USA > Louisiana > Louisiana; comprising sketches of counties, towns, events, institutions, and persons, Volume I > Part 11
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Art. 37. We forbid all the officers of the superior council, and all our other officers of justice in this colony, to take any fees or receive any perquisites in criminal suits against slaves, under the penalty, in so doing, of being dealt with as guilty of extortion.
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Art. 38. We also forbid all our subjects in this colony, whatever their condition or rank may be, to apply, on their own private authority, the rack to their slaves, under any pretense whatever, and to mutilate said slaves in any one of their limbs, or in any part of their bodies, under the penalty of the confiscation of said slaves; and said masters, so offending, shall be liable to a criminal prosecu- tion. We. only permit masters, when they think that the case requires it, to put their slaves in irons, and to have them whipped with rods or ropes.
Art 39. We command our officers of justice in this colony to institute criminal process against masters and overseers who shall have killed or mutilated their slaves, when in their power and under their supervision, and to punish said murder according to the atrocity of the circumstances; and in case the offense shall be a pardonable one, we permit them to pardon said masters and over- seers without its being necessary to obtain from us letters patent of pardon.
Art. 40. Slaves shall be held in law as movables, and as such, they shall be part of the community of acquests between husband and wife ; they shall not be liable to be seized under any mortgage whatever ; and they shall be equally divided among the co-heirs without admitting from any one of said heirs any claims founded on principut or right of primogeniture, or dowry.
Arts. 41, 42, are entirely concerned with judicial forms and proceedings.
Art. 43. Husbands and wives shall not be seized and sold sepa- rately when belonging to the same master: and their children, when under 14 years of age, shall not be separated from their parents, and such seizures and sales shall be null and void. The present article shall apply to voluntary sales, and in case such sales should take place in violation of the law, the seller shall be deprived of the slave he has illegally retained, and said slave shall be adjudged to the purchaser without any additional price being required.
Art. 44. Slaves 14 years old, and from this age up to 60, who are settled on lands and plantations, and are at present working on them, shall not be liable to seizure for debt, except for what may be due out of the purchase money agreed to be paid for them, unless said grounds or plantations should also be distressed, and any seizure and judicial sale of a real estate, without including the slaves of the aforesaid age who are part of said estate, shall be deemed null and void.
Arts. 45, 46, 47. 48. 49, Relate to certain formalities to be observed in judicial proceedings.
Art. 50. Masters. when 25 years old. shall have the power to manumit their slaves, either by testamentary dispositions, or by acts inter vivos. But. as there may be mercenary masters disposed to set a price on the liberation of their slaves ; and whereas slaves, with a view to acquire the necessary means to purchase their freedom, may be tempted to commit theft or deeds of plunder. no person, whatever may be his rank and condition, shall be permitted
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to set free his slaves, without obtaining from the superior council a decree of permission to that effect; which permission shall be granted without costs, when the motives for the setting free of said slaves, as specified in the petition of the master, shall appear legitimate to the tribunal. All future acts for the emancipation of slaves, which may be made without this permission, shall be null; and the slaves so free shall not be entitled to their freedom ; they shall, on the contrary, continue to be held as slaves ; but they shall be taken away from their former masters, and confiscated for the benefit of the India Company.
Art 51. However, should slaves be appointed by their masters tutors to their children, said slaves shall be held and regarded as being thereby set free to all intents and purposes.
Art. 52. We declare that the acts for the enfranchisement of slaves, passed according to the forms above described, shall be equivalent to an act of naturalization, when said slaves are not born in our colony of Louisiana, and they shall enjoy all the rights and privileges inherent to our subjects born in our kingdom, or in any land or country under our dominion. We declare, however, that all manumitted slaves, and all free-born negroes, are incapable of receiving donations, either by testamentary dispositions, or by acts inter vivos from the whites. Said donations shall be null and void, and the objects so donated shall be applied to the benefit of the nearest hospital.
Art. 53. We command all manumitted slaves to show the pro- foundest respect to their former masters, to their widows and chil- dren, and any injury or insult offered by said manumitted slaves to their former masters, their widows or children, shall be pun- ished with more severity than if it had been offered to any other person. We, however, declare them exempt from the discharge of all duties or services, and from the payment of taxes or fees, or anything else which their former masters might, in their quality of patrons, claim either in relation to their persons, or to their personal or real estate, either during the life or after the death of said manu- mitted slaves.
