CHAPTER VI

“Long live the Klan and those noble spirits who are inculcating its creed into the hearts of slumbering America! This organization happened just at the right psychological time; a little later perhaps would have been too late; it stepped into the breach at the proper moment and no other kind of organization on earth could have possibly met the issue. You know and I know and every other thinking man realizes and will admit the perils that menace this republic of ours. The trouble is, too few people are given to thinking—people nowadays are educated to every damn thing under the sun except think. It is up to us to fill the void and I believe we can put the world to thinking. It is not only the thinking man’s duty to think, but to have the moral courage to teach. In due course of time I feel no doubt but that the influence of this Invisible Empire of thinkers will be reflected in the destiny of this nation. I am a Mason, a Rotarian and several other things, all of which I am proud, but first of all I am proudest of the fact that I am a native-born, white Gentile Klansman. What kind of country would this be with no lines drawn between the Caucasian blood and the African race? It is too awful to contemplate. I solemnly believe that we are facing another crisis in our history; it is slowly, gradually, inevitably and surely approaching. The foreign political and labor class fanatic; the negro; the Jap and Romanism are threatening, if I can read the signs of the times. The new, the reincarnated Ku Klux Klan is, as I understand it, dedicated to the proposition of saving our flag and forever maintaining this government as awhite man’sgovernment. No nobler or grander cause was ever espoused by the brain and heart of man.”

“Emperor” Simmons claims that the “Invisible Empire” is increasing at the rate of five thousand a week, and several extracts from the “News-letters” might seem to prove his point; if not that they might serve the purpose of theleaders of inspiring members to believe that they have the honor of belonging to the great national movement of the century.

In the weekly “News-letter,” dated May 13, 1921, the Exalted Cyclops, of Vicksburg, Mississippi, writes:

“You gentlemen at headquarters will probably be pleased to know what rapid strides the K. K. K. is making in this State. It is sweeping Mississippi like wildfire. We are in hopes of having five hundred members in our Klan by September 1, 1921. When we get our Klan up to one thousand members we have perfected a scheme whereby, while we will retain only one Klan here in Warren County, we will have all the members from each separate district meet once a week and then have a general meeting for the whole Klan each month, as it will be too unwieldy to have such a large body meet frequently. You can readily appreciate this when at our first meeting, when we had one hundred and twenty-five charter members, we had thirty-five automobiles in the grounds of our meeting place in the country.“The reason why everybody here has taken so keenly to the Klan is due to the fact that years ago the Jews and Roman Catholics formed a liaison with the liquor interests and have had politics in this city throttled, and it is our intention to whip and rout them at the polls when the next election comes around in 1922. We intend to put these un-American elements out of office precisely as other communities have done.”

“The reason why everybody here has taken so keenly to the Klan is due to the fact that years ago the Jews and Roman Catholics formed a liaison with the liquor interests and have had politics in this city throttled, and it is our intention to whip and rout them at the polls when the next election comes around in 1922. We intend to put these un-American elements out of office precisely as other communities have done.”

The following letter from Grand Goblin Crippen, of St. Louis is of interest:

“I am glad to report that word comes from the Realm of Kansas that a Ku Klux flying squadron has been formed in that State, and I would also advise that severalKlansmen are getting together a large group of musicians who, they claim, will constitute one of the largest and best brass bands in America, to be known as the Ku Klux Band.”

The “News-letter” of May 27 reveals their claim that Ku Kluxism is making strong headway outside of the Southern States. I quote at length from it as follows:

“Additional proof that the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan is being welcomed with enthusiasm by the rank and file of one hundred per cent American citizens wherever our representatives go is found in the report of Hugh B. Cobb, one of the Imperial Officers, who has just returned from a trip to Missouri and other States in that territory.“Mr. Cobb went to Joplin, Mo., especially to deliver an address by invitation of the Joplin Klan. He says he found interest in Klankraft running high and the members of the organization there are among the highest type of citizens. On his return to Atlanta, Mr. Cobb spent one day with Grand Goblin Crippen in St. Louis. He was greatly pleased with Klansman Crippen and the work he is doing for the organization.“‘It is an inspiration to see the class of citizens who are knocking at the outer door and applying for citizenship in the Invisible Empire,’ said Mr. Cobb. ‘The best publicity or propaganda our organization can have is the criticism of its enemies. No real American citizen is deceived for long, if at all, by these critics, because when he finds out who they are the first question he naturally asks is: Why are they criticizing? And if he has any brains at all it doesn’t take him long to find out.’“Mr. Cobb’s report is indeed very encouraging since it deals with the progress we are making in territory outside of the South. The red-blooded American men of the North and West are accepting the Ku Klux Klan as an American institution, because it is such, and because itis theonlyone hundred per cent American organization in the whole United States. Think it over.“Another convincing proof that the Klan is taking hold is found in the fact that our enemies are so rapidly attacking us. We mean something to them apparently, although they scoffed at us in the beginning. There is very little scoffing going on at the present time, but there is considerable gnashing of teeth. We are glad to say, however, that the bulk of the opposition with which we are meeting now comes from those from whom we naturally would expect opposition and with whom it is impossible for the Ku Klux Klan ever to have anything in common.“At the outset we were opposed by many newspapers who had no idea of our real aims and purposes.They accepted the word of negro associations and Catholics, Jews and other foreigners that we were a lawless gang and criticized us accordingly.”

“Mr. Cobb went to Joplin, Mo., especially to deliver an address by invitation of the Joplin Klan. He says he found interest in Klankraft running high and the members of the organization there are among the highest type of citizens. On his return to Atlanta, Mr. Cobb spent one day with Grand Goblin Crippen in St. Louis. He was greatly pleased with Klansman Crippen and the work he is doing for the organization.

