USA > Louisiana > Louisiana; comprising sketches of counties, towns, events, institutions, and persons, Volume II > Part 35
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Jackson, 1845: Jefferson, 1825; Lafayette, 1823: Lafourche, 1807; La Salle, 1908; Lincoln, 1873; Livingston, 1832; Madison, 1839; Morehouse. 1844: Natchitoches, 1807; Orleans, 1807; Ouachita, 1807: Plaquemines. 1807: Pointe Coupée, 1807: Rapides, 1807; Red River, 1871 ; Richland, 1868: Sabine. 1843; St. Bernard, 1807; St. Charles, 1807 : St. Helena, 1811 ; St. James, 1807 ; St. John the Baptist, 1807; St. Landry, 1807; St. Martin, 1811 ; St. Mary, 1811; St. Tammany, 1811 : Tangipahoa, 1869: Tensas, 1842; Terrebonne, 1822: Union, 1839: Vermilion, 1844; Vernon, 1871 : Washington, 1819; Webster, 1871 ; West Baton Rouge, 1807; West Carroll, 1877 ; West Feliciana, 1824; Winn, 1851. (See historical sketches of each in place.)
Partidas .- The laws of "Las Siete Partidas" were that portion of the Spanish code having the force of law in Louisiana in 1820. when they were translated into English by Moreau Lislet and Henry Carleton under the provisions of an act of the state legisla- ture. The act also provided that one copy should be given to each judge in the state: 3 copies to each clerk of the supreme court ; 3 copies to each clerk's office outside of New Orleans, where the clerks were to receive two copies each ; 50 copies to the Louisiana house of representatives ; 17 copies to the state senate; 2 copies to the secretary of state; 2 copies to the Literary society of New Orleans; 1 copy to the U. S. district judge ; 3 copies to the clerk of the U. S. district court; 3 copies to the president of the United States; 1 copy to the governor of each state; and the remainder of the edition (100 copies) to be sold by the state treasurer at not less than $10 a set, the money to be turned over to the state. Many features of these old Spanish laws are still to be found in the Louisiana codes. (See also Codes and Statutes.)
Pasman, a post-hamlet in the southwestern part of Washington parish, is situated on a confluent of the Tchefuncte river, about 6 miles southwest of Franklinton, the parish seat and nearest rail- road town. Its population in 1900 was 100.
Patoutville, a village of Iberia parish, is a station on the Franklin & Abbeville R. R., about 10 miles southeast of New Iberia, the parish seat. It is the trading center of a rich sugar district, has a money order postoffice, an express office, etc., and in 1900 reported a population of 130.
Patterson, one of the largest towns of St. Mary parish, is on the Bayou Teche and the Southern Pacific R. R., about 15 miles south- east of Franklin, the parish seat. It is in one of the richest and most productive sugar districts of the state, has sugar refineries. lumber industries, 2 banks, an international money order postoffice, telegraph and express offices, telephone facilities, good schools, churches and a number of mercantile establishments. Large quan- tities of fish and oysters are shipped to New Orleans and exported to the northern markets. The population in 1900 was 2,480.
Patterson, Daniel Todd, a distinguished naval officer, was born on Long island, N. Y., March 6, 1786, and there received his ele- mentary education. In 1800 he received an appointment -as mid-
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shipman and was assigned to the Philadelphia, then commanded by Capt. Bainbridge. In 1807 he was promoted to lieutenant and served with that rank until 1813, when he was made commander. About this time he led an expedition against Lafitte's band of smugglers at Barataria bay, and he later played a conspicuous part in the battle of New Orleans. Jan. 8, 1815, receiving not only the unqualified praise of Gen. Jackson, but also an expression of thanks from Congress and the commendation of the American people. Toward the close of the year 1815 he was commissioned captain ; was in command of the Mediterranean squadron from 1832 to 1836, at the end of which time he returned to the United States to assume general charge of the navy-yard at Washington, D. C., where his death occurred on Aug. 15, 1839.
