A Just and Lasting Peace: A Documentary History of Reconstruction (46 page)

A. Yes, sir; there he sits (pointing.)

Q. State what were the signs and passwords of the order, and how they use them on occasion?

A. One was passing the right hand over the right ear; this was answered by passing the left hand over the left ear; the next sign was putting the right hand in the pocket of the pants, leaving the thumb to be seen; if you wished to find out if a person belonged to the organization he returned it with his left hand in the same way; the next sign was putting the heel of the right foot in the hollow of the left; this was answered by putting the left heel in the hollow of the right foot.

Q. What were the passwords?

A. If you met a man or a party you would say, “S-a-y, who are you?” This was answered by, “N-o-t-h-i-n-g,” without pronouncing the word.

Q. Have you frequently met and recognized members of the order by these words?

A. I have met them by signs, but not by words.

Q. Had they a grip; if so, explain it?

A. In grasping the hand the little finger would go between the fourth and little finger of the hand you grasped, and the forefinger would stretch up and touch the wrist.

Q. Have you frequently exchanged that grip?

A. Very often, sir.

C
ROSS-
E
XAMINATION BY
M
R.
W
ILSON.

Q. Have you any knowledge of Dr. Thomas Whitesides being a member of this order?

A. I do not know that he is a member.

Q. Have you not reason for knowing that he is not?

A. I have given him signs and he did not return them.

Q. You tried, then, by giving him the signs and he did not answer?

A. Yes, sir; I gave him signs and he did not respond.

Q. What sign did you give him?

A. Passing the right hand over the right ear.

Q. Have you any other reason for knowing he is not a member?

A. I heard him say it was the most damnable thing in the country?

Q. (by Mr. C. D. Melton.) What are the relations between you and Mr. Mitchell; are they those of friendship or otherwise?

A. As to my feelings, they have always been those of friendship.

Q. There was some cause of misunderstanding, was there not?

A. Not on my part. I had my photographic instrument in the church that he had something to do with, and he told me to take it out, but it caused no hard feeling on my part.

Q. Had you any conversation on the subject with Mr. McKeow?

A. I have no recollection of it.

Q. You say you never used any harsh language?

A. No, sir; none.

Q. And never had any unkind feelings towards Mr. Mitchell?

A. No, sir; I had none.

Q. (by Mr. Corbin.) When do you say it was that you recognized Mr. Whitesides was not a member of the order?

A. I think it was last March.

Q. Had you any special conversation about the Ku Klux order?

A. Yes, sir; he said something about the Ku Klux; he had some negroes that they visited, and he and his brother went to try to pacify them; he said it was the most damnable curse, or the most damnable affair in the country; I then gave him the sign, but he did not respond. . . .

T
ESTIMONY OF
H
ENRY
L
ATHAM.

Henry Latham, colored, was the next witness called for the prosecution. He was duly sworn and testified as follows:

D
IRECT
E
XAMINATION BY
M
R.
C
ORBIN.

Q. Where do you live?

A. At Mr. William Shearer's plantation I was living.

Q. In York County?

A. Yes, sir.

Q. Did the Ku Klux Klan ever visit you?

A. Yes, sir.

Q. When was it?

A. It was before cold weather got done—before we planted corn.

Q. Some time last winter?

A. Some time in the winter.

Q. Tell the jury all about it?

A. I heard them before they found me, down at Mr. Ramsay's, and I tried to see if I could escape them; they was shooting down there, and I thought I would try to dodge them. I couldn't get up well, on account of the rheumatism; but they seed me; they was too smart for me. I went out and watched by a hickory tree; and when I got tired of watching, I mashed up some old wood and took it in, and they coming on me.

Q. Who came on you?

A. Mr. Shearer.

Q. Who else?

A. There was all the Shearers came in; Mr. Riggings, I don't think that he came in; but his horse was there when they sot down with me.