“‘It is an inspiration to see the class of citizens who are knocking at the outer door and applying for citizenship in the Invisible Empire,’ said Mr. Cobb. ‘The best publicity or propaganda our organization can have is the criticism of its enemies. No real American citizen is deceived for long, if at all, by these critics, because when he finds out who they are the first question he naturally asks is: Why are they criticizing? And if he has any brains at all it doesn’t take him long to find out.’

“Mr. Cobb’s report is indeed very encouraging since it deals with the progress we are making in territory outside of the South. The red-blooded American men of the North and West are accepting the Ku Klux Klan as an American institution, because it is such, and because itis theonlyone hundred per cent American organization in the whole United States. Think it over.

“Another convincing proof that the Klan is taking hold is found in the fact that our enemies are so rapidly attacking us. We mean something to them apparently, although they scoffed at us in the beginning. There is very little scoffing going on at the present time, but there is considerable gnashing of teeth. We are glad to say, however, that the bulk of the opposition with which we are meeting now comes from those from whom we naturally would expect opposition and with whom it is impossible for the Ku Klux Klan ever to have anything in common.

“At the outset we were opposed by many newspapers who had no idea of our real aims and purposes.They accepted the word of negro associations and Catholics, Jews and other foreigners that we were a lawless gang and criticized us accordingly.”

There is considerable food for thought in the above extract. In the first place I have never heard, in an experience of nearly twenty years, of a fraternal order sending out a communication in which it designated the outside public or any part of it as “enemies.”

It will be noted in several of the “News-letters” that one of the points I am trying to bring out in my argument is confirmed. It is the classification of the white Catholic and the white Jew with the negro, a classification that can have but one inevitable effect—the creating of discord and dissension among members of the white race.

The last “News-letter” I have read was the one dated June 25. It was read at a meeting I attended in Chattanooga, and was descriptiveprincipally of the work being done on the Pacific Coast by Grand Goblin Coburn, who has charge of that Domain. The report indicated that a vigorous propagation campaign was going on in California and that people were eagerly joining the Ku Klux Klan in response to its appeal for membership on the ground of “white supremacy” over the Japanese. I fully believe that the Pacific Coast will become one of the strongholds of Ku Kluxism, and would not be surprised at any time to read in the newspapers of some surface manifestations of the agitation of the race question. That a movement managed in Atlanta, Ga., has no business meddling in the international affairs of this country is so obvious that it is quite unnecessary to comment further upon it.

The manner in which applications for membership are solicited in connection with the work of the official lecturers is illustrated in the following description of a lecture:

“At the regular meeting of the Newport News Klan No. 8, Realm of Virginia, held in its Klavern, Monday, May 30, a resolution was introduced and passed by unanimous vote that Your Majesty be requested if possible to return Col. J. Q. Nolan to Newport News at a future date to deliver another address. Colonel Nolan spoke at the Imperial Theater with a seating capacity of eight hundred with the standing room only sign displayed before he even began speaking. There were fully as many turned away as were able to hear him. If possible to have him return we will secure the Academy of Music for his address and we can promise him a packed house. Colonel Nolan won the hearts of all who heard him andthe request for his return comes not only from Klansmen but from men and women from all walks of life. At the meeting following Colonel’s Nolan’s address, ninety-one applications were presented and interest has been aroused to fever heat here. If it can be made possible for Colonel Nolan to return, please have him do so. At the same time we would like to extend a warm personal invitation to Your Majesty to come with Colonel Nolan, for Newport News and our Klan would feel it an honor indeed to entertain Your Majesty.”

Several of the “News-letters” support my claim that the organization is endeavoring to throw its coils around all public officers. This is seen for instance in the letter of May 20, 1921, which reads:

“You may state in your weekly letter that in one city in Virginia we have the chief of police, the commonwealth attorney, the postmaster, the police court judge, members of the city council and the managing editor of the leading paper and many other prominent business and professional men. This is Newport News.”

The “News-letter” of June 10, 1921, shows a still more sinister situation. The Exalted Cyclops of Norfolk, Virginia, writes:

“We have just taken in the chief of police. He is a fine up-standing fellow, a major in the World War. We had a hard time getting information regarding him, but when we found that he was eligible we had no trouble enlisting him in our ranks and when he was initiated you never saw such a pleased fellow; he radiated it, and when he learned he was to have our support in upholding the law he was certainly pleased, especially with our military organization, which we offered him in case of trouble. He then informed us that the city is insufficientlyprotected and that we are sitting on a volcano regarding the negro question, that there is a great deal of unrest among them and that we might have a riot at any time and he was very much worried. He told us that not many months ago there was a riot in the negro district, caused by negro soldiers attacking a district police station to release a negro prisoner, but it never got into the papers—so it was news to all of us. He welcomed us and the military company is to be trained and two hundred and sixty repeating rifles will be turned over to us in time of trouble. I asked how many in the three hundred present at the meeting would be willing to join the organization to assist the chief, and every one of them stood up. How is that for one hundred per cent Americanism? They were told they might have to sacrifice their lives in case of trouble, but they did not flinch at duty. The chief of police states that any man we select to head these two hundred and sixty Klansmen will be made by him assistant director of public safety in charge of these Klansmen.”

Imperial Kleagle Clarke, commenting on the above communication, states: “We call that almighty fine. The Norfolk Klan is working along the right line and deserves to be highly commended for the steps it has taken in enforcement of the law and preservation of order.”

