The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1871-12-13
A Few Fact. from south Carolina.

! n Few Facts from South Carolina.
RgpH HUI, g. g., November IL, 1871.
ToSTHH EpMoR or THE ADVANCE: A
year aGo9npas placed. in charge OF the
western t}rJcn Telegraph Office, located
OharlDtto. Columbia and Augusta Rail.
road, finl the District of York. I am
thus ID. Une Jbisthe Counties in which
martial law prevails at this time. A
Northern man Dy birth and education.
1 came to the South expecting to en-.
counter bitter prejudices, to meet with
coldness; heard and put faith in the
malicious and slanderous reports which
certain class OF Northern politicians
are so industrious in spreading. I Was
OF course pFepafsa for insult aud rude.
ness; but far from this being the case.
L have met with universal kindness and
courtesy from the citizens of this place.
A years residence in the South has suf.
heed to exotic in me sentiments of sin.
cere regard and esteem for these brave
and true-hearted, but down. .trodden.
ruined and outraged people. They are
now the victims of such cruel tyranny.
and are suffering 80 much from gross in
Justice aud unrighteous oppression ut
the hands Of the Federal Government
that cannot refrain from doing what
little may lie in my power to call the at
tention of the country to the arbitrary
proceedings now being carried on in tho
upper Districts of South Carolina, and
tv aid in the work OF arousing the men
OF the Northern States to sense of the
CALLING, grinding despotism to which
these unfortunate people are being
subjected. The nine Counties placed
under martial law comprise one of the
fairest portions of the State. It is the
up.country of South Carolina, fine
cotton and grain land, quite thio1ly set
tied by thrifty, industrious yeomanry,
whose ancestors were mostly Scotch aud
Irish emigrante from the Southern por-
tlons OF Pennsylvania. There we're few
large shareholders in this part of the
State. The negroes now are in mino-
riity in all Of these "rebellious" (?) Coun-
ties, excepttwo or three. When mar
tial law was declared, profound peace
prevailed throughout these Counties.
1t was in the middle Of October when
President Grants proclamation declar-
ing us to be in state of rebellion burst
like thunderbolt from cloudless sky
upon the people Of this country.
The farmers at the time were busy
gathering in their corn and cotton, the
negroes were hard ut work. No Ku
Aluxing was going on; no Union League
outrages were being committed; no dis
turbances of any sort were occurring.
The country was at peace and entirely
free from NIL domestic violence. Party
spirit was toning down. partisan amino
slty was being nllayed, and an era OF
general prosperity aud good feeling be-
tween the blacks and whites was begin
ming to dawn upon these people. They
were not in "a stato of rebellion. J"
There was no resistance to State or Fe-
deral authority. There were no armed
and organized bands of men opposing
the execution of the laws, obstructing
the course OF justice, or enacting domes.
tic violence, as is alleged by the admi.
nistration in Washington. The harsh
measures adopted by the Federal autho.
rites for the suppression Of the Ku
klux Klans OF this State, are not only
unnecessary and uncalled for by the
State authorities, but arc cruel and in
human; totally unworthy of the Ameri-
can people. 1 live hero in the heart of
the so-called rebellious district; I see the
practical working Of these measures, and
tell you the manner in which the law
Is being enforced is arbitrary, tyranni-
cal and barbarous in the extreme. Not
only has the writ of huJeas corpus been
suspended, but one would suppose from
the manner in which the military are ar
resting and imprisoning citizens, that
all law had been set aside. The people
are as completely at the mercy Of the
soldiers as If it were war times. Arrests
are made upon bare suspicion. Any
person, black or white, who has grudge
against person, can go and testify to
the military commandant that he be.
lieves such person to bo Ku Klux,
and the person is Immediately arrested.
1t is done by soldiers, without warrant;
men are dragged from their beds and
hurried off to Jail, in the night time.
They are imprisoned without hearing,
or any preliminary investigation what
ever; innocent and guilty fare alike; nor
are they informed of the accusations
against them. They are allowed no op-
portnnit, OF establishing their innocence
before incarceration. They are commit
ted to Jail without hearing, and wholly
ignorant of the cause of their arrest. l
know positively that nine men. all Of
good standing and respectability-per-
sonal friends of mine, with the excep-
ton OF one or two-were arrested on the
night Of the 20ih October, while they
@ere pursuing their usual business avo-
cations here i'll the village. The next
day they were carried, under guard, six
teen miles distant to the County iail:
they were locked up in dungeon, and
there they are to day, ',.waiting hear
ing." Exactly three weeks they have
lain in Jail. close prisoners, guarded by
United States soldiers, and to day, No
vember IL, they are wholly ignorant Of
the cause Of arrest. No accusation has
been made against them; no inyestiga.
ton has been made into their cases; no
hearing has bean alloUad fhan,. tla; r