific Company, and the Texas Pacific road afford fine accommodations for travel and transportation and connection with the outside world. The town of Opelousas is governed in its municipal affairs by a Board of Trustees, composed of seven members, who are elected by the people. The board elects one of its members mayor, who presides over the meetings and has judicial powers; sits as a magistrate in the trial of police matters, and in the violations of the town laws and ordinances. The board at present is composed of the following: Robert 0. Chachere, mayor, and J. B. Sandoz, J. T. Stuart, E. J. Clements E. Latrayet, George Pulford and Frank E. Bailey, trustees. Bench and Bar.- In writing of the early bar of St. Landry parish, the historian must go elsewhere than to the old people of the parish for his data for sketches of the oldest practitioners. Many of them are dead and forgotten, and the old dust-stained records are the only history of them left behind. Hence, there can be little given of them except their names. Hon. Seth Lewis was judge of the court in this district for many years. In the sketch of the bar of St. Martin, an extended sketch of Judge Lewis is given. He was born in 1764, and died here long ago. He was the grandfather of Hon. E. T. Lewis, the present judge. George King was the first parish judge, a very prominent man and es- teemed by every one who knew him. He was an able lawyer, a wise and just judge, and the father of Hon. George R. King, who was elected district judge and afterward elevated to a Supreme Court judgeship. Judge John H. Overton, judge here for many years, a stanch Democrat and an active politician, was a son-in-law of Judge King. Judge Henry Adams Bullard, whom many of the old citizens of Opelousas will remember, was an early citizen of St. Landry, and settled about half-way from Opelousas to Washington. He was an able lawyer and for years a judge a of the Supreme Court of the State, Wm. Ward Bowen was a prominent lawyer at the early bar of St. Landry and died years ago. Benjamin F. Linton was from South Carolina. He was a polished gentleman, a profound lawyer and a good citizen. Among other pioneer lawyers of Opelousas may be mentioned Edward H. Martin, who died here in 1865; Wm. Bowen, who died many years ago; Thos. H. Lewis; Tayler Bell Savage, an old lawyer, who died in Opelousas many years ago; judge James Porter, who also died. here; judge Moore who died here near the close of the year i8go, and Lucius Dupre, who died before the war. All these were prominent lawyers, able men, and most of them wealthy citizens. PAGE 54 Judge B. A. Martel was a character in the pioneer bar of the parish. He had important "friends at court," which went a great way toward "boosting " him into office. He was born in France, and had made pretensions to the studying of law there. He was a man of eccentric habits; was somewhat illit- erate, but not ignorant, and a regular political hustler. His family and relatives were numerous as the "leaves upon the trees," and through them he managed to ride into political offices, among which was that of district judge. In that office he gained the distinction of having more of his decisions "reversed by the Supreme Court than any judge, perhaps, that ever sat upon the bench in the State." Jacques Dupre, though not a practicing lawyer, was quite a statesman and politician, and it is appropriate, perhaps, to mention him here. He served many years in the Legislature and State Senate and was an active and energetic worker. He was not a polished scholar, having received but little mental cultivation in his youth, but what was better for the times in which he lived, be was a man of sound practical sense and sterling honesty. He was elected to the lower branch of the General Assembly in 1816, to represent the parish of St. Landry, and was twice re-elected. In 1828 he was elected to the State Senate, and remained a member of that body until his death in 1846. He became Lieutenant Governor January 14, 1830, through a combination of circumstances. Hon. Pierre Derbigny was Governor, and