The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1851-05-07
Fruits Of political rr..-.oiIi.m.

"By their fruits we shall know them," is the
rule given us wherewith to Judge both the cha
racter and principles of our fellow men and
those of us who are uninspred will find it diff
cult, in this late age of the world, to discover
any better rule Of action. An application Of
this rule to soilism establishes the truth of
what we have long since asserted, that the
spirit which actuates those of our fellow citi-
zens who have committed themselves to this
one idea, is in its ultimate tendencies nothing
more nor less than that reckless spirit Of insub-
pidly impes men to anarchy and every evil work.
AS it progresses in its developments through
the country, we shall be the better able to de-
tect those fruits of moral death which are des-
tined, in due season, to spring from these poi
sonous tares which the enemy has sown in our
ments, which was furnished us few days
since by gentleman from Michigan, fortifies
us in our position upon this matter, and re-
quires no comment beyond simple statement
of the facts in the case.
Most of our readers will have observed
past, gang of the most depraved and despe-
rate villains with which our country has ever
been cursed, was recently broken up IN Michi-
gan, and upwards of fifty arrested and commit
ted to jail, where they are now awaiting their
trial. The crimes with which they are charged
are of almost every conceivable kind and de-
gree, and especially that of burning and destroy
ing the valuable property of the Michigan Cen
trail Railroad Company by means of Internal
machines manufactured expressly for that
purpose, as also for blowing to atoms the
passenger cars containing hundreds of limo
cent travellers as they should be quietly
passing over the road. Stealing horses and
other property, and secreting the same by pass
ing it around their extensive circle Of
membership; counterfeiting bank bills and the
current coin of the Unitod States; and COM
plete system Of levying black mail upon bust
ness men and corporations for the purpose Of
buying the peace of these desperadoes, was the
general plan upon which they operated; and
nearly, If not quite, half million Of pro-
perty has already been destroyed by them
in their attacks upon the Central Railroad
Company alone. These men have made their
headquarters for more than two years past in
township in the county of Jackson known
by the name of Leoni, where they had sue.
ceeded by adroit management at the polls to
elect themselves into the various town Offices
and so obtained, as they imagined, complete
jurisdiction over their whole town. Thus for
tilted by law, they regarded themselves as
wholly safe against all external attack, and for
a long time continued their depredations with
out even the suspicion on the part of the State
authorities of the existence of such an organi-
cation of villany as has recently been discov-
cred. In this town of Leoni, which had thus
become the home of outlaws and villains of
deepest dye, strange as it may seem, Free-soi
had also established herself; and for the last
few years, and since this association has been
formed, the vote Of that to,cn, ,cithout single
exception, as we are told, has uniformly been
a Free soil uote and Leoni has for some time
past been regarded as one Of the strongholds Of
Free soilism in Michigan!
AS we have already intimated, the fact
speaks for itself; and il our Free-soi friends in
Massachusetts have not yet attained that de-
gree of progression which it seems has been al
ready reached by their Michigan brethren,
they can see whittier they are tending, and
where they must ere long land, if they are de-
termined to carry out their favorite principle
that every man may interpret the law for him
self, and obey or disregard its mandates, accord
ing to the dictates of his own individual con-
science.