The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1871-12-07

Iue Clme IOr CempOTlZinS, HSuueHG anu
Rass$ We sha "st hays nc no dra%n
between the races, The colored people have
chosen their ground with the advice Of the
ringleaders, and they must follow it out with
out aid or sympathy from their former white
friends. The white people have the power and
the brains and the determination to hold their
own and protect themselves, and they will do
SO. The negroes have followed their devices
one time too many, and now let them look to
others for help, assistance and sympathy."-
Darlington Democrat, Nou. 8, 1870.
<"sWei understand, Therefore, and accept the
solid black vote cast against the nominees of
the Reform party as declaration of ~attby
the negro race against the white race, by igno-
rance against intelligence, by poverty against
actual or potential wealth. This issue we have
striyen to avoid butthe- negroes will have moth,
ing else. They will not allow rs to work with
them = We; Mustj at Necessary, work against
them. Cancellation, argument, Persuasion-all
hare been worse than useless The white peo-
iplestapd alone; And they must organize them
selves and arm themselves, net as a white
snpps Rarty,t but beeauae the past and present
prove that decency, purity and political free
dom, as 16M al the!pleseryStioh Of society, are
identical with the interests of the white peo-
Qlsso6the States"- "-Charleston Daily News, Nov
r 1shall.n not mhltipls lhae evidences from the
opposition press, but cannot refrain from ut
tering reflection that their candid admissions
fMolsibiy M suggest: .n., ,nH, d!roa na';
/ The twoipafies in the State during the cam
paign to which these extracts relate, ran their
respective candidates upon platforms that were
almost identical in terms, and were alleged by
:the opposition to be identical in principle
The fact, therefore, that those who claim to
,pessess all the intelligence and whs,de. possess
much Of the potential wealth of the 6tate; were
Isq defeated cannoet be referred to mere
party differences. Nor can it be explained by
charging such dehat tol lthoset who afe often
sively termed "carpet=bsggefs and :" SCALA
wage fofthe:unMter, ,pf whites who MecaeE
tive Republicans in this State may almost be
counted on the fingers of mans hsuds. The
cause lies deeper than this. Its doubtless due
to the "negro's" just perception OF character,
either intuitive or derived from long experience
look beneath the mere planks Of a platform, and
discriminate between those who are loyal and
those who are disloyal to the government OF
fis country. Hence, he would unquestionably
vote as he does, even though every white man
in the Republican party in this State should
tgo-oTer~ -eppositien.. ,Re-denbtiess- alee
perceiyes, that, these men beaE the same rela-
tom TO the National Democratic party, of
which they claim ito be members that, the
mere guerrilla or bush-whacker, plundering on
the outskirts; of lgreat armS, does TO the regu-
lar soldier in its ranks.
These appeals were, quick ~ responded to- In
many Counties of the hpIceuntrys bands of
armed horsemen, thoroughly masked, rode at
midnight to the, houses of peaceable Republi-
cans and shot them down in cold blood Col
ored men, Republicans, charged with offences,
and imprisoned on probable cause, were taken
from the Jail and inhumanly butchered, to
evade the effect of q writ of habeas corpus which
had been issued in their behalf Hundreds of
Republicans, white as we'll as colored, law
abiding citizens, were tied to trees and whipped,
and their bodies lacerated with cowhides On
the day succeeding the last general election,
October 20, 1870,) an attack was made BY these
men on member of the State Constabulary, at
Laurens Court House, while the Court-was in
session, which attack was the signal, evidently,
for the execution. of a preconcerted plan to
murder Republicans; for the instant it was
made large number of the citizens of the
line Of battle and began firing, killing several
tep euD and hansipg Su do down s5ose that He'd and
placing them in position, and then deliberate
" shooting them TO death, ,TheyISent to the
post Office and demanded the ballot boxes from
the Post Master, in whose;icustody they sup
posed them to be deposited-the Republican
ticket, as they correctly thought, having been
elected. In this affair, thirteen (13 Republi-
cans were killed and many wounded. Not q
man of the opposition was injured. In this
and other Counties many were compelled to
abandon their families and growing crops, and
fly for their lives, and others were required and
forced to make public recantation of their re-
publican principles from the steps of the Coun-
ty Court Houses, and in open daylight . In
obedience to the mandates of these masked
murderers many of the local officials resigned,
although they were chargeablei with no mall
feasance in Office. In proof that these deeds Of
violence sprang from no local grievance, but
were part of general political plan. I refer
to the fact that they were committed in several
Counties -Union Spaftanburg, York, Chester,
Chesterfield, Laurens, Fairfield and Newberry
where all the judicial and other appointees OF
the administration we're of the opposition
lin view of this condition of affairs, the State
capital was thronged by refugee Republicans,
and in the months of January and February
last was earnestly urged by many loyal men,
including numerous members of the General
Assembly, to call out the militia and declare
martial law over those Counties where these
acts of lawless violence were being perpetrated.
This refused to do, for reasons which I then
thought, and still think, wererjudicious and
proper. 1 had at my disposal but o compare
lively small militia force, composed nearly al
together Of colored men, as this class alone,
with but few exceptions, had offered themselves
could be relied ON as loyal citizens. AS an
evidence of this fact, would state that a cap
tain of militia company, composed of white
men, in this city, having applied to me for am
munition, l asked him if he would obey my
orders as Commander-in-C Chief, in the event of
an armed collision arising from an attempt to
enforce the laws, to which he frankly replied :
''In case of difficulty, will go with my race. "
He was told that it was not question of race,
but a question of enforcement Of the laws against