USA > Arkansas > The aftermath of the civil war, in Arkansas > Part 4
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"[August 4, 1868. Editorial.] In regard to the propriety of urging our people to take the oath, we will say frankly that we have not the time nor disposition just now to discuss the ethics of the subject. We are firm believers in the saving grace of the Christian religion, and it is never too late to found a hope of ultimate salva- tion there, let our course political be what it may. As a general thing we hold to the opinion that an honest man's politics and religion are not distantly related. In the present political struggle we believe that the end we seek will justify the use of ANY means."
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So shocking was this advice as to call forth from Gen. Albert Pike,-at that time the head of the Masonic Fraternity and a leading Democrat, a man whose life- size statue is accorded a prominent place at the National Capital among the distinguished citizens of America,- a severe stricture, published in the Memphis Appeal, September 10, 1868, from which I quote as follows :
"Some gentlemen, and among the rest Col. J. M. Harrell, of Little Rock [editor of the Little Rock Ga- zette], are laying up for themselves 'wrath against the day of wrath.' We shall be at liberty to speak by and by. It is but a little more than two months to the day of election in November, after which no pledge of honor to party will any longer seal up our mouths. Wait and see! . . . It seems to be the ambition of many political leaders to be damned by advising people oppressed by calamity to take the ways that lead directly downward to the hell of dishonor. We do not wonder that they point the people to the present profit that they are to reap as the fruit of crime.
"No sophistry can disguise the fact that for one to swear that he will never attempt to deprive any negro of the right to vote, with the settled intention to change the Constitution of the State as soon as possible, so that this oath shall be no longer required, and to elect legis- lators who will deprive the negro of the right of suf- frage, is to swear with the purpose of perjury determined on. No such oath was taken, because no such oath was required in Maryland. It is not standing on dead issues to advise the people not to do a shameful act, which will be hardly done ere it will be repented of in sackcloth and ashes. The man who advises the people to such a course will indeed 'build his coffin,' and find death a re- lief from the ignominy that will overwhelm all such coun- sellors.
" 'I will be a swift witness against the false swearers, saith the Lord of Hosts.' 'They have spoken words,
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swearing falsely in making a covenant; thus judgment springeth up as hemlock in the furrows of the field.'
"It is men who are deceivers,-not the devil. The first and worst fraud of all is to cheat one's self. All sin is easy after that.
"If the people of Arkansas permit themselves to be led into the great sin and shame to which they are tempted, they will cheat themselves, and afterwards find that no permanent profit or advantage can be reaped by a people from an act for which its own conscience will in vain labor to find a sufficient excuse. That which is right and just and true is only profitable in the end to man or nations."
Kindred to the foregoing question is the advice given by the Gazette, to its party adherents, from which I quote as follows :
"[August 8, 1868. Extract from Editorial. ] An act defining the qualifications of jurors.5
"Section I. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Arkansas, That all qualified electors of this State, and none others, shall be competent jurors.
"Section 2. Be it further enacted, That all laws and parts of laws in conflict with this act are hereby repealed, and that this act take effect and be in force from and after its passage.
"Such a high-handed outrage upon the rights of men, and so flagrant a violation of long established prece- dent, needs no comment. It is enough to know that the future existence in Arkansas of those who may chance to differ with the radical party is rendered impossible, unless the power that attempts to enforce this law is broken up. Let the word go forth that this shall be done. IT IS OUR ONLY SAFETY, AND JUSTI- FIES ANY MEANS."
So the "Organ," speaking for its party, advised the commission of every crime punishable by the laws of God or man for the accomplishment of its base political
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purposes. These startling announcements are too clearly expressed to require any elucidation upon my part. and they completely justified the wisdom of the Constitutional Convention in its efforts to debar from suffrage persons entertaining such atrocious sentiments.
FOOTNOTES FOR CHAPTER IV
1 See Arkansas Laws, 1868, p. 55, Sec. II.
2 See p. 90.
3 Arkansas Gazette, October 14, 1868.
4 See Arkansas Laws, 1868, pp. 52-60.
5 See Arkansas Laws, 1868, p. 35.
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CHAPTER V
ORGANIZATION AND OPERATIONS OF KU KLUX KLAN IN ARKANSAS
Soon came whisperings of a mysterious secret order, followed by reports from several parts of the State of "night-riders." It was said that the horses and the men were concealed by masks, gowns, and trappings made of black calico bespangled with glittering, metallic, cabalistic designs.
