Washington, D. C., March 15, 1870.

My dear sir: It would not become me to express an opinion upon any of the legal questions involved in the Georgia bill now before the Senate, but I respectfully call your attention to the following “statements” of facts. I certainly am not surprised that Honorable gentlemen whom I greatly esteem, should express their belief that the outrages committed upon the Freedmen and Union men in Georgia have been greatly exaggerated in the statements that have been presented to Congress and the country. I know that to persons and communities not intimately acquainted with the state of society, and the civilization developed by the institution of slavery, they seem absolutely incredible. Allow me to say, from my personal knowledge, and profoundly conscious of my responsibility to God and to history, that the statements that have been given to the public in regard to outrages in Georgia come far short of the real facts in the case. Permit me to add that I went to Andersonville, Ga., to labor as a pastor and teacher of the Freedmen, without pay, as I had labored during the war in the service of the Christian Commission; that I had nothing at all to do with the political affairs of the State; that I did not know, and, so far as I am aware, I did not see or speak to any man who held a civil office in the State, except the magistrate at Andersonville; that a few days after my arrival there I performed the first religious services, and participated in the first public honors that were ever rendered to the 13,716 brave boys who sleep there, by decorating the cemetery with procession, prayer, and solemn hymns to God.

My time and labors were sacredly given to the Freedmen. In addition to the usual Sabbath services I visited them in their cabins around the stockades, and in the vicinity of the cemetery, reading the Bible to them, and talking and praying with them. It was in the prosecution of these labors that I saw and heard more of sufferings and horrible outrages inflicted upon the Freedmen than I saw and heard of as inflicted upon slaves in any five years of constant horseback travel in the South before the war, when I visited thousands of plantations as agent of the American Tract society, the American Bible Society, and as President of Cumberland College, Princeton, Kentucky. As illustrations of the sufferings of these oppressed, outraged people, and of their utter helplessness and want of protection from the State or Federal courts, I give a few of the “statements” that I wrote down from their own lips. I know these men, and have entire confidence in their “statements.”

STATEMENT OF CANE COOK.

Cane Cook now lives near Americus, Sumter County, Georgia. I heard through the colored people of the inhuman outrages committed upon him, and sent word to him to come to me if possible, that I might get a statement of the facts from his own lips. With the greatest difficulty he got into the cars at Americus, and came here to-day. He says:

“I worked for Robert Hodges, last year, who lives about two and-a-half miles from Andersonville, Georgia. I had my own stock, and rented land from him, agreeing to give him one-third of the corn, and one-fourth of the cotton for rent. We divided the corn by the wagon load, and had no trouble about that. I made three bags of cotton, weighing 506, 511, and 479 pounds when it was packed. Mr. Hodges weighed it again, and I don’t know what he has got it down, but that was the right weight; one-fourth was his, and three-fourths mine. He told me he would buy my cotton and pay me the market price, which was twenty-one cents that day, and I told him he might have it. I got some meat and corn and other things from him during the year, and he paid me $50 in cash Christmas. I went to him last Friday a week ago, (January 29th, 1869) for a settlement. When he read over his account he had a gallon of syrup charged to me, and I told him I had not had any syrup of him. He asked me if I disputed his word. I told him that I did not want to dispute his word, but I had not had any syrup from him. He got up very angry, and took a large hickory stick and came towards me. I went backwards towards the door, and he followed me. He is a strong man and I did not want to have any trouble with him, and I gave him no impudence. I had a small piece of clap-board in my hand, that I had walked with. He told me to throw it down. I made no attempt to strike him, but held it up to keep off his blow. I went backwards to the door and to the edge of the porch, and he followed me. As I turned to go down the steps there are four steps he struck me a powerful blow on the back of my head, and I fell from the porch to the ground. I was not entirely senseless, but I was stiff and could not move hand or foot. I lay a long time I do not know how long but he did not touch me. Jolly Low was at work upon the house, and he came down where I was, and Mr. Hodges told him he might lift me up if he was a mind to. He lifted me up and set me on the steps. Mr. Hodges then sent about three miles for Dr. Westbrook, and he came and bled me in both arms; but I was so cold my left arm would not bleed at all, and my right arm bled but a very little. The Doctor then told me to go to my friend’s house and let him take care of me. Two colored men Anthony Dukes and Edward Corrillus took me under each arm and carried me to Burrell Corrillus’ house, about one hundred and fifty yards. I could not bear my weight upon my feet or stand at all. The Doctor rode by and told Mrs. Corrillus to take good care of me and keep me there a couple of days. I staid there until Sunday afternoon, when two men lifted me into a buggy and Mr. Corrillus carried me to my wife near Americus. My hands, arms, back, and legs are almost useless. I have not been able to lift a bit of food to my mouth. I have to be fed like a baby. I have not gone before any of the courts. I have no money to pay a lawyer, and I know it would do no good. Mr. Hodges has not paid me for my cotton, and says he will not settle with me, but will settle with any man I will send him. While I lay before his door he told me that if I died he would pay my wife $50. I hope there will be some law sometime for us poor oppressed people. If we could only get land and have homes we could get along; but they won’t sell us any land.”

