The Clifton clarion., 1888-01-18
kE-RLUX.
How This Famous Society Was
 First Organized.

First Organized.
 In the fall of 1866, James R. Grove, now resident of Sheffield, Ala, had returned to his home in Pulaski, Tenn, after three years service in the Confederate army. Although not a young man in
 years he was full of good-natured
 deviltry and fond of adventure,
 and one day he said to one of his
 friends:
 ''Let's few of us band together and have a secret society which will be a mystery to the old folks"
 It was agreed to, and Mir. Grove, F. O. McCord, John c. Lester, Calvin Jones, John Kennedy, I. L. Shappard and R. Reed met one evening in the law office of young Jones' father, who was a lawyer and absent from town, and formed the first kuklux organization ever heard of in this country.
 It was not then named, and tho object, as all state, and as must be accepted as the truth, was simply for mystery and amusement. The second meeting was held on the ground Of Dr. Carter, on bill outside the town. A tornado had partially demolished the hous. and prostrated many of the cedars in the groves around it, making a wild and lonely place, and 1t was at night and amid these ruins that the first candidates were initiated. The Name "Ku-klux" was adopted from Greek word, and the boys originated the form of initiation and the various grips and pass words. The idea, as stated, was fun and mystery, and 10 carry this out every member was privilegel to disguise himself as he saw fl. Candidates were taken ln one after another, and finally public pa rade was held. This was the head and front of an organization which quickly spread over the whola South. While the Pulaski organi- zation never posted a threating letter nor gave man warning. other organizations were formed with a different aim in view Each member was disguised, and each one surrounded himself with as great mystery as he could, and it was the awe which the public felt and expressed that encouraged other organizations with other ob- jects.
 The close of the war had left the South full of bad men, both white and black. Law was power less to reach them and It was to grapple with this evil that the Ku- klux societies sprang into exist ence all over that section. There were instances where the work was carried too far and where bad men banded together to do evil, but the original object of every society which included the re- spectable citizens of the neighbor- hood was solely to protect the community. And that object was accomplished by the earlier or ganizations more thoroughly than history has ever stated. Lawless characters who were preying on the people, and who cared nothing for law or life, were driven of or frightened into reform by the ku- klux. In time the organizations were made use of to gratify per sonal spites, and this led to great abuses which were never cOntem- plated by the originators of the order. There was no thought of politics or correction in the first society and a. soon as Mir Grove and his friends saw how the or ganizations were springing into fife and the bal u5e being made of their power, they withdrew from it entirely.
 Tennessee has a young Con- yressman who has made himself famous by intro lucing bill to ,hpli.b tl,o CNnrrO. ,.,.,l Iy .1 ,.l