Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1870-08-21
anIABOLECAL RADICAL PLOT IN
NORTI CAROIINA.

were the originators of this diabolical
scheme, and gives some facts and details
in relation to the matter. That paper de-
clares that at caucus of leading Radicals
in North Carolina, Senator Pool suggested
that all the leading Democrats in the State
should be charged with belonging TO the
Ku-Klux Khan, arrested, and put out of
the way. This latter suggestion clearly
meant the use of the bullet and the rope,
just as the game was played in Arkansas.
Gov. Clayton, of Arkansas, by the agency
ola band of desperadoes, bycourtesy called
militia, had arrested o number of res
pectable and influential gentlemen be-
longing to the Democratic party, large
portion of whom were assassinated by
these desperadoes and reported by them
to have been lost or made their escape.
According to the Sentinel, Senator Pool
unblushingly recommended to the caucus,
that Holden should organize at once a
band of desperadoes like them, and put
at their head q notorious pirate, whom
he named, who should arrest such men
as Hon. Josiah Turner, Jr., Gov. Graham,
Gov. Bragg, Gov. Vance and others, and
should lose them, leaving no trace of
their whereaboutsi This was rather too
much for Holden and the others. The
spirit was willing, but the flesh was
weak. They wanted the Democrats out
of the way, but halted at the bloody
path pointed out by Pool. But Gov.
Holden was not willing to relinquish the
idea of putting Democrats out of the
way. He wanted to carry the State, and
could not see his way clear when this
class of men led and controlled the peo-
pie. The Sentinel says: cat this juno
ture, the programme which Holden and
Kirk have since carried out was adopted.
But there were several things necessary
to carry it out. First, by the aid of
Tourgee and others, long list of infa-
nous outrages by Ku-Klux must be made
out. President Grants mind and the
minds of the Northern people must be
inaamed by private conversations and the
publication of these outrages. John Pool
was ready to start the ball, and procured
the publication of this list of Ku-Klux
outrages in Forney's Chronicle and 9TH
er Northern papers. Holden, Pool, Alb
bolt and Judge Settle were to convince
President Grant that these outrageous
crimes had actually been committed by
Ku-Klux, meaning Conservatives and
Democrats; that this Khan extended all
over the State; was composed of the SOL
diers of the late Confederate army, who
were armed and still in rebellion sgains-
the government and were resolved to overt
turn the reconstructed government of
North Carolina, and that the Constitution
and laws of North Carolina fully authorized
the Governor to raise the necessary mill
tary force to put them down" The &C
ton of Holden and Kirk, under the new
programme, is known to the people. Men
were arrested, tortured and imprisoned;
the State Judges and those of the United
States defied, and despOtic one-man
power established in North Carolina under
which no Democrat was safe in life or
property. And Grant sent United States
troops to North Carolina to aid Holden
in carrying out successfully this infamous
plot. Grant may not have been aware of
the existence of the plot at the time he
sent troops to Holden's assistance, but he
did know-he could not have been ignor-
ant of the fact-that Holden was violat-
ing the laws of both North Carolina and
the United States, and that these troops
were to be used in sustaining him in his
disregard of the laws and the rights of |
citizens. Grant knew all this, if he did |
not know of the existence of the diaboli- |
al plot exposed by the Raleigh Sentinel.
The fact stands out in bold and glazing
elief, that the President of the United
States sent troops to aid Governor in
violating the laws of State and
rambling upon the rights of citizens,
imply because that Governor is Radi-
al, and that Radical rule might be per-
But for the prudence and firm
less displayed by the people of North
Jarolina, and the overwhelming defeat
he Radicals sustained in the late cleo
ion, we should have witnessed in that
,tate a repetition of the diabOlical acts of
Jlayton's desperadoes. 1t is important
hat the people of the North should bear
q mind, that in every struggle which the
,outhern people have made to free them
elves of the oppressive rule of the Radi-
al carpet-baggers and scalawags, since
rant came into power, they have had
} contend against the power of the Fed
raj Government.