Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1874-09-03
Murders and Outragcs.
Republican Congressman Flee.
ing for Life.
IN TEN AS.
The Tennessee Massacre.
BUTCuEHY IN MA
.fDDe0ls to the President.

South, and conilrmatory evidence OF the
truth of reports before received. A reign
of terror prevails in the States where these
outrages have been perpetrated, black
and white republicans fearing for their
lives, while the u-Klux or kindred or
CARNATIONS hunt shoot, and hang with
mpunity. From the accounts received in
our exchanges we copy the following
which tell, we fear, but small part of the
story of wrong inflicted upon the colored
people of the South. Dispatches from
Washington under date of the 3lst ult
contain the following intelligence:
The opposition press are continually deny
ing the existence Of the outrages upon the
colored people in the Southern States, and
insist that the reports concerning them are
fabricated. There is at last positive official
information as to at least one remarkable out
rage. The Post Office Department have re-
ceived information that OH Friday last, near
York station, on the Alabama and Chattanoo-
ga Railroad in Alabama, a passenger train
was stopped by false signal of danger, and
the colored mail agent on duty was shot in
cold blood by masked assassins. Congress
man Charles Hayes, of Alabama, who is now
here, confirms the story, and gives some re-
markable instances of outrages which have
come within his own observation within the
last few weeks. Although Confederate,
Mr.. Hayes has been consistent Republican
since the close of the war, and has been per-
sonal witness of most of the troubled scenes
in his State since that time. He says to-day
that during the last twelve years, even when
Kukluxsm was at its height, he has never
known time when the lives of the colored
people were SO much endangered, and free
speech so nearly prohibited in Alabama as to-
day. His district which is in the very centre
of the Black Belt, has - 900 colored MAORI
ty. He has been returned several times to
Congress by Majority of that magnitude,
yet he says that his own life would be in dan
republican county in the district, and that if
there was to be an election held to-day, the
intimidation of the colored people by the
rebel element is so great that the only votes
cast would be by white persons.
Escape of Republican Congressman.
Representative Charles Pelham, of one of
the mountain districts in that State, who re-
Gently arrived there from the North, was
compelled to leave, under cover of night, the
county seat of one of the counties of his own
district to escape from contemplated attack
upon his life, of which he was secretly warned
by faithful negro. Some of the white peo-
pie of the town, it appears, had assembled
Immediately after the arrival of Mr.. Pelham
and mutually swore that there should be one
less radical member of Congress there, and
before morning. This intelligence was Sc
cretly conveyed to Mr.. Pelham, who left the
hotel unobserved in the early evening, and
walked with negro guide ten miles through
the woods to railroad station. The Post
master Of one Of the towns of Mr.. Pelham's
did not dare, for his life, to lodge him for the
night, because his (Pelham's) vote for the
Civil Rights bill had so incensed the whites
of the country, that if he did they would kill
the Postmaster and ethan both before morn
ing.
Other Cases.
Judge Martin, the Sixth Auditor of the
Treasury, who has recently returned from
Alabama, felt that he was in personal danger
while on a brief visit to his own home, and
70 ha snla ba
republican. Mr.. Stokes, a republican en-
ployee of the House of Representatives, who
is campaigning in Alabama, was surprised
one night last week in his bed room after he
had retired from speaking, by band of
armed men who approached his bed with
cooked pistols, and told him that he could not
be permitted to speak for black republicanism
any more in that county, and that if he valued
his life he must leave the next day. At the
meeting on the preceding evening, when a
colored man attempted to speak, after Mr..
Stokes and Congressman Hays had finished,
white person stepped upon the platform and,
drawing long knife, told the colored per-
sons that the whites had determined not to
permit the negroes to talk in those parts any
more.
A Church Fired into and Four Colored
Persons Killed.
Authentic dispatches received here this af-
ternoon show that more dastardly outrage
than any of the preceding has been perpetra-
ted in Lee County, Alabama. gang of
white Ku Klux, without provocation of any
kind on the part of any person, deliberately
fred into a colored church and killed four
persons. These are illustrations of a system
of terrorism in Alabama, the existence of
which is confirmed by many trustworthy wit
nesses, who have arrived here within the last
few days.
Political Murders in Texas.
The Chairman ofthe Republican State Gen.
trail Committee of Texas, who is in Washing
ton, states that there have been 600 political
murders committed in Texas since the inau-
guration of Gov. Coke. The Governors of
several of the Southern States have addressed
letters To the President within the las few