died from an accident which he met with October 5, 1829, less than a year from the time of taking his seat as Governor. He was driving from his residence to the city, when his horses took fright and ran away, throwing him from the carriage, inflicting injuries from which he died. Lieutenant Governor Armand Beadvais succeeded him as Governor, and being by virtue of his office President of the Senate, left that place vacant. Mr. Dupre was elected to fill it, which made him ex officio Lieutenant Governor, and which position he held to the close of Gov. Beauvais' term. Gov. Dupre was a native of St. Landry parish and born at a time when the parish bore the name of County of Opelousas. He was reputed to be tile largest stock raiser in the State of Louisiana. A granddaughter if Gov. Dupre mar- ried Gov. Alexander Mouton. It is related of Gov. Dupre that he spelled his name without a "c " in Jacques, which gave rise to a current joke among the French portion of the population, who first called him "le Gouverneur sans c," which, from his good common sense, was changed to "le Gouverneur sense." Guy H. Bell was a character who, perhaps, might also be mentioned with the bar. He came here at a time when he was most needed to hold all the offices. He was justice of the peace, postmaster and a militia officer, and had there been more offices he would probably have had them too. It was in the latter position, perhaps, that he shone most brilliantly. As on training days he got into his gorgeous uniform, with a long red plume in his hat, a sword belted around him PAGE 55 like unto the broadsword of Rhoderick Dhu, and mounted his prancing steed (a broncho pony) that "snuffed the battle from afar," then it was he rode in front of his lines with a Napoleonic air, giving his orders in tones that would have put to shame Beauregard or Stonewall Jackson. Ah! these old militia displays had to be seen to be appreciated. But Squire Bell was a fine man. He did a great deal of good and but little harm in the world. He was a Scotchman, warm-hearted, sociable, whole-souled and a very popular man with everybody--could have been elected President of the United States had the vote depended alone on St. Landry parish. The present bar of the parish is as follows: Hon. Henry L. Garland, Judge Edward Estellette, ____ Baillio, Judge E. N. Cullom, T. H. Lewis, E. T. Lewis (present judge), L. J. Dupre, G. L. Dupre, E. P. Veazie, ____ DuRoy, Lee Garland, Charles Garland, W. C. Perault, ____ Gill, Wm. Frazer and John N. Ogden; the latter is the present district attorney. This list comprises an able bar, many of the members being among the most prominent lawyers in South- western Louisiana. Sketches of them are omitted here, but will be found in the biographical department of this work. Pioneer Physicians.- The early physicians of the parish, like the early law- yers, are many of them almost wholly forgotten, and little more can be given of them than their names. Among the names collected are the following: Dr. Grolet, Dr. Archer, Dr. Thos. A. Clark, Dr. Louis DeBion, Dr. Robert C. Smith, Dr. Moses Littell., Dr. Marsden Campbell, Dr. Beauchamp and Dr. James Ray. Dr. Ray is, perhaps, the oldest practicing physician in the parish and is sketched in the biographical department. His father was among the early settlers of the parish and died here long ago. Dr. Beauchamp was from Kentucky and died in Baton Rouge. Dr. Campbell was from Wilmington, N. C., and came here with his father, who was an early settler, a large slave holder and a wealthy citizen. Dr. Campell died in 1857; he was a prominent physician. Dr. Littell was one of the oldest practitioners and died in 1837. Dr. Smith died in Grand Coteau many years ago. Dr. DeBion lives out in Flat Prairie and is now eighty five years old. Dr. Clark died in the town of Washington many years ago. Dr. Archer died in Opelousas, as also did Dr. Grolet. The Catholic church of Opelousas, as remarked in a preceding page, is one of the oldest in Southwestern Louisiana, and dates its organization back to 1777, though the Catholic