The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1905-10-20
tain of the Black Guard. Quickly
be dlSannearS as Ren cnrrnaS ON

the scene. Ben tells Flora to
stay in the house. A pretty love
scene between Elsie and Ben
follows. Stoneman has told his
daughter that Ben is the leader
of the Ku Klux Klan. She begs
him to give up the Clan, but he
!! refuses; so that they say good
bye forever. Flora in the mean
time has wandered away from
the house and cannot be found.
Her old nanny, Eve, goes to
the spring and returns wailing
with the bonnet of the little girl.
The alarm bell is rung. Men
hurry to the search. One of the
men tells Ben that Gus had been
seen skulking along the river
bank and running, without cause,
into the woods: 1t is agreed that
two shots shall mean that the
girl is found alive; one, that she
is dead. There is an agonizing
wait. The old father prays on
bended knees that his baby shall
be be spared. A single Shot is
heard in the distance and the
curtain descends as the wretched
father falls PROSTATE upon the
ground. The curtain rises again
and the shrouded figures of the
Ku KluX on horseback dash
across the stage.
The next scene is the cave of
the Invisible Empire. In the
midst of the impressive ritual,
the prisoner, Gus, is brought in,
bowling with terror. The cave is
dark and gloomy and everything
is silent and weird. The Ku
KluX stand there, silent, impas-
sive, motionless, hidden utterly
in their white shrouds across the
breasts of which are painted
flaming crosses, and their faces
are concealed under high hoods
with eye-holes. Gus squirms on
the floor before the white figures.
In the weird light he grovels at
the feet of his captors. His old
master steps forward, throws off
his hood, and exerts his old hyp-
motto influence on his former
slave. The leader of the Ku
,klux announces in impressive
tones that absolute and convinc-
ing evidence must be had before
the death of the accused can be
brought about. Under the spell
the negro tells how he followed
Flora to the spring, and how, be-
coming frightened at his ap-
approach, she ran over the cliff
and was drowned. He is con-
demned to death and Ben sends
a courier on horseback to sum-
mon the Clan, so that every ne
gro in the State shall be,disarmed.
In the final act, which takes
place in the library of Silas
Lynch, Ben is placed until mill
tary arrest and Stoneman sum-
mons his daughter as a witness
against him. When he refuses
to listen to her pleadings, she re-
fuses to testify against her lover.
A very amusing feature of this
scene is where two young ne
groes who have been placed in
the Ku Klux cave as spies are
brought out to tell what they
saw. They are still scared and
tremble at the faintest sound,
though it is broad day time.
They finally say they saw white
mems, more than ten feet high,
a sitting on hosses higher dan
de court house,
Stoneman produces a proclama-
ton of martial law. Ben is led
away to prison and is condemned
to death by drum-head court
martial. Elsie returns to plead
with Lynch to grant a reprieve
as Shrimp has temporarily abdi-
Gated and left the State. Lynch
agrees to do so, but encouraged
by her fathers protestations of
his belief in the equality of the
races, he starts to ask her to
marry him. Divining ..his pur-
pose, she rushes to the door. 1t
is locked, and she faints in her
terror. Lynch summons his ne
gro guard. A violent knocking
is heard. Elsie is carried into
the adjoining room. Lynch
opens the door and Stoneman en-
ters. He asks where his daugh-
ter is and Lynch tells him that
she has gone. He then tells
Stofeman that he wishes to mar
ry his daughter. Stoneman's s
theories desert him and he be-
comes living fury.
Elsie's scream is heard, and
! the old aholitionist draws his mic