The true Democrat., 1855-08-21


 personally and politically dislikes, and whom he knows to be unworthy and dishonest. Car red out to its probable and legitimate conse- quences, view is presented, from which every patriotic and honest citizen will, sooner or la- ter recoil with horror. There is no middle course left to any one that joins the order He is compelled, by means of most horrible oath, to s'comply with the majority, though 1t may conflict with his own preference" he must have no personal preference, and if he has, he must lay it down sacrifice upon the proscrip- tive altar of the order. No longer man of his own will-no longer freeman, he must do as a majority commands him, even though it conflicts with all of his preconceved notions of right and justice.
 And as far as all this goes in disarming man of his freedom and of those attributes which make him respectable, 1t will be seen, by refe- renee to one of the oaths administered to him, there is a still greater degradation to which he must submit. It is this; on entering the order he must swear "aosh Ais 1etthand upon hs breast
 
 he "w'H ans'oer any imperaiive notice issued by the proper authority; OBEY the COMMAND of Me State council, President or his deputy, a0Iile as seasbed Jy such notice, and respond to tic cainp o sign O. C cry of the o,1er unless it Je physically impossible"
 Freemen no longer, a master-many mas. ters-must be obeyelt The member must not stop to question the justice or the consequences not even the lawfuness of the commands of the President or his deputy, and obey them Ae must, or incur Oou use the language of the oath, ) 'tthe penalty cf erconamunicatiom from tue orderi tie JoJeiture of aU intercourse acih its members, and being denounced in aUHe societies of Me sanse as u1Ifl traitor to his Goa and his country"
 What man, who takes such an oath, so posi- tive, so unconditional so solemn, can regard himself the freeman that our laws and institu- tions declare him to be? Whom could any one imagine greater slave He cannot vote as he pleases He must "comply with the will of the majority" He cannot act as he pleases.- He must obey the President or his deputy Can any one imagine greater political slave ? Even in the common transactions of lfe if commanded, he must obey. He has swo,n to obey and he must obey or be 'ercozan,,t,ucated' and pronounced "a traitor to his Cod and his country"
 Such is one feature of know nottingham. It is not a fictiOn-it is no romance. It Is the fact, the solemn, horrible fact that to become know nothing is to become slave. It is impossible to make any thing else out of the ritual.
 And there is still another, if possible, still more revolting to an honorable and christian man. It is the oath to conceal ones member ship and even the existence of the order itself. It is true that this obligation is now dslsed by the councils, but it was in use, and brought to many, perhaps for the first time in their lives, scribes "that you a0iN not, under a''y circumsta,- ces expose tie nanae cf ony member cf his order, nor yeveal Me existence cf such an association"
 Thus one swears to tell falsehood. When questioned as to his membership as to the ex- stence of such an association he is compelled to deny u-le is sr0o1n to deny t' How does this accord with one of the tilst precepts of re- 1 l9ion-how does it accord with that portion of the know nothing platform itself which ac- knowedges a Supreme Being that rules the Universe?
 Freenen. Christians of Arkansas! read the know nothing ritual and its oaths and obliga- tions, and say can you subscribe to them. You are now freemen, and you are now gultless of the crime of fllsehood, are you willing to sac rifice all and go into this secret political asso citation for the purpose of aiding in putting into power few disappointed office seekers, who have invented and coined this trick for that purpose. Are you willing to sacrifice your in dependence and your sacred regard for the truth for such unworthy purposes or indeed for any ! purpose on earth?
 It is Whig trck-a whig invention to de- ceiyc and mislead democrats and to defeat and destroy the democratic party. It is nothing else. The honest whgs upon the street in this city So confess, and here there are but few ex- captions of whigs declining to join it. All over the Union the whig party is gone. We scarce y ever hear the mention of its name-it has been absorbed in the whirlpool of know noth- ingism.
 But it is otherwise with the democratic par. ty, While almost without an exception, the whis papers and whig leaders are loud in then advocacy of know nothingism, the democratic  papers and democratic leaders are opposed to 1t It is impossible to disguise the truth that itis a whig conccrn-a whig trick the same oa coon,