Pauger, a French engineer, came to Louisiana with Bienville early in the eighteenth century. Penicaut, in his "Annals of Louisiana," in noticing the arrival of a vessel on Feb. 23, 1721, says: "MI. de Pauger. the engineer, who had returned from the mouth of the Mississippi river, reported that he had found a bar of soft mud aeross one of its mouths, which was formed by the meeting of the tide of the sea and current of the river, which is here very sluggish, and proposed to establish a fort on the island, at the Belize, where large ships could anchor in safety." In another report, dated Jan. 25, 1723, regarding the mouth of the Mississippi, Pauger says: "On my first visit I found that ships drawing four- teen, fifteen feet of water, and even more, could easily pass." In the same report he expressed his regret that ships were sent to Biloxi, "as it is extremely painful and costly for the inhabitants on- the river, whose number must increase every day, considering the fertility of the soil. to go to Biloxi to get their negroes and all that they may need." He was influential in assisting Bienville to have the seat of government removed to New Orleans, and recommended jetties at the mouth of the Mississippi similar to those constructed by Capt. Eads a century and a half later. At that time the French government felt that it could not afford to make the improvements suggested, but rewarded Pauger by making him a member of the superior council. Subsequently the government, upon the recom- mendation of De la Chaise, censured him for some of his official actions, after which he seems to have dropped out of colonial affairs and history.
Paulina, a town in the eastern part of St. James parish, is a station on the Yazoo & Mississippi Valley R. R., about 8 miles east of Convent, the parish seat. It has a money order postoffice. telegraph and express offices and is a shipping point for a rich agricultural district. The population in 1900 was 125.
Pawnee, a post-hamlet in the northeast corner of Calcasieu parish, is on a confluent of Bayou Nezpique and the St. Louis, Wat- kins & Gulf R. R., about 50 miles northeast of Lake Charles, the . parish seat. It is in one of the great pine forests west of the Mis- sissippi river. has lumber interests, and is the shipping point for a large timber district.
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Peabody Fund .- Kiddle & Schem's Cyclopedia of Education says that this fund was created on Feb. 7, 1867, when George Pea- body (q. v.) made the following announcement: "I give $1,000,000 for the encouragement and promotion of intellectual, moral and industrial education among the young of the more destitute por- tions of the southern and southwestern states of the Union." Ten trustees were selected by Mr. Peabody and on March 19, 1867, these trustees met in New York city, adopted a general plan for the application of the fund, and elected Dr. Barnas Sears as agent. On July 1, 1869, Mr. Peabody added another $1.000,000 to the cash capital of the fund, and in addition to this there were donations of Florida and Mississippi bonds amounting to $1.500,000, though these bonds did not at that time yield any income. Under the directions of the founder, the principal was to remain unchanged for 30 years, the trustees being enjoined from expending any part of it or adding to it any portion of the accrued interest. The Cyclo- pedia above referred to says: "The promotion of primary educa- tion for the masses has been the chief object kept in view; and, in the effort to accomplish it, the trustees have followed the sound maxim of giving help to those, and only to those, who help them- selves. Hence, whenever efficient measures have been inaugurated by state, eity, or town to establish and support a permanent sys- tem of schools, and aid has been needed to meet the outlay neces- sary at first, contributions have been promptly and liberally made to supplement the funds publiely raised. The rules followed in the distribution have been as follows: (1) All schools aided must have at least 100 pupils, with a teacher for every 50; must be prop- erly graded, and must be continued during ten months in the year, with an average attendance of not less than 85 per cent; (2) The trustees act in concert with the state authorities, and with the cooperation of the state superintendent in each; (3) The largest sum given to a school of 100 pupils is $300; to one of 200 pupils, $600, and to one of 300 pupils, $1,000; but always on the · condition that the district pay at least twice the amount given from the fund."
In 1875 the agent said in his report to the trustees: "Not a single Southern state had a modern system of public schools when the trustees first entered upon the work, and now no state is with- out such a system. existing at least in law; and every state has either already organized or is now organizing its schools." It was not claimed that the improved educational conditions were the direct result of the distribution of the proceeds of the fund, but there is no question that it greatly aided and stimulated the efforts in behalf of popular education in the South. The establishment of the fund came at an opportune time, as the Southern states were left in an impoverished condition as a result of the war, and the generosity of Mr. Peabody could not have been exemplified in a more apropos way.
