The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1871-05-04

Congress to investigate the condition of thg
Southern States has adjourned 20 meet here
the 18th May 10 decide what programme
shall be mapped out to serve the purposes
of the investigation. Nothing has yet beer
decided. owing to the variance OF views
] submitted by members. Some desire 20 re
: main ia Washington and TO. have witnesses
: summoned here, while Others propose thai
the committee shall be divided into sever
subcommittee of three members each, ami
make trip this spring and another one in
the fall. IL Is believed the committee Will
decide 20 enter on the investigation in May
and take evidence in the South, and then
return TO Washington aud sit for witnesses
, 10 be summoned. There have been forty
thousand dollars already appropriated by
ted by the committee, and u is estimated
that it will take AT least $4,000 more.
We have copied the above to make il
the basis of a suggestion to the people OF
the Southern States. The object of the
movement is clear. 1t is to accumulate
capital for Radical use in the Presidential
election, and to manufacture material to
justify the continuation of military in
reference in the affairs of the South and
the oppression of her people. There
will be a liberal market for witnesses, and
they will not be wanting. Invention
and perjury will be brought into requisi-
ton and will receive their reward. To
counteract this proceeding, the people
against whose liberties it is aimed, must
be on the alert. They. must not devolve
ON the Democratic members of the Com
mittee all the labor of hunting up and
securing testimony. They must combat
falsehood with truth. Nor must they be
content with simply answering the accu-
sations of their foes. They must expose
to the whole civilized world the enor.
nous crimes against humanity-the cor
ruptions, Outrag0s and iniquities of
which they have been the victims, since
the Inauguration of Radical, or carpet.
bag negro rule in these States.
There is moral power in truth which
will overwhelm its antagonists in the end.
Witness the lesson of 1868, when the
baffied conspirators represented by the
Committee of Five, undertook to swear
the rejected Constitution of the black
and-tan Convention through Congress.
The task of rebutting the mountain of
falsehood which these conspirators piled
up, seemed impossible, and yet the peo-
pie went to work and literally overwhelm-S
ed them with the simple facts which they
marshalled in opposition. We have cited
this case as an example of what may be
accomplished in future. And as appro-
pirate to the subject, We have copied the
following extract from a speech of Hon.
j. b. Beck, of Kentucky:
Pass this bill, turn loose the spies, inform
ers, and lying detectives all over the land,
and you will get all the evidence you want
every postmaster at every cross-road, every
revenue oificeT and detective. every official
of every grade in every Southern State will
| hold his place or be removed according TO
the zeal he exhibits for his master. The
people in every Democratic State will be
| blackened and maligned to order, and Pres
| idential authority and means he employs
| will be indicated. no matter what they
| NAV be, but the liberties of the people will
| be gone. 1t is a desperate game of desper-
| ate gamblers for power,and the continuance
| or destruction of republican government
depends on the result of the game. No doubt
| gentlemen less familiar with these things
| than / am gave credence TO Gen. Buffers
| statement the other day, that men in the
South were afraid to tell the truth as to the
| outrages committed because they would be
! afterward murdered, beaten, or otherwise
injured if they dared TO do so.
That is the same old story that has been
rung i'm the ears of the Reconstruction Com
mittee for four years, and the best answer TO
| it is. that while volume after volume of the
atiidavits and the lies told by these men
! against the people of all the Southern States
| /. n
cast over the country, and these men have
continued TO live among the Southern pco-
pie whom they have maligned, slandcred,
and traduced, there is not an instance of a
single human being. white or black, having
been injured or interfered with because OF
any statement he has made or any testimo-
| ny he has given, no matter how maliciously
false it may have been. Ii has been said
| that a man who never was I'm the tropics
does NOT know what Thunderstorm Is that
| "A man who has never visited Niagara has
but a faint idea of cataract, and feel sure
that man who has not been a member OF
the Reconstruction Committee has no ade-
quare conception Of liar.
hold in my hand a volume OF evidence
taken before us relative TO Ku Klux aud
other outrages in Georgia. Men, white and
! black appeared before the committee, claim
ing to be prosecuted because OF their loyal
| ty, and told tales of horrid outrages COM
mitted bv ku Klux and rebels on loyal men
that made the blood run cold. some of
them sworc that they had been beaten with
clubs, whipped with cowhides, and forced
TO leave the country; that the courts and
| iuries refused them justice; in short, told
tales like those manufactured and retailed
now, so like, that i sometimes suppose the
current series are copied from the old set.
| The committee was Mortified. Authority
was given to take the affidavits Of the judges
and other leading men Of Georgia. One
| hundred and eighty gentlemen responded,
embracing all the judges of their supreme
and other courts. The sneak thieves who
had sworn 70 such monstrou1 outrages were
| convicted of the boldest and most infamous
| perjury and they skunk away from the COM
mittee-roOm like detected robbers or sheep
killing dogs.
The committee ceased to consider the case
/ and threw the evidence aside, and it was
only published on my motion, as will be
| seen BY the order on the first page as | was
determined the world should know what in
famous scoundrels the Freedmen's Bureau
| agents, loyal leagues, and other vampires
| were, who had over-run the South To rob
aud plumber that people and shield them
selves under pretense of loyalty. Ii is Mis-
| cellaneous Document No. 81, third session
of the Fortieth Congress. The proof there
made saved Georgia at the time from the at
tempted reconstruction, though the Presi-
/ dent usurped the power afterward to recon-
struct her again under General Terry, as |
shall show hereafter.
The same ching occurred in Mississippi,
/ anu mere u Tue OOCuucHt5 lAAlscrliAueOus
/ Document No. 53,) OF the same session. The
same character of proof was made by this
class of men, the same charges were made,
| and the same sort Of investigation took
place. The gentleman from New York Mr..
| Brooksl and myself were the only two DEM
| ocrats out OF the nine on that committee !;
| but feeble as we were, the committee hav-
ing Mr.. Stevens,Of Pennsylvania, at its head,
and having upon il the gentleman from
Ohio, Mr.. Bingham,l the gentleman from
Illinois, Mr.. Farnsworth, and Governor
cency, we crushed out and dismissed, with
the scorn and contempt they deserved, all
the slanders that were told The reports of