Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1905-10-20
DIXONS CLANSAN STORY.
Sensational Novel SYM sized For Busy
Reader
lDEALIsTIC STORY OF ~ KLUX Tines

A Book That 10 Greatly Lots OF Inter-
est, and a Play hat Brings Up
Rather Lurid Rennd Of Times
That Tried Men's Souls-lnterest'
ing; But Very lnaetrate as to Facts
and Not Altoseth, Wholesome az
to Doctrine.
Those who have not read THE
Clansman," Thomas Dixon's sensa-
tional novel. which as been drama
tized and which Is bog so bitterly de-
nounced in the soutias we'll as In the
north, will find the blowing synopsis
interesting:
The story of "The clansman' begins
with the election Of ovember 20, 1867,
in the village of Pie mont, South Car
olina. A motley croH Of negroes and
carpetbaggers had gathered In the
ward of the Camera house. The re-
turns from the eldion are brougnt
In and the negroes kult over the fact
that they have carr ID the election py
a large majority. Villain Pitt Shrimp
a mite Of a white han, and as smaii
in his principles asin his stature, is
elected governor al Silas Lynch, an
educated mulatto. Is lieutenant gov
ernor. Lynch cont1ls Shrimp through
threats of exposure and so dominates
the state governmet. Stoneman' the
Radical leader and secret founder OF
the Black league. 8 there In searcn
of health. With I'm is his daughter
Elsie, and they ar boarding with DR.
Cameron, formerly a man OF wealth
Elsie, having nured Ben Cameron
during the war inL Washington hos
pital, had fallen n love with him
and when Stoneran discovers that
the Young peoplj love each other
he offers Ben the leadership Of his
party in the state. Ben takes the offer
under considerable, as he thinks thai
this may open theway for him to best
serve his people; but the posting ol
a proclamation by Stoneman announc-
ing that the Unite States troops were
ordered to uphold marriages between
blacks and whits opens his eyes
He tears the proamation into shreds
and casts 1t intothe teeth OF Stone
man and Lynch.
The second actls laid In the parlol
of the Cameron huse. Lynch has or
dered that the plae be sold for the ex-
cessive taxes tha have accumulated
during the year tht has passed. He In.
tends to buy 1t ah turn the Camerons
out The auctioI sale begins, and
swarm Of dirty negroes crowd into
the house. Elsie hears Of what is hap
pening and come in in time to outbio
Lynch. Shrimp nters with his color.
ed troops, and. pDmpted by Lynch, or
ders that the whte companies In the
state disband. Ie demands the sur
render of BeB sword. but Ber
threatens to rur him through. Gen
eral Forrest, the grand wizard OF thu
Ku Klux Klan, is present incognito
and he whispers to Ben to submit, a.
there Is a better way. Shrimp taunt'
the Camerons, ather and son. unit
they utter bitter words. for which the!
are placed unde arrest. Shrimp ther
grandiloquently announces to the as
sembled blacks that they are TIT
equal of any white man. Old Nelse, TIT
faithful servan of the Camerons
walks up to Shrimp and says: "1s
your equal?" He Is assured that N
is. Whereupn he promptly knock
down the governor, saying, "Take da
from your equal den."
The first scele of the third act Ii
again in the ard Of the Cameron
house. It Is the thirteenth birthday b
little Flora Cameron. She is happ!
with her gifts, playing in the garden
Behind the hetge Is seen the slinkinl
figure of Gus, he captain Of the Blacl
guard. Quickly he disappears as Bel
comes on the scene. Ben tells Flor'
to stay in the house. A pretty low
scene between Elsie and Ben follows
Stoneman has told his daughter tina
Ben Is the leder of the Klan. Sh
begs him to five up the Klan, but n
refuses: so that they say goodbye for
ever. Flora II the meantime has wan
dered away fpm the house and canno
be found. HG old nanny, Eve, goe
to the spring and returns wailing wit
the bonnet Of the little girl. The alarm
bell is rung. Men hurry to the searcf
Some one telb Ben that Gus had bee
seen skulking along the river bank an
running, without cause, into tn
woods. It Is agreed that two shot
shall mean that the girl is found alive
one, that she Is dead. There Is a.
agonizing wait. The old father pray
on bended knees that his baby shall b
spared A single shot is heard In tn
distance, and the curtain descends
the wretched father falls prostrate
on the ground The curtain rises agai
and the shrouded figures Of the K
Klux on horseback dash across tn
stage.
The next scene Is the cave Of tn
Invisible Kingdom. In the midst Q
the impressive ritual, the prisone
Gus, is brought in bowling with terro
He squirms on the floor of the cave be
fore the white figures. In the weir
light he grovels at the feet of his cap
tors. His old master steps forward
throws off his hood and exerts his oil
hypnotic, influence on his forme
slave. Under the spell he tells how h
followed Flora to the spring, and hoV
becoming frightened at his approach
she ran over the cliff and was drown
ed. He is condemned to death, an
Ben sends a courier on horseback
summon the Klan so that every negr
in the state shall be disarmed.
In the last act, which takes place
the library Of Silas Lynch, Ben
placed under the military arrest, an
Stoneman summons his daughter as
witness against him. When he refuse
to listen to her pleadings, she refuse
to testify against her lover.
Stoneman produces a proclamatio
of martial law. Ben is led away
prison and is condemned to death b
a drumhead courtmartial. Elsie RI
n NJ