American citizen. [volume] (Butler, Butler County, Pa.) 1863-1872, 1864-08-10
VOLUME |.
The New Rahallion.

the air take certain shape III d ulspatcIi
from St. Louis, this morning printed, sum
marizing an account published in The
Missouri Democrat of yesterday. That
paper has heretofore intimated thatit was
in possession of intelligence concerning
movement for a North Western Confede-
racy, and mast be presumed now to give
its information to the public in good faith
though the telegraph supplies no hint
whether the narrative is editorially indor-
sed by The Democrat. Should it prove
. to be- the character of that journal enti-
ties it to respectful consideration.
1t is alleged substantially that there is
an organization known as the "Order Of
American Knights" whereof the mem
bers are confederated with the main OBJ
iect of embarrassing the Government in
its prosecution of the war, and with the
incidental or resulting object of setting
up North--Western Contederacy. 1t is
a conspiracy, however, multiiorm in char
acter and endowed with remarkable fex
ibility, inasmpch as it comPrehends the
members of War party. in New York,
enrolls the Peace faction in the west, and
marshals its hosts under the banner Of a
Rebel leader, Sterling Price. Its rami-
fieations pursue their devious way even to
the Rebel capital, where the great Nallan-
digham was installed SUI Sreme commander
of the northern section, undertaking, in
consideration of this dignity, no less a
task than to divide the East from the
West. His long dalliance on the confines
of Canada was in furtheranec of this
scheme, and he there sought the counsel
of certain gentlemen, who are described,
perhaps rather ambitiously, as 'the lead
ing spirits in the North" Lest we should
be in doubt as to whose spirits do in fact
lead us, we are favored with the names Of
VIM b. Reed of Philadelphia years since
politically deceased of Pendleton and
Pugh of Ohio, the former of whom was
known in the last Congress mainly as say
ing ditto to Mr. Cox, and the latter of
whom, like Glendowor, did indeed call
spirits from the vastly deep of Ohio De
mocracy to the number of 100000 and
over, for the installation Of a Governor
not then elected, but never yet to our
knowledge became him elf spirit, much
less leading one; kribben of st. Louis,
and Story and Merrick of Chicago, names
to fortune and to fame and surely to
most of our readers, unknown.
Lest it should besupposcsl this conspir-
acy had no well defined means Of accom-
plishing its wide-reaching purpose, it is
further stated that at a consultation be-
tween the supreme Commander-N allan
digham, to wit--and his subordinate com
manders at Windsor in Canada, ''pro-
gramme" was arranged for the election of
Mr. Vallandigham as delegate to the
Democratic Convention at Chicago, in or
der to make that assembly the scene of
a private pronuncamlento, to include
full declaration of the objects of the Or
der Of American Knights, and to secure
the utteance of the considerate opinion
Of Yanandigham that the existing Ad-
ministration is welding a usurped power
and ought to be expelled-we suppose by
some power which would not be usurped.
For the safe delivery Of this-we hope
we do not cAmacter2e it irreverently-
stump-speeeh, each Grand Commander
was to have fully armed and equipped
Gas the law directs ?)a body guard (por-
haps McClelland's) for the defense Of Mr..
v against the minions of the lawless des
pot at Washington. At this point the
plot was to thicken. The atmosphere
grows suddenly and ominously lprid, an
o1or Of burnt guupDwder steals upon the
senses aud there comes sound OF such
thunder as was never stolen from John
Dennis Daniel Webster. The appear
lance of MI. VS. boly guard, it was tho't,
would precipitate the people of the Free
States into an armed confict-whether
betweenthemselves or with the body guard
there is a mysterious uncertanity-which
was to be the signal for the Knights of the
American Order to kill or capture the
civil and military authorities!
We pause there. The imagination re-
fuses to penetrate further into this dread
full future. We already see the body
guard of Mr.. Vallandigham seizing upon
the forts of New York harbor, carrying
by storm the defenses of Washington,
from before which the veterans of Early
have just retired, burning the capital,
swarming in transports down the Potomac
in pursuit of the army of that ilk move
ing in serried columns up the Peninsula
for being all Mcclellan men thev would