An examination of the Norfolk communication reveals some interesting points. In the first place the author of the letter says: “We had a hard time getting information regarding him, but when we found that he was eligible we had no trouble enlisting him in our ranks.” In other words, some of the best and most efficient police officers in the United States areIrish-Catholics, and since, according to the Ku Klux Klan, they are foreigners and to be classed with the negro, it is highly important, first of all, to ascertain the religion of the chief of police. As he probably is not an active churchgoer this task was rather difficult, but when he was found to be a Protestant, he was eagerly sought after. Now that the chief has taken the oath of allegiance to the “Invisible Empire,” and has surrounded himself with his two hundred and sixty Ku Kluxes, I would not give much for the chances of a Catholic to get on the Norfolk police force. It is also interesting to read the fact that this particular Klan states that it is military, and that a military company will be trained and drilled, and that rifles will be issued to this secret organization. If this is a straw indicating the way in which the Ku Klux wind is blowing, it is not unreasonable to suppose that in the course of time there will be a gigantic, secret, national organization drilled as soldiers, and under the autocratic command of the “Emperor of the Invisible Empire.”

The “News-letter” above quoted again makes an extract from the report of the Exalted Cyclops of the Norfolk Klan, which is really more dangerous to the United States than the one previously discussed. It is more dangerous for the reason that it reflects the insane light of religious fervor and fanaticism in connection with this movement, and shows how the attempt of Simmons to build a secret Empireon the religious idea is bearing its fruit. I bespeak for this effusion a careful reading:

“I did not think it possible that my enthusiasm for our noble order could be increased, but your letter of the fourteenth instant, has filled me with added inspiration. Having been offered an opportunity for service in the field in Missouri, I am resigning my position with the government here and hope soon to be among the chosen disciples of our great Emperor proclaiming his inspired doctrine of new freedom to the world. Beyond the simple office of treasurer in my home county I have never sought public honors nor craved political preference, but in the glorious work of this God-inspired order every ounce of my energy will strive for excellence. I shall never seek the honor or preferment of office except wherein I may contribute to the honor and preferment of my Klan. My fellow Klansmen have here seen fit to confer upon me the highest honor within their power, and God being my witness, I would not barter it for any other honor that life may hold. My only consolation in leaving my faithful Klan for a time is that I may aid in the promulgation of the glorious institutions of freedom which my sons battled for beneath the Stars and Stripes for which I have pledged my blood beneath the flaming symbol of an unconquered race of men.”

These “News-letters” are valuable as showing the mental attitude of the workers and members of the Ku Klux Klan. They show that wherever it is possible the national organization desires to throw its net around the officers of the law, and enroll them in the system. Under the guise of assisting the authorities to enforce the law this is done, and to my personal knowledge many conscientious and capable officers of the law believe that the idea is a good one.At the same time it is an alarming situation when police officers and sheriffs who have already taken one oath to the States in which they reside, take another—a vicious and illegal obligation—to an “Invisible Empire,” ruled autocratically by one man who has in mind plans he does not reveal to his followers. What is to happen when the chief of police of a city swears to obey “unconditionally” all laws, regulations, decrees and edicts of the Ku Klux Klan “which have been or which may be hereafter enacted.”

Whatever excuse the original Ku Klux Klan may have had for its existence, it is impossible to conceive any situation arising in this country at the present time that calls for any extra-judicial organization, functioning in secret, and composed of men wearing robes and masks to conceal their identities. And along this line, I want to call attention to a historical fact. The original Klan was organized and functioned at a time when the courts and law-enforcing machinery of the South were paralyzed, but, as soon as the courts began to administer justice, General Forrest, the Grand Wizard, of the Ku Klux Klan, issued an order disbanding the organization on the ground that it was no longer needed. Surely, if the original Klan, having functioned as an enormous “vigilance committee” in several States, found that its services were not required, what real excuse can be advanced for the continuance of anextra-judicial organization in these days of ample courts, able officers of the law and the administration of justice? It seems to me that there are more than enough law-enforcement agencies in the United States.

If the system of judicature in the United States is so helpless that a secret, masked, “Invisible Empire” is necessary to enforce the law, then the cold truth is that the Federal and State governments are abject failures. This then, being the case, it should be the duty of the people to devise ways and means to create and maintain a new system. In the face of the fact that this country has grown from a few small colonies to one of the greatest of world powers, and that the Constitution of the United States has been the basic law under which this has been done, and that our system of law enforcement is entirely adequate, the attempt on the part of any organization whatever to take upon itself the enforcement of the law is a piece of presumptuous impudence. All laws are made and enforced by representatives of the whole people. They are not enacted by or for the benefit of a class and they cannot be enforced by a class.

The “News-letters” also indicate that the teachings of Simmons are taking firm root in the minds of the religious element of the country. While I may be disputed on this point, I believe, from my observations in various sections of the country which I have visited,that the people of the South as a whole take their churches and their religions more seriously than do people elsewhere. The whole structure of modern Ku Kluxism is an attempt to clothe its real purposes and intentions in the garb of the backwoods religious revival. Its ritualism is of the camp-meeting order, and all its ceremonies, as I shall show later, tend to awaken the emotions of provincial Protestantism. History has shown in numerous instances that where this religious fervor is aroused, it produces a blind fanaticism that is one of the most dangerous forces in the body politic when it is turned loose. The inability of the fanatic to differentiate between the political activities of the Roman Catholic Hierarchy and the Roman Catholic Church as a great religious institution is one of the greatest menaces of the Ku Klux movement.

The “News-letters” show further that already the fanatical “citizens” of the “Invisible Empire” are catching hold of the idea of autocracy, and that the “subjects” are addressing their rulers as “Your Majesty.”

Were the situation not so serious and of such vital moment to the American people, this “Empire” of Ku Kluxism would be one of the greatest pieces of humor ever perpetrated upon the American public.

In the printed literature of the “Invisible Empire,” it is stated that those who cannot assume a “real oath,” with serious determination to keep same inviolate, are not desired in the ranks of Ku Kluxism. There is no doubt whatever that “Emperor” Simmons, who probably wrote the oath, has produced a “real oath.”

