Weekly Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1853-1861, 1855-03-08
FROM tht NtWburgh UcInocral-i =
Interesting Speech of MIR. Littlejohn,
the Speaker of the New York House e
of Ass sembly--Important Know
Nothing Developm ents. -

of Ass ssembly--Important Know
Nothing Developme ents.
Every day furnishes us with something cal
culated to develop the rottenness-thef hypo
lcrisy, the tyranny, and the baseness of Know
INothingism. Old blue-light Federalism in it
palmiest days was not half as despotic, no
half as intolerant in its character and princi
pies as this proscriptive order of self-constitu
ted "puritans" The remarks which we pub
lish below of Mr. Littleiohn, the Whig Speak
er of the House of Assembly, in New York
will bear us out in the assertion, and are des
| tined to attract attention all over the country
| The high official position of Mr.. Littlejohn
his ayowed connection with the secret politi
cal society of Know Nothings, and his start
| ling developments of the maehinery of tha
order, win give great significance and impor-
tance to his speech. How any one can. be
connected with party whose organization is
SO despotic and diametrically opposed to the
principles and spirit of freedom and republi.
canism-especially one who claims to be a
Jeffersonian Democrat--is, to us, matter OF
profound astonishment The machinery OF
| Know Nothingism, which Mr.. Littlejohn holds
up to the gaze of the American people, ex.
hibits political tyranny entirely unparal-
leled in the history of this country. Not
even in priest and king-ridden Europe can
! there be found Al ..r-tance v-brrr more power
| IS lodged in the hands OF a single man thar
is welded by JAS w. Barker, the Crane
President of the Grand Council of Know
Nothings in New York; and the same power
is vested in the President of every other Grand
| Council in the Union. The members of the
whole fraternity, throughout the length and
bredth of the land, are the complete vassals
and subjects of these presidential dignitsries
| But, without further comment we submit Mr.
Littlejohn's remarks: f.
"As to his connection with the Know
Nothings, he would tell them all he knew oi
it. Last March, while member of this
! House, some of his friends asked him to at
tend a lecture. He went with them to a
room, where he was assured by the officers
of that society that he was to do nothing that
was contrary TO anything against which his
conscience would revolt. He was asked to
make promise. He did make the promise
and if his recent course was treason, make the
most of it, If he had perjured himself, make
the most of that. He now declared himself
opposed to the principles of this association
He would give, as briefly as he could, a com-
plete exposition of the Know Nothings but
he would say, frona the moment he left that
room in this city, to this, he never entered il
again. 1t was enough for him to say that
he saw in that room what would prevent an
honest man from ever entering again. As to
who he saw there, their names would never
be divulged by him. Was it an Institution to
which an honorable mana freeman-s
Christian-could belong? He thought it was
not He believed men here belonging TO il
were honest, but they were deceived by poll
teal tricksters. In July last Grand Lodge
was organized, called Grand Council. Go to
New York and you find the Grand President
j. w. Barker, occupying power in the
State equal to q monarch. And the Grand
President alone appoints one deputy in each
county and what sort of man will this
deputy be ? Why, a second self. And what
does this deputy DO He is armed with the
power to create as many lodges in the towns
of the State as he pleases. He selects nine
men as the nucleus of these lodges to estab-
lish them-the second self of j. W. Barker
selects these nine men, and these nine men
select three delegates to the Grand Council, to
make nominations and oaths to bind body
and soul of the innocent members of the order
These officers are thus the creatures of one
man-James w. Barker, IN New York. Did
ever man conceive anything so horrible in
republican government. These delegates
are to remain such three years.
Two hundred lodges send thus six hun
dred men to this council, all of whom are the
creatures of Barker. The duty of these men
this Grand Council, is to make oaths to bind
men who are invited to hear lectures and tc
make no nominations Original Know Moth.
ingism was to use influence against foreign
influence. This, as a Whig, he (Mr L.,
could go with. Mr. L. had read here pro-
ceedings of the Grand Council, the purport
of which was that no delegate was to be re-
| ceived who did not sustain their State ticket
and members not voting for Ullmann were
expelled. Mr. l.. commented on these pro-
ceedings, pointing out their tyranny. He in.
quired if in Europe there was any power sc
despotic. Had anything in this broad land
ever been heard of equal TO that Was evel
a man called upon and required to say, unde
oath, whether he did that which the Consti
triton says he may do whether he voted
against certain man And what was th,
crime of voting for Governor Clark ? AnC
yet this society," called American, expelled
men for voting for Governor Clark Wa
such society worthy of the name of Amer
lean? And he would predict that in twenty
four months no man will be found who vii
acknowledge his connection with such poll
teal engine Who were the men on thi
Executive Committee He would not say
it of all, but some of them were men o
broken reputation, whose names were on tn,
| criminal calender of New York-men cor
rupt
There was another power centered Will
these nine men, which was that any FIVE mel
of these councils may reject or black ball an,
applicant Was this democratic ? But VIII,
was this Why, James w. Barker, nigh
lose the power and control he had. II ha
been said that councils may instruct thes
three delegates TO overcome the designs of j
w. Barker. But this is not true. The by
laws gave the right of appeal to j. w. Bar
ker from the councils to the Grand Council
These schemes are perfect they are no
known to the masses-had not been to him
but he learned them since he arrived in Alba
ny Mr. l.. had read resolutions directin
Il ennissaries to be sent To Albany to defeat tn
lrd-election of William II. Seward, as ais
other proceedings exhibiting the powers @
the order. These proceedings were read fron
a newspaper. The first resolution, said Nj
L., required the collection Of some thousan,
men here to instruct members here how TO vot
ON the Senatorial question. Had the people sen
Idiots here TO represent them The next wa.
directing measures to be taken in regard to Of
Tending councils And what was the oifehse
!. They had dared to act independently. Th
Grand Council had made nominations an
because some dared to exercise their rights 4
freemen, to go against the nominations
knowing perhaps, they had been made
they were TO be expelled. ff
"If this Grand Council could do this muc
j. what was there they might not dos He r.
, membered the lnquisition--the acts of I'll
, Jesuits-but theirpowers would be as naugl
compared with this organization. WI
knows but that the thumb-screw, the tortur
of the Inquisition, might yet be ordained
this New York Council But American pow
er and American freemen will never, he b
/. lieved, submit to the establishment of this o
{ ganization."