Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1878-11-27
Work Of the Red-Shirted White
Liners.

ton says: A narrative of events il
Hampton county, S. c., has beer
written by an eyewitness to and par
ticipant IN many of the scenes re
corded, and is given herewith. Th.
name of the writer is withheld; but
both the narrative and its writer are
vouched for by Congressman Smalls
who has just arrived from South Car
olina:
"This county, the baby county al
our Democratic friends call it. ha.
been dragooned by the red riders o
Hampton for months, in prepara
ton for the farce of free election OF
the 5th; and extraordinary exertion,
were made to carry it for the Dem
ocracy. Even Hampton himsel
spent week in our midst in settling
feud In the ranks of his party; ant
the county has been frequently raid
ed upon by the red-shirted white
liners of Barnwell county, and ever
Georgia has furnished her quota o
armed persuaders. 1t is therefore nj
surprise that county that 10 1876
gave a Republican majority of 5Oi
should now be carried by the Dem
ocracy by $500 majority.
This is the first election in thi.
county, it having been created 6
county by a division of the county Of
Beaufort for purely political reasons
As part of Beaufort county it wa:
hopelessly Republican, and early in
the present campaign the leaders Of
that party in Beaufort were warned
not to interfere with. or canvass. OF
assist the Republicans of Hampton
county at their peril and the only
two meetings that prominent Repub
licans from Beaufort attended showed
that the threats of the leaders of the
Democracy of Hampton were not
idle words. At Lawtonville, at one
of these meetings, two prominent
Republicans from Beaufort attempt
ed to address the meeting, but only
one succeeded in doing so and a
scene of bloodshed was only prevent
ed by the other gentleman making a
retreat, and all this while Governor
Hampton was but eight miles away
on hunt. The other instance was
the attempt at Gillisonville of Con
gresham Smalls to canvass the coun-
ty in his interest The place was
thronged by armed men, oficered by
aids on the Governors staff and one
officer, Colonel Kirkland, of Barn
well, with his men had been riding
three days under orders, so he said,
to be present at the taking off of
Smalls. When trouble seemed inev-
liable Mr. Smalls retired to the house
of z. L. Morrison, and with a few
colored men was penned up in the
house during the entire day, while
the red-shirts kept up continuous
fire on the building from the sixteen
sho ooters, State arms, with which they
were AIMED. The house was riddled
with bullets, but as darkness came
on. about a thousand negroes who
had heard of the affair came to the
rescue, and in their midst MIR. Smalls
made his way into Beaufort county
and took the cars for home.
1T was impossible for the Repub
licans IT, make canvass of this
county, and G,:ring the entire night
preceding the election the roads were
patroled by the armed Democracy,
who visited the quarters of the col
ored voters, fred into their houses,
and by every means conceivable
sought to terrify them into remain
ing away from the polls.
"On the day of the election ar
had been made among
-he Republicans for massing their
strength at certain polls, SO that their
lumbers might be a means of pro |
ection. Matthews Bluff was one Of
he places decided upon, and some
our hundred colored men arrived |
here soon after daybreak. In the
lection Of 1876 this poll gave 17S |
Republican to 43 Democratic votes. /
They found no managers there, but
bout 10 o'clock A. N. the managers
'ut in an appearance but finding a
arger number of Republican voters
,resent than they had anticipated,
hey refused to open the poll, and a
,rominent white Democrat of the
-icinity broke up the ballot-box, and
low makes q boast of the exploit.
The colored men. many of them, de-
ided to go to the next poll, Beech
Branch, distance of ten miles. They
vent in squads. The first to arrive
vas a party of six, who were imme-
lately surrounded by the red-shirts,
Eho drew revolvers upon them and
them at their muzzles to
ote the Democratic ticket. This de
erred the others from making the
tempt to vote at this poll.
AT Black Creek over 800 Repub-
leans voted; but on closing the polls
o count the votes they refused to
dmit any one but a few red-shirts to
ee the ballots counted, and the re
urn only gives the Republicans one
and fifty votes At Nixville
white man named Upchurch, who
'as running for sheriff, was compel
ed to hide in the house of his broth
r-in-law to escape the violence of the
eG-shirts, who threatened his life for
flowing the negroes to put him on
heir ticket.
AT Lawtonville the poll was held
4 q room over a store, with narrow
air of stairs leading up to it outside
be building. These steps were oc-
upied all day by armed red-shirted
democrats, who scrutinized every
ote that passed them, and turned
ack large numbers of colored men
Tho ilad Republican ballots in their
ands. Many of these went to Stat
,rd's Cross Roads and tried to vote,
ut were refused because they had
ONE from Lawtonville, and favor