church of St. Martinsville claims to have been established in 1765. The church was moved from Washington to Opelousas, having received a donation of land from Michel Prud'homme. The first church erected on this land was a wooden building. Many years later tile present magnificent brick church was erected. Originally this church (St. Landry's) belonged to the bishopric of Havana, but in 1791 it was transferred to the diocese of St. Louis. PAGE 56 The present rector of St. Landry's church is Father Armand Dubourg, a most affable and courteous priest and gentleman. The convent of the Immaculate Conception, at Opelousas, is a first-class school for girls, and is well attended. It is in connection with St. Landry's church. There is also a school for boys under the patronage of this church in which English is taught. After the Catholic church, the next denomination in Opelousas was the Methodists. They established a church some seventy-five years or more ago, and have probably the strongest Protestant church in the parish. The Episco- palians followed next, and had a church here before the war. They have a very handsome church building. The Presbyterians organized a church just after the war, and the Baptists some years ago. In addition to these churches the colored people have two or three churches. Washington, situated on the Morgan railroad about six miles above Ope- lousas, is a live and wide-awake town, with something like a thousand inhabi- tants. The place was originally called Niggerville. A rich old negro named Antoine Lemel owned a large tract of land about the place and a great number of slaves, so the place became rather an extensive colored settlement, and was dubbed Niggerville by its white neighbors. It was finally laid off as a town, and in 1830 was incorporated under the name of Washington. It is the most important place in the parish next to Opelousas, and has about a thousand inhabitants, several fine stores, factories, warehouses, etc., and does a large business in shipping cotton and rice, and other products of the country. A large number of agricultural implements are sold annually. There are several churches, the principal one being Catholic, a Catholic school and a public school, and a newspaper, noticed elsewhere in this chapter. Grand Coteau, situated on the railroad, about eight-miles south of Opelousas, ranks next in importance to Washington. It has several stores and other busi- ness houses. Specially is it noted for its fine Catholic church, and its college and convent. The college is one of the most eminent institutions of learning in Southwestern Louisiana. Rev. Francois Abadie, long rector of the church at Grand Coteau, and who died recently, received the following touching notice from the editor of the St. Landry Democrat, soon after his decease: "Rev. Francois Abadie.- In our last issue we noticed the death of this pious. man, but at the time of writing it we were not in possession of any data upon which to base any further observations. Since then a friend has furnished us with some, and we now incorporate them in this little sketch. "Father Francois Abadie was born in France, A. D. 1802, and was 88 years old when he passed away. For fifty-five years he officiated as a priest, having united himself with the Society of Jesus, ten years before he preached. He left France and came to Grand Coteau about the year 1835, and exerted himself PAGE 57 in the incorporation and establishment of the grand old college at that place. The entire time, to the hour of his death, was devoted to the best interest of that institution. Full of energy and zeal for his church, he labored continuously in the great cause of learning and religion down to the time of his death. He had passed the three score years and twenty, by nearly twenty years, but he kept on the armor of the militant Christian soldier, and stood like a faithful sentinel on the walls of Zion until a few hours before the vital spark went out. The hand of affliction was not laid upon him. God saw proper not to prostrate him through the instrumentality of