The G. A. R. vs. The Ku-Klux, >o:^c A FEW SUGGESTIONS SUBMITTED FOR THE CONSIDERATION OF THE BUSINESS MEN AND THE WORKING MEN OF THE NORTH. BY W. H. GANNON. PUBLISHED BY W. F. Brown & Company, 50 Bromfiekl Street, BOSTON. t_Cc ^MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES. To the House of Represe7tfatives : In answer to the resolution of the House of Rep- resentatives of January 25th, I have the honor to sub- mit the following, accompanied by the report of the Attorney-General, to whom the resolution was re- ferred : Representations having been made to me that in certain portions of South Carolina a condition of lawlessness and terror exists, I requested the then Attorney-General (Akerman) to visit the State, and after a personal examination to report to me the facts in relation to the subject. On the i6th of October la'st he addressed a communication from South Caro- lina, in which he stated that in the counties of Spar- tanburg, York, Chester, Union, Laurens, Newbury, Fairfield, Lancaster and Chesterfield there were com- binations for the purpose of preventing the free po- litical action of citizens who were friendly to the Con- stitution and the Government of the United States, and of depriving the emancipated class of 'the equal protection of the laws. These combinations embrace al least two-thirds of the active white men of those counties and have the sympathy and countenance of a majority of the other third. They are connected with similar combinations in other counties and States, and are no doubt a part of a grand system of criminal associations pervading most of the Southern States. The members are bound to obedience and secrecy by oaths which they are taught to regard as of a higher obligation than the lawful oath taken before civil magistrates. They are organized and armed. They effect their objects by personal violence, often extending to murder. They terrify witnesses, they control juries in the State courts, and sometimes in the courts of the United States. Systematic spying is one of the means by which the prosecution of the members is defeated. From information given by officers of the State and of the United States, and by credible private citizens, I am justified in affirming that the instances of criminal violence perpetrated by these combinations within the last twelve months, in the above named counties, could be reckoned by thousands. I received information of a similar import from various sources, among which were the Joint Committee of Congress upon Southern Outrages, the officers of the State, the military officers of the United States on duty in South Carolina, the United States Attorney and Marshal, and other officers of the Gov- ernment, repentant and abjuring members of those unlawful organizations, persons specially employed by the Department of Justice to detect crimes against the United States, and from other credible sources. Most, if not all of this information, except what I de- rived from the Attorney-General, came to me orally, and was to the effect that the said counties were under the sway of powerful combinations, popularly known as the Ku-Klux Klan, the objects of which are, by force and terror, to prevent all political action not in accord with the views of the members, to de- prive colored citizens of the right to bear arms, and of the right of a free ballot, to suppress the schools in which colored children were taught, and to reduce the colored people to a condition closely allied to that of slavery ; that these combinations were organ- ized and armed, and had rendered the local law in- effectual to protect the classes whom they desired to oppress ; that they had perpetrated many murders, and hundreds of crimes of minor degree, all of which were unpunished, and that witnesses could not safely testify in the courts there unless the more active members were placed under restraint. (Signed) U. S. Grant. Executive Mansion, April 19, 1872. [From the Nation^ March 28, 1872.] "Seven years have gone over us since the close of the war, and, instead of occupying this precious sea- son with endeavors to re-establish prosperity, and to sow the seeds of a peace, which in another genera- tion, would ripen into good will and forgetfulness, we have averted our eyes from the whole problem, refused to listen to the complaints of men whose hands we have tied, and have fallen back upon the lazy behef that in some way this great country is bound to go through. The unconscious syllogism working in the indolent Northern mind seems to be : ' Things are no doubt very bad — how bad, we have 'n't the time, or the inclination to ascertain. Examination of such unpleasant matters, if a duty at all, is a disagreeable one. After all, the rebels have made their own bed, and they must lie in it.' Per- haps their sufferings are only the just punishment of their crimes But let us make up our minds one way or the other — do we or do we not propose further to punish the rebel states for their rebellion ? If we do, let us at once proceed to devise some in- telligent means for that purpose. If we do ?tof, let us make haste to protect society [at the South] from the ravages of ignorance and rapacity^ or give society [at the South] the ttieans to protect itself y [From Harper's Weekly, April 20, 1872.] "The great question in this quarter [the South] is the problem of reconstruction, and I am inclined to think that it is the most important national question. It is hardly worth our time, at this 'late day, to ask whether the reconstruction laws are the wisest that could have been devised. They are laws, and have been sufficiently tested to convince us that their faith- ful administration will lead to the results anticipated by those who