Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1871-12-01
From the SalemlPress
Conspiracy AGAINST HON. JAS MI
LEACH
IT'S ANONYMOUS FAILURE.


n.yi4sy. ,n.rty, . Of whom, ". L
Moore ana JOHN i. Ham lick, wer
hanged " ~ y inl5 Lie IS Of the sc Whit
brotherhood" and engaged IL a conepira
cy to IL g'n:s't.'e votcfs and obstruct tn,
laws of the ,o:.ttv. The ether two. A. r
Boaers and AI,X. McAaiy, were brcugL
along as witnt ssss for the covert ment.
third witness for the government, Henry
Nalser, Jr., being already here. The Iros
ecution was instigated by ". F. H. nder-
son and others, for purge sas which will
appear in the evidence.
st L o'clock on Tuesday, the examina-
ton was held in the Court House 1T Win.
ston, before U. s. Commits ioner John 2.
Vest. U. S. District Attorney Starback ap
pfatiog for the prosecution, and Col JOS.
Masten for the defence.
After few preliminaris s, ;he prosecu-
tion placed upon the witness ;taLd A L..
Bowers, who being sworn, deposed "Wa4
made a member of the White Brotherhood,
near Thomasviile. in The last If March or
first os April 1870. Was initia:ed i'll the
wood. Did not REMAINDER who initial. d
him Did not rcmenb Der the first oath
roaG by Mr.. Sta: buck, but to, k tha last
cne. The OF Jet If the Organization was
to rut cons eIvafiVe mea IL tf1i,e.
Cross r4n1inatiOa.-W Was proms "a by
W. T. Henderson 'LaE If c4tDe bere 10
| 81 than a barrel CT whi>kry, be!ougiUg to
M, had been stiz ii by Heed rsoa aud
had BEEN indicted f'r violation. Of the
revenue law. This :udicGment was to be
drop. e If testified Ab0Gt On3 ia'f OF
the members Of Tia orSan;za Ii were
radicals-s0Lae Of item OIL e holders.
Nsver heard OF any o"e belug r0o,eAte,'.
Uafe:ssoOd the OF Jet 10 be to CT G IL
se,vativts into office Tie o:g4u:z alton
WAS in exi-tence ouly ab,u: two months.
We disbau1ed about tive last If M, 1870
AZ! lave never met ei1ce. w utd never
have testified had l Lo, re eived tn pr, ro
is4 from Henderson that L should be let
of from the VIII iskay indi:tncnf. Was liz
camp when J. w. ThomaI brUught Gen.
Leach to US. There has been no meeting
since that night 10 my knowledge L did
not hear Gen. Leach take any obligation,
bat heard him, after we had been there q
short time, advise US to di6band, as the or
ganiza'ion was Illegal. La Pursuance Of
this advice We never again assembled. l
afterwards heard that he La1 written
letter iDquiriDg if we had diabanded, bus
We had disbanded alIeady. Had no pur-
pose TO violate the laws OF the UulIed
States or of this State. Col Henderson
said he was after Gen. Leach ; that he
wanted to break him down; that [ and
my friends should not be hurt, as he was
after L -ach ~ No Republican has DeeL
arrested, at about one half Of our mem
bers belonged t. that party.
Alex. W. McRary, who had fist been
arrested, and sabs queatIy rele 4sed in or
der to maze witness cf Lin, WAS then
swo3n, and be deposed as follows Live in
Thoma vile. B.ior ged 10 an rider call, d
the " bite Mans Broth-Ih Ol, Was or
gnniz d abols the last OF Maych. 1916 =
WIS Initiated near High Point, xix nil6s
this side on the Salem road, III the woods
and at hight. Six men from Davies IN
county were initiated at the same
time (oames we've here given.) Started a
camp in TbOmasvI:ie about three weeks
afterWard. (Oaths wtre here read by MIR.
Staebuck) Took both oAths. Know OF
no other camp in Davidson. l organized
the one at Thoma8Ville. Hambrick was
the chief, Moore was Secretary, and was
Lieutenant. Oar purpose to set al
good white men INFO the order, aud ad-
vance the interests Of the Conservative
party. Can't tell how many m mOera were
IN my camp. but think there were sixty CT
seventy. L Administered the oath t. al
WHO joined. | repeated oV,r the 0biiga
ton TO Gen. Leach.
ross-Examination- Leach said
the oath was rot binding, apd at the
orglniz ,tion was oontrary to law. Did
not hear Gen. Leach advise Us to disband,
but heard others say that wight shat he
had thus advised Us. No meeting has ever
been held since the night he was there, for
we broke up upon his advice. Hambrick,
who was not present on that night, went
around in few days afterwards to ell who
were not present on that night, and ad
yised them to disbaud agreeably to Gen.
Leach's Instructions. This was in May
1870. Did not see a letter from Gen.
Leach advising Us to disband. but heard
of Oao iCquiring if we had disbanded, and
ltnOt, to do 50 at once. Hambrick always
charged these who were init zted, to sup
port the Constitution Of the United States,
the Constitution of the State, and the laws
Hereunder. All members vote d as they
pleased and no one was ever moIested.
Several of them voted for Grant in 1868,
and voted against Leach in 1870. I was a
member of the Heroes of America" a Sc
cret political organic alton in the interests
Of the Republican party, and there took a
stronger and more binding obligation than
L did in this order. (Mr. Starbuck instant
" objected 10 any further testimony on
tGlS point, and witness said nothing mu ere
about the Heroes of America I Was
trough, up here on Saturday III doc Grrtse.
Col Henderson promised that none Of lay
tlards should be hurt, If l requested it.
TIA: ne YVES after Gen. Leach. and that
his only purpose was to get Gen. Leach
out OF Congress.
Henry Q. Walser, sworn. Live in DA-
vid Oh. Belonged TO the KQ-KIux Khan
at L xiDg.on. There was 20 distinc ion
with Us between the Ku-Kt0x and the
White Brotherhood. Joined at Spring
term Of Court, 1870. Was chief Of the
camp at Yadkin College. They had quit
because Of the laws against it.
Cross EXamination.-Wa q Demo crat,
but am now Republican. Never had
any che punished. Did no. interfere with
voting. L only distributed documents and
papers sent me by friends. These docu-
ments and papers were not COZ nected with
the ku-k'ux organization.
Hon: James NJ. Leach, being called by
the defer &c, was sworn, and deposed as
follows La May, 1870, l went to Thorn as
vile on professional business. While there
Mr.. John ". Thomas approached me and
asked me to 60 with him into new insti.
tnion. said expected it was some Ku-
klux deVi!ment, and refused 10 Join aDy
secret political society. Thomas approach
ed me second and third time, and said
he wanted me to give him my opinion. a,