Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1871-11-09
THE KU-

SpaTtanDurg.
In York County over one hundred men have
been arrested. including four negroes, ant
nearly as many more have voluntarily giver
themselves up who have confessed that the,
belong to the Khan, and have told the whole
story of their connection with it. In Spartan
burg County the number Of arrests thus fal
is about one hundred, many of whom have
also made confessions. The greater part o
the men apprehended belong to the ''poo1
white" class. number of men in botl
counties, WHO are shown by the confession,
to be leaders of the order, are hiding in the
woods or have fled the county, and several o
| these are wealthy citizens and prominen
| politicians.
About dozen of these prisoners have mad,
confessions, and as their stories all agree
| there is no doubt of their truth. They say
that in each county there is Grand Klar
| that issues orders to all the local Klans in it:
jurisdiction. The principal officer is called
the Grand Chief" and his deputy is termed
the "Monarchical Chief" There are two
raids-the members Of these committees be-
ing usually men too old to do the active work
of violence. The Grand Chief of the Spar
tanburg Grand Khan is j. Bank Lyle, a demo-
cratic membeSaf the Legislature, who is now
hiding to escape arrest. The objects of the
Khan are as follows:
First: Humanity, Justice, and Honor
Second: Aid to brothers in distress.
Third; To put down the Radical party, and
restore the Government Washington fought
to establish
When questioned as to what they under
stood by this last, they explained by saying
they were told that this is ''White Mans
Government, and that none but white men
should be allowed to rule. The signs of rec
ognition are three-putting the right fore
finger ever the right ear, to be responded to
by running the left forefnger over the left ear
in like manner putting the hand to the right
lapel of the coat as If feeling for pin, and
placing the heel of the right foot against the
hollow of the left, and thrusting the right
hand in the pocket with the thumb out. The
grip is given by interlocking the little fingers
and pressing the forefnger against the foot OF
the thumb. Several of the prisoners say they
were forced into the Khan, and were brutally
whipped and threatened with death to make
them join. One man says that after he was
initiated he found his own brother-in law had
been one of the party that whipped him. One
man says he was engaged in fourteen raids,
and was with the party that killed a colored
Trial Justice at Cedar Springs, Spartanburg
County, and also with the detail sent to kill
Mr.. Owens. a white Republican, in the same
county. Another man Says he knows of over
100 raids in that county. He was in one gang
Of l26 men, detailed to go over into North
Carolina aud aid in the Rutherfordton raid
The prisoners agree that nearly all the
raids are political in their character, and are
to punish men for voting the Radical ticket
or force reluctant persons into joining the
order. In some cases, however, the Khan
sallies out and whips negro for suspected
theft, or for speaking i'll of the order. One
old negro got $50 blows with hickories for
| saying he thought that the blacks and the
poor whites should marry each other ard
make one race. Several negro women were
whipped for saying they knew Who the Ku-
Klux were. The prisoners think that with
but few exceptions all the white men in Spar
tanburg County are by choice or by force
members of the order, although comparative
| ly few have been actively engaged in the
work of violence. The better class of citizens
furnish horses and ammunition, and the poor
then do the raiding, as rule The disci-
pline of the Khan is represented to be exceed
ingly severe, and the members who fail to
strictly obey orders are cruelty whipped after
trial BY committee.
| The Committee on Raids determine who
are to be the victims of the next visitation OF
the Khan; and instructs the chief, who issues
orders and makes detail for the work II
the victim resists, the instructions are always
to kill him, but murder is never planned ir
advance except under orders from the Crane
Khan. The Spartanburg prisoners in the
Columbia Jail, whose statements are sum
married. above, are taken from their own lips
and all 'poor whites" and have the usua
characteristics of their ciass-tallow- coloret
faces; thin, coarse hair, dull, expressionles
eyes, awkward, loose-j ointed backs ant
clothing of the coarsest gray homespun. 4
few among them, who were officers in tn,
Khan, are rather more intelligent-looking
and have more prepossessing appearance
than their fellows. They are chiefly small
farmers, renting little patches of land, AM
they complain of the loss on their crops ant
the sufferings of their families in consequence
of their arrest. The Union County prisoner
are of a different class. One is Judge o
Probate, one a mulatto and shoemaker
1 Those prisoners deny all knowledge of tn
ku-klux, and are cautious and reticent il
| conversation.