As a young man, the acts of these lawless bands made a great
impression upon me. I saw one open battle take place at Malden
between some of the coloured and white people. There must have
been not far from a hundred persons engaged on each side; many on
both sides were seriously injured, among them General Lewis
Ruffner, the husband of my friend Mrs. Viola Ruffner. General
Ruffner tried to defend the coloured people, and for this he was
knocked down and so seriously wounded that he never completely
recovered. It seemed to me as I watched this struggle between
members of the two races, that there was no hope for our people
in this country. The "Ku Klux" period was, I think, the darkest
part of the Reconstruction days.
I have referred to this unpleasant part of the history of the
South simply for the purpose of calling attention to the great
change that has taken place since the days of the "Ku Klux."
To-day there are no such organizations in the South, and the fact
that such ever existed is almost forgotten by both races. There
are few places in the South now where public sentiment would
permit such organizations to exist.
Chapter V. The Reconstruction Period
The years from 1867 to 1878 I think may be called the period of
Reconstruction.
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