Report of the Joint select committee appointed to inquire into the condition of affairs in the late insurrectionary states, so far as regards the execution of laws, and the safety of the lives and property of the citizens of the United States and Testimony taken.

1566 CONDITION OF AFFAIRS IN THE SOUTHERN STATES.
that sort had played out in this country." One of them remarked, " We don't care a
damn about it's being played out; we want Zeke High. If you won't open the door,
give us the keys, or we will have to go to the extreme of hnurning down the house.
We are going to have him." Says I, "If that is your intention, let me loose, and I
will go and get you the keys."' No one said anything for some time. One of them
said, "Doc, give me the keys." Says I, "Keys, hell! how can I get away? This man
has me by the hand yet." They had great long navy six-shooters, and by this time a
dozen of these six-shooters and navy revolvers and guns of every kind were out. Says
I, "I can't get loose." I heard some of them laughing. One says, "Doc. give me the
keys." Says I, "Keys, hell! there's that fellow holding me by the hand. How can I
get loose to get you the keys until this man lets me loose? I don't think my finger or
arm will hold on until I can pull him through the window." I heard some of them
laughing and snickcring. One of them said-he seemed the head leader-" Tell your
wife to bring them." I turned my head, and said, "Mother, bring me tho keys here."
Woman-like, all over the world, she was excited, of course. She brought me the keys,
going up stairs for the cell key. She, like any other woman, started and says, " You
are not going to hurt Doctor Moore?" He snys,': Madam, we love Doctor Moore, and
won't hurt a hair of his head; but we want Zeke High. If you will be quiet, we won't
hurt you, but if you commence to row, we will not answer for the consequences."
She was all in a shiver, and I says, "Mother, go and look on the mantelpiece, and
bring the front-door key." Then she brought them, and I gave them up. I says,
"Now, gentlemen, let me go; I am sick and want to lie down, and would rather you
would go away." The man applied the key to the door to open it, and this man let
me go, and they all went inside of the house. They started into my house, into my
niece's room, and I said, " Gentlemen, by God, go back; this is a private arrangement,
al(id the ladies are not fixed to see gentlemben." The leader said, jumping back, " 0,
I am very sorry; I thought that was the way to the jail." He says, " Come back."
He says, " Open the door for us." I says, "By God, I am still in the same fix; this
man is holding m1e by the fitnger." Then he told him to let, me loose. The fellow
stood there holding me, and holding his pistol right before me. IHe could have shot
me all to pieces in a nlinuute and a half. He says, "Tell him, God damn hini, to let
him loose," and the man let me loose. I started to the door and started out. This
man walked up aind gathered me by the arm, and walked to the door that goes to the
jail, and says, "Open the door." I says, "You have got all the keys; you can
ullock it yourselves." He says, "Here is the key, damn it." Then I unlocked the
door anid went up and went to the second door. I opened that door, and says, "Here
you are in the jail now; I will go back; I am sick." He says, "You go with us.
There's no use in talking, Doc; we are going to have him. We know you; we love
you; we know you have dote right and honest, but you must and shall go with us."
I didn't know who the devil they were, and didn't know how to get along with them.
I thought I would go. I went up and unlocked the door. They said, " Show us the
cell." I said, " Here e is."7 I went up and unlocked the toplock of time cell. I hadn't
unlocked one of the cells before in four months. There's about twenty keys on the
string, and I had to unlock the different cells, and of course I could not recollect all the
keys, but fortunately I happened to strike the key of the top lock and opened the lock.
Well, I was very sick, and it was very cool that night, and I was in a condition, of
course, like everybody else -would have been with an armed mob about him, who didn't,
know who was his friend, or didn't know whethether anybody was on e'arth, and I felt
kind o' shliaky. I had a negro up there, a prisoner in the jail for nmurder. I had taken
himn out and made him. a friend of mine, and he attended to all the jail, locked all the
cells, took out the prisoiers, and everything of the sort. I founid I couldn't find this
key, and I said, " Here, boys, take your damn keys; I am goinlg to lie down." One of
them slapped me on the shoulder, and says, " Stop." "What for h" said I. He says,
"Unlock that cell." Says I, " I can't do it; I can't find the key." He said nothing, but
he took the keys out of mly hand. I thought of that boy, and called him, "Lewis."
"Sir," says he. Says I, " Unlock this cell," and he came, and in about two minutesno, hardly more than a minute and a half-he unlocked the cell and threw open the
door. I says, "Now, gentlemen, here's the cell-door open; I will go down." One of
them, the leader, says, " Hold on, Doe, I am going in tthere to get him out." I says,
"That's nothing to me; I am not going in there." As lie walked into the cell, I heard
a terrible rattling amongst the crockery. He had everlastingl y knocked him sky-high.
Quecstion. Who?
Answer. God knows, I didn't know the man. The negro had struck him with one of
these night mugs as he walked in. He first said. "V Which is he?" I says, "I don't
know. I can go in there and catch any one of them, but I don't know who they are
now." When lie went in I lheard a tremendous lick, then heard the manure and everything splashing over tle floor, and the fellow jumped back and says, " God damn it,
boys, he has ruined me." I asked him, "Where did he hit you?" He says, "God
damn it, Doec, he has knocked out two of my front teeth." By this time I got up and,
says I, " That's all right," and I started out again the second time. He says, " Look