Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1872-03-01
From the New York journal of Commerce.
BLACK KU-KLUX.

The majority report Of the ku-klux
Committee. a synopsis Of which appeared
in our paper Of Monday, contains 10 men
ton of the best organized, best disciplined,
boldest and most blood-thirsty KII-Klux
gang in the SOutll-the LOWryS in North
Carolina. Those bandiiti have, for their
numbers, committed more murders,
burned more houses, outraged more wO-
men, and stolen more property than any
other Ku-Klux horde in all the Southern
States. The other ku-KluxeS have sus-
pended operations. We read no more o.
nocturnal raids i'll Georgia, South Carolina
and Alabama by those spOOks on horse
back. The committee have had to rake up
events that took place months ago i'll order
to find material for that labored campaign
document which they call report. But
the Lowry crowd were on the war-path as
late as Friday night last, when they perpe
trated one of the most audaciOus crimes
that has distinguished their black career.
They swoopcd down on LumbertOn, the
county seat of Robson county, North Caro-
lima, at night, broke into carriage factories
and stables and helped themselves, and
then into the Sheriff'S office and one of the
principal stores of the place, whence they
look two large iron safes, one of which held
SO, 900 in money and other valuables.-
With this loot, and any quantity of smaller
game, they started out of the town, and
bore off everything in safety except the
Sheriff9s strong box, which they tunbled
off the dray apparently Unnoticed.
All LumbertOn, and all North Carolina,
are wild with excitement over this outrage,
but they have been wild on the same sub
ject for two or three years. and neither their
frenzy nor the reward, now reaching $751;
0OO seems to be of any avail against the
LoWryS. Now, here is a Well-knOwn, I'M
questioned, preSent-existing ku-kulx-Klan
hot ghosts, not myths, but Williams Offesh
| and blood, as much a matter of fact and
history as the State Of North Carolina her
self. We can understand why SO powerful
and desperate an organization is difficult to
| suppress. But Why-ah why do the Ku-
| Klux Committee omit all references to it in
| their report? We leave the committee to
| explain that the best way they can. But
| with most knowing readers it may suffice
us to observe that these are black Ku-
| KtuIes. The LOWrys and their followers
are negoeS and mulaJtoeS. They are per-
| scouting the whites on account Of their
| color, and committing, with horrible exag-
/ geratiOns, every variety of atrOcity which
any white khan in any part Of the South has
| inflicted on the blacks. In all respects they
| are of the ku-kluX order, only that the
color is reversed, and it is the whites who
| dIe IooDeu, IoItuIeu anu klneu. 10 nave
pretended to investigate Ku-Klux affairs,
and to have excluded all illusions to this
most notorious of gangs-the only one now
really tlourishing-has put the committee
in the awkward position of seeming to ex-
tenuate the Lowry murders, rapeS, burn
ings and depredatiOns. Not that the COM
mittee mean to do this, but such is the &C
tual effect Of the omission or oversight
About election time, as we all know, is the
season for tricks and devices to make DO
litical capital, and, therefore, the appear
ance of the Ku-klllX majority report is the
most natural thing i'll the world, and the
non-mention of the Lowry negoes precisely
what might have been expected.