In making a critical analysis of the oath, I shall first reproduce it in its entirety, and then take it up in sections and show my viewpoint. If this oath is not a dangerous document and likely to imbue people with the spirit of taking the law into their own hands, then a considerable portion of my contention against the Ku Klux Klan must necessarily fail. My case against Ku Kluxism rests to a large extent upon the potential danger to the country from an absolutely secret organization, bound together by this oath, under the sole domination of one man, and likely at any time to draw into its ranks men with no regard for anything but the Ku Klux law.

The oath is printed separately from the ritual, and the name “Ku Klux Klan” does not appearin it. In places where the name is spoken there are asterisks. The document consists of three printed pages bound together, and, for the convenience of the person administering it, is broken up into phrases separated by dashes. I am giving it here properly punctuated so that the reader can more easily grasp its significance. It is supposed to be administered in sections, sandwiched in between the verbose and long-winded effusions of “Emperor” Simmons as contained in the ritual. When the work is conferred by a full-degree team, it is given in “long form” and the procedure follows the order laid down in the ritual. Most of the Kleagles, however, put on the ceremony of “naturalization” alone, using the short form, in which case the oath is administered all at once. In the present mad scramble for commissions on the “donations,” the Kleagles administer the obligation at any time and place that suits the convenience of the “alien” with the ten dollars, and Ku Kluxes are manufactured on the “pay-as-you-enter” style in stores, factories, banks, physicians’ offices and any other place where there is freedom from intrusion. One enthusiastic Kleagle wrote to the home office that he had arisen from his bed one night after midnight, and clad in his pajamas had administered the obligation to a “worthy alien,” whose ten dollars burned so badly in his pocket that he could not wait until daylight to be separated from his money.

The obligation, consisting of four sections, reads as follows:

“Section I. Obedience.“(You will say) ‘I’ (pronounce your full name—and repeat after me)—‘In the presence of God and man most solemnly pledge, promise, and swear, unconditionally, that I will faithfully obey the Constitution and laws; and will willingly conform to all regulations, usages, and requirements of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, which do now exist or which may be hereafter enacted; and will render at all times loyal respect and steadfast support to the Imperial Authority of same; and will heartily heed all official mandates, decrees, edicts, rulings, and instructions of the Imperial Wizard thereof. I will yield prompt response to all summonses, I having knowledge of same, Providence alone preventing.“Section II. Secrecy.“I most solemnly swear that I will forever keep sacredly secret the signs, words, and grip; and any and all other matters and knowledge of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, regarding which a most rigid secrecy must be maintained, which may at any time be communicated to me and will never divulge same nor even cause the same to be divulged to any person in the whole world, unless I know positively that such person is a member of this Order in good and regular standing, and not even then unless it be for the best interest of this Order.“I most sacredly vow and most positively swear that I will not yield to bribe, flattery, threats, passion, punishment, persuasion, nor any enticements whatever coming from or offered by any person or persons, male or female, for the purpose of obtaining from me a secret or secret information of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan. I will die rather than divulge same. So help me, God.Amen!“Section III. Fidelity.“(You will say) ‘I’ (pronounce your full name—and repeat after me)—‘Before God, and in the presence ofthese mysterious Klansmen, on my sacred honor, do most solemnly and sincerely pledge, promise, and swear that I will diligently guard, and faithfully foster every interest of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, and will maintain its social cast and dignity.“I swear that I will not recommend any person for membership in this order whose mind is unsound, or whose reputation I know to be bad, or whose character is doubtful or whose loyalty to our country is in any way questionable.“I swear that I will pay promptly all just and legal demands made upon me to defray the expenses of my Klan and this Order, when same are due or called for.“I swear that I will protect the property of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, of any nature whatsoever; and if any should be intrusted to my keeping, I will properly keep or rightly use same; and will freely and promptly surrender same on official demand, or if ever I am banished from or voluntarily discontinue my membership in this Order.“I swear that I will, most determinedly, maintain peace and harmony in all the deliberations of the gatherings or assemblies of the Invisible Empire, and of any subordinate jurisdiction or Klan thereof.“I swear that I will most strenuously discourage selfishness and selfish political ambition on the part of myself or any Klansman.“I swear that I will never allow personal friendship, blood or family relationship, nor personal, political or professional prejudice, malice, or ill will, to influence me in casting my vote for the election or rejection of an applicant for membership in this Order, God being my Helper.Amen!“Section IV. Klanishness.“(You will say) ‘I’ (pronounce your full name—and repeat after me)—‘Most solemnly pledge, promise, and swear that I will never slander, defraud, deceive, or in any manner wrong the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, aKlansman, nor a Klansman’s family, nor will I suffer the same to be done, if I can prevent it.“I swear that I will be faithful in defending and protecting the home, reputation, and physical and business interest of a Klansman and that of a Klansman’s family.“I swear that I will at any time, without hesitating, go to the assistance or rescue of a Klansman in any way; at his call I will answer; I will be truly Klanish toward Klansmen in all things honorable.“I swear that I will not allow any animosity, friction, nor ill will to arise and remain between myself and a Klansman; but will be constant in my efforts to promote real Klanishness among the members of this Order.“I swear that I will keep secure to myself a secret of a Klansman when same is committed to me in the sacred bond of Klansmanship—the crime of violatingthissolemn oath, treason against the United States of America, rape, and malicious murder, alone excepted.“I most solemnly assert and affirm that to the government of the United States of America and any State thereof which I may become a resident, I sacredly swear an unqualified allegiance above any other and every kind of government in the whole world. I, here and now, pledge my life, my property, my vote, and my sacred honor, to uphold its flag, its constitution, and constitutional laws; and will protect, defend, and enforce same to death.“I swear that I will most zealously and valiantly shield and preserve, by any and all justifiable means and methods, the sacred constitutional rights and privileges of free public schools, free speech, free press, separation of church and state, liberty, white supremacy, just laws, and the pursuit of happiness, against any encroachment, of any nature, by any person or persons, political party or parties, religious sect or people, native, naturalized, or foreign of any race, color, creed, lineage, or tongue whatsoever.“All, to which I have sworn bythisoath, I will seal with my blood. Be thou my witness, Almighty God!Amen!”