disease, but took him hence when age had exhausted the oil in his lamp. He never courted the applause of men, but contented himself by the consciousness of duty to God. We may justly say he was an Ionian column under both the church and the college, which we fear will be much missed in the future history of both, at Grand Coteau." Other towns and villages of the parish are Armandville, in the southern part on the Bayou Teche, Leonville and Belleview, also on the Teche, Notleyville and Garland, on the Texas & Pacific Railroad, Goshen, on the same road; also, Rosa, Whitesville and Morrow. Big Cane is situated in the north part of the parish, Barbreak, on the Morgan railroad, also in the north part of the parish, and Ville Platte in the west central part. Most of these are small places, some of them nothing but a post office, or a post office and a small store; and some of them a post office, a store, a church and school. "War and Rumors of War."-The military history of St. Landry is interesting and highly creditable to her citizens. Quite a number participated in the war of 1812, particularly in the battle of New Orleans, and several had been soldiers in the old country, and had fought under the first Napoleon, and in the armies of the Spanish King. Such men, and the descendants of such, would not be found in the "rear rank" in such a war as that between the States in 1861-65. They left the store, the counting room, the office, and- " The plow was in mid-furrow stayed." They hurried to the place of rendezvous ready, willing and anxious to serve their country in such a trying emergency. As a matter of interest to the people of St. Landry we give the companies and their officers, from the parish, or that drew a number of men from the parish. First is the "Opelousas Guards," made up entirely in St. Landry, and was the first troops to leave for the seat of war. The facts are taken from the Opelousas Courier: The Opelousas Guards.- It will be interesting to many of our readers to know who composed this company-the first that left Opelousas for the seat of war in 1861. After having been mustered in the Confederate service and sent to Camp Moore, they left the latter place on the 24th of June, 1861, for Rich- PAGE 58 mond, Va., as Company F, Eighth regiment, Louisiana volunteers, and remained in Virginia, taking an active and honored part in the many terrible engagements that occurred there up to the close of the war, 1865, when the remnants of that gallant company returned home. The Opelousas Guards of 1886 carries on its roll the names of a few of the veterans and several of the descendants of the Guards of 1861. The following is the roll of the Opelousas Guards a quarter of a century ago. Officers and non-commissioned officers: James C. Pratt, captain; Dr. John Taylor, first lieutenant; Geo. W. Hudspeth, second lieutenant; Albert De'jean, third lieutenant; Thos. D. Cook, first sergeant; Aaron Prescott, second sergeant; John P. Offutt, third sergeant; Clinton B. Andrus, fourth sergeant; John Waldrum, first corporal; E. Sumter Taylor, second corporal; Karl E. Hoy, third corporal; John T. Healy, fourth corporal. PRIVATES. Jas. D. Allen, Seth Andrus, Albert D. Andrus, Robert M. Andrus, A. K. Anselm, Geo. Anselm, Joseph P. Bay, 0. Bourgeat, S. H. Briley, F. C. Carriere, Louis Carriere, Gilbert H. Cochran, S. S. Cole, B. E. Clark, J. E. Clark, A. B. Chachere, Jas. A. Demaret, Oscar Dawson, Andre Derosier, Lucius David, E. L. Estilette, Rosemond Fisette, Louis Fisette, Isaiah Fogleman, Geo. Fogle- man, E. Fogleman, A. J. Fontenot, L. Fontenot, Onile Forest, A. Fremont, Ulysse Fruge Lastic Fruge, Ernest Fruge W. E. Gay, Edmond P. Guidry, Arcade Guillorv, Aristide Guillory, A. Greffil, E. Harmon, Benjamin Henry, Bernard Henry, Charles S. Hollier, Richard Hightower, Thos. Higginbotham, S. D. Hill, Uriah Hayes, John P. Hudson, E. Jenner, Wm. H. Judge, W. M. Keeler, Thos. Kelley, Win. C. Lewis, C. F. Lutz, Wm. H. Mayo, L. J. Mont- gomery, Albert G. Moore, ensign; W. 0. Moss, Chas. Moss, E. M. Morrow, B. Muebath, Jules McBride, T. G. McGinty, Wm. J. Offutt, Arthur