The leader., 1905-09-06
THE FRANKLIN WHITE CAP INDICT.
MENTS.

y
to the petition to Judge Niles,
asking the dismissal of the whole
sale prosecution of our citizens,
you charge that the petition was
lgotten up by the Farmers
League. This is not true. ] am
the author Of the petition. Two
copies were written in my house,
and two copied from them.
The Indictment and prosecu-
tion of over three hundred of our
citizens in the Federal court has
grown out of the claim that sever:
al negroes were ordered of their
homesteads over three years ago.
| From your article you try to
prejudice the public from signing
said petition by intimating that.
the petition charges every wit
ness with faIsehood. This is not
true, either. The petition charges
some of the State witnesses as
not being creditabIe men. Why?.
We will first take up the home
steaders that the first seventeen
of our citizens were indicted for.
These negroes had filed their ap-
plications to homestead this land
and they wanted to sell the
timber to timber agents. They
could not make their final proof
unless they could show that they
had been intimidated, and Of
course they soon had the notes
with threats to leave, etc., and
they produced them to the land
Office, made their final proof and
sold their timber for a big price
without ever having to stay on the
land only from three to fourteen
months and one never did 90 on
his land at all. This and a great
deal of other testimony like, this
is what the petition has reference
to. 1t does not mean that every
man that told Mr.. Hoyt he was a
member of the farmers League
has not told the truth.
The petition has been gotten up
at the suggestion of some of the
highest officials of the State, and
on line with Judge Niles public
instruction at Jackson-to come
home and settle this matter
among ourselves. He said If
there were five men in each dis
trict that wanted to do what was
right we would settle this trouble
ourselves; hence, the petition.
Now, if anyone has better plan,
let him present it.
Every citizen of the county
knows that the wholesale indict-
ment of and arrest of over three
hundred of our citizens has caused
more bitterness and strife thar
has ever been in our county; it
has affected nearly every family
by relationship and otherwise,
and nearly every church and
school in the county has been
torn asunder by the bitter feeling
growing out of this trouble.
Hundreds of prayers have been
offered in our protracted meetings
that peace and harmony might
again prevail among our citizens.
| And | am one that when / pray
for anything / am willing to work
for it, and / think this the oppor-
tunity of our lives to get this
matter settled and confidence re-
stored among our citizens, and
for everyone to join hands from
this day on for the better enforce
ment OF the law.
This is my position and a large
number of other good citizens.
want to raise my protest against
this wholesale prosecution among
those indicted old Confederate sol
diers that are SO years old and
who we're never charged with
crime before, when they were on
ly passive members of the Far
mer's League. Some were in
| dicted who we're never members,
nor did they ever attend one meet
ing, and one man was indicted
who has been dead over two years.
! So you see why the petition
charges some testimony as not
being reliable.
If / can succeed in getting this
matter settled and peace and har-
mony restored among my fellow
citizens, / would consider it the
grandest work of my life. WiGh
no i'll will towards any one, and
with the best interests of our peo-
pie at heart, / am for peace.
j. HIRAM McGEHEE.