were instrumental in their enactment. I think it better, therefore, to adhere to the original plan^ thafi to start off up07i some other theory^ that 7nay lead us into NEW DIFFICULTIES, AND POSSIBLY INTO MOST DISASTROUS CONFUSION." — General James Long- street to Senator W. P. Kellogg. HOW TO EXTIRPATE KU-KLUXISM FROM THE SOUTH. A Preliminary Word. Although the Northern People have good cause for congratulating themselves on their good fortune in solving many of the more important and urgent of the very complicated social and political problems which the exigencies of the national life have, during the last decade, forced upon their attention ; yet their very laudable and patriotic efforts to establish an unanimity of sentiment and sympathies in national matters between the North and the South have not, so far, been crowned with complete or deserved suc- cess. On the contrary, it would seem that at no former period in the history of the nation, was there 6 so little good feeling between these two great sections as at this very moment. Judging from current events that are manifest to all, mutual enmity, deep and vin- dictive, is the one great and ever present motive that influences, directs, and altogether controls their pub- lic intercourse, — which renders both sections unwil- ling or unable to prevent the intrusion of sectional jealousies and party prejudices into discussions even of the most momentous public questions. That this is a most unsatisfactory state of affairs, no one will deny; and every good citizen, whether of the North or of the South, must earnestly desire that a more fraternal disposition should animate them when dealing with national matters, in order hat harmonic political, industrial, and commer- cial relations may, as speedily as possible, be estab- lished between them. But, How to bring about this greatly to be desired consummation? is a question which, though .continually discussed during the last ten years, is to-day unsolved, and is, therefore, an open question, still. Of course, there is ample room for any amount of honest difference of opinion in regard to the most practicable or desirable man- ner of solving it ; so that it is a most prolific source of apparently endless speculation. Nevertheless, it is good to speculate on it. In fact, the more it is dis- cussed, the better, llie continuance of the present disgraceful state of affairs (vide President's Message) at the South must very seriously reflect upon the intelli- gence,tosay nothing of the patriotism, of the Northern People, as the dominent party in this great controver- sy, and tend to bring discredit upon the institutions of the country, generally, with multitudes of people in the Old World. The more it is discussed in all its bear- ings, the sooner the mass of the people will realize this, and perceive the practical necessity, to all the best interests of the whole country, of termina- ting the present discreditable state of affairs at the South. And in the meantime, nothing is lost to the general result, though innumerable plans for its solu- tion be offered, and upon examination, should fail to prove acceptable to the public ; for every re- jected plan will contribute something towards hasten- ing the production of the one which will ultimately prove the successful one. Therefore, let every one, who feels inclined to do so, keep "pegging away " at it after his own fashion. In this view, one thing, however, is to be noted, viz., the economic interests involved, raflier than the political and sentimental aspects of the question, should receive prominance. The latter have obtained their full share of public attention, while the former have very generally been ignored. This unsettled state of the question is our excuse for offering the following suggestions in the matter. But, first of all, it is to be observed that in view of 8 the fact, that the present phase of the difficuUy be- tween the North and the South has already continued for eight long and dreary years, whereas half that time sufficed in which to annihilate the whole of rebel armies, the conclusion is inevitable that the Northern People are making some very serious mistake in con- ducting their case in its present form ; and conse- quently, that they must make some radical change in their Southern policy, before they can hope to gain their cause at the South. Now we shall assume (it is unnecessary to trouble the reader with arguments in the matter, for if he feels inclined to reject these our conclusions, he would not be likely to pay any serious attention to our premises for them, were they presented) the following points : — (1.) That the fatal mistake of the Northern Peo- ple in their Southern policy since the dispersion of the rebel armies, has been their reliance upon United States Marshals and United States soldiers, almost exclusively, to represent them at the South ; (2.) that their true course to pursue towards the South is to colonize it with at least One Hundred Thousand (100,000) intelligent, respectable, and industrious Northern Working Men; (3.) that, inasmuch as the Federal Government found no very great difficulty, any time during the late war, in inducing a million of Northern men to exchange the security, peace, and enjoyment of their homes for the dangers and priva- tions of prolonged active warfare in the face of a determined and powerful enemy at the South and to remain there year after year, until the overthrow of their antagonists left them free to return to their homes, — there are 100,000 of those same men who would gladly return South now with the implements of peace in their hands, to make their homes there, provided they had the means to enable them to do so ; (4.) that One