Perrault, Wm. T. Perry, Willis P. Quirk, John D. Richard, Wm. Rhettberg, Theodore S. Robin, Louis Roy, Louis Rousseau, John Sanderfer, 0. Savant, A. L. Sin- gleton, John Sherwood, R. H. Slaughter, A. J. Smith, Leonce Sandoz, Clai- borne Smith, David Smith, Antoine Soileau, Benoit Soileau, Jules Sittig, J. T. Strother, Simon Taylor, H. B. Taylor, Jewell J. Taylor, Adam Tate, J. A. Taylor, H. H. Umphries, T. Vidri ne, Elmus- West, -James West, H. J. Wynn. We copy the following from the Opelousas Courier of September 27, 1862, which shows the condition of the company at the time of writing. CAMP NEAR GORDONSVILLE, Va., August 2, 1862. MESSRS. EDITORS: Knowing that an account of the condition of our com- pany would be interesting to the good people of St. Landry, many of whom have relatives and friends in the "Opelousas Guards," I send by Mr. Allen, who leaves for St. Landry to-morrow, a statement of our present condition, with PAGE 60 Illustration: Capt. Jones P. Smith. PAGE 61 the changes that have taken place since our first organization, which I hope you may find it convenient to publish in the columns of your paper. By complying in this you will very much oblige, yours, etc., JOHN TAYLOR, First Lieutenant "Opelousas Guards." A LIST SHOWING THE ORIGINAL ORGANIZATION AND PRESENT CONDITION OF THE OPELOUSAS GUARDS, COMPANY F, EIGHTH REGIMENT, LOUISIANA VOLUNTEERS. Jas. C. Pratt, captain, not reelected at reorganization of the company. Discharged the service. John Taylor, first lieutenant, present, well. Geo. W. Hudspeth, second lieutenant, not reelected at reorganization of company. Discharged the service. Albert Dejean, second junior lieutenant, elected captain at reorganization of the company, April 24, 1862. First Sergeant Thos. D. Cook, elected second junior lieutenant, June 14, 1862. Second Sergeant Aaron Prescott, elected lieutenant in an artillery company and transferred. Third Sergeant John P. Offutt, killed while gallantly charging the enemy at Gaines Mills, June 27, 1862. Fourth Sergeant Clint. B. Andrus, private since reorganization of company. Fifth Sergeant Albert G. Moore, elected lieutenant April 24, 1862; fell leading his company on the enemy's batteries at Port Republic, June 9, 1862. First Corporal John Waldrum, transferred to Calhoun battery; since died. Second Corporal E. S. Taylor, elected lieutenant April 24, 1862. Third Corporal Karl E. Hoy, discharged honorably. Fourth Corporal John Healey, private since April 24, 1862. Privates Jas. D. Allen, present, well. Albert S. Andrus, absent, sick. Robt. M. Andrus, present, well. Seth Andrus, made fifth sergeant at reorganization. Killed whilst bravely fighting at the battle of Port Republic, June 9, 1862. A. K. Anselm, present, well. Geo. Anselm, honorably discharged. W. Abbott, hospital steward, since dead. 0. Bourgeat, absent on account of injury received whilst returning to Vir- ginia to rejoin company. F. H. Briley, detailed as doctor's orderly. J. P. Bay, died at Camp Pickens, Manassas junction, Virginia, last fall. Gilbert H. Cochran, present, well. PAGE 62 Bennett Clark, honorably discharged. J. E. Clark, present, well. His coat was riddled with bullets at the battle of Malvern Hill. A. B. Chachere, elected ordinance, sergeant at reorganization. Sol. S. Cole, honorably discharged. F. C. Carriere, present, well. Louis Carriere, present, well. T. Chachere, first hospital steward; after appointed assistant surgeon. Re- signed on account of ill. health. Lucius David, present, well. S. D. Dill, detailed as hospital wagoner well. A. Derosier, present, well. 0. Dawson, wounded at the battle of Malvern Hill, July 1, whilst gallant- ly fighting; died since. Jas. A. Demaret, wounded at Malvern Hill, July 1, whilst gallantly fight- ing; since died. E. L. Estilette, taken prisoner in the Valley. R. Fisette, present, well. L. Fisette, was made prisoner at Winchester. G. Fogleman, left sick at Front Royal; captured. J. Fogleman, present, well. E. Fogleman, present, well. T. Fontenot, wounded at the battle of Gaines Mills. Has returned for duty. A. J. Fontenot, detailed as brigade wagoner; well. A. Fremont, captured near Winchester. U. Fruge, present, well. E. Fruge, absent, sick. L. Fruge, absent on account of injury received by being run over by ambulance. 