Newspaper Data of De Soto Parish, Louisiana                                         NEW ORLEANS, September 3, 1874. — Governor Kellogg has issued a proclamation placing a reward of $5,000 a head on all the persona implicated in the Coushatta affair, and accompanies his proclamation by the following statement to the public: "Having felt it my duty to issue my proclamation offering a large reward for the apprehension and conviction of the murderers in the Coushatta outrage, and to the end that the law abiding citizens of the State may fully comprehend the magnitude of the crime committed and be induced to render more active assistance to the officers of the Law, I deem it proper to make the following statement : These facts are gathered from reliable information received at the Executive Department. On or about the 28th day of August, 1874, a body of persons belonging to a semi-military organization, known as the White League of Louisiana, assembled in the town of Coushatta Pariah, of Red river, in this State, for the purpose of compelling by force of arms the State officers of that parish to resign their positions. These officers were men of good character, most of them largely interested in planting and mercantile pursuits. They held their positions with the full consent of an admittedly large majority of the legal voters of the parish, as admitted by the fusion returning boards, the only known objection to them was that they were of Republican principles. Frank Egerton, the duly qualified Sheriff of the parish, in strict compliance with the laws of this State and the United States, summoned a posse of citizens, white and colored, to assist him in protecting the parish officers in the exercise of their undoubted rights and duties from the threatened un lawful violence of the White Leagues. His posse, consisting of 65 men, were overpowered by a superior force, assembled from the adjacent parishes, and finally, after several colored and white men had been killed, surrendered themselves as prisoners, with the explicit guarantee that their lives would be spared if the more prominent Republicans would agree to leave the parish, and those holding office would resign their positions. These stipulations, though unlawfully exacted, were complied with on the part of the Republican officials, who were then locked in the jail for the night. The following named persons were amongst those so surrendered and resigning Homer J. Twitchell, planter and tax collector of Red River and deputy United States postmaster in charge of the post office at Coushatta; Robert A. Demess, Supervisor of Registration of Desoto parish; Clark Holland, merchant and Supervisor of Registration of Red River parish; W. F. Howell, parish attorney and U. S Counsellor;  Frank S. Egerton, Sheriff of Red River parish; M. C. Willis, merchant and justice of the peace "On the following morning, Sunday, the 30th of August, these persona were bound together, two and two, and conducted by an armed guard to the McFarland plantation, just over the parish line of Red River, within the boundaries of Bossier parish, about forty miles east of the Texas line. There they were set upon and deliberately murdered in cold blood. On the night preceding the murder, a body of forty members of the White League of Collet parish, mounted and armed, left the city of Shreveport and were seen riding in the direction of the place where the murder was subsequently committed. There the bodies were buried where they fell, without inquest or any formality whatever. [Signed] Wm S. KELLOGG, Governor.   NEW ORLEANS, June 1,1889 Cedar Rabids Gazzette—A special says the cabin of a colored man named Joe Raffael,  was crushed in the storm in DeSoto parish, Wednesday, and his wife, daughter and three sons killed.   Merkel Resident Since 1906 Dies MERKEL, Sept. 3, 1938—(Spl)—Mrs. R. A. Ellis, 75, resident of Merkel since 1906, died at the family home here this afternoon. Funeral will be held from the home at 10 o'clock Monday morning. The Rev. B. A. Walker, pastor of the Presbyterian church, will officiate. Mrs. Ellis, nee Eva Gary, was born in  DeSoto parish, Louisiana January 22, 1863, and came to Texas 60 years ago. She was married to K. A. Ellis In Louisiana In 1888 and they came to Merkel In 1906 ' Mr. Ellis and two children, Mamie Ellis of Merkel and Owen Ellis of Abilene, survive. A sister, Mrs. Laura Kelly, lives In Dallas Mrs. Ellis had been a member of the Presbyterian church since 1888. ©2007 Genealogy Trails