Q. How many were there?

A. Seven in the crowd.

Q. All come in.

A. No, sir; they didn't; but—

Q. Tell us what they did to you?

A. They came in; they cussed me.

Q. Tell us what they said?

A. They said: “God damn you, who are you?” I says: “Henry Latham, sir.” “Who is he?” I says: “Henry Latham, sir;” then I looked at one at the window, and saw his red eye, and he jobbed his pistol in my face, and says: “Who are you?” and I told him “Henry Latham, sir,” and acted as well as I could to keep them from killing me. Robert Riggings told me he was going to make me a good old Democrat; that was the first of it. Mr. Riggings said he was going to make me a good old Democrat. I says: “You can't do it.” He says: “Well, you'll see.” I says: “How will you do it?” He says: “I am going to fetch a crowd and shoot in your house, and make you a good old Democrat.” I says: “No; don't do that, Mr. Riggings.” He says: “I will do it some other way.” I says: “How?” “Never mind, you'll see.”

That was along in the middle of the week, before they whipped me.

Q. When was it that they came to see you?

A. Saturday night; and when I heard them, I knowed I would catch it. I wasn't able to run, and I went and got behind a tree. Well, it was too cold; I couldn't lay out at night, and I thought I would dodge back into the house and be easy, and sit down and mash up the old wood and put it on, and just as I put the last stick on, he jobbed me with his pistol, and says: “Who are you? God damn you, who are you?” I says: “Henry Latham, sir.” “God damn you, come out of there.” “Yes, sir,” and I followed him up and got to the fence, and before I got to the fence, he said “he would cut my God damn throat.” I thought now if I prayed a little bit, I wouldn't be uneasy. When I throwed my leg up to get over the fence, the pain hurt me so I hollered. “What ails you, God damn you?” I told him that it was the rheumatism. “Well,” he says, “God damn you, come over here, I will take that out of you,” and kicked me and turned my bone wrong in here [indicating the spine].

Q. How many times did they kick you?

A. I cannot tell. They kicked me and told me to run; well, I tried to run all I could, but a man full of pains can't run much; I wouldn't speak of them, no way, out of the way; I just grunted when they kicked me.

Q. What did they do with you up the road?

A. They beat me with poles about that thick [pointing to his wrist]. They had long ones, and hit me in the same place where they kicked me.

Q. How many times did they strike you?

A. I don't reckon more than six or seven times apiece; five of them hit me, but there was seven in the crowd; they didn't give me but, I don't think, more than six or seven apiece; they asked me if I would ever vote another Radical ticket, and I told them no, sir, if that was the way they did, I wouldn't ever no more; they asked me if I was a League man; “Well show me a League sign, God damn you;” I catched myself right here (the left lapel of the coat.) Mr. Kell, he was a Radical man; he put us all into the League; and they said, “God damn you, what did you join it for?” I said I didn't know there was any harm in it. “Well, God damn him, give him hell;” and then they begun.

Q. After they got done whipping you how did you feel?

A. I felt very bad.

Q. What injury did they do to your spine?

A. They turned the bones wrong side out; well, I never got over it; I don't know as I ever will; they kicked the bones wrong and injured the bone; they told me to run when I started back, and I went to get my coat, and they kicked me in the same place again, and I catched my coat in my fingers and hung on to it and run with it, and while I was running they run the horses up to keep me from knowing the horses; Dock Shearer's horse, Bob Rigging's horse—I knowed the horses; I had plowed Bob Rigging's horse.

Q. Did you go home?

A. Yes, sir; they told me, “God damn you, go to the house.” When I started to pick up my coat, they said run, and while I was running, they run the horses.

The defense waived cross examination. . . .

T
ESTIMONY OF
H
ARRIET
S
IMRIL.

