Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1872-06-26
Political.
Speech of Hon. Luke =. Poland.
On ne huhlur Omrggcs, IN TIE HOUSE oi
RYrlsenlalires. Nay 30, ls1e.


any but the most orderly and law abiding dis
position. But if this were otherwise. all wit
nesses Of all parties agree that in all parts Of
the South there has pot beeu the slightest dif.
tculiy n enforcing the laws and Furnishing all
ordinary ohenses against the laws There
doubtless have been instances where punish
mcnt was inflicted for some real OF supposed
oiieuse Of the person punished one or two
Instances Of that class have been paraded with
great noise by the minority Of the commit
tee, as if the many thousands Of utterly un-
provoked and waDton acts proved we're all Of
the same character.
The evidence Of witnesses called by the
minority Of the committee had no tendency
to contradict the vast mass Of outrages in de-
tail proved by the victims of them and by
other entirely credible witnesses. Their wit
ncsses were ex-members Of Congress, ex-Gov-
eruors, ex-iudges, men who generally lived in
the cities aud large towns, aloof from the ac-
tual scenes Of the outrages, aud who probably
swore truly when they stated they bad never
seen q KuKlux. But some of them had the
hardihood to swear they did not believe in
their existence, and believed it was all got up
for effect by the Republican papers in the
North. My charity is not broad enough to
enable me to believe that in this respect these
men stated the truth That there was some
excuse for ignorance of facts which ordinarily
would be very notorious is found in the fact
that the Democratic press in the South studi-
ousy concealed all facts Of this character, or
so distorted them as to give an entire false
appearance. Why, sir, we had repeated in-
stances where a considerable number of per-
sous we're murdered aud news of the fact
never travelled beyond the immediate neigh
oorhood.
10 New England where have spent my
whole life, If person is found murdered or
apparently killed by violence, no matter how
humble the person may be, it goes like shock
through the whole community; every news
paper throughout the entire region rings with
IL but 10 the South, as the evidence abun.
dainty shows, the finding of colored man
With his throat cut, or bullet through his
head, produced no more sensation than the
finding Of dead dog upon the street | could
substantate this statement by hundreds of in
stances from the testimony, but my time will
not permit.
Is it true, as Mr.. Pollard says, that there
is no political significance in all these things2
II not, there are certainly great number Of
curious accidental condolences. The perpe-
traitors Of all these outrages happen by chance
to belong to one, and that the Democratic
party or if by chance any one not Demo-
crat became a member of the order, it was
easily discovered that he had some special
personal motive. | recollect an instance of
this in the testimony. A very iguorant but
apparently honest boy of nineteen or twenty
years Of age was a witness before the commit
tee. He testified that he joined a den of the
ku klux in Rutherford county, North Caro-
lima, and took the prescribed oath, one part
Of which was that they would do all in their
power to put down the Radicals. | thought
it safe after this to ask him who belonged to
the order and what party they belonged to
de answered, they were generally Conserva-
tives, but they we're some Radicals. Senator
Blair who was always quick to see any ad-
vantage for his side, evidently though some
thing could be gained by following my inquiry
up 80 he asked the boy why Radicals should
join the order if they had to swear to put
down the Radicals. He answered very readily
aud naively--
ONE Of them Joined so as to be safe them,olye, and
some Of them joined they could run their stills"
Whenever any man not Democrat was
found belonging to the order, some similar
reason existed.
Another equally singular thing, if Of no
political Significance, is the uudisputel fact
that the victims of their cruelty and outrages
we're universally Republican. No Democrat
was ever disturbed by them. That mark upon
the door-post always caused the destroying
angel to pass by aud leave all unharmed. The
Democratic press, somehow either denied all
their acts or justified and excused them. The
Republican press on the other hand denounced
them, and called loudly for their punishment.
In the multitude of terrible offrnses COM
mittcd by these disguised bands not single
case was ever prosecuted to conviction in any
Of the State courts; at least that is my rec.
objection of the evidence Even in counties
where the judicial and prosecuting officers were
Republicans it was found utterly impossible
TO secure convictions. Some power behind
the scenes kept parties from prosecuting, or
witnesses from estiying, or iuries from convict
ing in all such cases All the Democratic
gentlemen who testified before the committee
Nuo Nbulu uuilllA Nit ttAlAAtNNt VI iut hu iNluA
at all, swore they had always been greatly OPP
posed to it and had denounced it with great
severity But believe not single instance
appeared where either of these gentlemen or
any one Of similar political principles, ever
lifted a finger or took step to bring one Of
these offenders to punishment
Their denunciations seemed to have very
little effect. Who believes, Mr.. Speaker, that
if the Democratic leaders in the South had
really desired to put an end to this terrible
business they could not have done it at any
time 10 single day2 The terrible truth is
that it was too profitable to their party to be
broken up machine by which the Republi.
can voters Of whole counties could be deferred
from voting could not be spared.
A other excuses for these unproyoked and
numberless outrages having failed, the Demo-
cratic party and the minority Of the committee
have fallen back upon the corruptons Of the
reconstructed State governments and the in-
crease Of their State debts. 1t would be quite
a sufficient answer to say, as the truth is, that
these Klans were fully organized aud carry
ing on their hellsh work before single one
OF these governments was ia operation under
the reconstruction acts. But this need not
be relied on.
That many incompetent aud some corrupt
men obtained official places under the recon
structed governments is undoubtedly true,
In the unsettled and troubled state OF society
existing in the South, this was inevitable ln
such times adventures and bad men, to
greater or less extent, always obtain prom- |
nence. That much of their legislation was
crude and unwise, aud some Of it selfish and
corrupt, need not be denied, but that it was
universally so is entirely untrue.
But without taking any time to either JUS
tify or excuse their acts do assert, Mr..
Speaker, that there was no evidence that in a
single instance any of these outrages were
committed for any such reason, nor was that
ever given as an excuse for them. If these
acts furnished reasons for resort to violence
and blood, the punishment would naturally
aud legitimately have been directed toward
the authors Of the wrong, instead of harmless
and helpless people Of color.
For a considerable time while Senator Scott