Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1864-10-13

sSssssdsSdss sayty isste t5o.oS and uss only nm
derstood to be a political organization AZ
ssf5odJ'tS the officers informed the members
that 1t was military organization The an
| thoHtIes who had control of the Government
were SAID to be tyranical; that they were
trampl1ng Us under foot, and that we should
nave to resist by force of arms, and the mem
| bers of the Order expected to rise To main
tain their rights. The O. S. L. frequently
drilled, and have been drilling for wear
About two-thirds of the Order were armed
some with rifles, and others with revolver.
and shot guns. The muSter-roll of their
township was over one hundred. DR.. Nc
Cartney, who is the Grand Seigneur of the
county, informed the members that there
were forty thousand in the State of Illinois,
well armed, and that they could depend upon
eighty thousand in that State. There were
about forty thousand in Missouri, twenty
thousand being in st. Louis and the vicinity
The officers said that between May and June
there was TO be an invasion at three points
into Ohio, TO be led by Morgan or Wheeler ;
into Indiana, to be led by Longstreet, and
into Missouri, to be led by Marmaduke or
Price, and, IN case tie rebels came into LHi,aoiS
the brethren Of tie organization srere to shake
hands and be friends.
An assessment was made on the lodges for
the purchase of arms. Their lodge was as
sessed for two hundred dollors. 1t was col
lected by Col. Barry, or Barrett, of St.
Louis. The arms were to come from Nassau
70 Canada, and ,cere to be brought to the Can
ada line BIZ the Confederate authorities. but the
Order was to pay the cost of transportation
from Nassau to the Canada line. 1t ocas an
derStood in the Order that the signal for tie up-
rising ,could be giuen by the suprene commander,
O. L. TalIandigham. Next to him in COM
mand was Robert Holloway, of Missouri
Inere were lieutenants and captains, or col
oneIs IN the order, and a major general for
each Congressional District The penalty
tor dlvulging the secrets of the Order was
death. Since the exposure Of the Oyder IN st.
Louis, and especially of this case, tie Order UaS
disposed TO be Qetiet and do but little. The pres
ent invasion Of Missouri was made known to
the Order in his locality by one of Guam
trelPs men, Ubo said that Price a0a,ld6e in Ms
souri, by October lSt and stag there until after
the election, and as much longer as lie could
The Order in Illinois made no effort to assist
him, If he came in. The late exposures had
stopped their operations. Their Temples
met, but had quit drilling. The American
knights were organized in Illinois by P C.
Wright of Mississippi or Louisiana, who came
to Springfield, ILL.,, to a Mass Democratic
Convention, June II, 1868, and organized
Lodges and instituted a General Council,
which appointed two officers for each county,
to organize County Temples. Wright is the
editor Of the New York Neecs non. He sent
circular to our Lodge. A Autographed copy
OF this circular, dated January IS, 1864, in
which he spoke of the Neecs as the O. S. LIS
especial organ, and asking their aid in circu-
latlng it, was identified by the witness as the
same shown to the Lodge by Dr. Mccartney,
OF Monmouth, Ills, the Grand Seigneur of
the Warren Comfy Temple The witness
gave the mode of testing brother in the
order.
Without closing his testimony the Com
mission adjourned to P. NJ, Monday.