Andersonville, Ga., Fe, 1869.

Mr. Cook is about fifty years old, has a large frame, has been an industrious, hard-working man, but is now almost entirely paralized and helpless. He is the most shattered, complete, and pitiable wreck from human violence I have ever seen. Mr. Hodges, I am told, owns about six thousand acres of land, and is one of the most prominent and respected citizens of Sumter County. He is a Methodist preacher, and Mr. Reese informs me, as I write, that he has heard him preach a great many times in the last twenty years to both white and colored people at camp-meetings and different meeting-houses in this region. He refuses to sell any of his land to the colored people, and will not allow them to build a school-house on it.

STATEMENT OF FLOYD SNELSON.

Floyd Snelson, foreman of the hands employed by the Government in the National Cemetery, Andersonville, Georgia, says:

“That in July, 1868, after the work was suspended in the cemetery, and the Lieutenant in charge had gone to Marietta, Georgia, and the schools for the freedmen were closed, and the teachers had left for the North, Mr. B. B. Dikes notified all the colored people who occupied buildings on the land now claimed by him, formerly occupied by the Confederate Government, in connection with the Andersonville prison, that they must get out of their buildings within four days, or he would have them put out by the Sheriff, and they would have the cost to pay. Nearly all of these men had been in the employ of the Government, at work in the National Cemetery, many of them from the commencement of this work after the surrender. They all occupied these buildings by permission of the officer in charge of the cemetery, by whom they were employed. Many of them had built these houses at their own expense, and cleared, fenced, and cultivated gardens of from one to four acres, which were covered with corn, potatoes, and other vegetables, which, with their houses, they were required to leave without any compensation. Including these laborers and their families, about two hundred persons occupied these buildings. On account of the great difficulty of getting homes for so many on such short notice, most of these colored people applied to Mr. Dikes for the priviledge of occupying their houses and paying rent, either in money or a part of the crops that they were growing. But he refused, and said they could not stay on any terms. On the day appointed by Mr. Dikes, (Wednesday, July 29th, 1868,) the most of the white people in from six to ten miles around, appeared in Andersonville, with their arms, and Mr. Souber, the magistrate of the district, and Mr. Raiford, the Sheriff of the county, accompanied by a party of some twenty-six or thirty armed white men, went to the houses of all these people, (except a very few who had vacated their premises,) and threw all their furniture, and provisions of every kind, out of doors. They then nailed up the doors of all their cabins, on the inside, and punched off a part of the roofs, and got out in this way. By about two P. M., all these people, with their furniture, bedding, provisions, and everything that they possessed, were turned out of doors.

“About four o’clock, the most violent rain storm, accompanied with the most terrific thunder and lightning ever known here, commenced and continued the most of the night. Every mill-dam and many of the mills in a circle of ten miles were washed away and so completely destroyed that but one of them has been repaired so as to be used. The women some of them about to be confined children and invalids were exposed to this storm during the night. Their beds, clothing, provisions, and themselves were as completely drenched as if they had been thrown into a brook. Some of these people got homes by working for their board. Some able-bodied men got twenty-five cents a day. Some of them, (Deacon Turner Hall, of the Congregational Church, Andersonville, among the number,) walked from ten to twenty miles a day, and could get neither homes nor work at any price at all. Many women and children lay out of doors guarding their things, and exposed to the weather nearly a week, before they could get any shelter at all their husbands and fathers roaming over the country to find some kind of a home. The Rev. F. Haley, of the American Missionary Association, arrived the next day, to look after the property of the mission. His life was threatened, but the colored people rallied around him to protect him, and he left the next day unharmed. Large numbers of the white people, from the neighborhood, assembled at Andersonville every day until Saturday night, when they set fire to nine (9) of the buildings, that had been built by the colored people, and burnt them up, and tore down their fences and destroyed their crops. The colored people, supposing that they intended to burn the buildings occupied for the “Teacher’s Home” and the “Freedmen’s School,” rallied and protected them. No one of the men engaged in these outrages, has ever been arrested or punished in any way, and no one of these freedmen has ever had any redress for his sufferings and losses. I will make oath to these statements.”

