White Cloud Kansas chief. [volume] (White Cloud, Kan.) 1857-1872, 1871-11-30


lawyer at Usage Mission, wss put off the cars o
the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad latel
near Parsons, for alleged non-psyment of fare. II
claimed that he had paid and the conductor ha
follow.
THE KU-KLUX m CHAINS.
Penltents BY Handreds-The Jai
OverAoweA-General Panic.
Correspondence Of the NY. .Evesing Post
e-s = YORKvIIEE, s. c.. Nov. 6.
A month ago the post commandant Mt York willie
Col Merrill. Of the Sth cavalry, met the Attorney
General at Columbia, and this meeting resulted il
q conference with the Governor of South Carolina
The facts reported by Col. Merrill confirmed wha
| was known ut Washington through his and othe
official reports. The. Attorney General, in view
of the iePested denial of the truth Of these re
ports, has been sent by the President t0 investi
gate matters on the spot. and recommend sucl
| action a. was necessary. The Attorney Genera
had in his possession certain evidence from snnr
ces far removed from the disturbed Hection wl,icl
bore on facts in that section, and his intention
was to compare the inferences drawn from hi
evidence with snch evidence as he might find in
Col. Nerrills possession. The correspondence ol
conflict of this external evidence with that in Col
Merrilfs possession wOuld determine what part,
of each could be depended upon. The Attorney
General, with the District Attorney of Souff
Carolina and Col. Merrill, accordingly went ta
Yorkville and began the comparison. An almost
| exact correspondence was found, with only one
difference, the evidence collected at Yorkvlle was
much more complete, and went into details which
had not been known fully at Washington. Upon
this the report of the Attorney General was made
to the President, and the known facts demanded
the action which at once followed.
Nothing was known of the purpose of this con-
ference of these gentlemen at Yorkville except by
those interested. Yet on the day following their
arrival the exodus of Ku-Klux began: and before
finger was lifted or soldier moved, .or word
of warning given. before even it was determined
what action should he recommended to the Presi-
dent. the leaders and many of the chief criminals
in the order fed. Reports Of the apprehensions
Of innocent people as to what might follow the
visit of the Ath'rney-(ieveral have been common
but none have fed who are not well known to he
guilty.
The proclamations followed. During the first
two DAYS the members of the Ku-Klux seemed be-
wildered. looking alout for their leaders and for
orders. Finding that to get orders from their
chiefs they must either follow them in flight or
seek them in the Jail, they at once recognized the
facf that the "game was up." As member
after another went into the Jail. and found there
only snch he knew ought to be there the
decentralization became complete; all dsguise was
thrown of, and hundreds began to confess volun-
tarily. In many cases their conduct, serious M
the occasion was. was ludicrous. Each man SEEM
ed seized with the idea that those who first con-
fessed would have the hest chance for clcmency
and It was not an uncommon spectacle at Col.
Merrill's headquarters tn zee men strugglng for
precedence to get in and to be heard. The rush
Of Penitents was unexpected that means of
meeting it were not at hand 1t was like the
sudden breaking of a fond. Day after day the
Jail was filed M with the worst of the crim-
nails, who came from all sections to confess and
surrender Frequently the number waiting to he
heard was a. high as fifty sixty. To-day in
one case grandfather, aged sixty-five his son.
aged forty, and his grandson. aged fourteen all
came in together. In some parts of the county
hardly white man can he named who has not
been identified as a Ku-Klnx either by his own
confession or those of his fellow members
At this time the policy of the military authori-
ties is to send to jail those known to be most
criminal; and, as that il full each time that an
aggravated case appears, sOme less guilty man is
released ON his parole, and the new one il put in
Ina place There is no time for words, no time
FOR preliminary examination, no time to do any,
thing except to classify criminals and parole the
least guilty. No man, accordingly is now in con-
finement against whom the strongest prima facie
evidence does not exist; and hundreds who by
their own confession, have been engaged in most |
brutal whippings are at large their personal
parole to military officer, simply because there
in neither place or physical force to keen apy ex-
cept its chief men and the mnrderers.
Of course, where hundreds of arrests have been |
made. few cases have occurred in which the |
wrong men have been seized. But no case has
yet appeared where the man did not have wholly
,r part, the right name. In one case q man who
Knew he was not the one who ought be arrested
'aid to the officer who arrested him: "See here,
hey might hang me by mistake If you did not
,et the other Now 60 along with
ne, and will show yon where to find him. He's
he man yOu want. He's the man that helped
.ill have done nothing except a
little whipping" Tie facts justified what he
aid, and the right john Smith was caught.
So far as can he learned. not single instance
las occurred of Col. Merrcll's command treating
heir prisoners otherwise than with the utmost
aspect and courfsey; and in no case has any COM
Iaint been made as to the manner of the arrest
he jail b crowded, Int in excellent condition,
nnanely far than were ordinary criminals when
ne military te"k PrisbGers to the Jail. Much has
cen written in the newsnapers about the harsh
ess Of the treatment and the cruel and inconsid-
rate conduct Of officers and men when making
rrests; but careful inquiry among those who
ave been arrested shows that without exception
hey deny the trnth efsush charges against their
Col. Merrill informs ms that bad a. he had be:
eyed the facts: the PPe~ehf developments slow .
Ink had ever come to his knowledge. though his 1
vestigat10ns have been exceptionally full and
inute. Five murders heretofore unsuspectetl. | .
we be been brought to light fully by confess i
nns of the men who were engaged in them. =
ne most that was known of them before was 3
mt certain negroes were missing and were !.
opposed to have 6cd the country; now it is !
own by the men who committed the crimes
at they were murdered. After hearing many +
the confessions, it mnst be SAID that It il G
np!y impossible to exaggerate the condition n n
things which has prevailed in this section for !
year past. !;
The kn-K -Klux Constitution il complete rcfu-
lion Of the statement of Democratic papers that n
Il order had no political relations I obtained y
e copy frOm Col. Merrill. by whom the original y
Is secured after having been traced through the
nds of various chiefs of klans directly to the N
and Chief Of the country. The handwriting
the original proves his completely with it, The L
thenfic character Of the original is beyond =
estio0, though 1t appears to have lost one or r
o pages. careful reading of It win show. by b.
leh that ia expressed, and by much more that q
implied, the dangerous character of this orga- n.'I
.ation.
There are nov about one Hundred pcrsons in a.
!; most Of them leading men in the Ku-Klux 70
Ter, and all more OF less deeply involved in ac- VI
u deeds of violence. Abont three hundred have fh
rendered Themselves and confessed, and more
coming. the arrests being about thirty for SS 81
aalIy. Ono stenogr.pher can not record their tic
'iessions working twelve hours day. Hun
ds of negroes from all over the country have to
tne nrsf time dared to come in and report AZ:
az they have suffered. About one hundred and y
rntynve Of the leaders and chief criminals ss ss.
re either fed the country or have - yet elnded ,
fure. Ono or two who are known to have az
n engaged in murder lint are men Of wealth ve1