“Section I. Obedience.

“(You will say) ‘I’ (pronounce your full name—and repeat after me)—‘In the presence of God and man most solemnly pledge, promise, and swear, unconditionally, that I will faithfully obey the Constitution and laws; and will willingly conform to all regulations, usages, and requirements of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, which do now exist or which may be hereafter enacted; and will render at all times loyal respect and steadfast support to the Imperial Authority of same; and will heartily heed all official mandates, decrees, edicts, rulings, and instructions of the Imperial Wizard thereof. I will yield prompt response to all summonses, I having knowledge of same, Providence alone preventing.

“Section II. Secrecy.

“I most solemnly swear that I will forever keep sacredly secret the signs, words, and grip; and any and all other matters and knowledge of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, regarding which a most rigid secrecy must be maintained, which may at any time be communicated to me and will never divulge same nor even cause the same to be divulged to any person in the whole world, unless I know positively that such person is a member of this Order in good and regular standing, and not even then unless it be for the best interest of this Order.

“I most sacredly vow and most positively swear that I will not yield to bribe, flattery, threats, passion, punishment, persuasion, nor any enticements whatever coming from or offered by any person or persons, male or female, for the purpose of obtaining from me a secret or secret information of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan. I will die rather than divulge same. So help me, God.Amen!

“Section III. Fidelity.

“(You will say) ‘I’ (pronounce your full name—and repeat after me)—‘Before God, and in the presence ofthese mysterious Klansmen, on my sacred honor, do most solemnly and sincerely pledge, promise, and swear that I will diligently guard, and faithfully foster every interest of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, and will maintain its social cast and dignity.

“I swear that I will not recommend any person for membership in this order whose mind is unsound, or whose reputation I know to be bad, or whose character is doubtful or whose loyalty to our country is in any way questionable.

“I swear that I will pay promptly all just and legal demands made upon me to defray the expenses of my Klan and this Order, when same are due or called for.

“I swear that I will protect the property of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, of any nature whatsoever; and if any should be intrusted to my keeping, I will properly keep or rightly use same; and will freely and promptly surrender same on official demand, or if ever I am banished from or voluntarily discontinue my membership in this Order.

“I swear that I will, most determinedly, maintain peace and harmony in all the deliberations of the gatherings or assemblies of the Invisible Empire, and of any subordinate jurisdiction or Klan thereof.

“I swear that I will most strenuously discourage selfishness and selfish political ambition on the part of myself or any Klansman.

“I swear that I will never allow personal friendship, blood or family relationship, nor personal, political or professional prejudice, malice, or ill will, to influence me in casting my vote for the election or rejection of an applicant for membership in this Order, God being my Helper.Amen!

“Section IV. Klanishness.

“(You will say) ‘I’ (pronounce your full name—and repeat after me)—‘Most solemnly pledge, promise, and swear that I will never slander, defraud, deceive, or in any manner wrong the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, aKlansman, nor a Klansman’s family, nor will I suffer the same to be done, if I can prevent it.

“I swear that I will be faithful in defending and protecting the home, reputation, and physical and business interest of a Klansman and that of a Klansman’s family.

“I swear that I will at any time, without hesitating, go to the assistance or rescue of a Klansman in any way; at his call I will answer; I will be truly Klanish toward Klansmen in all things honorable.

“I swear that I will not allow any animosity, friction, nor ill will to arise and remain between myself and a Klansman; but will be constant in my efforts to promote real Klanishness among the members of this Order.

“I swear that I will keep secure to myself a secret of a Klansman when same is committed to me in the sacred bond of Klansmanship—the crime of violatingthissolemn oath, treason against the United States of America, rape, and malicious murder, alone excepted.

“I most solemnly assert and affirm that to the government of the United States of America and any State thereof which I may become a resident, I sacredly swear an unqualified allegiance above any other and every kind of government in the whole world. I, here and now, pledge my life, my property, my vote, and my sacred honor, to uphold its flag, its constitution, and constitutional laws; and will protect, defend, and enforce same to death.

“I swear that I will most zealously and valiantly shield and preserve, by any and all justifiable means and methods, the sacred constitutional rights and privileges of free public schools, free speech, free press, separation of church and state, liberty, white supremacy, just laws, and the pursuit of happiness, against any encroachment, of any nature, by any person or persons, political party or parties, religious sect or people, native, naturalized, or foreign of any race, color, creed, lineage, or tongue whatsoever.

“All, to which I have sworn bythisoath, I will seal with my blood. Be thou my witness, Almighty God!Amen!”

This document is the oath of the “Invisible Empire,” Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, and according to “Emperor” Simmons, good Americans are swearing to it at the rate of five thousand a week! For the benefit of those who cannot readily see the danger in such an obligation, and why it does not belong in the class of obligations assumed by men who join real fraternal orders, let us carefully analyze certain clauses.

“Section I. Obedience.“I, in the presence of God and man, most solemnly pledge, promise, and swear, unconditionally, that I will faithfully obey the Constitution and laws; and will willingly conform to all regulations, usages, and requirements of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, which do now exist or which may be hereafter enacted; and will render at all times loyal respect and steadfast support to the Imperial Authority of same; and will heartily heed all official mandates, decrees, edicts, rulings, and instructions of the Imperial Wizard thereof. I will yield prompt response to all summonses, I having knowledge of same, Providence alone preventing.”

“Section I. Obedience.

