Charles City Republican intelligencer. [volume] (Charles City, Iowa) 1861-1864, 1862-04-24
Charles City, Iowa, April "a, 1862.
The X. G.. C.'s.

The City OF Chcago, ike Dubuque
and some other cities, has elected
Democratic officers. 1t is suspected
that these Democratic victories in the
large cities, where they "hurrah for
JEFF. Davis, the Merrimac, and the
Southern Confederacy," are brought
about through the influence Of secret
societies ycleped knights of the Gold
en- Circle" The sooner these fostering
sores upon the body polite are probed
and cured, the better for all concern
cd. Let detectives be ordered by the
Government to ferret out the haunts
in Northern cities where men concoct
treason and organize rebellion, and
arrest all who are found there. The
Government may make up its mind to
break up and destroy these organiza-
tions or be overthrow and destroyed
itself. ........
A contemporary remarks that this
mischievous society of traitors whose
intrigucs came near prccipitating
kentucky into the hands Of secession
lists, and which doubtless did much to
place other States in the hands of
rebels, is now contraband" in Ken
lucky, the Legislature having passed
law making it criminal offence,
punishable by Imprisonment in the
Pcnitentiary for from one to five years,
to belong to any of its lodges.
A pamphlet, exposing the secret
purposes of the managers of the order,
has been published in Kentucky. 1t
has the title, can authentic exposi.
ton of the origin, objects and secret
work Of the organization known as
the Knights of the Golden Circle, pub.
lshed by the United States Union
Club, February, 1862; and entered
according to act Of Congress, in the
Clerks office Of the District Court for
the District of Kentucky, February
goth, 1869.
The Cincinnati Gazette, says that
the cry of abolitionism is the handle
that the Knights of the Golden Circle
have adopted to aid the rebel cause.
1t was found that the great masses of
the people of the North were attach
cd to the Union and could not be
moved, but something might be ac-
complshed Ivy getting them excited
on the abolition question" Accord
ingly, "when a person is invited to
join the h. G. C's. he is informed that
it is mutual protection society to
oppose abolitionists" and little by
little the candidate is led into the
vortex of treason. The Gazette makes
the following extract from the work,
which we copy without comment:
While the Caucasian is the special
organ, and privately circulated in
many places, there are many leading
newspapers in the North said to be
edited by Knights and eagerly
sought by the brotherhood in their re-
spective States, and in the different
States to indicate the progress of the
work and which are deemed able
auxiliaries, among them / may men,
ton the Herald, Journal Of Commerce,
Express, and French newspaper, New
York; Courier and Post, Boston; Times,
Hartford Alias and Argus, Albany ;
Union, Rochester Enquirer, Cincin-
natl /: Free Press, Detroit Times, Chi
cago; Ners. Milwaukee and many
others of less note. These are the
principal names on the lists Of travel
ling messengers for those States"
Is not this an alarming state of
affairs, and does it not behoove every
good citizen to be on his guard against
the Vaccinations of these secret and
designing foes?