0. Forest, absent without leave. W. E. Gay, received appointment as cadet in Virginia Military Institute. and discharged from the company. E. P. Guidry, wounded severely at the battle of Winchester, May;25, 1862- In Lynchburg. A. Guillory, detailed as brigade wagoner, well. Aristide Guillory, detailed as brigade wagoner, well. A. Greffil, present, well. Benj. Henry, present, well. Bernard Henry, honorably discharged. Chas. S. Hollier, present, well. PAGE 63 Thos. Higginbotham, present, well. J. P. Hudson, wounded at the battle of Port Republic, charging the enemy's batteries. U. Hayes, present, well. R. H. Hightower, honorably discharged. E. P. Jenner, was cut off from the regiment in its retreat up the Valley, and, after dodging the Yanks for nearly two months, returned safely,. Present, well. Wm. H. judge, honorably discharged. Wm. M. Keller, absent, sick. Thos. Kelly, absent at hospital. Wm. H. Lewis, present, well. W. C. Lewis, present, well. C. F. Lutz, absent, sick. Wm. H. Mayo, present, well. Thos. J. Montgomery, present, well. Wm. Montgomery present, well. B. Molbach, present, well. B. M. Morrow, honorably discharged. T. J. McGinty, detailed as brigade wagoner. J. McBride, died in Richmond last spring. Wm. 0. Moss, honorably discharged. Chas. Moss, absent, sick. Wm. Mitcheltree, present, well. Wm. J. Offutt, made second sergeant at reorganization. Absent, sick. Wm. F. Perry, present. well. Arthur Perrault, honorably discharged. D. H. Quirk, honorably discharged. W. P. Quirk, honorably discharged. John 0. Richard, elected lieutenant in another company whilst home on furlough. Transferred. Wm. Rhetburg, taken prisoner near Winchester. T. S. Robin, elected lieutenant in Captain Robin's company. Transfered. R. A. Rowe, present, well. Louis Roy, present, well. Louis Rousseau, captured in the Valley. J. W. Sandeier, present, well. T. K. Singleton, present, well. Arthur L. Singleton, honorably discharged. Q. Savant, present, well. A. J. Smith, present, well. PAGE 64. C. Smith, present, well. D. Smith, taken prisoner in the Valley. A. Soileau, honoraby discharged. B. Soileau, honorably discharged. Arist Soileau, honorably discharged. John Sherwood, taken prisoner in the Valley. Jules Sittig, present, well. Leonce Sandoz, honorably discharged at Camp Moore, June, 1861. Again joined the company in the Valley, in May, 1862, and was captured near Win- chester. H. B. Taylor, present, well. J. J. Taylor. J. A. Taylor, was slightly wounded at the battle of Port Republic in the charge on the Yankee batteries. S. H. Taylor, died at Culpeper Courthouse last fall. R. H. Umphries, present, well. T. Vidrine, present, well. John Welsh, detailed as hospital nurse, well. J. West, present, well. H. J. Wynn, absent, sick. RECRUITS ENLISTED IN THE COMPANY IN THE SPRING OF 1862. A. T. Andrus, died at hospital in Richmond. B. T. Andrus, present, well. L. L. Boutte', captured at Winchester, paroled. 13. A. Boutte, wounded at battle of Port Republic. A. Bertrand, present, well. George Baskin, absent, sick. Thomas Bacon, present, well. J. D. Bernard, absent, sick. Jos. Chachere, home on furlough. L. L. Chanin, killed whilst gallantly charging the enemy's batteries at Port Republic. Jules David, present, well. E. Dardeau, taken prisoner in the Valley. Oran Elliot, absent, sick. Isaac M. Eves, present, well. Denis Fontenot, present, well. Horthere Fontenot, absent, sick. Rodolphe Fontenot, taken prisoner in the Valley. Hypolite 0. Fontenot, present, well. PAGE 65 G. Forrest, absent, sick. D. Guillory, absent, sick. 0. Guillory, accidentally shot himself through the hand at New Market; present, well. A. Guillory, absent, sick. Wm. H. Harris, was cut off from the Regiment in the Valley; after seven weeks of adventure among the enemy, escaped and returned to his company; well. M. Hebert, present, well. A. Lavergne, taken prisoner in the