Andersonville, Ga., Fe, 1869.

STATEMENT OF GEORGE SMITH.

George Smith now resides five miles from Ellaville, in Schley County, Georgia. He says:

“Before the election of Grant, large bodies of men were riding about the country in the night for more than a month. They and their horses were covered with large white sheets, so that you could not tell them or their horses. They gave out word that they would whip every Radical in the country that intended to vote for Grant, and did whip all they could get hold of. They sent word to me that I was one of the leaders of the Grant club, and they would whip me. I saw them pass my house one night, and I should think there were thirty or forty of them. They looked in the night like Jersey wagons. I supposed they were after me, and I took my blanket and gun and ran to the woods and lay out all night, and a good many other nights. Nearly all the Radicals in the neighborhood lay in the woods every night for two weeks before election. The Kuklux would go to the houses of all that belonged to the Grant club, call them to the door, throw a blanket over them and carry them off and whip them, and try and make them promise to vote for Seymour and Blair. The night I saw them they went to the house of Mr. Henry Davis and ordered him out. He refused to come out and they tore down both of his doors. He fired at them and escaped. I heard a good many shots fired at him. He lay out about a week in the woods, and then slipped back in the night and got his family and moved off. He had bought a place and paid $250 on it but he could not get a deed, and he has gone off and left it. They then went to the house of Tom Pitman and Jonas Swanson, called them to the door, threw blankets over their heads, carried them off and whipped them tremendously. They told them that they were damned Radicals and leaders of the Grant club, and that they would whip every one that voted for Grant, and would not give any work to any but Democrats.

“Bob Wiggins, a preacher, was whipped all most to death because they said he was preaching Radical doctrines to the colored people. It was supposed for a good many days that he would die, but he finally recovered.

“I attended the election at Ellaville. None of the Radicals that had been Ku-Kluxed tried to vote; but a good many Radicals did try to vote, but the judges made them all show their tickets, and if they were for Grant they would not let them vote. I saw how they treated others and did not try to put my vote in. I went early in the morning, and the white and colored Democrats voted until about noon, when I went home.”

Andersonville, February 7, 1869.

STATEMENT OF RICHARD REESE.

Richard Reese, President of the Grant club of Schley County, confirms the statements of George Smith in regard to the treatment of the Radicals in Schley County. He says:

“When the Ku-Klux commenced riding about the country I was at Macon attending the colored convention. When I got home some white men, Democrats, who were friends of mine, told me that the Ku-Klux would certainly kill me if I staid at home at nights. I took my blanket and hid in the woods. I have never had a gun or pistol in my life. I lay in the woods every night until after election. Day times I came home and worked my crop. One day, as I was in my yard, Mr. Jack Childers, a Democrat, came along from Americus, and said to me, ‘Where is old Dick, the damned old Radical?’ I said, ’Here I am.’ He said, ‘Well, you will be certain to be killed.’ I said, ’Well, if they kill me they will kill a good old Radical, and I haven’t got much longer to live noway.’ He then started to get out of his buggy and come at me, but the man with him held him in and drove on. I had the Grant tickets in my house, and went to the Bumphead precinct, but there were more Radicals than Democrats there, and they would not open the polls at all. We staid there till twelve o’clock, then started for Ellaville. The white and colored Democrats were voting, but they would not let a Radical vote until about two o’clock, when Charley Hudson got upon a stump and said no man could vote unless he had paid his taxes. He then got down, and he and nearly every white man there went around to the colored voters and told them that if they would vote the Democratic ticket their tax was paid. I offered my ticket, and they said my tax was not paid, and if I put in my ticket they would put me in jail, and send me to the penitentiary. I had already agreed with a white man, who owed me $50, to pay my tax, and he said he had done it, but when I found him, and he found what was the matter, he said he had not paid it. They demanded $4.50 poll-tax, and I paid it and put in my vote. They were determined that I should not vote, and I was determined that I would vote for Grant any way, as I was the president of the club. They told me if I would vote for Seymour and Blair I need not pay my taxes. After I got my vote in I took all my Grant tickets and scattered them among the crowd, and told my club they need not try to vote, it would do no good. Grant would be elected without Schley County, and we all went home.