Art. 54. We grant to manumitted slaves the same rights, priv- ileges, and immunities which are enjoyed by free-born persons. It is our pleasure that their merit in having acquired their freedom, shall produce in their favor, not only with regard to their persons, but also to their property, the same effects which our other subjects derive from the happy circumstance of their having been born free. Fazende, Brusle, Perry,
March, 1724.
In the name of the king. Bienville, De la Chaise.
In the regulations of police published Feb. 18, 1751, by Gov. Vaudreuil and Michel de la Rouvilliere the intendant-commissary, Articles 10 to 30 have special reference to the treatment and control of negroes, and are an amplification of certain provisions of the Black Code, especially of Articles 12 to 15 inclusive. The stringent
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legislation here embodied prohibits under severe penalties the sale of intoxicants to negroes, the harboring of slaves for unlawful pur- . poses, trade dealings with slaves who are not specifically authorized by their masters to buy and sell, all assemblies of negroes owned by different masters either in town or country, the carrying by any negro of a cane, rod. or stick, etc. Any white person is author- ized to stop a negro or slave, either in New Orleans, or in the country, during the day, and particularly during the night, and com- pel the said negro or slave to show his written pass; the abuse of horses and their stealing by negroes is the subject of a separate article ; another article is intended to prevent masters from treating their slaves with undue lenity, and still another article aims to enforce proper respect and submission on the part of the blacks toward the whites, branding and whipping being the penalties im- posed for any insolence shown. Such protection as was afforded the blacks is embodied in Article 30, which recites, "A private per- son, a soldier, or any other individual, has not the right to ill-treat a negro who is guilty of no offense towards him. In certain cases, the person offended may arrest him, and ask that he be dealt with according to the dictates of justice, because the negro is subject only to the police regulations of the country and to the tribunal of his own master. Consequently, and in compliance with the orders of his Majesty, we forbid that any one should take the lib- erty to ill-treat slaves ; and for any violence of this prohibition, the person so offending shall undergo an arbitrary punishment, accord- ing to the circumstances of the case."
When Gen. O'Reilly assumed control of the colony in the name of Spain, he issued a special proclamation reenacting most of the French legislation with reference to the negroes.
Blackcreek, a post-hamlet in the central part of Grant parish, is about 6 miles northwest of Bentley. the nearest railroad station, and the same distance northeast of Colfax, the parish seat.
Blackwell, a post-hamlet in the northwestern part of St. Tam- many parish, is about 5 miles north of Folsom, the nearest railroad station.
Blairstown, a post-hamlet in the southeastern part of East Feliciana parish, is situated on a confluent of the Amite river, about 5 miles north of Pride, the nearest railroad station, and 9 miles southeast of Clinton, the parish seat.
Blanc, Antoine, Ist Roman Catholic archbishop of New Orleans. was born at Sury, France. Oct. 11, 1792. He was one of the first priests ordained after the Restoration in France. In order to escape military conscription he received special dispensation and was ordained in 1817 before he had reached canonical age. He was one of the missionaries who volunteered for the Louisiana mission- ary field and accompanied Bishop Dubourg (q. v.) to the United States. With 30 other priests, he was entertained by Charles Car- roll of Carrollton, Md .. for two months, before they went to Balti- more to join Bishop Dubourg for the trip west. At first Father Blanc had charge of the Vincennes mission, but in 1820 was called
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to New Orleans and after that was stationed at Natchez, Pointe Coupée and Baton Rouge. He was appointed assistant vicar- general of the diocese of New Orleans, was raised in 1832 to coad- jutor-bishop and when Bishop Neckere died in 1833, was appointed administrator of the diocese. Two years later he was appointed bishop and consecrated in the cathedral on Nov. 22, 1835. At that time the diocese of New Orleans included Louisiana and Missis- sippi, and in 1838 Texas was placed under the jurisdiction of the see of New Orleans. During his administration Bishop Blanc succeeded in having both Texas and Mississippi made into separate and independent dioceses. While in office he established a diocesan seminary, introduced the Jesuit Lazarist and Redemptionist orders. the Christian Brothers, Sisters of Charity and several other Cath- olic orders. He established 2 colleges, 9 free schools, 13 orphan asylums and 3 churches. The number of churches and priests in the diocese more than doubled while he was bishop and when New Orleans was erected into an arch-diocese in 1850, he was raised to archbishop. He attended the 1st. 2d. 4th. 5th, 6th, and 7th pro- vincial councils at Baltimore and the Ist plenary council in 1852. The 1st council he attended as theologian, the others as prelate. He called and presided over, as metropolitan, the 1st provincial council of New Orleans. In 1855, he went to Rome to attend the assembly of cardinals, archbishops and bishops called together by Pins IX. He died in New Orleans, June 20, 1860.
