''Le Meschacébé'' was a French-language newspaper in Louisiana that also carried some English-language content and eventually became an English-language newspaper. The title of the newspaper comes from the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

, referred to as ''Le Meschacébé'' in French.

History

Hypolite Prudent deBautte, who wrote using the pseudonym Prudent d’Artly, established ''Le Meschacébé'' in St. John the Baptist Parish, as well as '' L’Avant Coureur'' (''The Forerunner'') in St. Charles Parish, publishing the first issues January 23, 1853. The papers carried legal notices for their respective parishes. After five years the publishing business was sold to Eugène Dumez and Ernest LeGendre. ''Le Meschacébé'' included satires of Creole former slaves. It published African American folktales. It ran a cartoon October 19, 1918 of fall fashions in a store window display with male mannequins wearing army and navy uniforms and signage stating Uncle Sam, Furnisher of Liberty Men, Tailor. The October 15, 1921 issue described use of an " earth pipe" by people in South Africa smoking

cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae that is widely accepted as being indigenous to and originating from the continent of Asia. However, the number of species is disputed, with as many as three species be ...

. Eugène Dumez, who immigrated from France, edited the paper for 20 years up to his death.

Lafcadio Hearn was a Greek-born Irish and Japanese writer, translator, and teacher who introduced the culture and literature of Japan to the Western world. His writings offered unprecedented insight into Japanese culture, especially his collections of legend ...

described him as the "ablest French editor in Louisiana" in a letter.

Jean-Charles Houzeau Jean-Charles Houzeau de Lehaie (October 7, 1820 – July 12, 1888) was a Belgian astronomer and journalist. A French speaker, he moved to New Orleans after getting in trouble for his politics in Belgium. In the U.S. he continued his journalisti ...

was friendly with Dumez and sent articles to the paper from Jamaica. The paper became an English language paper.

Alexander Dimitry Alexander Dimitry (February 7, 1805 – January 30, 1883) was an American author, diplomat, educator, journalist, lawyer, orator, and publicist. He was the first state superintendent of public instruction in Louisiana and represented the United ...

wrote for the paper. Issues are extant and available online.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meschacébé Defunct newspapers published in Louisiana 1853 establishments in Louisiana