About the same time reports came to me from mem- bers of the Legislature and other public officials of the receipt of warnings left at night by unknown hands in familiar places, written in a peculiar vocabulary, urging them to desist in their political activities and leave the country or suffer the dire consequences of Ku Klux ven- geance. The following Ku Klux proclamation was found posted on a tree in Pine Bluff, Ark., and was published in the Republican, April 6, 1868 :
"K. K. K.
"Corinth Division, "Pine Bluff Retreat.
"SPECIAL ORDER NO. 2
"Spirit Brothers; Shadows of Martyrs; Phantoms from gory fields; Followers of Brutus !!!!!! Rally, rally, rally .- When shadows gather, moons grow dim, and stars tremble glide to the Council Hall and wash your hands in tyrants' blood; and gaze upon the list of
-----
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condemned traitors. The time has arrived. Blood must flow. The true must be saved.
"Work in darkness.
"Bury in waters. "Make no sound.
"Trust not the air.
"Strike high and sure.
"Vengeance! Vengeance! Vengeance !
"Tried, condemned. Execute well. Fear is dead. Every man is a Judge and this Executes. ! ! ! ! ! ! Fail Not. ! ! Mandate of the M. G. C." By D. M. G. C. 12 m p 2.
On the 9th of September while hunting near Little Rock I had the misfortune to lose my left hand by the accidental discharge of my gun. One night shortly after the amputation word came to my bedside that in the ante- room there was a mysterious stranger who insisted on seeing me alone, "upon very important business." My first impulse was to decline to see the man, but instinc- tively I changed my mind and ordered him to be ad- mitted. When he opened the door he looked cautiously around, then said, "Governor, is there anybody who can hea'r what I want to say to you?" I replied, "You can speak with safety."
He commenced by giving me his name and place of residence, and by saying that he could impart to me valuable information relative to the Ku Klux organ- ization in Arkansas. He proposed that after he had fully conveyed to me this information, if I should con- sider it of sufficient value, I should supply him with about $300 to enable him to remove himself and his family from the State. On the other hand, he would require my solemn pledge that I would not, at any time or under any circumstances, divulge his name as my informant.
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As his proposition seemed reasonable I readily con- sented to it. , He then informed me that he was the cyclops of a certain Ku Klux den in Independence County; that he joined the Klan believing its purposes to be protective against negro aggression, and politically a harmless adjunct to the Democratic Party in its efforts to carry the forthcoming election; but its usurpations of powers, including those that controlled life and death, and the shocking outrages committed by it throughout the State had convinced him that the day of exposure was near, and that when that day came he intended, with his family, to be safely located beyond the jurisdiction of the State and the reach of the long arm of the aveng- ing Klan.
He first gave me a printed copy of the Ku Klux ritual and explained its provisions. He also informed me of some of the Klan's operations in the neighboring county of White. He, in short, placed me in possession of such information as would enable my secret agents to gain admittance to dens in the State. He did not ask for any money until his information should be verified by the admittance of one of my agents to a den in the City of Little Rock or elsewhere. This being so far satis- factory, I put him in communication with Adjt .- Gen. Keyes Danforth, with the understanding that he should give Danforth all the information he possessed.
The Ku Klux Klan was organized by General For- rest in Memphis, Tenn., a year before my inauguration. Before the war he had been a negro overseer and a slave trader of the lowest type, and was not recognized socially by the planters. Indeed, he was a fitting leader for this foul organization. It was not until I was visited by the "mysterious stranger" that I had full knowledge of its existence. Bearing upon its organization and purposes, I refer the reader to the following extract from the
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Arkansas Daily Gazette of August 11, 1911, based upon an interview with Gen. R. G. Shaver :
"WAS WIZARD IN ARKANSAS
"General Shaver was Wizard of Ku Klux in this State, and was present at the organization of the order in Memphis, Tenn., in 1867. The name 'Ku Klux' was taken from the local Tennessee organization of similar purpose, or rather, bestowed upon it later, and the orig- inal cognomen adopted at the initial meeting was The Order of the White Man.' Together with Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest, the late General Gordon, and many other distinguished leaders of the Confederacy, General Shaver, of Arkansas, met in Memphis shortly after the practical disfranchisement of the white man in the South to devise a means of taking the law in their own hands for the preservation of a government by the whites. Al- though there were assembled scores upon scores of the best known men in the South, both civil and military. with such secrecy was the meeting conducted that a majority of the Memphians, even, knew nothing of it. General Shaver served on the Tactical Committee, and was very active in the organization.
