ALABAMA. 



9 



truly as they shall come to your knowledge, 

 to the best of your understanding.' The good 

 name and fame of the State of Alabama are 

 inseparably connected with the fidelity of 

 her people to the laws. No man, whoever he 

 be, whatever his pretensions, is honest or pa- 

 triotic, who, in the remotest degree, by look, 

 word, or deed, aids, countenances, or encour- 

 ages the ill-behavior which is declared against. 

 It is a high crime, at this delicate juncture in 

 our political circumstances, to bring about a 

 necessity for applying to these communities 

 the stringent correctives contained in the act 

 of May, 1870, and in other recent legislation 

 of Congress. The true, the peaceable, the 

 only constitutional means of getting rid of an 

 obnoxious law is to procure its legislative re- 

 peal. This, under a republican form of gov- 

 ernment, is sure to occur whenever the major- 

 ity of the people are persuaded that it should 

 be repealed. Until that time, the minority 

 must content itself with the use of moral sua- 

 sion, and instructing the public mind, with the 

 view of producing the desired change in the 

 public sentiment." 



There appears no record of any indictments 

 for these alleged violations of the act of Con- 

 gress. A sub-committee of the congressional 

 " Ku-klux committee " visited the State, and 

 spent some time, during the summer and fall, 

 in making investigations. A large number of 

 witnesses were examined, and gave very con- 

 flicting testimony. Many persons, represented 

 to be gentleman of high character and un- 

 doubted veracity, testified that the condition 

 of the State was in general very peaceable, and 

 the citizens were inclined to obey the laws. 

 Colonel Lowe, formerly a Confederate officer, 

 on being asked about the Ku-klux Klan and 

 the Loyal League, said the former was the off- 

 set of the latter. He never was a member of 

 either, but thought one the cause, and the 

 other the effect. The League arrayed bad 

 whites and negroes against the best elements 

 of society. The country was disturbed, and 

 civil law feebly executed ; and the Ku-klux 

 proposed to repress crime and preserve law 

 and order in the interest of society. He be- 

 lieved neither organization now existed in 

 North Alabama. The country never was in 

 a quieter or more peaceable condition than 

 since the last election, when the people had 

 regained, in a great degree, the control of their 

 State government. 



Captain L. W. Day, who had been an officer 

 in the Federal army, and was at the time a 

 United States Commissioner and clerk of the 

 District Court, bore testimony to the generally 

 peaceable and law-abiding character of the 

 people, and expressed his belief that leading 

 Democrats in the State were opposed to all 

 lawless proceedings. Another gentleman testi- 

 fied that he was a Republican and in favor of 

 law and order, that he had been three times 

 foreman of the grand-jury in Colbert County, 

 and had had the amplest opportunity and the 



fullest cooperation of his conjurors in the inves- 

 tigation of crime, that he believed that the 

 general sentiment of the people is opposed to 

 lawlessness, that he was satisfied no Ku-klux 

 organization now existed, and that the occa- 

 sional outrages were perpetrated by a few men 

 banded together to gratify their private malice 

 or for mere personal objects, and not for po- 

 litical purposes. 



Captain Daniel Coleman, Solicitor of Lime- 

 stone County, was examined particularly with 

 reference to the condition of affairs in his 

 county. He said that there had been a good 

 deal of crime in that county, but that it had 

 not a political aspect ; that men had banded 

 together and operated in disguise to gratify 

 their personal malice, to achieve private ob- 

 jects, or for horse-stealing, or other purposes 

 of plunder, but that the balance-sheet 

 showed a decided balance in favor of a con- 

 servative, law-abiding, peaceful public senti- 

 ment ; that the most vigorous efforts had been 

 made by the civil authorities of the county, 

 supported by public sentiment, to bring offend- 

 ers to justice ; that a number of offenders had 

 been arrested and indicted, and would be pros- 

 ecuted with energy ; and a mass meeting of 

 citizens had been held at Athens, and had de- 

 nounced lawlessness, and pledged its support 

 to the civil authorities. 



Evidence of a contrary purport to this was 

 given mainly by negroes, and related to indi- 

 vidual cases of violence, having no obvious 

 connection with political affairs. Governor 

 Lindsay and Judge Busteed, while at Washing- 

 ton, declared emphatically that there was no 

 more disorder or opposition to law there than 

 in any one of the New-England States. The 

 people, they said, " were peaceably employed 

 in developing their material interests, and 

 simply desire to be allowed to pursue them 

 without interference. There is no political 

 agitation of any kind. The colored population 

 is contented, and labor has resumed its natural 

 order, with entire harmony between the em- 

 ployers and the employed." 



The finances of the State, notwithstanding 

 the trouble growing out of its somewhat extra- 

 vagant indorsement of railroad bonds, are in a 

 promising condition. The public debt is stated 

 by the Auditor as $8,761,917.37, which indi- 

 cates an increase of $283,906.62. The Govern- 

 or, however, declares that it is only $5,442,- 

 300, "the University and other funds, what is 

 known as the Patton certificates, and accounts 

 unsettled, or Auditor's warrants unpaid," not 

 constituting, u in any accepted signification of 

 the term, public debt." The receipts of the 

 Treasury during the year amounted to $1,422,- 

 494.67, which is $229,359.24 in excess of the 

 estimate of disbursements made at the begin- 

 ning of the year. The actual disbursements, 

 however, amounted to $1,640,116.99. The 

 discrepancy between the estimates and the 

 actual payments is explained as owing to the 

 protracted session of the Legislature, special 



