The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-08-24
lContinued From Page 1.l

to make.
 Let me say at once that I recognize that the Ku Klux Klan in many locali- ties and among many people represents only an instinctive groping for leader ship, moving in the interest of law en- forcement, which they do not find in many cowardly politicians and office holders. But it is not the right way to forward law enforcement.
 Recalls Oklahoma Case
 Let us consider for a minute what happened in the state of Oklahoma. Governor Walton was some time ago elected governor of the state. In his campaign he had not preached the doc trine-se it seemed to me at least,- which was the, proper one to be preached under the American flah. l When he was elected, one of his early acts, was to remove, the presi. dent of the University of Agri- | culture of Oklahoma, man who believed in the old-fashioned doctrines of the Constitution, to establish W which our forbears fought. He placed in that position socialist, who was likely to teach the young men of that state some new-fashioned doctrines which to say the least, are not those of constitutional Americanism. He then loosed up on the state of Oklahoma a horde of hardened criminals from the penitentiary. Lax law enforcement prevailed in many places in the state.
 ] If there could be an excuse for law. abiding citizens to band themselves to- gether in secret organizations for law enforcement, it existed in Oklahoma, and the klan became powerful or. | ganization.
 Akin to Civil War
 What happened then? Then back | stepped Governor Walton to the Ameri- can flag-to which it seems to me, he had not kept very close up to that time and called out the militia of the state. Then 1t was that those who had joined the klan in the interest of law and order found themselves aFrayed against their flag and the laws of Oklahoma. A situa. tion akin to that of the Civil war ex. isted and it was averted only by few l clear-headed men.
 And then, what happened? There was the application of the only method by which our people can properly set. tic such differences-the procedure ont. lined by the Constitution and laws of the state of Oklahoma. Walton was removed from. the governorship by the vote of the people and quiet was re. stored under the orderly process pro. vlded by the constitution and the law. l Herrin Is Cited.
 Consider what happened in William son county, Illinois, where the town of l Herr1n is situated. A reign of law. lessness existed. It was marked by the terrible Herrin massacres It was marked by a general breakdown in re- spect for law, which indicated that the officers of the county, including the Sberiff, had been intinlidated by law breakers into inaction. A thousand members of the Ku KIux Klan, without disguise they were brave men marched. to the office of the sheriff oi Williamson county to protest against the lawlessness in that section. If a secret organization to uphold law and order is justifiable anywhere in our country, it was justifiable there. But what happened2 Immediately the lawelss element formed the Knights of the Flaming Circle and then both sides were afraid to go out at night and condition was created which ae- tually eliminated in civil war and the loss of life. And how, again, was peace established? By the only proper way, Tn the sending of the militia of the state of Illinois to the scene of the trouble, as provided by law in such cases. The critical situation was set. tied by it without shedding a drop of blood and the troops were quickly re- moved.
 Appeals To Youth.
 There is much in the Ku Klux Klan which appeals to the adventurous youth. | remember once, when travelling over Illinois, speaking for law enforcement, the constitution and the American flag, some of the American Legion men with me talked to other Legion men who had joined the Ku Klux KIan at one of the towns visited. These latter young men believed that they we're acting in the interests of law enforcement. They told those who were with me what they were planning to do. They said /: 'There is a bootlegger in our county who is in cahoots with the sheriff and everybody knows it. Now we are not going to hurt the man, but some night we are going for him and his still. We are going to gag him, carry him and the still up to the courthouse yard and tie him to it so that the sheriff and the whole town will see them when they come down to their work in the morn ing
 Not Right Way.
 'sThis may appeal to adventurous youth, but my friends, government can 1 not last if that is the right way to enforce law in this country. Lawless- ness cannot be met with lawlessness and civilization be maintained. What will happen if law is not enforced by government but taken in hand by indi- viduals and by minority organizations. is what happened some years ago on Bloody Corner in Chicago. Over one hundred murders were committed there in one year and not one single murderer was brought to justice. The blackhand was at work and the witnesses to the murders refused to testify against the murdercrs because they felt their own lives were in danger if they did, :.
 'Now society contains within ltseif l the clements of it's own selt-purnlca- tion. It has always been so, or clvlllza- ton, which is an evolution, would not exist.
 After a time in connection with these continuing murders, two new words crep into the press of the city Of | Chicago-the words white hand. In other words, the brothers, fathers and | friends of the murdered men, sawed off their own shot guns and killed the murderers from behind the same cor ner, and thus peace was finally estab- lished at the cost of bloodshed and misery through that entire section of Chicago.
 Force Meets Force