"KLAN WAS PURELY MILITARY
"After a meeting of about a week's duration the plans were perfected. The order was named, with Gen- eral Forrest as commander-in-chief, or grand wizard. at the head, and with absolute military authority. In pass- ing, the Klan was purely military, and not until its dis- banding and subsequent illegitimate reorganization did it usurp powers either civil or political. The names of the officers were, after the commander-in-chief, who was the grand wizard: the wizard, State commander; grand ti- tian, second in State command; titian, third; grand cy- clops, equivalent to a brigade commander ; cyclops, county commander; and mogul, company commander. A com-
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pany's meeting place was called a 'den.' The uniform of the order was a black shroud both for man and horse, with tin stars, half moons, etc., sewed upon it. None but Confederate soldiers in good standing and their sons from eighteen years up were admitted without securing dispensation from the grand wizard. General Shaver stated that he frequently secured dispensations in order that he might admit telegraph operators, by that means securing the wire which was held entirely by the Klan north of Little Rock. The meetings were always held at dead of night and in dense woods; the Klan never at any time gathered in a house, no matter what the weather.
"15,000 ARMED MEN AT HIS CALL
"Among the dens organized in Arkansas were those at Washington, Camden, Eldorado, Monticello, and other places, and General Shaver stated yesterday that at the time of disbanding, pursuant to the order of the grand wizard, he had 15,000 armed men in Arkansas ready to assemble at his call. Incidentally, while it is known to but few, the recapture of Little Rock by the Ku Klux was planned, when suspension orders were is- sued by General Forrest.
"Among the cyclops of southern Arkansas was Gen. James F. Smith, of Little Rock, who was very instru- mental in breaking up the Negro League meetings in Hempstead and surrounding counties.
"'That was where I shone,' said the General yester- day in recounting an instance in which an unusually large gathering was broken up without the uttering of a word or the firing of a gun.
"INVISIBLE EMPIRE DISSOLVES
"However, with the quieting of the situation and the inclination of the lawless element to exceed the good purposes for which the Klan was organized, it was
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deemed best to disband, and in the investigation that fol- lowed, General Shaver, because of a traitor in his ranks, was forced to flee to Honduras for his life.
"So, the Ku Klux Klan, the invisible empire, rose and fell in its incipiency, when Anglo-Saxon supremacy was its watchword and guiding star, one of the greatest or- ganizations ever formed, and in its later days when out- laws and libertines broke in to use it as a vehicle for personal and political prejudice, one of the worst. But although the latter breed masqueraded under the name and insignia of the Klan, they were never of it. Knight- hood in the order was kept pure to the last, and its doors were locked against the outsider as fast as the inviolate secret of its oath of blood is kept in the breasts of those who rode beneath its banner."
General Shaver served gallantly as a brigadier-gen- eral in the Confederate army, and he is still living,-a highly respected citizen of Arkansas. In the militia oper- ations for the suppression of the Ku Klux he took an open and hostile part. It would be interesting to know who betrayed General Shaver and thus caused him to take refuge in Honduras.
During the early stages of the Ku Klux operations I was inclined to believe that the doings of the Klan were but Democratic devices to intimidate the negroes and prevent them from registering and voting at the forthcoming presidential election; but, as my administra- tion progressed, reports kept coming to me of assassina- tions and outrages perpetrated upon Republicans alone, and, in most cases, State officials. Up to the time of the disclosures of the man whom I shall hereafter speak of as the "mysterious stranger," all my efforts through the employment of secret service agents and the offering of large rewards to pierce the impenetrable veil had proved futile.
