Constitutional Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1824-1832, 1831-10-03

tons superior to his obligations to the Con.
sti'utinn and laws of his country, you will support
no man Tor any office who holds that principle OIL
adheres to the society whose principle it is; that yor
consider n mans allegiance to his country his hull
est earthly obligation, aud that is fit to he
trusted with one of the offices of the country whc
VIII permit doubt TO rest the fact of his allie
glance These L understand TO be your principles
ana sec nothing in them which does not com
memo them In every man whose mind and heart arc
SOUND: Tor there can be question among ason
apic men, That IN free government like ours, the
constitution and laws are onlywsovereign; that
the cace, order, prosperity and happiness of oui
people, depend on the steady faithful and effectual
adminlstratlon of our laws; that any society
winch by the force OF mysterious eaths and oblig
lons, and by the extent its combinations seeks TO
disturb the action of those laws to set them ut de-
nance, to ride over and control them, 10 usurp the
government, to hold the lives, peace and happiness
OF society at their mercy and to establish reign
OF terror over the initiated and uniniiated is Il
political monster fearful as the InrisiLte Tribu
nal OF Germany, or the InguisitioR of SPAIN and
ought to be extirpated without delay by the use of
All the peoceabie means which the constitution and
laws oil our country furnish am further sure that
IN our country, is but necessary to establish the
fact OF the existence of such yociey TO insure its
annihilation.
but gentlemen, although your resolution asks
OF me no pledges PROMISES vet the name and
style of the Convention from which it proceeds
me Anti- Masonic Contention, niay be considered
o"th by yourselves and our fellow citizens at large
as necessarily involving by implication such pro-
misses and plcdges and il rs therefore proper That
should be perfectly open and candid with you,
that there may be misapprehenson b, tween
us, and that you may be able TO disturbances
yourselves at once, by changing your nomination.
II you find that you have acted under mistn Ike in
passing this resolution.
Y GU must understand, then, if YOU are not alrea-
dy afprlzed OF 1t, that, i'll very early life, was my.
self-inltiatcd into the mysteries of Free Masonry
l have been told by Masons that my eyes we're not
fnf,t tl,nM
but my curiosity never led me thus far-and, al
though, L soon discontinued my attendance on
lodges, (not having entered one from curosi-
~ Tor more than thirty years believe) st proceed
ed from no suspicion en- my part that there WINS
any thing criminal in the Institution or any thipp
that placed Its members, in the slightest degree in
collision with their allegiance to their country and
us laws. On the contrary having been before
my IMITATION, assured by gentleman i'll whom
had implicit confidence, that there was NOTHING in
the engagement which could affect either my reli.
gIon or politics (Which / considered as rcomprc
hcndlng the whole rage of my duties, civil and
reilgious, and as extending not to the first de-
gree only bat TO the whole Masonic order) and be-
ing further Informed that many of the most illus
trIous men of Virginia. with Gen. Washington at
their mead, belonging to that ORDER and had taken
the degree of Master, did not believe that there
could be any thing IN the institution at war with
their duties patriots men and christians; nor is
II yet possible for me 10 believe that they could
nave understood the engagement as involving any
such criminal obligations. L have thenceforward,
continually regarded Masonry as nothing more than
social and charitable club designed for the promo
ton OF good feeling among its members and for the
Pecunary relief of their INDECENT brethren | have
indeed, thought very little about it for 80 years.
1t had dropped from my mind so completely that
/ do not believe should have been able to rain
abundance into any lodge at all strict in their cxa-
ralnations. where should have had TO depend alone
On my memory; and so little consequence did / at
tach to 1t, that whenever Masonry has been occa-
sIonally introduced a subject of conversation
have ielt more disposed to smile than to frown
Thinking thus oft, nothing has more surprised me
than to see 1T blown into consequence in the Nor
lherh ana Eastern States, political engine, and
the whole community excited against it as an affair
OF serious Importance. l had heard, indeed the
general rumour that Morgan had been kidnapped
and very probably murdered by Masons, for divul-
gmg their secrets; but supposed it to be the act
of a few ignorant and ferocious desperadoes mo-
we'd by their own impulse singy, without the sane
ton or knowledge of their lodges; and thus think
ing, have repeatedly and continually, bothin CON
vcrsation and letters of friendship, spoken of Ma
SOnryand Anti-MaSoRry as filter subject for f,rce
than tragedy, and have been grcved 1t seeing some
of my friends involved in what appeared to me
such wild and bitter and unjust persecution against
so harmless institution Free Masonry. | have
thought and repeatedly sad that considered Ma
sonry as having more TO do with politics than
any one of the numerous clubs so humorousIy cell
ebrated In the Spectator; and that with regard to
the crime in Morgaps case, il quite as unjust
the private delinquencies of some protesting chris
tans on christianity itself. Thus | have thought
and thus have continually spoken and written in
my private letters to several of my friends 1t
not until the period of your assembling here
that on the occasion of friendly visit from one of
your members, and my taking the liberty to rally
him OH the excessive zeal which had been excited
on occasion so inadequate, that he placed before
me detail of some of the proceedings on the tri-
ais of the conspirators against Morgan: when, for
the first time, saw the Masonic oaths as establish
ed by the testimony both ofadhGrng and seeding
Masons the trials in New York observed
that in of them called the Royal Arch the can
didate swears among other things, that he will aid
and assist companion Royal Arch Mason in dis
tTess, and espousc his far to cxtricatc
him from the same, if in his power, 1chethcr he be
right acrong, and that he will conceal the secrets
of Il companion Royal-Arch Mason given him in
charge such, murder and treason not excepted;
and in other oaths, in still higher degrees, l also
observed that the candidate binds himself to avcngc
the violated secrets of the Lodge by the infection
Of death the offender, and to avenge the wrongs
of brother to the utmost extremity; and the
whole mixed up with the most horrible impreca-
tons and blasphemous mo-keries of the rites and
tenets of the Christian Religion.
In the details Of the trials in the case Of Nor
gam it became manifest that these oaths arc not con
sidcrcd by those who impose and take them mere
idle and unmcaning words; but that they are view
cd solemn obligations which 10 be practically
forced and which i'm the case of Morgan there is
700 much to believe tragjcdily enforced
According to the reports of the details ofthat trial
given at some Of your former meetings, and Civ
on at greater length at your meetings in this city, (at
one Of which, in common with other citizens,
IN, and literally enforced; and, according 10 the
e. hibition Of the evidence made in thOsc reports