Blanchard, a village in the central part of Caddo parish, is a sta- tion on the Kansas City Southern R. R., about 9 miles northwest of Shreveport. It has a money order postoffice, telegraph and express service, is the trading center of a considerable district, and in 1900 had a population of 186.
Blanchard, Albert G., soldier, was born in Charleston. Mass., in 1810, where he received his early education. When quite young, he entered the U. S. military academy, where he graduated in 1829. While at the academy he was a classmate of Robert E. Lee and Joseph E. Johnston. After graduating he was appointed brevet second lieutenant of the 3d infantry, and served on the frontier from 1829 to 1840. when he resigned from the army to engage in mercantile pursuits, and also served as director of public schools in Louisiana from 1843 to 1845. When war broke out with Mexico he again entered the service of the United States, as captain of La. volunteers, May 15, 1846, and won distinction at the battle of Monterey and the siege of Vera Cruz. He was offered an appoint- ment in the regular army but declined in order to accept a com- mission as major of the 12th Louisiana infantry, May 27. 1847. After the war he returned to New Orleans and taught in the public schools until 1850. For several years he was employed as a sur- veyor, and from 1854 to 1861 was secretary and treasurer of the New Orleans & Carrollton, and the Jefferson & Lake Pontchartrain railroad companies. Gen. Blanchard sympathized with the South and entered the service of his adopted state as colonel of the 1st Louisiana infantry. He served with his command in Virginia; in
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May, 1861, was placed in command of two divisions of Huger's forces; was promoted to brigadier-general and placed in command of a brigade at Portsmonth, Va. In April, 1862, he took part in the operations around South Mills. Later he was in command of Drewry's bluff. After the war he returned to New Or- leans, and was surveyor and civil engineer from 1866 to 1870. He was deputy surveyor of the city of New Orleans from 1870 to 1878, and assistant surveyor from 1878 to 1891. He died in New Orleans, La., June 21, 1891.
Blanchard, Newton Crain, governor of Louisiana from 1904 to 1908, was born on Jan. 29, 1849, in Rapides Parish, La., where his boyhood was passed on a cotton piantation. His early education was acquired in private schools and the Louisiana state university, and in 1870 he graduated in the law department of the University of Louisiana (now Tulane) at New Orleans. He began practice at Shreveport in 1871, became a successful attorney, and in 1876 was elected chairman of the Democratic committee of Caddo parish. Three years later he was chosen a delegate to the constitutional convention, in which he was made chairman of the committee on Federal relations. With the rank of major he served on the staff of Gov. Wiltz and Gov. McEnery, and at the same time was the Louisiana trustee of the University of the South at Sewanee, Tenn. In 1880 he was elected to the lower house of Congress and served continuously in that body until 1893, when he was elected to the U. S. Senate. While in the house he was for some time chairman of the committee on rivers and harbors, and as such wielded great influence in securing appropriations for the improvement of the levees along the Mississippi river, thus preventing, or at least reducing to a minimum, the damage done by disastrous floods. In 1897 he left the senate to accept a place as associate justice of the Louisiana supreme court and remained upon the bench until 1904, when he was elected governor for a term of four years. Mr. . Blanchard is a Democrat who is always ready to obey the behests of his party, whether as an officeholder, a delegate to conventions, or as member of the national committee. in which organization he ably represented the State of Louisiana for several years.
