The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1905-09-15

II l.
he gave me any information |
would Hot let it be known that |
had @aa3y knowledge as to the
tpers0nS who were on this raid
until things had so far quieted
down that he would be protected.
He theaeupon gave me the names
of three men, whom he said he
recognized.
+ |, of searse, kept this inform
alton a strict confidence, and
never tfld anyone that | had any
clue, knowing we'll that his life
was.iTs anminent peril if any such
disclosure had been made.
s. Meantime six or eight men,
hers pf the militia company.
charged with the murder of
Stevens, had been arrested and
put inljail.
Mhep the court met on Mon
dayaHer conference with the
leadnGlawyers of Union, it was
agreed that the public mind was
in suc& state of excitement
over the murder of Stevens that
it was doubtful that fair trial of
his alleged murders could be had
at that term, and that the case
should be continued.
TheIjudge of the circuit was a
Republican, and while he was
not very highly thought of as a
Judge, there was no bitterness in
him and he was not especially
unpopular. He was in a very
unhappy state of mind, however,
during the whole of that term.
We stopped at the same tavern,
and on two or three nights he
had his bed brought into my room
and slept there. never thought
that ne was in any danger. The
week following the term at
Union, he was in Columbia.
where sonie proceedings looking
to his removal from office had
been commenced, for causes hav-
ing norelation to these troubles
now u8der consideration.
WhM there he was induced to
make IA order somewhat in the
nature of a writ of habeas corpus,
aireetaig the sheriff of. Union to
bring the prisoners charged with
the murder of Matt Stevens to
Columbia. This order was car
ried to Union by colored man
not in any way connected with
the court, and given to the sheriff,
who, owing to its irregular form,
consulted some of the lawyers at
Union as to whether he should
obey it, and there was delay of
a day in the execution of the
order.
1t would have been the part of
wisdom to have removed the
prisoners from Union in the then
excited state of the public mind,
but it was very unfortunate that
it should have been attempted in
the bungling way in which it was
done, for the information had
gotten out somehow that the
prisonerssSwere to be taken to
Columbia, and on the night be-
fore they were to be taken there
Ia bady of Ku Klux said to be
four or five hundred, rode into
town, took them out and killed
them. The. organization must
have been strong in numbers,
when such a large body of men
could be assembled upon such
short notice.
| do not remember any other
occasion in which the Ku Klux
Klan operated upon such a large
scale, but such was the apparent
power of the organization, and
such the awe that it inspired,
that from early in January, 1871,
it was felt that the counties of
York and Union were to great
extent dominated by itas
The immediate effects of this
raid upon the Union jail and of
some of their operations in York
was the breaking up of the COM
panies of negro militia and some
of.the more obnoxious officials
were under threats led to resign.
The governor called in the arms
of the disbanded companies and
appointed better men to the va
Gated offices and the result was
that a great many men that ordi-
narily were upholders of law,
while feebly deploring the meth
Eods so far approved the ends ac-
compiished, that the Ku Klux
Masn was looked upon by the un-
wise as a sort of Saviour of
society. ~ -. ,sst,s
A particularly foolish fellow