New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1871-06-09
THE POLITICAL SITUATION.
TIE U-KLUX-FEELING TOWARDS hohiiihn
sETTLERs-PRoBABLE DIVISION IN THE DEN
oCRATIC PARTY.


OCRATIC PARTY.
IRON OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENCE
AuGusTA Ga, June 2.-ln South CarOilha
,oonle sneak of Georgia being in the best cohd'o vi
Of any Southern State. SO often had hearu lno po
fu and orderly condition of the State praised that was
with no little surprise that read In the rst paper I'd"
after arriving here, long proclamation oil the uo'cror
offering large rewards for the arrest OF certain persons
unknown who in masks and other dsguises hao per-
netrated murderous outrages The list Of ourages emu
nera,ed nine cases OF brutal whipping, one Oh mruer
three OF assault with firearms, one OF jan
delivery one Of rape three OF houseOurnmg, ono Vi
younding with gn-shot two OF destruction vi schoo
bouses and two OF driving men away from thelr lo
with threats OF death II they reurned-a cataoeuo Vi
XII ux performances between the middle OF feDruiJ
and the 18th OF May period OF entire freedon non
poitical excitement All OF the victims were eooiou
one except one The fact that at the last election ING
nemoerats elected a majority OF both branches Oh INC
Legislature and also the county officers In nearly III inc
committees and In all in which these crimes "ere oo
GOA aud the further fact that than year VIII III
teryene before the beginning OF another pohti-
cal canvass, make these outrages seem ie-
| markabe sought yesterday an eNplana-
top going first 10 two three leading Democrats"ho
all agreed denouncng the Governors proci'ha'oh 40
lie got I'D for the purpose Of convincing the Presldeht
OF the necessity OF putting the Ku-knx law ID opera
| ton In this State. These Democrats insisted tna' Ho
gpV,nx oroanizaon ever existed and that there was
nothing of the kind in Georgia at the last electo Wch
they declared had been carried by the Democrats w
peaceful means / asked how it came about that IN
counties where the negroes outnumbered the white men
nv two or three 10 one the Republican nominees mad
been beaten last Fall by large maorites. They replied
that II was owing the moral influence the whlte men
exerted over the negroes
Last evening Superior Court Judge called on me Ill
coopany with Democratic editor AMI an ex-Rebel
. no a0iai lat
who is q Republican and native of Georgia gave
plausle and am disposed to think, correct expana
ton Of these recent KuKlux outrages The perpetra
tors he said, were low whites, who always had an
anipathy 10 the negroes which is intensified now that
tho latter come in competition with the former as
laborers. These whites generally young men OF
rufianly character who would be glad to run the
negroes out Of their neghborhOods If they could and
who take cruel pleasure in abusing help
less persons In counties they had es-
tabished such terrorism that no witnesses Woulu
testify against them. In other counties in his Judc'a
Circuit the Judge said the landowners had organized 10
mt down these gangs and protect their negro aborers
and were successful He believed the jmes would con-
Wet the Ku-Kux In any county where he held courth
evidence could be obtained, but the negroes were AFRAID
10 Testify There was he said another class OF Kukux
outrages where few men would take 1t upon theih-
selves 10 improve the morals Of their communities and
would 90 in disguise and whip negroes suspected OF
stealing, and white men who were living with negro
women He knew Of a ease where an old man of 60, who
had never been married. but had lived with negro mis-
tress for 80 years and raised several children, was
whipped nearly 10 death by these social regulators The
Judge thought that the recent kukuX dongs had nOth
ing whatever with politics. but he believed that In
the next Presidential election the klan would be pow
erful for influencing the negro vote by intida-
ton.
The Judge gave his views at length upon the condition
Of political parties in Georgia. He said that the RepuD
lican party I'm the bopelessly ruined IL was
divided into two factions one led by Bullock and Bod
uett and other by Senator Joshua Hill and Attorney
GEN Akerman The quarrel between these factions, al
though enough itself to destroy the party was not the
only trouble The bad appointments made by the Presl-
dent had arrayed all the wealth and intelligence Of the
state against Republicans. and had driven it all into
the Democratic party. Most Of the appontees were
worthless fellows who had been sloughed off the army
at the end OF the war; and who had been selected in
preference 10 men OF character who would have accepted
the Offices He declared that there were now no white
Republicans in the State except ofcehoders As to the
negroes their sympahies naturally with the Re
publcans but any who thought he could build up
party Of negroes would be greatly mistaken They were,
he said quite Enthusiastically, and could be easily inlu
enced by their employers frightened by the KuKlux or
induced to sell their for any small He knew
of instances where intelligent negroes, who had been
active as Republican politicians had been hired for
few dollars day To take a horse and buggy and go
about electioneering for the Democrats. AT the next
election he believed there would be effective Republic
can organization in Georgia but he confident that the
Democrats would split into two parties one OF progress
i've men, accepting the Pennsylvania and Ohio plat
forms and the other OF the reaetonsts Bourbons led
by A. H. Stephens and Robert Toombs who were deter
mined to keep the old fight against the constitutional
amendments and the validity of the reconstruction acts
The Colonel said that he thought the best thing for the
people OF Georgia do to send delegates either
of the National Conventions but to wait until both par
ties had made their nominations, and then decide which
II would be for their interest to join The Georgans,
he sad had interest in national politics. and would
support either party with equal readiness If they Thought
they could benefit their State by so doing.
gentleman who has been active Republican poll
tician since the beginning OF reconstruction and who
impressed honest and sincere man, gave me an
to-day OF the way this Congressional District
which went Republican in 1868 byssOoO maority-was
Ku-Kluxed last Fall into eectng Democrat to Con-
gress by 5000 majority Notwithstanding the fact that
the Republicans had as their candidate an Old citizen OF
wealth, character, and political experience He said
that the tactics of the KuKux entirely changed at
the last election In 1861 there much whipping and
maltreating of negroes by masked gangs during the
whole campaign in all this ceased and except in
two counties there no parading OF disguised XII
Klux to intimidate the negroes But at the election
armed men appeared at every polling place in all the
counties but three, and quietly warned the few inel
gent negroes, who party leaders, TO keep
away from the polls and take part in the election on
pain Of death When the ignorant negroes came in from
the plantations they dd find the they looked to
leaders and they either persuaded TO vote the
Democratic ticket went home without voting at all,
afraid to offend the few determined white men who
watched the balot-boxes. This plan had been
ried out with perfect system and showed that IL was
the result OF a thorough organization among the white
men. Ny informant said that only In the Augusta Dis
trict had this plan been inaugrrated, but It
had proven so successful here that he had
no doubt IL would be tined all
the State at the next election. As an
Illustration OF the difference between the vote
OF district when well Ku-Kuxed and when a fair