Peabody, George, philanthropist, was born at Danvers, Mass .. Feb. 18. 1795, his earliest ancestor in America. Francis Peabody,
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having come from Hertfordshire, England, in 1667. At the age of eleven years George began his business career as an apprentice to a grocer in Danvers, with whom he was connected for four years. He was then associated with his brother in a store at Newburyport until the building was destroyed by fire, and then clerked for an uncle at Georgetown, D. C., until the beginning of the War of 1812, when he enlisted in a company of volunteer artillery which was sta- tioned at Fort Warburton, commanding the river approach to Washington. After the war he formed a partnership with Elisha Riggs which lasted until 1829. In 1837 Mr. Peabody became a member of a firm of merchants and brokers in London, and in this line he laid the foundation of his vast fortune, much of which he gave away in establishing educational and benevolent institutions. Altogether it is estimated that he gave away over $8,000,000. In 1867 he established the "Peabody Fund for the promotion of the educational interests of the Southern states," giving at that time $1,000,000, though this fund was subsequently increased to $3.500,- 000. This fund has been considered as his crowning benevolence. Mr. Peabody died in London, England, Nov. 4, 1869. On July 23 before his death the Prince of Wales unveiled a bronze statue of Mr. Peabody, provided by the people of London and erected in a public square of that city. On July. 1900, the legislature of the State of Louisiana passed an act appropriating $300 as the state's contribution to the fund of the Southern states for a bronze bust of this great philanthropist in Memorial hall at Washington, D. C.
Pearl, a post-hamlet in the central part of Calcasieu parish, is about 4 miles southeast of Reeves, the nearest railroad station, and 25 miles northeast of Lake Charles, the parish seat.
Pearl River, a village of St. Tammany parish, is a station on the New Orleans & Northeastern R. R .. 8 miles northeast of Slidell. It is located at the edge of the pine and alluvial farming country and is the shipping point for both. It has a money order postoffice. telegraph and express offices, and is a supply town for a consider- able area. In 1900 it had a population of 125.
Pecan Island, a postoffice in the southwestern part of Vermilion parish, is about 8 miles north of the Gulf of Mexico and 30 miles southwest of Abbeville, the parish seat.
Peck, a small post-village in the extreme northeastern part of Catahoula parish. is a station on the New Orleans & Northwestern R. R., about 15 miles northeast of Harrisonburg. the parish seat.
Pelican is a money order post-village in the southeastern part of DeSoto parish, is a station on the Texas & Pacific R. R., about 14 miles southeast of Mansfield. the parish seat. It is a new railroad town laid out in 1889 near an old sawmill that had stood on the spot for many years. By the close of 1890 a new sawmill, several stores and a 400-bale cotton market had been built. and in Sept., 1891, a new high school was opened. The town has express and · telegraph offices, and in 1900 had a population of 150.
Pénicaut, Jean, sometimes termed the "literary carpenter." author of the Annals of Louisiana from 1698 to 1722, was born at La
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Rochelle, France, about 1682. He accompanied the first expedition of Iberville to the Mississippi as a ship's carpenter on one of the vessels of the squadron, and was employed in various capacities in the colony until the year 1720, when he purchased the concession of M. de la Houssaye, on St. Catherine's creek at Natchez. He states that he sailed for France on Oct. 6, 1721, at the advice of Bienville, in order to secure medical advice and treatment for an affection of the eyes, but it seems he returned once more to Natchez, as he is frequently mentioned under the name of "Perri- cault" (Dumont has it "Couillard"), as one of the few Frenchmen who escaped the massacre of 1729. His manuscript, entitled "Annals of Louisiana," sheds much light on the beginnings of the colony and is an important record of what took place in Louisiana for more than 20 years after the arrival of Iberville. Fortunately, this manuscript found its way into the Bibliothèque du Roi, Paris, where it may now be consulted. Father Charlevoix, in his work on New France, referred to it as a work of merit, and said it afforded him important information which he could not obtain elsewhere. Prof. Fortier has also made excellent use of the Péni- caut Annals in his History of Louisiana, particularly in his descrip- tions of the Natchez Indians.
