His wife was subjected to the most revolting indecencies. The last garment that covered her nakedness was wrenched from her person and torn into shreds, leaving her utterly exposed to the malicious and lecherous eyes of the intruders. She was then told "to get her rags on," and go with the party. The children terrified at seeing their parents thus brutally assailed, uttered the most piercing screams, but were ordered to remain behind and not leave the house, or they would be killed. The band started out with their captives in the direction of the house of John and Samuel Hogan, two white men who were known to be Republicans, and had thus rendered themselves obnoxious to the Camp. They compelled the Hogans to accompany them, and started for the woods, nearly a mile from Thompson's house. One Micajah Amerson, a colored man living near the scene of this outrage, hearing the report of the fire arms, arose, and dressed himself, and taking a shot gun, started for his son's house on the Joseph Howell plantation. Amerson was just in time to meet the band having Thompson and his wife and the two Hogans in custody, and was at once seized and compelled to go with the party. Amerson seems to be the only one of the captives able or willing to give an intelligent account of what subsequently transpired, which he did to the writer as follows: "I saw the company in the road, and knew they were the Ku Klux from their disguises. I saw it was no use to try and get away from them, and one of them told me to go along, at the same time striking me with a club. Edward Thompson and his wife (colored), and John and Samuel Hogan, two white men, were with them. Thompson said nothing but his wife moaned all the way on the road to the woods. We went about a quarter of a mile into the woods, and were then ordered to halt. When the halt was made, one of the band gave a peculiar whistle, which was answered almost directly by a similar sound. This proved to be the signal for the appearance of a party who was addressed as the Captain, and who at once took charge of the proceedings. "I and the two white men were ordered to sit down, a pistol being placed at our heads to enforce obedience. The colored man (Thompson) was then told to strip himself naked. This he commenced very reluctantly to do, begging for mercy, and asking what he was going to be whipped for. The members of the band seemed to be enraged at this, and taking out their knives, commenced cutting his clothes off, wounding him in several places. The Captain then struck him a powerful blow with a gun, shattering the stock and knocking Thompson senseless. "No one paid any attention to him as he lay upon the ground,--the Captain and two or three of the band holding a consultation. The Captain then asked for the "executioners." Two men came forward and said: "Where are the warrants?" At this another of the party produced two long leather straps, and handing them to the two men, said: "Here they are."