Blanchard's Administration .- Gov. Blanchard and Lient .- Gov. Sanders were inducted into office on May 16, 1904. In his inaugural message the new governor devoted considerable attention to the subject of education, especially recommending legislation in the interests of the primary schools. He suggested that the state issue 40 or 45 year bonds to the amount of $1.000,000 for the purpose of improving her educational institutions, and concluded this part of his message by saying: "It was never truer than now that the education of the poorest is the chief concern of a state." He expressed himself in favor of legislation that would secure better roads in the rural districts; advocated the enactment of a primary election law'; promised a rigid enforcement of law and order, and that there should be no lynching nor mob violence during his ad- ministration if the military at his command could prevent it; con-
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curred in Gov. Heard's recommendation in his retiring message that the state debt be refunded on a 3 per cent basis; and advo- cated the extension of the elective franchise. "There is no doubt," said he, "that many people in the state hold to the opinion that many of the existing offices, now appointive, should be made elective, and are desirous that this should be done. I recommend that action on this line be taken."
The general assembly to which this message was delivered had met on May 9, 1904, one week before Gov. Blanchard was inaugu- rated. Act No. 113, passed at this session, created a department of forestry, to consist of the register of the land office and four citizens of the state to be appointed by the governor for a term of four years; the register to be ex-officio commissioner of forestry, for which he was to receive an addition of $500 to his annual salary, the other four members of the department to receive only actual expenses, not exceeding $100 each per annum. The act made it the duty of the department to inquire into and report on the forest conditions in the state, with reference to the preservation of the forests already existing and the reforesting of denuded lands. The register, in his capacity of commissioner, was to have charge of the preservation of the forests, and his orders were to be supreme. He was authorized to appoint a deputy, to be known as the chief fire warden, with a salary of $500 a year, who was charged with the enforcement of the law. Police jurors were constituted fire wardens, who were to assemble on the orders of the chief fire warden in case of forest fires, and were to receive $2 per day for each day actually employed in fighting tires. Any person wilfully,. negligently or carelessly setting fire to woods, or near woods, was liable to a fine not exceeding $100, to which might be added impris- onment for not more than three months, all fines to be paid into the parish treasury where the offense occurred. and to be used in enforc- ing the provisions of the act. It was also directed that parish school boards provide for teaching forestry in the public schools, and for an arbor day (q. v.), when forest trees should be planted on the school grounds, etc. In 1906 Gov. Blanchard tried to have the law amended so as to limit the cut of timber by lumber companies to trees larger than 10 or 12 inches in diameter, but the influence of the milling interests was strong enough to prevent the passage of the bill.
On July 5, 1904, the governor approved an act creating the state. board of charities and corrections, to consist of the governor and' five citizens to be appointed by him-one for 6 years, one for 5 years, one for 4 years, one for 3 years and one for 2 years, after which all appointments were to be for 6 years, except in cases of vacancies, when the appointment was not to extend beyond the expiration of the original term. The governor was designated as chairman of the board, whose duties were defined as merely visit- orial. The board was authorized and required to visit all institu- tions-state, parish or municipal-of a charitable, eleemosynary,. correctional or reformatory character, and to report annually to the
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governor and to each session of the legislature, making such sugges- tions regarding the management of the institutions as the members might deem proper, provided said suggestions were concurred in by a majority of the members of the boards in control of the institu- tions affected by them. Local officers of the various institutions coming within the provisions of the act were directed to furnish the board of charities and corrections all information, etc.
On the same date Gov. Blanchard also approved an act estab- lishing a state reform school for the accommodations of male per- sons under the age of 18 years, who might be convicted of any crime except murder, manslaughter or rape, such imprisonment not to entail the forfeiture of civil rights. The governor was author- ized to appoint, with the advice and consent of the senate, three commissioners to locate the school, provided, that the location selected should not be within 30 miles of the state penitentiary or any of the convict farms. The commissioners thus appointed were required to serve without compensation other than actual expenses incurred in the discharge of their duties: to adopt for the institu- tion a system of discipline that should be humane and reformatory in character : and to report annually to the governor. They were given authority to release on parole any inmate of the school whose conduct in their judgment merited such treatment, the paroled person to be rearrested if his parole was broken. To carry out the provisions of the act an appropriation of $20.000 was made : $5,000 out of the revenues of 1906. $10,000 out of the revenues of 1907, and $5,000 out of the revenues of 1908. The commissioners purchased about 193 acres of land on the Ouachita river, a short distance below the city of Monroe. paying therefor $9.646, and here the school was established. In his message to the legislature on May 12, 1908, Gov. Blanchard said: "On this site a substantial building is under construction and nearly finished. This institution is managed by a board of three commissioners who are displaying most commend- able zeal in the work, besides progressive ideas and good business judgment. Two of them, with my approval, visited similar insti- tutions in the Eastern and Northern portions of our country in order to observe the arrangement of the buildings and to become more fully informed in the matter of the management of such - schools." By the act of July 9, 1908. the name of the school was changed to that of the "Louisiana Training Institute."