“Last spring we built a school-house, and hired a white lady to teach our school for several months. We held meetings and schools every Sunday. Friday night, February 5, 1869, our school-house was burned up.

“Last night we had a meeting to see what we could do about building another house. We have a deed of one-and-a-half acres of land, but there is no timber on it, and the owners of the land around have put up a paper forbidding us to cut a stick on their’s, and see how tight they have got us. We want the Government or somebody to help us build. We want some law to protect us. We know that we could burn their churches and schools, but it is against the law to burn houses, and we don’t want to break the law or harm anybody. We want the law to protect us, and all we want is to live under the law.”

Andersonville, Fe, 1869.

STATEMENT OF REV. CHARLES ENNIS.

Charles Ennis informs me that he was sixty-two years old last June; that he was the slave of Mr. G. C. McBee, who kept the ferry on the Holston river, fifteen miles from Knoxville Tennessee; that he has often ferried the Hon. Messrs. Brownlow and Maynard over the river; that he learned to read when a small boy, and that he is now a preacher and teacher. He is the most intelligent colored man I have seen at Andersonville. He says:

“My wife has been a midwife for many years, and has attended upon a good many white and colored women in child-birth. Last year we lived in Mitchell County, and Mr. Henry Adams, of Baker County, sent for her to attend his wife, who was about to be confined. The child was born and did well. After the riot at Camilla we were afraid to remain in Mitchell County. I lived within three miles of Camilla, and a good many of the dead were very near me, but I did not see any of them. I was afraid to go from home. Dr. Sanders, who attended upon those who were shot, told me that more than fifty were killed and wounded. Mr. Adams said his wife liked my wife so well that he wanted us to go to Houston County with him, and he would pay our expenses there; and then he would certainly get me a school, and I could live on his place with my wife, and he would pay her $50 a year wages. I told him we would not engage by the year, but only by the month, so long as we could agree. Mr. Robert Adams, his uncle, was his partner, and managed the plantation. On the 19th of January, 1869, he told my wife he wanted breakfast very early, as he was going to attend the burying of his nephew’s wife next morning. She got up before day and got it, and I carried it to him and he ate it by candle light. After breakfast, as my wife was going to milk, he came out doors, and when he saw her he said: ’O you d d old b h, I have catched up to you, you G d d d old rogue,’ and a good deal more of the same sort. I was surprised at this, as I knew she had got the breakfast all right, and I had carried it in to him. I went out and asked him in a mild manner, ‘Mr. Adams, what is the matter? what has she done?’ He made no reply at all, but rushed at me and caught me by the hair and commenced beating me. He struck me several times on the head. I made no resistance at all, but said, ’Mr. Adams, I will make you pay, for this.’ This made him still worse, and he took out his knife and said he would give me something to make him pay for he would kill me.

“Henry Ottrecht, a German, and a colored boy named Wash caught him and begged him not to kill me, and told me to promise him that I would not report him. He held on to me until I promised him that I would not report him, and then let me go. He told these men that he would have killed me if they had not prevented him. As he started away to attend the burying of his nephew’s wife, he said to me, ‘Now you may go to Perry,’ (the county seat,) ’and report me if you want; but if you do I’ll be d d if I don’t kill you.’ At night my wife heard him tell Charles Evart, a freedman, about the scrape, and he said he would have killed me if they had not held him, and he would kill me anyway, if I reported him. I was a slave until freed the by war, but I never received such treatment during all my life as a slave. I waited on officers in the Confederate army from 1862 until the surrender. The last six months I was with Lt. Col. Jones, Second Georgia Reserves, at Andersonville. I never received a blow or a harsh word from one of them. I have traveled a great deal before and since the war. I know that the colored people are more brutally treated now than they were in slavery times. A great many more are beaten, wounded and killed now than then. I know a great many cases where they have been beaten to death with clubs, killed with knives and dirks, shot and hung. We have no protection at all from the laws of Georgia. We had rather die than go back into slavery, but we are worse treated than we ever were before. We cannot protect ourselves; we want the Government to protect us. A great many freedmen have told me that we should be obliged to rise and take arms and protect ourselves, but I have always told them this would not do; that the whole South would then come against us and kill us off, as the Indians have been killed off. I have always told them the best way was for us to apply to the Government for protection, and let them protect us.”

Andersonville, Ga., February 10, 1869.