Valley. A. Lague, present, well. A. Lebleu, absent, sick. E. McDaniel, absent, sick. D. McDaniel, taken prisoner in the Valley. C. A. Morphis, honorably discharged. Robert McLin, was wounded at the battle of Port Republic; recovered and detailed at brigade wagon yard. E. D. Parker, present, well. Was wounded in the head at the battle of Malvern Hill. 0. D. Raulin, present, well. J. D. Richardson, taken prisoner in the Valley. Victor Sittig, present, well, H. Savant, taken prisoner in the Valley. L. Speirer, died at hospital in Richmond. C. C. Swayze, wounded at battle of Gaines' Mills, whilst charging the enemy. Lately returned to the regiment, but is yet unfit for duty. C. Saulter, absent, sick. In the next issue of the Courier, October 4, 1862, which is in mourning for the death of its junior editor, Major Wm. H. Spencer, killed at the second battle of Manassas, while gallantly leading his regiment (the 10th Louisiana) to the charge, we find the following list of killed and wounded, among the Opelousas Guards, in that bloody engagement; the gallant writer of the foregoing correspondence being himself a victim, having bravely yielded up his young life on the field of honor but a few days after it was written: List of Killed and Wounded in Company E, 81h Louisiana Regiment.- Sherwood, wounded in leg; E. P. Jenner, - wounded in spine; Win. Rhetberg, slightly in the arm; James Conner, slightly in the arm; Lieut. John Taylor, killed, shot in body, lived four days, was buried at Buckner hospital, about ten miles from Aldee, Va.; Derosier, killed; Baskin, wounded; Dardeau, wounded; Perry, wounded. Calcasieu Invincibles.-Next is the Calcasieu Invincibles, of which the PAGE 66. officers, or most of them, were from St. Landry: Warren W. Johnson, captain John A. Spence, first lieutenant; Sims M. Pithron, second lieutenant; J. W Wagnon, third lieutenant; R. A. Parker, orderly sergeant; E. L. Cole, sec- ond sergeant; Zephirin Lebleu, third sergeant; Jacob Seigler, fourth ser- geant; E. R. Seigler, fifth sergeant; H. D. Clark, first corporal; Martin Lebleu, second corporal; John B. Lebleu, third corporal, and Joshua Hug- gins, fourth corporal. Of the St. Landry Volunteers, only the following names were obtained: Henry L. Garlind, captain; Charles D. Bullard, first lieutenant; Jacob An- selm, second lieutenant', and Adolph Debaillon, third lieutenant. Opelousas Volunteers.- Louis Lastrapes, captain; Jarnes G. Hays, first lieutenant; Adolph Broussard, second lieutenant; Willis Prescott, third lieu- tenant; Ferredie Perrodin, first sergeant ; William Hall, second sergeant; V. S. Bonoque, third sergeant; William Reeves, fourth sergeant; Rabie Adams, fifth sergeant; Robert Sloan, first corporal - Elphege D. Daigle, second cor- poral; Joseph Higginbotham, third corporal, and Aurelien Richard, fourth corporal. The Confederate States Rangers were organized with the following officers: W. H. Spencer, captain; M. S. Prud'homnie, first lieutenant; E. D. Seaton , second lieutenant; Mat. G. Davis, ensign; A. Perrodin, first sergeant; Joseph Lebleu, second sergeant; Isaac Ryan, third sergeant; Paul Lambert, fourth sergeant; J. F. Monelle, fifth sergeant; James McKinney, first corporal ; Isaac Reeves, second corporal; Wm. L. Hutchins, third corporal, and Henry Miller, forth corporal. St. Landry Guards - N. Offutt, Jr., captain ; J. C. Hickman, first lieutenat; H. Bain Ritchie, second lieutenant; S. D. McCaulley, junior second lieutenant; A. Desbrest, ensign; L. A. Corinier, orderly sergeant; P. Scott. second sergeant; J. 0. Trainer, third sergeant; A. L. Meterier, fourth. ser- geant; C. P. Gordon, fifth sergeant; E. J. Goring, first corporal; E. O'Reil- ly, second corporal ; A. Pfeil, third corporal; F. M. Drinkard, fourth corporal D. A. Titah, fifth corporal, and A. Winkler, honorary member. So far as could be obtained the foregoing is a list of the commissioned and non-commissioned officers from Opelousas and the parish of St. Landry. It is a pretty long list for a single parish, and shows the patriotism of the people in those times of war and rumors of war." - Perrin.