The evening world., 1920-10-08

ihbnl Iluefa are palrOlunB GeotBlat
Alabama. South Carolina and Texas
ih an effort 70 end all operations in
cotton until tho price goes back 10
forty cents I'VE the citizens OF ev-
erywhere," read the new threats
which tho members OF the new In
Visible Empire are mailing to the cot
bon ginnoraes under cover OF dark
ness, KINDLY ask that this ginnery
be closed until November. 1920. un.
leas further notified" To emphasize
hhe warning, essential machine parts
are removed from the ginneries.
threats OF firing them and the mer-
camille establishments are made and
az least one such establishment in
Hanceville. Ala. has been burned TO
tho ground with considerable loss Of
cotton.
A letter from Col. william X Sim
mons OF Atlanta, Ca. Imperial VIE
ard, with the heading Imperial Pul-
ace. Invisible Empire. Knights OF the
Ku Klux Khan. Inc" had just reached
Kentucky. announcing the forthcom-
ing arrival Of Khan organizers in that
state. The letter gives detailed ac-
scount OF the revival OF the order. say
ing that a charter was granted five
years ago by the State OF Georgia In
response 10 the petition OF one Sim
Z mons. professor ~ LRnier University
and thirty-four Of his friends
The organizers" according 70 this
e account. "assomblod on top OF
stone mountain near Atlanta and
there at midnight. under a blazing.
fiery cross. they took the oath OF
allegiance to the Invisible Empire, a.
Knights Of the Ku Klux Khan"
A small beginning. but 80 was that
Of the Grst Invisible Empire three
years after the Civil War. in 1858
A group OF young men in Pulaski,
Tenn, with too much idle time on
their hands, thought they could add
TO the gayety OF life BY forming a
secret society which would mysufy
and terrify outsiders by series OF
more OF less harmless practical Jokes.
Thus came into existence the flrst
"Den" OF the Ku Klux Klan-the
name seems 10 have been a corTup-
ton OF the Greek word "Kuklos,"
meaning circle"
An outlandish costume disguised
Klansmen from the start-the tall
cardboard hat the mask. the all
cnveloping gown which vial be re-
,membered by the thousands Of this
generation who saw THE Birth OF
"a Nation The gown, apparently
was sometimes white. sometimes
black. Klansmen usually draped tho
horses they rode and mufrled the
animals feet. Tho general appear
ance Of a troop was undenlably
ghostly and terrifying TO the super
stitious, and at that time practically
all Southern negroes we're ridden
with superstition.
Almost before the organizers rea-
lized It, they found that they were
a power IN a land and a time Of bit
Ter powehessness for them and
theirs. Rightly or wrongly, South
% erners feat during the era of recon
struction that they were being ex-
plotted by Northern carpet baggers''
so called, because they were sup
posed to have come South with MOTH
ing but ascanpet-Dag-who stirred up
and manipulated for thir own ends
the newly enfranchised, uneducated
colored men.
"Dens" OF Klansmen sprang UP
over night throughout the South. 1t
has been estimated that no less than
$4,000 men we're at one time enrolled,
which means that practically al
adult males who survived the Con-
federacy must have Joined what has
been called "the underground rNbel-
lion"
The Grand wizard-chief officer,
n the Khan was Gen. Nathan Bed
ford Forrest. He was followed In
rank by the Grand Dragon. Othel
officers we're designated as Grand tt
. tans, Grand Giants. Grand CyClOps
Furies, COLLINS, Night Hawks, and or
~ binary members were GhOuls. AbsO'
lutte secrecy was the first law OF the
order
Visitations from the Ku Klux Blar
took place at night Perhaps hun
dred white -swathed, masked men OF
horseback would surround the cabiI
OF a negro who had fallen under tn
disthyor OF the native whites In tn
forth in hoarse accents A favorltr
1 -. rick during the more harmless Rlai
y aids was for one of the ghostly fg
. ures TO ask for a bucket OF water
y Pretending to drain Il at a gulp, M
really emptied It into a rubber bal
concealed beneath his uniform, thel
handed back the bucket 10 the trem
~, bling cOlOred man with the rem0u
that that was the first water he hu.
tasted since he foil at the battle o
Manassas.
other activities Of the Ku Klu,
Khan ara still a matter of dispute
Southern apologists ms st that tn
y Khan, proper composed OF the son
of leading families, rarely resorted 4
actual violence and then used 4
only against disreputablo characters
white or black, who had refused 4
l'sten To past warnings and men
their ways or leave the community
Many NOrthcrners, however, haV
1.