Vicksburg weekly herald., 1870-08-20

lFmm ms Haaals e. TiCoansfI
TIE psioe de resistance in 3 vast
banquet Of horrors which the N. y.
Tribune recently gave to thepublio
as q means Of introducing 10 uotO-
rlelY its friends, the Kn-Klux Of
North Carolina, was q long letter
from the Radical Judge Tourgee Of
that state. The letter bristled with
frlghtful criminal statistics, and con-
tained q few hrat-claas anecdotes Of
Ku-klux fgroclty. II was made
the most Of, as readers Of the TFl-
bune know, and It doubtless had
some effect In staying the torrent
Of popular Indignation against the
Operations Of the Holden faction.
Now, however, that the election Il
past, q curious revelation is made
concerning this same letter. ii
comes in the form of a note from
Judge TOurgee to the editor Of the
Tribune, saying that the Tribune
printers must have made
some bad mistakes In Setting upS
the important letter In question.
~ have not the published copy be-
fore me-" says the Judge, "Dut l
noticed in IT'S hasty perusal the fol-
lowing errors: Let. Instead Of14
arsons, / wrote a arsons,' I'd. In.
stead of -four thousand or 5000
houses opended,' &C., wrote -four
hundred or 500.' l think also, that
in my (published) letter l state that
there had been 'l3 murders In the
district Il should be I'm the
State" The Judge further pro-
ceeds to confess that he had been
deceived as to the circumstances Of
State Senator Stephens murder,
and two colored men, whom be had
reported murdered, he now thinks
are all right.
Thus we have Q glimpse into the
processes offOrgery and mendacity
by which the Northern people have
been partially deceived as to the
condition Of the South. First, Q
violent partisan 10 engaged to write
a letter, as be afterwards admis
without O correct knowledge Of the
things he describes. Then another
violent partisan "cooks" the letter,
substituting "l4 for a a." and
adding a cipher here and there so
as to make 400 read 1000, aud so on.
The Tribune editor declares that
the Cooking" was not done in his
J office, and that the letter was prin-
ted as 1t came to him from "an Off.
cial source That source Is doubt.
less United States Senator Abbott
, of North Carolina, to whom Judge
! Tourgee's letter, written to order,
was addressed. Abbott Is a carpet
bagger who had a peculiar stake In
the recent election, for II was fully
I understood that he was to be re.
elected to the United States Senate
Y by the new North Carolina Legisla.
/ ture' That body will choose q Sen
q atOr of q different color aud charau'
ter, and Abbott will have o chance
remote from Washington, to per
feet himself in the science Of max
ing figures lie.
o But IL the tribune did not actual
c ly alter words aud figures, as th,
bank note counterfeiters do, II con
= descended, in helping 10 create
Y new Ku-Klux sensation, to do
job scarcely less guilty and base
:, The Tribune knows full well th
= dirty nature Of this work, for 1t la
y Itself been among the most vigorou
: to expose the vile object aimed al
u and the unscrupulOus means EN-
B. ployed In such cases. Now tha
II the election is over and the Ku
T. Kluk horrors, proved utterlyfuEile
@. are again at q discount, the Tribun
ts hastens to make q clean breast Of II
= share in the unclean performanc,
" It says:
" Col. Kirk has done no othe
~ good while commanding the Mort
Q, Carolina militia, he has done muc
n in exposing the weakness and COW
o ardice of the secret political organ
st ization OF the "Ku-Kluk-Klan" o
.r White Brotherhood. 1t is show
o that they are few In numbers, an,
g have welded power aud createl
:, terrorism only becaue Ofthe timidl
- ty of those opposing them. Thi
l. exposure has made the organization
u appear ridiculous, and, substantial
l. ly, its strength is gone.
J. This is enough. The Ku Kln1
g. so mighty, terrible, and all-deyouT
,e ing In the columns Of the Tribun
|. before the election, hath "this ex
n tent, no more,' Immediately after
~ wards. Surely the Tribune wi
= - remember Judge TOurgee's mar
" y gled letter, and be caught ''long" o
= Ku-Klux stock no more again fol
q everl