“I, in the presence of God and man, most solemnly pledge, promise, and swear, unconditionally, that I will faithfully obey the Constitution and laws; and will willingly conform to all regulations, usages, and requirements of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, which do now exist or which may be hereafter enacted; and will render at all times loyal respect and steadfast support to the Imperial Authority of same; and will heartily heed all official mandates, decrees, edicts, rulings, and instructions of the Imperial Wizard thereof. I will yield prompt response to all summonses, I having knowledge of same, Providence alone preventing.”

Until I had resigned as Kleagle I had never been able to even see a copy of the constitution and laws. This was in the possession of the King Kleagle of Tennessee, who stated that he had had great difficulty in securing it, and had been compelled to give a very rigid receipt for its care and custody. The organization was evidently afraid to allow this booklet to get into general circulation among the members, for the simple reason that its general perusalwould have shown the members the truth. They would have discovered that the organization was a “one-man” affair, with “Emperor” Simmons in practical control, with a life-time easy job, living on “Easy Street” as a result of money that came into the organization from the public. They would also have found that they were members of a military organization, and that the “Emperor” was the Commander-in-chief. Obedience to the “Imperial Authority” means obedience to “Emperor” Simmons.

This first section binds a “citizen” to obey “unconditionally” laws he has never seen and is not permitted to see, and also to obey all laws that may be enacted in the future regardless of whether he approves of the laws or not. Any man who takes this obligation and keeps it, gives “Emperor” William Joseph Simmons a blank check on his life, his liberty of thought, and his entire actions. Any one who doubts my statement has but to read this section of the oath. It is there in plain English. Regardless of the merits of the organization, no fraternal order man ought to be a member of any society in which he has so little voice in the management of its affairs, and the head of which has so framed the constitution that he will enjoy a lifetime of “easy money.” And the incorporators of the “Invisible Empire” say in their application for a charter of the “Knights of the Ku Klux Klan” that they want to be classed with the Masons and Knights of Pythias! Inboth those orders, the constitution and laws of the order are always open for the inspection of any member who cares to see them, and I have yet to hear of an official of Pythianism or Masonry who has been chosen to hold a position for life. Some officials have held office on merit for many years, but their tenure for life is not fixed in the constitutions.

Under the second section of the oath, in the first clause, is found the words:

“I ... do most solemnly pledge, promise and swear, that I will diligently guard and faithfully foster every interest of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, and will maintain its social cast and dignity.”

This is a sweeping declaration that every interest of this organization must be held paramount, and the slightest deviation from absolute obedience and loyalty to “Emperor” Simmons, who is the organization, would mean that the offender had broken his oath. “Maintaining its social cast and dignity”—whatever that means may indeed be a very hard obligation to keep.

“I swear that I will pay promptly all just and legal demands made upon me to defray the expenses of my Klan and this Order, when same are due or called for.”

Here we find that the avarice and greed that permeates the whole system of organized Ku Kluxism has even been incorporated into the oath. When a Klan is chartered, a per capita tax of $1.85 for each member is required to besent to the Imperial Palace. If the organization has 650,000 members, as has been claimed, then there will be derived from dues alone an annual revenue of $1,202,500. In order to insure the payment of this vast sum, the “Emperor” has sworn all his “subjects” to keep up the golden stream that flows into the coffers of the “Invisible Empire.” Under this section, it would also be possible to levy an assessment on all of the members, which they would be bound to pay, or else they would be guilty of violating their obligations. No amount of payment is specified. When a person assumes the obligation, he gives “Emperor” Simmons a blank check on his bank account.

“I swear that I will never allow personal friendship, blood or family relationship, nor personal, political, or professional prejudice, malice, or ill will, to influence me in casting my vote for the election or rejection of an applicant for membership in this Order.”

The “Invisible Empire” wants more “citizens.” More “citizens” mean more money. Under a ruling of the organization no person can be blackballed unless objectors are prepared to stand up in open lodge and state just what are their objections, and then they might be admonished to “lay off.” In the present system of propagation the Kleagle is the court of last resort as to the persons who become charter members of a Klan.

Much capital is made by the organization of the fact that each person who becomes a“citizen” of the “Invisible Empire” is required to take a solemn oath to support the Constitution of the United States. While this is true, the allegiance to the Constitution and the law, is, in my opinion, pure camouflage for the purpose of concealing the deadly fangs of this illegal oath. In considering this point, it should be borne in mind that the members of the original Ku Klux Klan also took an oath to support the Constitution of the United States, which oath can be found in the Prescript of the Order. Just how much weight the original Ku Kluxes attached to the Constitution of the United States when it became necessary to put the fear of God into a “carpet-bagger” or negro is a matter of more or less doubt. They were organized as a matter of necessity for the purpose of policing a section of the country where political madness and hatred reigned supreme. As will be shown further along, a Ku Klux Klan in Beaumont, Texas, in May, 1921, although all of its members had sworn to support the Constitution of the United States, arrested a citizen without a warrant, tried him with a jury, convicted him, and acted as his executioners in totalviolationof the Bill of Rights of the United States Constitution. It has been proven in one instance that swearing allegiance to the United States Constitution had but little effect, in preventing members of the “Invisible Empire” from committing acts of lawlessness. Hence, I believe that the pious and patriotic clause inthe oath of “Emperor” Simmons’ organization is sheer camouflage, because the very document shows on its face that the Ku Klux oath is considered paramount to any other tie or obligation.

In order to prove this latter statement, I call special attention to the following clause, which illustrates fully the relative importance the “Invisible Empire” attaches to the Constitution of the United States and the Ku Klux obligation:

“I swear that I will keep secure to myself a secret of a Klansman, when same is committed to me in the sacred bond of Klansmanship—the crime of violatingthissolemn oath, treason against the United States of America, rape, and malicious murder, alone excepted.”

