The South As It Is: 1865–1866

Chapter 13

XII I CONCORD, N. C., September 22,1865 HAVING determined to ride across from Charlotte to Raleigh by the country roads, it became necessary to retrace my steps for twenty miles, and pass again through Concord. An hour before I reached the village it was dark, and most of the houses were closed; but the stillness of the night, as I turned into the main street, was broken by sounds of loud singing that proceeded from the county jail. The words were those of a hymn, and the singers were evidently Negroes. Going on to the hotel, I found two or three Federal soldiers in the office, who were regarded with no very friendly eyes by some citizen loungers, and I at once surmised that election day in Cabarrus County had not passed in perfect quiet. "Any disturbance here on Thursday, sir?" I asked the landlord. "No," he replied; "seen as much fifty times before. Always some whiskey out election times." In the dining room, eating a late supper , was a citizen of the town whose acquaintance I had made when here before, and of him I made the same enquiry. He said there hadn't been no great trouble; not as he knew; some 0' the black ones made a difficulty, but nobody was hurt. There warn't nothin' like what they'd hed in Charlotte, and up here in Salisbury. Forenoon, election day, they run all the black ones out 0' Salisbury. He'd heerd the Yankees jined in, and they made a reg'lar cleanin'. I told him he must be mistaken so far as concerned Charlotte, that the election had been conducted very peaceably; and a soldier who had entered the room remarked that he bad come from Salisbury on the evening of Thursday, and that no riot I35 John Richard Dennett had occurred up to the time of his departure. This contradiction was not very well received, and 1 afterwards heard him repeating his story of riots in other counties to listeners who appeared not ill pleased at the information. "How did the trouble begin, sir?" "The commencement of it? 1 don't know much about it anyhow; 1 didn't see it all myself, but I've been told that the black ones was crowdin' down round the well, and a young man here in town told 'em to leave that and they wouldn't go, so he threw some water on one fellow, and that was what commenced it. The niggers was stubborn and sassy; come up, some of 'em, with sticks; looked like they was ready prepared." "Was there any shooting?" "There was one man by the name 0' Smith, he's a Yankee too, I see him shoot once; yes, I believe he shot off two barrels, in the squar', but his pistol warn't loaded with ball, nothin' in it but blank cartridge. 1 see the sheriff start for him, and 1 run along too, so's if the sheriff wanted any assistance, but before I got out thar whar he war at, I see as many as eight or ten or a dozen 0' the niggers comin' over with rocks and sticks. I turned round to them, and told 'em to drap the rocks. They didn't do it, though they stood, so 1 drawed my pistol and told 'em agin, 'Boys, drap them rocks,' I said, 'or I'll blowout your damn brains, some 0' you'; and then they put 'em down. Well, a crowd came up by that time, and the niggers was run out 0' town, and made a scatterment. That's all the shootin' I see." "I suppose the Negroes carried the news to Charlotte?" "No, up to Salisbury. They went up that same evenin', and 1 heerd they told the Yankees that we'd killed two niggers and wounded seven, and the fight was still going on when they left. But both of 'em's known, and if they told any such story as I heerd say they told, they'd better look out. That's the great trouble with the niggers, they tell too many lies to the Yankees, and the Yankees believe 'em. Let a nigger tell a lie on me; tell lies, and get me up before the Yankees. First nigger does it, I allow to shoot him. Yes, 1 do; I'd hate to git into trouble on account of a nigger, nor 1 don't want The South As...