The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-03-10
EIGHT GOVERNORS OF ALABAMA
1874-t90t
MO. 12-Administration Of Governor Houston
1874-t90t

I labor [ expended in the canvass. Our
cause was in itself a supreme demand
upon every patriot for his most honest
exertions, and l only did what our whole
people have done when l devoted all the
powers I possessed to recure our eman-
cipation from evils that were past endur-
ance.
In the beautiful decorat ations and SYM
i bols of lxnighthood which my friends have
presented to me I find an admonition that
[ promise to obey--that | shall remain
steadfast and immovable In the protec-
ton of innocence and in defense of truth.
In the company of such true and knightly
gentlemen as those who do me this great
honor shall have nothing TO fear for our
| country that may be achieved by the
exertions of an honest and Just people.
LET us stand with locked shields around
the constitution of our country and no
evil shall enter the citadel to betray or
disappoint us. l am, very truly yours.
JOHN T. MORGAN"
The battle had been won by Bragg,
Houston, Morgan, Screws, Tyler, Mckee,
Forsyth Sanford Pugh and their peers
before the polls opened on November 3,
1874. But the defeated foe died hard.
Some of the chief tragedies of the era
were enacted on that day Two demo-
Gratis had cast their ballots at one of the
polls in Pickens county and We're on
their horses on the highway as they rode
homeward bound and unsuspecting. Both
We're shot dead by negroes from ambush.
| Barbour county was the scene of bloody
riot on election day. The fomenter of the
political trouble there was the judge of
the Eufaula city court. Amos Keil. scala
wag. Keil as we have seen was never
a lawyer, while his conduct of his office
was a notorious public disgrace. On the
J afternoon next preceding the election day
he left his office and under the protec-
tion of cavalcade of negroes, went to
the Spring Hill box in the western part
of the county as federal supervisor of the
election there.
When the polls were about to open, or
at an early hour after opening. as the
case may have been the few whites found
! it necessary to show their firearms to Sc
cure an orderly conduct of the election.
Two white inspectors and one negro were
on duty as the law required. Late in the
day difficulty involving Judge Keil
arose in which his son. a lad. was acct
dentally shot so that he died from the
wound finally.
Keil left his post at Eufaula, probably
under premonitions of pending riot. At
any rate, without any known reason for
| the circumstance, many negroes came into
town In the forenoon with heavy green
clubs in their hands, some with the spohes
of wagon wheels, others firearms. A negro
had just deposited a democratic ticket,
and while pushing his way out of the
| crowd about the polls he was assaulted
violently by another negro in punishment
| for the nature of the ballot cast. The
| riot thus started. All the afternoon the
| local doctors were kept busy binding up
gunshot wounds. Nine negroes were
killed and one white. Probably so men
were wounded, among them Maj. Henry
R. Shorter. Many citizens were arrested
by United States authorities.
Beyond question many murders were
committed of political revenge in the re-
construction time. Political differences
originated in the acts of Congress intend
| ed to subordinate the whites to the negro
vote, in the interest of the republican
party. A large proportion of the murders
were upon negroes by negroes and were
to be attributed to the fancied security of
| the aggressor against the law admins
tered by republicans.
The murder of Diggs, negro mail agent
running on the Selma and Meridian rail-
road, was taken UP by Congressman Hays
of that district and made the source of
crime on the democrats of Sumter It
was proven that the murder was commit
| ted by one Robert Eustick, who made no
| denial or attempt to conceal. He boasted
of the deed. EusticlS went to Texas after
a months sojourn at Cuba station, follow
! ing the murder. The notorious scalawag,
John Hardy of Selma, was made receiver
of the railroad and put his son ON a
train as conductor. The young man had
no experience and no capacity. Stizens
along the line warned him to discontinue
| his service. He left the road and his
release was charged to the Ku Klux.
JOHN WITHERSPOON DUBOSE.