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It so happened that a few days before the "stranger's" visit Albert H. Parker came to Little Rock seeking em- ployment, with a highly commendatory letter to me from the Major of my old regiment, Samuel Walker. Mr. Parker was the brother of David B. Parker, for many years Chief Inspector of the Post Office Department at Washington, D. C. Before the war Albert H. Parker had settled in Texas, and when the great storm of se- cession broke out he, like many others, was swept into its vortex and became a soldier in the Confederate Army, serving, as I remember, until the end of the war, after which he went to Lawrence, Kan., where he lived until he became involved in the tragic events I shall here- after relate.
In due time General Danforth informed me that all tests of the "mysterious stranger's" reliability had been satisfactorily made, so I brought Danforth and Parker together with the view of having the former instruct the latter in all the details necessary to enable him, as the secret agent of the Government, to perform his duties successfully.
I assigned him to White County to investigate thor- oughly the Ku Klux operations there and especially the attempted assassination, wounding, and robbing of State Senator Stephen Wheeler,1 as well as the assassination of Ban Humphries,2 an intelligent and very influential col- ored leader; and other outrages reported to me from that county. In assigning Parker to this work, after having portrayed in the strongest language at my com- mand its dangerous character, I left it with him to de- vise a pretext for his appearance in White County. He pretended that he was preparing for the collection of cattle from Texas and other southern points, to be as- sembled in Arkansas at a place where grazing.and other necessities were advantageous, to be distributed event-
.
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ually to northern markets where high prices prevailed. This pretext was very good for a comparatively short time, but his failure to assemble his droves of cattle there naturally caused suspicion and that should have induced him to report to me at once for further instructions.
I also organized a secret service force of eleven de- tectives in addition to Parker. Of course, these agents were brought from without the State, and some, like Parker, had Confederate records that enabled them the more readily to perform their duties, which were to gain access to the Ku Klux dens of the localities assigned to them and to inform me as fully and as quickly as possible of the conditions existing in each. The majority of these agents were successful. For reasons that will soon ap- pear I received no report from Parker.
ORGANIZATION OF THE STATE MILITIA
Having received reports from these detectives and information from many other sources, I determined to make a square issue between the State government and the Ku Klux insurgents in Arkansas. I issued immediate instructions to the officers of the State Militia to pro- ceed with the utmost secrecy and dispatch in the further organization of the State Guards, and on the 4th of November, 1868, I issued my proclamation declaring martial law in the counties enumerated therein, a copy of which follows :3
"Whereas, The Counties of Ashley, Bradley, Colum- bia, Lafayette, Mississippi, Woodruff, Craighead, Greene, Sevier, and Little River are in a state of insur- rection and the civil authority is utterly powerless to preserve order and to protect the lives of the citizens; unauthorized bodies of armed men (in most cases dis- guised) are engaged in acts of lawlessness and violence ; the county officers have either been killed or driven away
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from their homes; or intimidated in the performance of their duties; the quiet and law-abiding citizens in many instances have not been allowed an expression of their sentiments, or the exercise of their duties and privileges as citizens, and, while hundreds of them have been mur- dered, in no instance known to the Executive have the assassins been brought to punishment by the civil authori- ties; the State is being invaded by bands of outlaws from Texas and Louisiana who are committing murders and depredations upon the citizens; the registration laws could not be fairly executed, and were necessarily set aside; and in many of these counties a perfect reign of terror now exists, and
"Whereas, This deplorable state of affairs is, to a great extent, attributable to the existence of a secret or- ganization, military in its character, styled 'Knights of the White Camelia,' but more popularly known as the 'Ku Klux Klan,' whose object is treasonable and murder- ous and subversive of all government; and this organiza- tion while it declares in article 76 of its constitution that 'the order shall not as a body nominate, adopt, or sup- port any candidate or set of candidates, for any office of honor, profit, or trust, under the Constitution and laws of the United States,' thereby professedly disclaim- ing all political character, is at the same time plotting to overturn the State Government, which they hope to accomplish by creating vacancies in office by assassina- tion and intimidation, thereby preventing the loyal citi- zens from filling the offices thus made vacant, and from performing the necessary duties of citizenship and ren- dering the State Government inoperative.