Harriet Simril (colored) was called as a witness for the prosecution, and, being duly sworn, testified as follows:

Q. Who is your husband?

A. Sam Simmons.

Q. Where do you live?

A. At Clay Hill, in York County.

Q. How long have you lived there?

A. A good many years.

Q. Has your husband lived there a good many years?

A. Yes, sir.

Q. Did he vote at the last election?

A. Yes, sir.

Q. Do you know what politics he is?

A. He is a Radical.

Q. Did the Ku Klux ever visit your house?

A. Yes, sir; I think along in the spring.

Q. About what time in the spring?

A. I cannot tell you exactly.

Q. Have they been there more than once?

A. Yes, sir; they came on him three times.

Q. Now tell the jury what they did each time?

A. The first time they came my old man was at home; they hollered out, “Open the door,” and he got up and opened the door; they asked him what he had in his hand; he told them the door-pin; they told him to come out, and he came out; these two men that came in, they came in, and wanted me to make up a light; the light wasn't made up very good, and they stuck matches to a pine stick, and looked about to see if they could see anything; they never said anything, and these young men walked up, and they took my old man out after so long, and they wanted him to join this Democratic ticket; and, after that, they went a piece above the house, and hit him about five cuts with the cowhide.

Q. Do you know whether he promised to be a Democrat or not?

A. He told them he would rather quit all politics, if that was the way they was going to do him.

Q. What did they do to you?

A. That is the second time they came. They came back, after the first time, on Sunday night, after my old man again, and this second time the crowd was bigger.

Q. Did they call for your old man?

A. Yes, sir; they called for him, and I told them he wasn't here; then they argued me down, and told me he was here; I told them no, sir, he wasn't here; they asked me where was my old man; I told them I couldn't tell; when he went away he didn't tell me where he was going; they searched about in the house a long time, and staid with me an hour that time; searched about a long time, and made me make up a light; and after I got the light made up, then they began to search again, and question me again about the old man, and I told them I didn't know where my old man had gone.

Q. What did they do to you?

A. Well, they were spitting in my face, and throwing dirt in my eyes; and, when they made me blind, they bursted open my cupboard; I had five pies in my cupboard, and they eat all my pies up, and then took two pieces of meat; then they made me blow up the light again, cursing me; and after awhile they took me out of doors, and told me all they wanted was my old man to join the Democratic ticket; if he joined the Democratic ticket, they would have no more to do with him; and after they had got me out of doors, they dragged me into the big road, and they ravished me out there.

Q. How many of them?

A. There was three?

Q. One right after the other?

A. Yes, sir.

Q. Threw you down on the ground?

A. Yes, sir; they throwed me down.

Q. Do you know who the men were who ravished you?

A. Yes, sir; can tell who the men were; there were Ches. McCollum, Tom McCollum and this big Jim Harper.

Q. Who ravished you first?

A. Tom McCollum grabbed me, first, by the arm.

Q. What next?

A. All nasty talk they put out of their mouths. [Witness here detailed the conversation on the part of her tormentors, but it was of too obscene a nature to permit of publication.]

Q. What was your condition when they left you? How did you feel?

A. After they got done with me I had no sense for a long time. I laid there—I don't know how long.

Q. Did you get up that night?

A. Yes, sir; and walked back to the house again.

Q. Have the Ku Klux ever come to you again?

A. No, sir; they never came back no more after that; they came back, too, but I was never inside the house.

Q. Did your husband lay out at night?

A. Yes, sir; and I did, too—took my children, and when it rained thunder and lightning.

Q. When they came back, what did they do?

A. When they came back, I wasn't there; I went there the next morning, and there was a burnt chunk down in the corner.

Q. Did it burn the house any?

A. No, sir; it didn't burn it—they done that to scare my old man; and after that my old man and me drowned our fire out every night, and went away.

Q. Did they come there any more?

A. They didn't come any more, at all; the house was burned the next morning when I went to it.

Q. Did they burn your house down?

A. Yes, sir; I don't know who burnt it down, but the next morning when I went to my house it was in ashes.

Q. Why did you lay out?

A. We laid out in the woods.

The Court. Why did you lay out?

A. We went away up towards the river.

Q. To get out of the way of the Ku Klux?

A. Yes, sir; I got out of the way of them.