Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1870-03-30
TENNESSEE.
An Adventure with the Ku-
Klux not Mentioned in
the Radical Papers.
Further Concerning the Fabri-
cations of Outrages.
Free Versus Slave Labor.
Correspondence of the Chicago Times.

1S.-It is something to have seen 8 ma
who has seen the s'Ku-Klux" even if on
hasn't seen them himself. Briefly thus
Coming from GAINESVILLE to Springfield
Tenn, had the pleasure of the compan
of several of the bar of GAINESVILLE, an
among the number Gen. Jim Quarles
who, in addition to being widely know
as an able lawyer, is no less known as
wag. Sitting beside him was a good
looking old gentleman of go, named Sur
sey, whom the General Familiarity ad
dressed as ''Bill." Opening the CONVEX
sation, he remarked to him:
''Bill, 1 wouldn't have thought thos'
Ku-Klux. fellers would have let you il
with them! How did it happen 2"
Now the old gentleman had a funny
fashion of trying to talk, cough ant
laugh all at once, and when he suspended
it was hard to tell which was ahead, talk,
laugh, or cough.
''Well, General, responded William,
/ never was so skeered in all my born
days!"
Swell" queried the General, Chow
many of them were there, and what did
they do, and how did they look2"
'Look, Lord it would a skeered any
man that ever was born, to see them fell
| lers all covered with white, settin' on thar
horses, and wavin back and fOrards like
young cedars. tell you what's fact;
they looked like they war ten foot high. "
'Now, Bill, didn't you say you stepped
one of them off, and he was just l6O
feet long?"
'sNo, no." l said"-here the cough
and the laugh got so mixed up in
Williams throat that he had to subside.
Finally he resumed: ''Well, l heerd a
noise at my gate, like, and out l went,
and Walker, CHATS my son-in-law, you
know, he follered. l couldn't see very
well, my eyes bein' rather old, and when
got pretty near the gate | seen 'em. L
tell you, General; it would SIX"
'Well, well, what did they do 2"
81 looked round for Walker, but
Walker had seen 'em before did, and
thar wasn't 40 Walker thar. l noticed
they didn't shoot, so on goes, and when
l got pretty close, one of them spoke up,
and says he, come on; we're off for
McMullenville, and the next minute they
put spurs, and away they went"
''Well, Bill, you did say one of them
was 100 feet high, now didn't you? ~
Bill-'No, no, General | said'-
here the cough, and the laugh, and the
engine whistle got mixed up, and brought
us up standing at Springfield, the county
seat of Robertson county, celebrated for
its fine WHISTLES.
have now been througha considerable
portion of West and Middle Tennessee,
aud am more than ever convinced that the
whole catalogue of reported acts of vio-
lence in that portion of the State are
sheer fabrications. Murders are COM
mitted, certainly, but that they are the
result of political hate l most earnestly
disbelieve. Northern people do not know
and many of them would hardly credit
anything less than their own senses, as to
the kindly feeling existing on the part of
the white people toward their former
slaves. This feeling would be more gen.
eral and more reciprocal but for Radical
interference, which has sought by every
means in its power to estrange the ne
groes from the Southern whites. These
Northern Radicals the Southern people do
not love; and history records no especial
reason why they should. Seeing, then,
coalition of this kind formed, and feeling
that it was based on false assumptions,
the Southern man, naturally enough, said
to the negro. '1f. you think these people
are your best friends, go with them !"
But the relation of landlord and tenant of
employer and employed, will in time
eradicate this hostile feeling and when
the negro learns that he is no longer to
be fed, clothed and educated at the ex-
pense of the white children of the North;
that the forty acres and mule were
flights of Radical fancy, and that he is to
be only what he deserves to be, he will
act and vote with that people amongst
whom his lot is cast.
Another thing | am more convinced OF,
viz: That the South does not even de-
sire the return of slavery. l have heard
decided expressions on this point, from
many intelligent men, and always, with
out single exception, in the negative.
met few mornings since, at Pulaski,
Tenn, man from Arkansas, a cotton
planter living so miles west of Helena.
He told me that when the war came he
had negroes, all of whom he took to Tex
as, while there they were freed, and the
war ended. Two years ago he went to
Texas for them, brought them 'home,"
and now has them all settled on his farm.
l asked him:
GLOW does free laborpay with you?"
Gar BETTER" he replied, ethan slave.
To be sure it takes more hands to do the
work, but l rent to my negroes on
shares, and all have TO do is to see that
| get my portion. have no overseer to
pay, and for furnishing ground and mate
rial get 100 pounds of lint cotton to the
acre. No, sir! don't want to see slave
ry againi To be sure, with a capital of
$50, 900 or 800, 900 in negroes we had
big basis for credit, which VIC haven't
now; but our credit was what ruined us.
have three little boys, too, whom l in
tend to raise independent, self-reliant
men, and whom, if | had a swarm of
niggers ab)u', would have come up fit for
nothing but IoX hunting and cock-fight-
ing"
l asked him if there were any Northern
people about him.
eyes, he said, ga good many, and
we want more. l want fifty myself, TO
clear timber land; for the negroes won't
work at chopping. There were two fam
lilies from Michigan who settled near me.
and who brought their big Michigan
plows, and their little goose-necked gar
den hoes; but the mules couldn't pull the
plows, and the niggcrs broke the little
garden hoes, so now they use what we
all use
He told me, too, that one of lis tenants
who in slave times, had been his foreman,
cleared last year 1900. He spoke kind
ly of his negroes; said they were all there,
little and big, young and old, and all over
the South, wherever they could, they
were making their way back to the old
plantations.
have alluded to the lack of love for
Northern Radicals on the part of the
Southern whites. l believe that for the
real true-blue, all the time, and every
time union men of the South, they have a
far different feeling. | have heard men of
prominence, who fought in the confederate
army, and who have never asked to be
forgiven, enlarge upon the generous
qualities, the charity and kindness of
heart of Brownlow, while his political
course was (for the moment, at least)
forgotten. / have heard such men as
Gen. Stebblcfield and Judge Frazier, of
Nashville, who never, for one moment
faltered in their devotion to the union,
mentioned in words of affection and re-
spect by men who wore the rebel gray.
One word just here concerning Judge
Frazier. In February, 1861, or 1862, he
was the Union candidate for delegate to
the convention on the question of Union