M'arthur Democrat. (McArthur, Vinton County, Ohio) 1853-1865, 1855-01-26
KnownothingIsm among the Ro.
maus, lsr

ington URioH,n paper that our neigh.
Dor OF the Gazette sometime ago under.
took TO make its readers believe symp.
aihised with the kkow.nothingism, Que
Of the first 10 resort 10 the oaths and the
pledges, the clandes,ine meeings and
midnight cabals, which ere the layorlte
eIpedients Of :he present secret aud pro.
scriptite political party. Not only did
he plot The overthrow OF the State. but
he resolved. in order the nlore fatally to
accomplish this. that Rome should be
deluged in the blood of her most emin.
ent sons. In those days, however. there
were not wanting patriots and states.
men, who resisted, exposed and punish.
ed these horrible rites ana these inhu.
man mschinations; and sltuough the
arch traitor attempted, by Stimulating
his secret purposes, aud by assuming an
air Of injured innocence, 10 battle; the
iue1oisble scrutiny Of his patriotic op.
ponents, yet he could not escape the elo.
quence and vigilance Of such fathers oil
the republic as Cicero OF Arpinum, and
Marcus Portius Cato. Night after night
saw The conspiIators ssstmbls. No one
wss admitted into the recesses Of their
6ebssing orgies until he had given him.
self up body and soul 10 their obliRa.
lions and their objects. The oath was
taken and then sealed in q dIsu6ht of
blood. How far this secret order Ell.
tended, and what disguise it noufished,
can best hs described dy extracting from
the great onhon Of Cicero sgsiust Cat
iline:
"Review with me now the transac-
tions Of the night before last, so shalt
thou understand that l watch far more
visilantly for the safety than thou for
the destruction of ths State. Issy that
on that lorlher night thou didst 20 to
the street ef the scythe makers; will
speak plainly, 10 the house Of Marcus
Lecss; that thou didst there meet many
Of thy associates in crime and madness.
Wilt tho dare to deny iN Why so 81
lentH II thou aenies,, | will prove it!
For see some Of those here-here in
the Senate-who were with you. Oh!
ye immortal Gods! In what region of
the earth do we dwelli In what city do
We liver Of what republic are we cili.
zeus7 Here! they are here, in the mids,
Of us, Conscript Fathers; here in this
council, the most most sacred, the most
solemn of the universal world, men are
plAnniDg the slaughter Of myself. the
slaughter Of you all, planning the ruin
of this City. !, the consul, see these
men, and ask their opinion on State mat
tiers, How vast, therefore. in the house
Of Laeca, on that night. oh, Catiliue!
thou didst allot the districts of Ilaly;
thou didst determine whether each OF
thy followers should set forth;thOu ddst
choose whom thou wouldst lead along
with thee, whom leave behind, tho didst
assign the wards Of the city for connag,
ration, thon dds: assert that ere long
thou wouldst 60 forth in person; thou
saidst there was but one cause why thou
shouldsl yet delay little, and that was
because | was alive"
We Leed scarcely point out the posi-
tions OF this extract which beaI upon
the present secret order in this republic
republic which bids fair to ouistrp
Rome in comforting real advantages upon
the race. That order does not, it is true,
select citizens for murder, nor set apart
cities for the flsmes. But it marks out
Its victims for dislranchise 1t
dooms those who were born on another
soil. II hunts down those who profess
particular religious creed. Thus.
though il may not take life, it robs both
adopted citizen and native.born Catho.
lie of that which makes life dear in such
land as this. Precisely as Catiline
and bis conspirators took part among
those whom ihey had secretly pointed
out for assassination, do the mem bers of
this new order mings with aud pretend
TO adhere to other organizations9 In o
word, they arrange a scheme in private,
and then 60 out and meet their proscrib.
ed fsllow.citizens with smile. They
even deny the outrage they have sworn
TO consumaie. They swear 10 man that
they are not identified with an order
which they had previously sworn to God
TO maintain and obey. II the Romsn
order was a more cruel, and q more bar
barous one than its American imitation,
the latter is SO reckless, revengeful, and
proaigate in carrying ou. its own shame
ful undertakings.
How many Cstilines have we in this
new orderi Thsddeu's Stephens. of Penn.
sylvaniu, whose whole career in public
life is too familiar that we should re.
capitulats it; John P. Hale Of New
Hampshire, who is committed 10 undy-
ing war upon the constitution of his
eountry-these are fitting chiefs of
know:nothingism, and filling copies of
. 5spnved original.
Catiline wss full Of professions Of
patriotism. snd full OF srdent attach.
ment for Rome! He was SO devoted to
his country that he wanted TO hill off
her Ieverned and devoted sons. so tha.
be might have her to himself alone -
His speech before the great battle, as
preserved by Sallust, invokes his troops
TO fight against his country by appeals
in her favor! Remember he said, 'ye
carry wealth. honor. glory, morsovsr,
Rbsrty aRd your country Cato and
Cicero. whose name have come down TO
the present day clothed in immortal .e-
nown, were among the wOrn.out poiti-
clans shat Catiline abhored. He sought
10 buid up a new party on the basis of a