Thousand (1000) Dollars per man would be all sufficient to establish them comfortably there; (5.) that the required funds would readily enough be forthcoming, were the proper parties to ask the public for them; and (6.) that the proper parties to collect the required funds, and to select the proposed colonists, and superintend the suggested undertaking, generally, are the GRAND ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC, and the various WORKING MEN'S SOCIETIES throughout the North. Con- sequently, in this view, the only question for consid- eration is, How are the societies above named to secure the necessary funds, namely, One Hundred Million Dollars? for the projected undertaking. OUR SOLUTION OF THE PROBLEM: I. Let every Post of the G. A. R., and every Working Man's Society form itself into a Local Committee to assist in collecting One Hundred Mil- lion Dollars for the purpose of Colonizing the South 10 with One Hundred Thousand respectable and indus- trious Northern men. 2. Let the said Committee appoint such persons as it shall deem proper, to collect for the said Colon- izing Fund : the Committee being, of course, respon- sible to the general public in the matter. 3. Let every such collector be supplied by the Committee with a quantity of Numbered Tickets for him to dispose of in his own way, at the rate of Ten (10) cents per each Ticket; the proceeds of such sales to be turned over to the Committee, at least once a week. 4. On a given day of each and every week, let Twenty-five (25) per centum of the gross sum so col- lected during the week next preceding the said day, be by lot distributed by the Committee among a due proportion of the then holders of its tickets, each distribution canceling all the then outstanding non- prize-drawing tickets of the distributing Committee. 5. Let the remaining Seventy-five (75) per centum be retained by the Committee, until by weekly accru- ments, it shall amount to the sum, say, for instance, of Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000) ; which sum the Committee shall then divide into Fifty equal parts of $1000 each, which parts it shall immediately distribute by lot among a proper proportion of such persons, as the said Committee shall previously have determined to be eligible for membership in a co- 11 operative company for the purpose of colonizing the South. And 6. Let the Holders of the Successful Nu77ibers at once associate themselves together as a Co-operative Company of Colonists for the South, which or- ganization being completed, the Committee to deposit, to the credit of said Company, the said $50,000 with some responsible Banker, which shall constitute such banker the Legal Treasurer of the said Company, and, as such, he shall hold its funds subject to the order only of its duly appointed officers, for the pay- ment of the legitimate expenses of the Company.* Here, then, briefly stated, are sorne general sug- gestions in the matter, which would seem to afford the basis of a practical plan for procuring the funds required for the project of Colonizing the South with 100,000 Northern men of the right stamp, and pro- vide for the efficient superintendence generally of such an undertaking. But let us look at them a little closer. * Possibly the reader, while not disposed to think unfavor- able of the other features of this plan, will object to the pro- posed mode of soliciting the required funds, and deem it more appropriate to appeal to Congress for them. The writer, how- ever, is of opinion, that were Congress even ready to grant the whole amount in question for the meie asking, nevertheless it would not be desirable to accept it from Congress. To be ef- fective the proposed movement must be a bo7ta fide popular movement from first to last. 12 Obviously, according to 'clause i,' the manage- ment of the whole affair, from first to last, would be placed in the hands of men who are every way com- petent to direct such a movement to a successful issue, and who would, in regard to it, start with the full and entire confidence of the general public in every section of the country: to 'clause 3,' its inau- guration would be easy, simple, and inexpensive ; im- posing no preliminary expense upon the Local Com- mittees, except the cost of printing a few tickets ; neither would its successful prosecution make any inconvenient, or even noticable demand, on the time of the several collectors ; so that, without expense or inconvenience to any one, it might, from its very in- ception, be secured a real, permanent, popular, and most efficient organization, which would go far to en- sure its success among the general public : to ' clause 3,' its requirements would be adapted to popular convenience: to 'clause 4/ popular interest would be enlisted for its. success: to 'clause 5,' favoritism in the distribution of the Company prizes would be effectually prevented ; and every possible recipient of a share secured a fair chance for it and : to ' clause 6,' any squandering of the Company fund would be ren- dered very difficult, if not absolutely impossible, and the ''Company" would, to begin with, have a recog- nized standing in the business community.