Penitentiary .- The first movement on the part of the state authorities toward the erection of a penitentiary was a resolution adopted by the legislature on Feb. 17, 1821, authorizing the gover- nor to publish in the National Intelligencer at Washington, and in one paper in each of the cities of New York, Boston. Philadelphia and New Orleans, an advertisement offering a premium of $500 for the plan received by Jan. 1, 1822, and accepted by the general assembly at the next session thereafter, for a penitentiary and buildings necessary. The resolution further set forth that the plan must provide for the confinement of 200 convicts-the quarters to be capable of being enlarged to accommodate 400 whenever it might become necessary .- dwelling for warden, guard quarters, cells, a separate ward for women, chapel, kitchen, dining rooms, shops, etc. Under this resolution the plan submitted by Robert Mills of South Carolina was adopted, and on March 23, 1822. Gov. Robertson approved an act providing for the appointment of five commissioners to purchase a site within one league of the city hall of New Orleans, on the same side of the river, the location and price to be subject to the approval of the governor, and erect thereon a prison according to the plan presented by Mr. Mills, with the restriction that the ground and buildings should not cost more than $250,000, which sum was appropriated for the purpose.
On April 25. 1826, the legislature passed an act authorizing the sale of the prison property at New Orleans, but the provisions of the act were not carried out, and the penitentiary remained there for some eight years after that date. By the act of March 16, 1832, the governor was authorized to appoint five commissioners to pur- chase a suitable site at Baton Rouge and erect a penitentiary on the plan of the prison at Wethersfield, Conn., "on a scale adapted
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to the present accommodations and the employment of 100 con- victs, and in such manner as to allow of future enlargement." The sum of $50,000 was placed at the disposal of the commissioners, who were empowered to make a contract in the name of the state for the erection of the building. The act of March 30, 1833, directed the board of commissioners to superintend the erection of the prison for 100 convicts, according to the original plan, and when the same should be completed that number of convicts con- fined at New Orleans should be transferred to Baton Rouge to aid in the erection of further penitentiary buildings. An appropria- tion of $6,000 was made to defray the expenses of removing the prisoners. On March 10, 1834, two appropriations of $10,000 each were made by the legislature-the first for completing the build- ing and the removal of the rest of the convicts from New Orleans, and the second for the support of the inmates of the penitentiary. The first building to be completed was the three story brick surtic- ture fronting on St. Anthony street ; the first superintendent was Guy Duplantier ; and the first captain of the guard was Paul Chop- pin, the father of Dr. Samuel Choppin, the eminent New Orleans surgeon.
The general assembly of 1835 appropriated $10,000, to be drawn in monthly installments, for the support of the convicts; $10,000 for certain additions to the penitentiary ; and $800 for the purchase of two squares of ground adjoining the prison. On March 13, 1837, the sum of $15,000 was appropriated for the completion of the main building and the erection of a store house. An act approved March 12, 1838, provided for the purchase and installation of ma- chinery for the manufacture of coarse cotton and woolen cloth, and appropriated $12.000, or such portion thereof as might be necessary to carry out the intentions of the act. Under this law the clerk of the prison was to receive and receipt for all cloth manufactured and sell the same for cash only. It appears that the machinery purchased under this act was unsatisfactory, as a few years later the legislature ordered it to be sold, and made appropriations for the purchase of new.
In 1844 the general assembly passed an act entitled "An act to provide for the better administration of the Louisiana penitentiary." This act authorized the lease of the prison : provided for the ap- pointment of a board of directors: defined the obligations of the lessee and the manner in which the convicts should be employed ; set forth the obligations of the management, and stipulated in detail the conditions of the lease. By the act of March 26, 1842, the colored convicts were turned over to the board of public works, to be employed at hard labor on the levees, highways, etc., and this arrangement continued until after the passage of the act authorizing the lease of the institution. On March 8, 1845, Gov. Mouton approved an act providing that the colored convicts should be worked the same as whites, provided the lessees of the penitentiary would receive them on the same terms as whites. At the same time the east wall was ordered to be moved back a
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distance of 120 feet to make room for a two story building, the lower story of which was to be used for a ropewalk and the upper story' for spinning warps and filling for bagging. In the meantime other buildings had been erected by legislative authority, and by 1848 the prison was completed according to the original design, the total cost being about $400,000. In 1853 a third story was added to the bagging factory and the building roofed with slate, and an appropriation of $10,000, or so much thereof as might be necessary, was made for the enlargement and completion of the building containing the cells.
