Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1924-01-01
MAYF|ELD INQUIRY
MAY BARE STRIFE
WITHIN THE KHAN

+ airing the "inside" story of the Ku
Klux Khan, adherents of Edward
Young Clarke, former imperial wiz
ard, said here today.
If President Coolidge does not re.
spond to Clarke's appeal, filed yes
. terday at the White House, that the
+ president take the lead in a move
: ment to clean up the khan or stamp
it out, the order will be put on trial
. before the court of pu'o.ic opinion,
Edgar Fuller, Clarke's representa-
tive, said today.
The Mayfield case, in which
George E. B. Peddy and others are
contesting the right of Earle B. May
field to a seat in the senate from
Texas, hinges in part on allegations
Z that Mayfield is or was a Khan mem
Der.
Fuller said Clarke was in confer
: ence today with "a body of repre-
sentative citizens of the nation" and
that he probably would issue proc
lamation today calling on all klans-
men to meet in national assembly
=, s'to clean out the khan or disband
it,
! Fuller said Clarkes open letter
and statement, given out here yes
terday, had brought a flood of con-
gratulatory letters and kilograms
from all over the country pledging
support to Clarke.
CLARKE is ONE SEEKING
TO RUIN KHAN, is REPLY
WASHINGTON, Dec. 2S.- e. Y
Clarke, formerly high in the coun
~ Il laY1
attempting for months TO destroy the
order, according to a statement Is
sued by Milton Elrod, director of Its
department Of publications and edu
cation, after the publication OF Mr.
Clarke's demand for reform" with
in the organization or it's dissolu-
ton.
Mr.. Clarkes charge, in letter to
President Coolidge, that IAN ele'
ment' of the khan was diverting 1t
from the purposes an. ideals of It's
founders and his announcement that
he intended to call upon the better
element to take steps to remedy
the existing evils" or disband the
organization, brought from Mr.
Elrod a declaration that the member
{ ship had grown from LESS than one
hundred thousand members after
seven years of Clarke regime" to a
total membership of millions un'
der the present administration
This expansion, he said, was 'evi'
dence of the sincerity of purpose
and the knowledge of klansmen
themselves for the true ideals and
high purposes" of the order and he
referred "the klansmen Of the ma.
ton" to Ecclesiastes 7:21. which
reads: ALSO take no heed unto all
words that are spoken; lest thou hear
thy servant curse thee"
Acknowledgeme of Mr.. Clarke S
letter was made today by President
Coolidge, in a briea communication,
which merely said that the president
had received the letter and read it
i with interest"
! Action of Mr.. Clarke in making
public a. letter to the president prior
to its presentation at the White
House was criticized today by a
= spokesman for President Coolidge,
! who asserted that such a course
saatended to indicate that the commu-
snication was written more for pub
d licity purposes than for considera-
: ton by the executive.
Mr.. Coolidge, the spokesman said,
was thoroughly familiar with the
4 methods of those who seek publicity
by directing letter to the president
or some other official. The spokes-
man indicated that no attention
+ would be given Mr.. Clarke's letter
{ other than the routine acknowledge
ment.
BLOODSHED LIKELY. SAYS
II
Factionalism raging within the ku
Klux Khan will lead to bloodshed,
according to statement issued by
Edward Young Clarke, imperial
giant in the khan, who on Thursday
appealed to President Coolidge to end
< the activities of san element" which
/. he said is converting the order
into a "cheap political machine"
'.The khan today on the inside, y
Mr.. Clarke charged, lis a seething
mass of animosity, strife and ha-
( tired as the result of the fight be-
tween the emperor and the wizard,
and unless something is done to
= change the situation, there will be
practically feudal warfare in all
/parts of the nation inside the ranks
of the khan, which condition will be
: extremely detrimental to the public
+. morals and the peace and harmony
of any community where it eX-
.Sists''
81 Mr.. Clarke would not commnet
Thursday on the element" referred
ito in his letter to President Cool.
Edge, and he could not be reached
Friday for an amplification of his
statement concerning conditions
Sswithin the khan. 1t was said that he
had left for Washington.
" No comment on Mr.. Clarke's state
ment was Forthcoming from the I'M
perial palace, and DIR. Hiram Wesley
Evans, imperial wizard, could not be
reached. Colonel William Joseph Sim.
mons, khan emperor, issued a brief
statement in which he commended
Mr.. Clarke for his fearless posi-
! ton"
a Statement Issued Here
The statement of Mr.. Clarke FOL
lows:
1.-THE position I am taking is no
new one for me but is the platform
~ upon which l have stood since the
day T first joined the khan and is in
harmony with the oath which took
when 1 became a klansman four
years ago.
s "While I was acting as imperial
wizard OF the organization L unhesi
tatingly revoked charters of branch
organizations, banished klansmen
from fellowship in the khan, ano
threatened at one time to revoke
the charter of every khan in a whole
state unless klans and klansmen re
spected their oath as klansmen anc
committed no violations of law either
as individuals or as bodies; and kept
the organization and themselves
free from political entanglements OF
: any kind. AS matter of public pol
icy also, at one time prohibited ar
entire state from holding any further
parades and restricted within thai
state the wearing of the costume o.
y 49, 70 ha lnHo,