New-York daily tribune., 1859-01-22

laree room m NsCra han lIsDA street, anu lheio
holding meetings. their ultimate otjec. being the re-
organization of the Committee upon new basis. The
room wa. only reached by passing up four fights Of
citcutous stairs, ard could only be entered By
passirg through successvely three docrs-2ivisg
tie proper passwords at each. The doos were
gusrded by armed sentirels, ard the roof Of
the bodirg a z lari was set. The evening ceremonies
wefe commenced by the singing accompanied BY mu-
sic on the organ of the sorg Of which The following Is
a verse:
"our cause is holy jest and true,
We mmt support 1t well,
Ana we will al IN concert loin
For we . band cf 5ro,her. here,
Uniieo must be,
And will zach one give our praise
To God and Liberty"
short prayer, and the reading Of few inss from
the Bible, followed the singing. After readPg the
minutes Of tbe previous meeting ou'iaes beg, ii earn
est should have stat,d hst upon the President TAX
ing bis eat the pass taken up. As general rule
excelleIt order maintsined. The plotting schem-
ing ard chief spirits Provost 5. Halnes William
p. Psiten, Jno. Tbos Pbiips, Joseph Forbes, An
drew NJ Copeland, the Hon. Charles I. Mills William
Anderson Fourteenth Wsrdl, Scodeld, Williams Bell,
Barry, Copklin, Lee, Mosemsu, Mack, Goodwin, aud
Bunce.
Their purpose succeeded very well fer few months,
member on trial upon tuspicOn of having written the
expose of the Committee. Ii succ edej but led ndi
reotly to stropg division of Pebtment between the
friends of the suspected party atd those of the leaders
The trial lasted through several meeting. The evil
derce or rsther what purpored to be fence Of
the most shadopy crcumstsutisl kod. Ia fact thsre
was no evidence at al against hiD but in some of its
details the trial wss very interesting. Anong other
. 81. NJ Ia Eraem
Many coptended that the cerhfcsts of membership
with hst fraternity which he produced, w>s false or
forged one while Others asse ted ts seuuneness. As
he refused part with it, ITS production rather da
sged than benefited him.
Upon the cose of the trial great silence prev !ed to
hear the decision Of the Judge, who declared him not
guilty-a verdict which could not have been other
wise but which onyered the hitherto Desceable as
sembly into a state Of furious excitement and commo
ton. The widest huras given by the friends Of
the acquitted individual, aud warmly returned by
the fiends Of the leaders. The transition remark
able. Groans commands, threatr and words of def
snce formed perfect babel of voices The Whole su-
derce had sprung to their feet and collision seemed
inevitable between the two parties. The room was in
state of indescribsble confusion. Coats taken
off, and legs broken from tables 20 wespons An
attempt TO put the gas out only partially succeedel
making the room darker, and increasing the excite
ment. Pistols and knives drawn. and the Secre-
tsry with six hareed revolveri in his hand stood up
his desk with his books and papers under bis feet.
Things bad reached crisis. Several members tried
open window to raise an alarm, but failed as the |
windoSs too high up. To gain egress by the |
dOorJ ras hopeless as they were guarded by men who
the creatures of the leaders. At length motion
wss made that the Association adjourn sine de, aud
was carried by large majority. This proceeding was
exactly what the leaders wanted, and n' eed had psu
ned to take place in the event Of a difficulty arising
While the members about dispensing cry Was
heard, To the Ninth Ward" aud ru.h was made
to the stairs by the opponents Of the esders, down
which they vert with rapid speed bat the friends Of
the leaders remailed in the room, and had exclusive
possession Of it. TIE hour past midnight
yet notwithstanding the lseness, the President called
the persons present. to order when il decided after
debate to repudiie the psty which had Just left, and
TO retain the room, and tina, Special Commit.ee be
appointed to ,aft plan of reorg .nizaton upon the
system of the famous Templar Order, ana report the
following Monday evening. An adjournment then took |
place
Il cannot avoid here saying hat in proportion TO its
numbers and the efficiency Of its organizatOD the Or
der Of Templars of the most formidable So
cret societies that existed in this country. IL had
it. birth in the City Of NewYork under peculiar and
extraordinary circumstances From smsi beginning /
of half dozen members, it rapidly developed itself un-
til it comprised subordinate Temple in each Ward,
ard had aggregate numerical strength Of seven
thousand members in this city alone. It's spread was
rapid in other parts Of the Unon.l
In the mean while the sdherents Of the acquitted in
divdua had gone en- masss direct from National Hall
TO Cottage Place. in the Ninth Ward ard there formed
II emselves into the Protestant Watch Club, elect
ing a Mr.. Lee President and which Club now exists
As az Offset or count rbalance TO it, however and to
pr yert it exercising much influence in that quarter of
the city, Mesars Jno Thos. Phillips, Joseph Forbes and
other. coon sfterwerd stared club 10 the Sixteenth
Ward under the name of the Sixteenth Ward Young
Men's National American Union Clu5," and which
also row exists with nesfly three huodred membsrs'
Tie two Clubs represent the two factions, and bota
are secret and close bodies.
When MOnisS evening arrived, there w.' large
crowd at National Hall Of the Canal street party The
Special Committee made lengthy report which was
cordially accepted. II concluded with recommenda-
ton that the degrees Of the TeDpsr Order cons der
ably modified, be adopted The persons in the room
then proceeded to orgaoize Themselves into what was
called General Temple, and were initiated into It,
and given pssr-worcs, &C.
Affairs Low began to prosper with them. Az nearly
every meeting accassiors we're made to their rsnts,
ard harmony prevailed among them.
II would incidentally remark that in q room under
ueatb them en- association society met, which wss
composed Of number of prominent Kno y Nothing
pol,ciars Is principes were said to be sound, or,
A. nember oLee cautiously re msri ed to me- "good
American principles" Mr. Soyder was President,
and George Armstrong Secretary. Probably fodiDg