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freedmen than heretofore, yet fraud and deception is continually being practised by some of the Justices of the Peace. Two murders are reported both victims being freedmen, in one case the verdict was "justifiable homicide" and in the other the guilty parties have not as yet been arrested. Several new schools have been started and freedmen appear to take a great deal of interest in them.

Iberville and West Baton Rouge

Several complaints have been made by both planters and freedmen but were all of an unimportant nature being generally disputes relative to pay etc; Many of the planters seem disposed, upon the worst frivolous pretexts, to discharge their laborers with loss of pay and many of them seize every opportunity to abuse and beat them. The civil authorities are not disposed as a general thing to accord justice to freedmen. Upon some of the plantations the laborers complain of not being paid regularly. The Cotton Crop is looking very well, but the Cotton Worm