Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1855-01-26

ONO POLITICS.
Reroluiion among he kaoic .Noihings.
Correspondence ofthe y. g. Tribune.
CLEVELAND. Friday. Jan. II, 1856.
The action Of the State and National
Grand Councils of Know No,hings held in
Cincinnati last fall, opened the eyes, and
cured for life majority of those who had
enjoyed the inestmable blessing Of seeing
+" Sam,"-I speak Of Ohio. A large
majority OF those who joined the Order last
summer and fall were ignorant of its real
principles until after they we're "taken in"
confess | am one OF the number. We
supposed that it was a grand invention to
help freedom, as well as TO curb Popery.-
We did not realize that 1t was defunct
.Naiivissi, galvanized into spasmodic nc
tvity by means OF mystery gripes, and
oa,hs and that the great question of human
rights was completely ignored. and its
discussion practically forbidden. The
realizing sense of these facts has cooled the
ardor of tens of thousands, and from fever
heat last September, the mercury in the
Know Nothing thermometer has fallen, IN
January, to the freezing point
When the State Grand Council convened
in Cincinnati, it was foudly anticipated by
the best men of the Order in this State that
the .Ndiiristic plank Of The platform would
be removed. and that man should be
Judged by his principles, not his birthplace.
It was held that, If the Order WAS sincere in
its hostility 10 Papacy, 1t were gross
injustice to liberal, intelligent Protestants Of
European birth to treat them as if they were
Romanists. But the wise men who
composed that State Council thought
otherwise. Natvism, nothing bu, Na,yisn,
would answer. The cry of "Cropples lie
down" was retained for the purpose Of
welding and using the strong Protestant
sentiment of the community to promote the
ends of the leaders of the Order Now,
this is not the entertainment TO which we
were invited when we sat down to the Know
Nothing bonrd.
Next came the great National Council in
grand, gloomy, and peculiar concayc. The
sschems have tried to cast an impenetrablc
secrecy over its mighty purposes, and
withhold its wonderful resolves from the
knowledge of the rank and file Of the Order
Bu, enough Of the DEGREES of this Council
has come to light to open the eyes of its
followers.
II may all be summed up in a few
sentences. The Council resolved, LIST,
Tha. the Order should be nuiionalized
Cd. That it should occupy such grounds on
the great Slavery issue as would be accept
able 10 the slave power. ID. That the
Loco Foco Baltimore Platform of 1852 was
the right position 10 take. 18th. That the
question of Slavery must hencelorth be
ignored and its discussion suppressed; the
Slavery cancer on the body polite must be
let alone the violation of the Missouri
Compromise must be submitted to quietly,
with the best possible grace the sggres-
sIons of the stakeholder must no, be brough,
into tic politics of the Order for fear o
offending the slsve-holdng members of the
brotherhood the mighty Anti-Nebroska bal
set in motion last summer must be stopped
But why do these things? In order that til,
brotherhood may be unit throughout tn,
Union, aud thereby be enabled to establish
.\aiirism, tranple down the foreign bori
Protestant, under prc,eucc of crushing
Popery, and secure the immense spoils o
Government office as generous rewards ioi
such patriotic services.
assure you that the majority Of the
Know Nothings Of Ohio realize the
downward tendency of the Order. and keenly
feel that they have been sold. But
forewarned is foreamed. Already vigorous
steps have been taken to arrest the
Pro Slavery and Nativistic march Of th,
Order in this State. A reformed Order la,
been instituted; every plank in ITS platform
has been carefully selected for strength
soundness and durability. 1t was organized
exclusively by members of the old Order.
II is known at present as the " Know Some.
things"
The prominent points of difference be-
tween the Nothings and Know
Something's are these: The former pre-
scrbes men OF account of their place Of
birth f; the latter makes principles, not naiiv-
ity, the test Of membership. The former
requires each member, upon his mutation, to
swear never TO reveal the existence OF the
Order, or his own connection with il the
latter requests each member to proclaim the
existence of the new Order, and leaves him
at liberty to confess his own connection with
it, but not that of others, without their
express consent. Tho Know Nolhines
attempt TO conceal not only the existence of
their Society, but its principles; the Know
Something's boldly proclaim and publish
their platform.
The old Oder proscFibes a man if born
of Catholic parents, raised in a Catholic
family, or married 10 a Catholic wife. The
new Order does not hold him responsible for
the belief of others, or the place where he
was raised and nuriured, provided his own
sentiments are 10 concord with the sentl-
men,s of the order The old Order pro-
scribes Catholics of the Gavazzi school, the
fame as Papisis of the Bedini sort. The
new Order treats all Catholics who DENY
and resist the political peiensions Of the
" Mother-Church," on the same footing with
Protestants 1t wages no war on rights of
religious conscience. On the Slavery
question, the old Order maintains a sneaking
cowardly silence completely ignoring the
whole issue, and refusing to permit il TO be
discussed by the Order The other adopts
bold and manly language, covering the
whole constitutional ground OF resistance 10
that curse. This feature is its GROWING
glory, and will make it electrify the hearts
Of the freemen in the West.
But your readers will obtain much
clearer conception of the vast superiority of
the new Order over the old Order. by
contrasting their respective platforms.
have not the technical formula Of the
Know Nothing creed before me, but !, may
be stated thus:
j. None but natives shall hold office.
2. The patriotism, talents, character and
capacity Of citizens of foreign birth shall 90
for nothing; all persons Of foreign birth
should be prescribed.
3. No person born in Canada or Europo
should be permitted TO vote until be has
States.
.. Protestant foreigners should be
prescribed as Vigorously as Catholics, even
tens OF thousands of them are our fathers.
elder brothers and cousins.
regarded pr,ma facis as epemiss Of o vs
Institutions. and be placed on the same Level
where we keep free niggers.
To which should be added:
"lndans should rule this coutinso,
they are the only genuine naliy., ~ =,
sboriEines IN it--all others being foreign
interlopers and alien enemies"
Now contrast the platform Of the Know
Somethngs with the above. II is as follows.
according 10 q coDy a raefnhaf hss nj. . al !.