Note this clause well! “The crime of violatingthissolemn oath” comes first! Treason against the United States of America, rape and murder are afterthoughts. Under this clause, a Klansman can go to another Klansman and confess to having committed robbery, seduction, burglary and nearly every other crime in the calendar, and the one to whom the commission of the crime was confessed would be bound to keep the information secure to himself. But, however, if a Klansman should confess to one of his fellows that he had broken his Ku Klux oath, that violation of the obligation is a crime of so heinous a nature that it is of more importance to the Ku Klux mind than the crime oftreason against the United States of America, which crime comes second.

The most deadly part of the oath is saved for the end. The candidate has been led up to it by high-sounding words about “Klanishness,” and has sworn allegiance to the Constitution of the United States of America. “Emperor” Simmons knew very well that had he started off his oath with this clause, most of his victims would have backed out, so he tacked it on at the end. It reads:

My contention is that this part of the obligation is absolutely illegal, that it is an accessory before the fact to lawlessness and mob violence, and brands the entire proposition as an outlaw enterprise that should be abolished and suppressed by the United States and State governments. Let us study a few of the words, as they stand out so strikingly. “Zealously and valiantly,” “shield and preserve,” “any and all justifiable means and methods,” “against any encroachment,” “of any nature,” “any person or persons,” “political party or parties,”“religious sect or people,” “native, naturalized, or foreign,” “any race, color, lineage, or tongue whatsoever”! Just read these groups of words over and over again! When individuals or a group of individuals proceed to “zealously and valiantly” use “any and all justifiable means and methods” to accomplish a certain specified end, they take the law into their own hands. When the Barons wrested Magna Charta from King John at Runnymede, they “used any and all justifiable means and methods”! When the Germans invaded Belgium, and cynically declared that a treaty was a “scrap of paper,” they used “any and all justifiable means and methods”! When a mob of masked outlaws takes a helpless old man from his bed and beats him up, they use “any and all justifiable means and methods”! When masked men drive up to a hotel and seize a helpless woman, convey her to a secluded spot, strip her clothing from her body and cover her with tar and feathers, they have used “any and all justifiable means and methods.” Under this outrageous oath, any band of ruffians or outlaws can defend any lawless action they wish to commit on the ground that the “means and methods” were “justifiable.”

In the concrete instance I have previous mentioned, where theJohnson City Staffundertook to protest against the coming of Ku Kluxism to the town, the spirit of the “Invisible Empire” interpreted “freedom of speech” tomean freedom only in so far as the Ku Klux Klan was allowed to proceed with its affairs unmolested. As soon as opposition developed the Ku Klux “freedom of the press” manifested itself in a desire to boycott the newspaper. Under the obligation to use “any and all justifiable means and methods” I see no reason to deter a local organization from taking an editor out and administering a liberal coating of tar and feathers, in case he should presume, in the columns of his paper, to antagonize the “Invisible Empire.”

I have been a student of the Constitution of the United States for twenty years, but until I saw the oath of the Ku Klux Klan, I never knew before that “white supremacy” was a “sacred constitutional right.” The Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments to the Federal Constitution removed all political barriers against “race, color, and previous condition of servitude,” and guaranteed all citizens of the United States equal protection under the laws. The Ku Klux oath, on the other hand, binds its followers to “use any and all justifiable means and methods” to enforce “white supremacy,” and I see no reason why members of the organization would not interpret it to excuse any and every shade of mob violence, lynching, hanging, or burning of negroes.

By the term “separation of church and state” is usually meant the resistance to the advance of the Catholic people in the political affairs ofthe country. Preachers of Protestant Churches may get up in their pulpits and talk politics, may make speeches on the stump, and may take upon themselves the general duties of running a community, but their actions are seldom criticized. The advance of the Catholics in politics, however, is a “union of church and state,” in the popular conception, and this advance, the Ku Klux swears that he will resist by “any and all justifiable means and methods.” The methods may be lawful and they may not be, but to the “Invisible Empire’s” obligation they would be “justifiable” if they succeeded in driving the Catholics out of public life.

It would also be well to note the blanket phrase “the pursuit of happiness.” The oath says “use any and all justifiable means and methods” to secure the “pursuit of happiness,” which, by the way, is also classed as a “sacred Constitutional right.” This covers a multitude of things. A Ku Klux might derive unbounded happiness out of covering his neighbor’s body with tar and feathers, while the victim of the performance might become a most unhappy individual as a result of the operation. The oath means in a few words that whatever suits the Ku Klux mind, whatever it wants to do in a community, it is going to use “any and all justifiable means and methods” to accomplish. The midnight prowler in his mask and white robe might well ask the question: “What does a little thing like a police force and sheriff’s posse matter. If they attempt to interfere with us,we will simply remember our Ku Klux obligation, and ‘zealously and valiantly shield and preserve our pursuit of happiness by any and all justifiable means and methods.’”

Under this section, any sort of crime can be excused in the mind of the person who commits the crime. “But,” the answer probably will be, “an act is not justifiable unless it is legal.” The obligation might easily have been written so that the distinction could have been clearly stated, but it was not. That oath on its face is an accessory before the fact to any and all kinds of crimes and outrages, and placing such an obligation indiscriminately in the hands of men of average intelligence is like giving dynamite to little children and expecting them not to be blown to pieces.

In summarizing the oath of the “Invisible Empire,” there are three salient things that stand out very prominently:

First: It binds men to obey unconditionally laws they know nothing about, and laws which will be enacted in the future, and to follow blindly an organization which is largely a one-man affair.

Second: It places the Ku Klux obligation prior to the obligation to the government of the United States.

Third: Its last paragraph is illegal, and is nothing more or less than the condonement of mob rule and the use of methods in carrying out its views that are contrary to all the basic laws of the land.