"It is believed that many of the law-abiding people of the State have become members of this band through ignorance of its real character and misapprehension of its diabolical designs, or for the purpose of obtaining pro- tection for themselves and their property; all such per- sons are advised at once to abandon this organization and purge themselves of all connection with it.
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"NOW, THEREFORE, I, POWELL CLAYTON, Governor of the State of Arkansas, do hereby proclaim martial law in the aforementioned counties. All unlawful or- ganizations will, upon the receipt of this proclamation, or notice of the same, at once disband and abstain from all illegal and violent acts. All who fail to do this will be treated as outlaws, and not entitled to the protection of the Government, and will certainly be brought to speedy and merited punishment; and all bodies of armed men (not organized in pursuance of the laws of the State and the United States) will at once disperse and return to their homes; and I hereby call upon and request all law-abiding citizens to use their influence to prevent dis- order and preserve the public peace. Citizens of the counties not under Martial Law are requested to abstain from all unauthorized military organizations, or from any interference in the affairs of other counties. Unless this is done Martial Law will be extended to them, and war, with all its horrors, may be precipitated upon the State, which is still suffering terribly from the former rebellion.
"Those who participated therein are admonished that to engage in a second rebellion would in all proba- bility preclude the hope of their obtaining mercy from the State or general government.
"All officers of the State Guards will at once perfect their organizations and hold themselves in readiness to respond to the orders of the Commander-in-Chief; and all well disposed persons not members of the State Guards are earnestly urged to volunteer their services to the support of the Government.
"In Testimony Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the Seal of (SEAL) the State of Ar- kansas to be affixed at the City of Little Rock, on the 4th day of November, A. D. 1868.
"POWELL CLAYTON, Governor.
"By the Governor :
"Robert J. T. White,
"Secretary of State."
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Generals Catterson and Upham were commissioned Brigadier-Generals and Samuel W. Mallory, Colonel, of the State Guards, and under the provisions of General Orders No. 8 (a copy of which follows) , 4 they were as- signed to the military districts named therein. These offi- cers immediately assumed command and entered energeti- cally upon their duties.
"GENERAL HEADQUARTERS, STATE OF ARKANSAS,
"Adjutant-General's Office, "Little Rock, Ark., Nov. 7, 1868.
"GENERAL ORDERS "No. VIII.
"I. The Districts created by General Orders No. II are hereby abolished.
"II. For the purpose of perfecting the organization of the Militia, and carrying into effect the Governor's Proclamation declaring Martial Law in several counties of this State, the following Military Districts are hereby established.
"III. District of the Southwest will comprise the counties of Sebastian, Scott, Yell, Perry, Pulaski, Polk, Montgomery, Hot Springs, Saline, Sevier, Pike, Clark, Dallas, Little River, Hempstead, Ouachita, Calhoun, Lafayette, Columbia, and Union, commanded by Brig .- Gen. Robert F. Catterson.
"IV. District of the Northwest will comprise the counties of Crawford, Franklin, Johnson, Pope, Conway, Van Buren, Searcy, Newton, Madison, Washington, Benton, Carroll, and Marion.
"V. District of the Northeast will comprise the counties of Fulton, Lawrence, Sharp, Randolph, Greene, Izard, Independence, Jackson, Craighead, Poinsett, Mississippi, White, Woodruff, Cross, St. Francis, Crit- tenden, Prairie, Monroe, Phillips, and that portion of Desha lying north of White River, commanded by Brig .- Gen. D. P. Upham.
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"VI. District of the Southeast will comprise the counties of Arkansas, Ashley, Jefferson, Bradley, Drew, Chicot, and that portion of Desha lying south of White River, commanded by Col. Samuel Mallory.
"VII. Commanders of the Southwestern, Southeast- ern, and Northeastern Districts will immediately proceed to occupy the counties that are under Martial Law, with sufficient troops to enforce the same.
"VIII. In addition to the State Guards, they will organize the reserve militia, from which they are au- thorized to draft, in case a sufficient volunteer force can- not be obtained.
"IX. A commanding officer of the Northwestern District will be announced in future orders. In the mean- time all officers of the State Guards in that District will complete the organization of their companies, and hold themselves in readiness to fill such details as may be made upon them.
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