Washington sentinel. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1853-1855, 1854-10-10


him for the invitation. But ours will, God viii
ling, be the idst, A
The main object of Tins snissiye, however, is
to convey, with the candor of patriot brothers
Of the sworn soldiers OF American liberty, the
injunctions which the occasion demands.
LIST. Wills WE ASSURE you THAT THIS Ex-i
POSTURE INVOLVES AsERious DIsADvAxTAGR TO
THE ORDER, WE COUNSEL you TO AVOID uYPRo-
FITABLE CONVERSATION IN REGARD TO 1T BEYOND
OUR WALLS, AND TO MEET COMMENTS AND QUERIES
WITH THE SURPRISE OF IGNORANCE, AND THE
SILENCE OF INDIFFERENCE. We enioin, also,
upon all, in view of this awakened opposition,
punctual attendance, sacred obedience, unwea-
ried diligence, and indomitable courage and
energy in the holy cause which unites us.
I'd. We enjoin upon you, brothers. by all
that is precious to the patriot, and by all that
is sacred in your obligations, the utmost cir
cumspection in the observance Of those pledges
which you have given, before God and man, to
maintain inviolate the mysteries Of the order.
1t were UNNECESSARILY wrong to suppose that
any one of you could incur the whitening curse
that visits n,
oidy .9.l The slave .l i,
Whose treason like deadly blight,
a Creeps DER the councils OF the brave,
To blast them in their hour of might.
bUT If THE PLEDGES HERE TAKEN WERE SA-
yCREDLY OBSERVED, THE VERY EXISTENCE OF OUR
ORDER WOULD BIZ UNKNOWN; AND THE SECRECY
OF ITS EXISTENCE is IT'S MOST VITAL cHARAe-
TERIsTIc, ESSENTIAL TO ITS EFFICIENCY FOR THE
GREAT, THE HOLY TASK TO WHICH ITS ENERGIES
ARE DEDICATED; for ten true men, with the aid
Of secrecy, would be more effective than an i'll
bound band of q thousand Boosting mystery,
which, schen boosted, is a mystery no longer.
HE EXPOSURE ALREADY MADE OF OUR MYsTEi'
RIEs BETRAYs SOMEWHERE A FIENDIsH TREASON
AND PERJURY, OR woMANIsH WEAKNESS.
Whatever the cause, the fault must be amended!
The order must be preserved at any cost, at
any sacrifice; and by cost we mean not treasure,
for millions cannot heal the wounds of honor;
and by sacrifice we speak not of suffering, for
the agonies of a century would not extirpate
this wrong to the cause of our country. We
REPEAT, THE ORDER MUST AND SHALL BE PRO-
TEcrED. We enjoin upon you, then, brothers,
the most solemn, suspicious, and guarded eau
ton in admissions.
Beware, then, for the evil once done will be
irreparable. Nor is discretion much less indis-
pensable than integrity. The admission of
men feeble Of intellect or purpose, and lack of
speech, not only enfeebles and degrades your
councils and action, but involves the certainty
Of eventual exposure and ruin For the honor
God, your country, and your cause, we invoke
and enioin you, be heedful and wary of this
peril, or ruin will inevitably fall on our heads.
3d.. We consider. II our duty to impress upon
ourselves the solemn and a,cfM nature of the
obligations under ,chich you became attached TO
this order, and ichich render looseless of speech
or hghtness ofsca1iage dishonor and crime.
Those obligations were, it should be remem-
bered, voluntary. Can any human being who
tribes with such an oath, who drags the Deity
from His throne to trample and spit upon Him,
hope for one moment of happiness here, or
expect an exemption from eternal torture here.
after? Ifthere were no God to avenge such
peruries an outraged conscience would dog
the perjured mscreant to the gallows and the
grave. But if even these considerations should
prove Intellectual to alarm the dishonored cow
ard, recreant, and traitor, let him remember
that in rupturing or in trifing with the awful
tie which binds him to tens of thousands of
gallant men, equally bound with himself, he
makes each man of those thousands HIS NOR
TAI FOE. Lethim, then, hare care, nor soeakly
suppose that he can escape the THUYDERBoLT
that must pursue him. Not only will inta,ny
hiss him from ten thousand lips out of human
society, but, go where he may. we will track
his steps. He will be surrounded with circle
of fire. Too late, too late, will the lost and
uincd ~rotek -ealizn tho -uthlass retribution
that rewards the traitor, the miscreant, who
crawls, like the serpent or the serpents bro
Their, into the bosoms of braye and noble men
to sting them with his treason, and yet dares
to hope any other fate than life of torture
and a death Of shamel
" His wing shall the vuture flap
Ger the false. hearted E
His warm blood the wolf shall lap,
Ere life be parted;
s Shame and dshonor sit
On his grave ever;
Blessings shall ballow il $500,
Never, no, never!
Never, never, neverr
Finally, brothers, in regard to the outrage
committed by the exposure referred to, we would |
inform you that measures will be adopted such
as the occasion demands; and we would state
hat the duty of each brother will be performed |
BY remembering, in all the occasions in life. |
hat the individual, the journal, or the society,
hat seeks to wrong our order is TO be regarded |
IS cassed among those whom to aid, encour-
age, or befriend, is a treason 10 your brothers
and wrong TO your country.