^ But, after all, the real test of the practicalness of 13 any plan for the purpose above indicated must be the facilities it would afford for procuring the required funds, for evidently nothing can be done in the mat- ter without money. Money, and a very large amount of it, too, is the one thing needful, before the plan could take tangible shape even, much less the object in- volved be advanced a single step. Well then, What would be the result of the operation of the present plan'in this respect ? For an answer to this question, we must be content with an inference from the reason- able probabilities of the case. Now, what are the reasonable probabilities of the case ^ Let us see. As a little examination of it will show, this plan endeavors to interest every class of the whole popu- lation of the country in its success. To this end, it bases its primary appeal upon purely economic and business principles. In return for a reasonable chance of receiving considerable more than a fair equivelent for his money, it asks lo cents a week of the poor man who may desire to invest in it, and requires no more from the rich man ; but if the latter be of a charitable, philanthropic, patriotic, or generous dispo- sition, it presents ample opportunities to him to ex- ercise his disposition in its behalf to any extent he pleases. It would take care that all sums, whether great or small, or from whatever motive given, should go forth on the same peaceful and patriotic mission. Therefore, it is reasonable to conclude that these 14 motives would influence the wealthy to contribute liberally towards the proposed movement, when it had once taken palpable shape, and it is reasonable, also, to assume that these contributions, together with those from other causes, would, in the aggregate, equal a regular weekly contribution of lo cents from one in every five of the entire population of any given locality. Obviously, this number is altogether too low to cover the reasonable probabilities in the case ; it might be put as high as four in every five, without going beyond them. But let us keep to the former number. Now, this datum, applied to any community, will give us a good trustworthy answer to our ques- tion. Let us, then, apply it, say to the City of New York, for EXAMPLE. That city contains 1,000,000 inhabitants, and our datum gives us 200,000 of those as contributing for this cause 10 cents each regularly every week ; which is $20,000 per week ; and that, minus 25 per cent, (vide clause 4) gives $60,000 as the net monthly in- come for this cause in that community alone. And this sum is abundant to provide a colony of .60 re- spectable and industrious Northern men with every thing necessary for their establishing themselves com- fortably at the South. That is to say, if each of the above stated number of the people of that city would weekly place a sum of money, so utterly insignificant 15 that it is exceeded by the cost of a glass of soda water or a cheap cigar, in the hands of men whom they all know to be trustworthy and thoroughly competent for the worl^, — these men could guarantee to return them 25 per cent, of their contributions, and, with the remainder, send out every month a new Company of sixty picked Northern men as colonists to the South, fully equiped, and furnished with sufficient capital to ensure the success of the enterprise. Now, to establish even one such colony in each county in any given Southern State would, for all the practical purposes of the case, be to colonize that en- tire State. Well, then, the State of South Carolina, for instance, contains 30 counties ; what an easy thing, therefore, it would be for New York City alone, to colonize, with men of its own choice, the whole State of South Carolina in the brief space of about two years. That is what one single Northern community* could do for an entire Southern State, without put- ting any one of its citizens to the slightest incon- venience in the matter. Now, extend the operations of this plan, until they should embrace every Northern community, which could be easily done, and in how little time the whole South would be colonized with *0r, if we take four in five as the probable proportion of con- tributers in any given population, the State of Massachusetts could, in this way, raise funds enough within her own limits, in about Three Afonths, to colonize the whole State of South Carolina. 16 picked men from the ranks of the industrial classes of the North. Reader, think it over. And then con- sider that the Northern People have been "recon- structing " the South for the last eight years, at an immense expenditure of money, without reconciling the first Southern state, city, town, or even village, to their views on public matters. But, all purely patriotic considerations aside, the success of this plan would, in a mere speculative and economic point of view, prove highly beneficial to the industrial and business interests of the North. Its operations, if extended to anything like National proportions, would necessarily open a vast field for utilizing the immense mass of well disposed and in- telligent, but adventurous young energy now wander- ing aimless about the North ; they would provide acceptable and remunerative employment, at the South, for multitudes of Northern working people who find it impossible to secure the means of a decent support for themselves and their families in their present abodes. For, while individual Northern en- terprise in that direction is not just now advisable, yet thoughout the whole civilized world, there is not another so favorable an opening for co operative Northern enterprise, if it be united, systematic, and of a legitimate character, as the South, in its present con- dition, offers to it. Every associated enterprise, such as this plan suggests, if judiciously located and prop- 17 erly managed for developing the natural resources of the South, instead of (as some have done) plunging into mad attempts at competition with great Northern industries, would handsomely compensate the laborer for his work, besides, after the first year, paying cent- per-cent. per annum on every dollar of capital invested in it. Once settled at the South, the colonists, amidst congenial social surroundings that this plan would