The law of 1902. creating the Vicksburg Military Commission, inadvertently omitted the 3d. 17th, 21st, 26th, 27th, 28th (29th), and 31st Louisiana regiments. In 1904 it was amended so as to include these organizations and give them representation on the commission.
In July, 1905, the report of a few cases of yellow fever in New Orleans caused the Mississippi authorities to establish a quarantine against the State of Louisiana. Toward the close of the month Gov. Blanchard received notice that bodies of Mississippi militia. uniformed and armed, were constantly crossing the Pearl river ; that the drawbridge of the Louisville & Nashville railroad over the Rigolets was kept closed by order of the Mississippi quarantine
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officers and opened only to such boats as they directed; and that · Mississippi patrol boats were committing acts of trespass and in- timidation in Louisiana waters upon Louisiana fishermen and their boats. The governor immediately ordered Brig .- Gen. Arsène Peril- liat of his staff and Capt. J. W. Bostick, commanding the state naval brigade, to investigate the report, and at the same time notified the governor of Mississippi of his action. After a hurried investi- gation Capt. Bostick reported that the drawbridge was kept closed by the patrol boat Grace: that 18 schooners from Louisiana ports had been stopped at the Rigolets and forcibly towed over to Ship island; that militiamen, uniformed and armed, were in the habit of going daily to Dunbar, La., for mail and supplies, or to take the train ; and that the patrol boat Cartryne has issued orders to Louis- iana fishermen who desired to go out into Lake Borgne to remain inside the pass at Chef Menteur.
On Thursday morning, Aug. 3, Capt. Bostick received telegraphic orders from the governor "to look after Rigolets and bridge imme- diately and hurry forward preparation of flotilla strong enough to protect state's rights." The governor also telegraphed to Sheriff Long of Orleans parish and Sheriff Nunez of St. Bernard parish to confer with Capt. Bostick, proceed to Rigolets and arrest any Mississippi patrol boats found interfering with commerce. Upon receiving his orders Capt. Bostick sent Lieuts. T. D. Miller and John Chaffe, with 14 enlisted men and 4 civilians, to the Rigo- lets with instructions to prevent all interference with the bridge, fishermen or shipping, and directed Lieut. Ernest D. Ivy to take 12 men and proceed down the Mississippi river on the power launchi Tom to Lake Borgne canal, where he was to report to Sheriff Nunez. Troops were also sent by train to the Rigolets.
Early on Friday morning, Aug. 4, Lieut. Ivy captured the patrol launch Tipsy, commanded by Capt. English, near the Lake Borgne canal, where it was stationed to prevent the fishermen at Chef Men- teur from going into Lake Borgne. Capt. Bostick arrived at the Rigolets early on the morning of the 4th and was hailed by the patrol boat Grace, commanded by Walter Blunt. Bostick ordered the Grace alongside his launch, the Marie, and lashed the boats together, but found that Sheriff Long, who had gone to the Rigolets on Thursday afternoon, had returned to New Orleans. As he had no authority to make arrests he ordered the Grace to the Pearl river and admonished Blunt that he must not interfere with the passage of boats. About 2 p. m. the Grace came back and Blunt showed documents signed by Surgeon Wasdin of the marine hos- pital service and Capt. Chaytor of the U. S. revenue cutter Winona, stating that the Grace was acting under instructions to warn all vessels not to enter Mississippi waters unless they were willing to go to Ship island for detention. . Bostick informed the captain of the Grace that he would not be permitted to seize vessels in Louisiana waters nor interfere with fishermen, but must confine himself to warning vessels not to land in Mississippi without first going to Ship island, and then telegraphed to the governor for
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