Year: 1874

UcOISlas


During the short time [ was in At


lanta Ca, [ learned Of the murder OF
five negroes from excitement growing
out of the civil rights agitation. I dc


not believe there has been one less
than a hundred killed in the Southern
States since the Senate passed the bill
and from causes growing directly out
OF this action Of the Senate. and the
consequent engendering of race hatred
and prejudice. Four of the five
Georgia negroes mentioned were killed
at one time In Columbia county. Their
only ofenseg 50 FAR as I could learn,
was "making threats" talking in
sultingly," and ''acting bad toward
white people," and keeping loaded
guns in their cabins. Race feeling
ran high there, as it has all over the
South since the deplorableEciyii rights
agitation, and these four negroes-a
father and three sous, Duggett by name
were arrested On some sort of war
rant by Sherif's deputy and posse.
They did not attempt to make resist
ance, although they did run toward
the cabin where the guns were," but
did not raise their finger in defense.
Their arms were tied securely behind,
and they were marched off, The
white account is that upon the road
one of them stopped and "cursed loud
ly," and said: mo id white man
should arrest him" Then the others
attempted to run, and all were shot,
and at one volley.


Ir talking with two citizens of At
lanta, one lately from the northern part
of the State and the other one from
the southern, [ put the question plain
ly to them if they did not believe that
since the civil rights agitation there
had been an average Of a negro day
killed in Georgia. They both answer
ed that they believed the average
would reach two day, and gave me
instances that were painfully confirm
atory. They gave as a reason that
negro equality" as contemplated in
the Civil Rights bill was feared by the
majority Of southernborn men almost
as death itself, and that the agitation
of that subject had aroused race feel
ing to greater depth of bitterness
than had ever before been experienced
and the consequence was ordinarily
small trifea precipitated race conflicts,
and the negroes suffered. They de-
clared that while in the army the
negroes manifested some disposition to
fight, but out Of the army one white
man with shotgun could put fifty to
flight. They gave me an instance of
where white man had lately gone
through country on horseback with
no other arms than pistol and horse
whip, and actually whipped 200
negroes not getting blow in return.
He whipped only those whom he con-
sidered to be "bad niggers," and who,
in his estimation, were getting to be a
trife inflated. [ do not believe the
story to its full extent, for there would
be no sense in such conduct; but | do
believe just that thing could be done
in half the counties of Georgia. In
any county of that State not contain
ing a city or populons town, under the
present exasperated condition of the
public mind, a resolute white man
could take pistol and horsewhlp, and
whip 200 negroes, and not get blow
In return.


Now this most unfortunate state of
affairs, arising in large degree from
the late civil rights agitation, will have
tendency to concentrate the negroes
in the cities and large towns of the
South. This will be bad for both
races. Already the evils arising from
the prosperity Of the negroes to crowd
themselves into the cities are apparent.
There they have no certain means of
support, and live in novels and cellars,
in want, degradation and wretchedness.
Disease feeds upon them, and epidemics
with the exception Of yellow fever,
take them off by scores and thousands.