This chapter might well be entitled “Ku-Kluxing a Sacrament,” or “How the Kleagles, for Ten Dollars, profane Christianity’s Holiest Rite.”

I venture to express the opinion that this is the first time in the history of the United States that a ritual of a secret order, genuine or alleged, has ever been copyrighted, and the very fact that itiscopyrighted suggests pertinent questions. As a general rule the protection of the copyright laws is a matter of dollars and cents to an author, and the first question that suggests itself is: what royalty does Simmons get from the “Invisible Empire” for the use of his printed productions? Then comes the further question: in whom does the title to the copyright rest? does Simmons own it, or has it been assigned to the corporation? If Simmons owns the copyright, and should die, would the title to the ritual pass to his heirs or would the members of the Klan have anything to say as to the ownership of the secret book of theirorganization? If the question be answered in the negative the curious spectacle would be presented of an organization paying a royalty to people not members of that organization. Another consideration is the fact that as the law requires two copies of a book to be deposited in the Library of Congress, the pages of this “secret” document are open to the study of any one who cares to go to Washington to examine them. Therefore, in his desire to secure unto himself the property rights in the ritual, Simmons, who took the oath not to divulge any of the secrets of his organization, violated his obligation from the very beginning. As I am no longer a member of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, I have no interest whatever in the relations of Simmons to his organization, but merely suggest these questions for the benefit of the members who may be interested in the financial side of their own movement.

The name of the Ku Klux ritual is the “Kloran.”

Before discussing this name, which has an interesting story, it is necessary to state that in all of the Ku Klux lingo, many words have been formed by the placing of the letter “L” after the first letter of a word. Thus we have “Klavern,” the meeting place of the Klan, from “Kavern;” Kloncilium, from Koncilium; Klaliff, from Kaliff, etc., etc. The name “Kloran” is the word “Koran” with the letter “L” placedafter the “K.”

The Knights of the Ku Klux Klan is an “Invisible Empire” composed of none but Protestant Christians, yet it appropriates the name of the Mohammedan Bible for its sacred book.

The “Kloran” is called the “white book,” and on its front cover bears the inscription “K-Uno,” from which is inferred that it is the first degree of Ku Kluxism. There is a hint in the “sacred and inspired” pages that there are other degrees to be taken, after the member has thoroughly imbibed the pages of the “Kloran,” and has passed an examination upon the same. What these “higher degrees” are, no man, as far as I can learn, knows save only him, who “for fourteen years” communed with the gods and prepared himself for the sublime mission of saving the United States from nearly half of its own citizens.

On the inside cover is the “Ku Klux Kreed” which is borrowed from the creed of the original Klan, with such further additions as Simmons in his infinite wisdom saw fit to add, and this is followed by the “order of business,” which is similar to the average secret order, but expressed “Simmonsly” and not in the usual plain language of other organizations.

The officers of the Klan as then set forth are “The Exalted Cyclops,” who corresponds to the President; the “Klaliff,” to the Vice-President; “Klokard,” the lecturer; “Kludd,” the Chaplain (borrowed, by the way, from thename of the high priest of the ancient Druids); the “Kligrapp,” the Secretary; the “Klabee,” the Treasurer; the “Kladd,” the conductor; the “Klarogo,” the inner guard; the “Klexter,” the outer guard; the “Klokann,” the investigating committee; and the “Night-hawk,” who has charge of candidates.

The text of the “Kloran” starts off with an “Imperial Decree” written in the “Simmons” language, and signed by “His Majesty,” telling the members that this book is “thebook” of the “Invisible Empire,” and that the decree to preserve it, and study its sacred teachings is as binding as the original obligation. Then follows a complicated diagram of the “Klavern,” or meeting-place, showing the stations of the numerous officers and the routes taken by candidates when going through the floor work.

The “opening ceremony,” which is supposed to be inflicted upon the Klan every time it meets, covers eight closely printed pages of the “Kloran,” and is filled with tiresome and boring conversation between the various officers. An opening “klode,” to the tune of “Greenland’s Icy Mountains,” with its chorus “Home, Sweet Home” is then to be sung, and this is followed by a long-winded prayer ending with a petition to the Lord to “bless our Emperor.” After more words, the poor Klan at last finds itself open.

Then follows the “closing ceremony” which contains five pages of the same sort of wordydiscourse, with a verse to the tune of “Blest be the Tie that Binds,” a prayer for the success of the “Invisible Empire,” and the weary Klansmen are then allowed to go home.

The bulk of the “Kloran” is taken up with the “ceremony of naturalization.” In the entire ritual the alleged fraternal order is called the “Invisible Empire,” with only an occasional reference to its legal incorporated title. The candidate is an “alien” until he has been bored to death to the extent of about thirty pages, whereupon he is made “a citizen” of the “Invisible Empire” through the process of “naturalization.” It is rather a curious anomaly that an American citizen, who does not need to be naturalized to enjoy the privileges of American citizenship has to be “naturalized” as a Ku Klux, while the foreign born, the Catholics and the Jews cannot be naturalized at all. They are forever “aliens.”

The ceremony of naturalization consists in walking the candidate from station to station, causing him to listen to verbose passages, swearing him to the obligation previously referred to, threatening him with death if he ever reveals any of the secrets, and finally making him go through a parody on the solemn and sacred rite of baptism.

As a matter of comparison with the original Prescript of the Old Ku Klux Klan, there are ten questions which are asked the “alien” upon his first entrance into the “outer Den” of the“Klavern.” These ten questions unmistakably show an intention on the part of the “Invisible Empire” to turn the United States in a country controlled by a “class” as opposed to several “classes,” and are so utterly at variance with the requirements of the original Ku Klux Klan, as to add stronger proof that the present organization is a historical fraud with no right to use even the name of the former organization. These questions which can be found on pages 25 and 26 of the “Kloran” are as follows:

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