Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1876-10-06

want military tribunals by which as
sassins and murderers can be sum-S
mariIy tried and shot. We Cannot
have these tribunals unless the Presl-
dent il authorized to suspend the
tHn6eus Corpus in CERTAIN localities.
On 18th March, 1870, Governor
Holden wrote as follows to the United
States Senator Abbott "We have
Federal troops, but We want the power
to act. Is it possible the Government
will abandon the loyal people, -to~be-
whipped and to be hanged2 The Hobeas
+ Corpus should at once be suspended.
In furtheranee of this programme.
Senator Pool made speech in the
United States Senate, advocating
Senator Brakes amendment, meas
ure .'wEoss efficacy he said, ''con-
sisted in tie feature that the writ OF
Habcas Corpus may be suspended and
that when the military make arrests,
they shall not be compelled TO turn
the offender over to the ci-!f authori-
ties to be tried by jury of his own
confederates.' ... se...rr1 F-s
On 18th April, 1870, Senator Abbott
mazda speech advocating the same
measure. -- f..E"
In the first week in June, 1870, there
were held various councils of war in
the Governors Office at Raleigh. 1t
was then and there agreed that reg
uiar military force, to be under the
control of the Governor, should be
raised, because neither the State
militia nor the United States troops
could be relied upon to accomplish
the desired purpose. Then it was.
also, according to Mr.. Badgers sworl
testimony, that Senator John Pool
proposed to put into service a despe-
RADIO named Mac Lindsay, who would
raise company that "wouid give
Governor Holden no trouble, for that
Fif any of the men arrested by him
undertook any resistance, he would
kill them, or they would be lost and
never be heard of again" and sug-
gested that the Governor should fol-
| low the example of Governor Clayton.
! of Arkansas, "whO mad taken military
possession of disaffected coun; ies, and
tried and executed large numbers of
men by Military Courts" 1mmedi-
ately thereafter W. j. Clarke was
commissioned Colonel of the First
Regiment North Carolina State Troops,
force raised without any warrant in
law whatever, and proceeded to
Washington City, and there procured
an outfit for his regiment.
On the 18th of June, 1870. the Gov
ernor alarmed, or affecting to be
alarmed for his personal safety, au-
thorized the insertion of the following
in the ,Sta1dard, his official organ, and
edited by his son: ''We are author
lied by the Governor of the State to
announce that these outrage must
come to an end. He intends to have
indemnity for the past and security
!
do this, and there are threats that he
will be assassinated for SO doing. Let
them try it. The Governor does not
fear those fiends in human shape. If
he is even personally menaced, his
friends will resent it, and punish the
haH of rno ------l---s- IL, ik-if hA
is slain, or even wounded, it is already
determined that leading Democrats
anil Conservatives who might be
named, will be instantly put to death.
The Governors mini is made up"
In this same month of June, 1870
Kirk, citizen of Tennessee, who had
been imported for the purpose, had
been appointed by Governor Holden,
Colonel Of the ''Second Regiment OF
North Carolina Troops" and carried
to the Standard Office, and had there
printed an advertisement for recruits
addressed to Union men in general,
and to the "soldiers of the North
Carolina Second and Third Federal
Troops" (Kirk's bushwhackers du
ring the war; in particular. This ad
vertisement was in Governor Holden's
own handwriting, and declared to the
cut-throats and thieves thus ad dressed,
"The blood of your murdered coun.
trymen, inhumanly butchered fol-
opinion sake, cries from the ground
for vengeance" "Rally to the stand
ard of your old commander This
cold Commander" this man Kirk,
was notorious. especially when acting
in military capacity Gas proved by
his crimes as a bushwhacker during
the war and as an officer of Brownlow's
militia in Tennessee after the war;, as
appears from sworn testimony, as "a
desperate, nerciless criminal, violent,
cruel man, plunderer, guilty of many
outrageous deeds and murders"
On 21st June, 1870, this Col. Kirk
with this we'll known character, the
brute, who, with his own hand, it has
been time and again charged. shot and
killed boy while on his knees beg
ging for his life, was ordered to rem
devious his regiment at Morganton.
On the 9Th of July. Caswell county
was declared by Gov. Holden to be in
state of Instruction. A detachment
of Federal troops was quartered in the
county, and remained there unmolest-
ing and unmolested during all the
troubles in that county On the 9Th
day of July, 1870, Col. Kirk was or
dered to Company Shops. Alamance
county. On the 18th of July, 1870,
he was ordered to Yanceyville, Cas-