secure to him, could not, with a tithe of the industry, fail to secure an ample competency for themselves and their dependents, without that incessant toil which, for even a scanty and pecarious support, the North exacts from every person who depends solely upon manual labor.for their livelihood within its great centers of population. Thus they would materially benefit themselves in all the relations of life, and, at the same time, leave a freer field to, and open a new market for, the industry of those of their fraternity who are established at the North. It would, also, give a new and lasting impetus to legitimate business of all kinds throughout the whole country. There- fore, leaving Southern interests and political consid- erations out of the question altogether, this plan de- serves the serious attention of the Working men and the Business men of the North. Of course, it is not at all impossible that a careless, indifferent, or prejudiced reader may regard it in an- other light. To such, it may, perhaps, appear an 18 impractical and Utopian method of dealing with the great problem in question, and, consequently, unde- serving of any consideration from practical men. The careful and unprejudiced reader, however, who really understands the very critical state in which the politi- cal, the commercial, and the industrial affairs of the whole country are placed, by reason of the disorgan- ized and discontented condition of Southern society, and fully appreciates the great difficulties in the way of practical and efficient legislation, whether local or National, upon the subject — thus comprehending the real character of the numerous and diverse elements involved in this Reconstruction problem — will, at once, perceive that the plan, here briefly outlined, does not present a single impracticable or fanciful feature. But that, on the contrary, it is a plain, sim- ple, every-day, working plan, which, in fact, it is. It takes things just as it finds them. It accepts the materials that are presented to it, and, as it were, prepared expressly for its purpose. Thus, the men are all ready, were the order given, to embark upon this projected Southern mission ; the money for it is, as we have seen, all ready — aye, in sober truth, it is lying "round loose" for the hand of the proper per- sons to gather it up — and machinery, so perfectly adapted for collecting this money, and, also, for se- lecting the right men for this mission, that it would be impossible to conceive of any more appropriate 19 for those purposes, is all ready. And, further, the men who control this machinery have, ere this, risked their lives, time and again, in this identical cause, to which they are now asked only to devote occasionally nothing more than a few of their leisure hours, in order that they may secure for themselves and their children after them, the fruits of their previous sacrifices and exertions in the cause. Is there anything very vis- ionary in supposing that these men might set the machinery in motion in the desired direction, and that a generous and patriotic public would sustain them in the matter } If this be visionary, then the whole Northern People are now, and have, for the last twelve years, been the most visionary of vision- ists in their Southern Policy. " When the Senate of the United States met on the 5th December 1860, for the second session of the XXXVIth Congress, there was a long list of absentees from the Southern States. Senators Toombs of Georgia, Clay of Alabama, Slidell and Benjamin of Louisiana, Mason of Virginia, Mallory of Florida, Johnson and Sebastian of Arkansas and both the South Carolina Senators were at home working up the excitement that swept over their section of the country and resulted in the several ordi- nances of secession. Most of these absent Senators sub- sequently appeared and took their seats. The South Carolina members did not. No communication, so far as appears from the record in the Globe, was ever received from either. They merely neglected to appear. On the 20 21st of January 1861, Senators Yulee and Mallory of Florida, Clay and Fitzpatrick of Alabama and Davis of Mississippi took formal leave of the Senate in carefully prepared speeches. Thus was made the first breach in the representation of the States of the Union in the Senate, that "was but yesterday fully repaired. One by one the States came back, but the delay in the readmission of some of them continued so long that meanwhile others failed to be represented. At last the roll is once more completed. Thirty-seven States are represented by seventy-four Sena- tors. There have been vacant seats for almost twelve years, — ever since the adjournment of the first session of the XXXYIth Congress, — several months before the election of Abraham Lincoln." — The Advertise}', April 25th. Here we have a compendious epitome of one of the most important chapters in all history. So then, at long length, the governmental machinery of the Nation is once more complete, and in running order. But one section of it don't work quite smoothly yet ; and so the entire structure is continually exposed to serious danger. In another Boston daily, the Herald, April 29, we read : " Attorney General Williams has replied to a resolution of the House, asking details of the measures taken for the enforcement of the Ku-Klux act. He gives little encourage- ment to those who want to keep the South under martial law. .... He believes that with an influx of emigrants it could not be long before all lawlessness and violence grow- ing out of political differences, radical antagonisms, and social distinctions, would be a thing of the past." LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 001 156 763 •'i