In 1849 a new lease was made by which the state was guaranteed one-fourth of the profits, provided these profits were to be not less than $4,000 a year as the share of the state. The lease was amended in 1852, so that the state received the fixed sum of $4,000 a year. On March 18, 1856, the legislature appropriated $29,485, to pay the lessees, Ward, McHatton & Co., for provisions, cloth- ing, materials and manufactured articles delivered to the state, clothing and cash furnished to discharged convicts, and for the erection of a new pickery. At the same time an appropriation of $30,000 was made to A. Miltonberger & Co., as agents, for the settlement of general accounts against the state on account of the penitentiary. Pursuant to a recommendation of the board of con- trol, the legislature on March 18, 1858, appropriated $36,122.31, to pay MeHatton, Pike & Co., who had succeeded Ward, McHat- ton & Co., for buildings, improvements, etc., but the act prohibited the board of control from ordering the erection of any additional buildings unless the same was provided for by law.
The penitentiary was occupied by Federal troops immediately after the capitulation of Baton Rouge in May, 1862, and Gen. Butler, commanding at New Orleans, subsequently ordered the release of all convicts. In 1865 the state again assumed control of the penitentiary and the legislature appropriated $50,000 for its maintenance. On Jan. 4, 1869, an appropriation of $42,224 was made to pay the indebtedness of the institution, and on March 5 follow- ing, an act was passed authorizing the leasing of the prison. This act provided for the repair and erection of buildings, the pur- chase of machinery, etc., and for issuing the bonds of the state to defray all expenses thus incurred. The board of control was given supervision of the health, religious instruction and regula- tions governing the convicts, with power to prescribe the kind and quantity of rations, clothing, and punishments of infraction of the rules. 'The lease system continued until after the adoption of the constitution of 1898, the act of July 10, 1890, authorizing the gov- ernor to extend and renew the lease of S. L. James for a period of ten years from March 3, 1891, at an annual rental of $50,000. Under this law the convicts might be employed on public works -levees, highways, railroad construction, etc .- but were not to produce any private crops, except that female convicts might be hired out for agricultural purposes and ten male convicts might be employed to supply food to the other prisoners.
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The system that prevailed in the Southern states for several years after the Civil war of leasing convicts has been severely criti- cized, but a Louisiana writer in 1892 explained the situation by saying: "After the war the states were too poor to support their state prisons, wherein convicts should be confined in idleness, therefore the leasing of convict labor was resorted to, more as a matter of necessity than as a matter of choice. Here convict camps were established and the convicts employed in railroad building. agricultural pursuits, but principally in levee building. Contractors soon found the system extremely profitable, the maintenance of the prisoners was poor, while the men were worked hard and severely. The system has always been unpopular everywhere, and has been tolerated apparently only on the ground of actual financial neces- sity. Life in the convict camp has been compared again and again with the horrors of life in the slaveship. The convicts immerged. brutalized, many escaped. and the moral influence upon the com- munity was wholly bad."
But a better day has come to Louisiana. Article 196 of the con- stitution of 1896 provides that "The general assembly may author- ize the employment. under state supervision and the proper officers and employes of the state, of convicts on public roads or other public works, or convict farms, or in manufactories owned or con- trolled by the state, under such provisions and restrictions as may be imposed by law, and shall enact laws to carry these provisions into effect ; and no convict sentenced to the state penitentiary shall ever be leased, or hired to any person, or persons, or corporation, private or public, or quasi-public, or board, save as herein author- ized. This article shall take effect upon the expiration of the peni- tentiary lease, made pursuant to Act No. 114, approved July 10, 1890."
Before the expiration of the lease the general assembly took the necessary steps to carry out the provisions of the new constitution. It was determined to furnish for public works only such convicts as were physically perfect. and employ the rest ir agriculture. For this purpose two tracts of land were purchased for convict farms, viz : Angola plantation, including 8.000 acres of fine alluvial land. on the Mississippi river in the parish of West Feliciana, and Hope plantation, embracing about 2,800 acres of good sugar land, on Bayou Teche in Iberia parish. Permanent buildings, designed according to approved sanitary lines, were erected, and upon the termination of the lease the convicts were removed to the farms and set to work under state supervision. This system is a marked improvement over the old one, the plantations not only paying all the expenses of operation and maintenance, but also yielding a surplus toward paying for the property. Cotton is the principal crop at Angola and sugar at Hope. So gratifying were the results during the first two years of the experiment that the legislature authorized the purchase of a third farm, located in Iberville parish. to be used as a penal farm. For a time the factory at Baton Rouge (the old penitentiary ) furnished the convicts with shoes and cloth-
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