Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1867-04-03
Township Correspondence,
FROM BURLINGTON.
FARMINeToN, March %. Z

~ W.
Mr.. EDrToR As you seem to have Nc
regular correspondent in this town, 1 con
clude occasional communications are &C
ceptable, though uninteresting many time
except to the writer and few friends.
In your last issue a writer, signing him
self saCarl," seems disposed to f'pitch into
the Good Templars here, and Secret Or
ders generally.
1 am at q loss to know what is the mat
ter Of "Ca-l." Judging from the symptoms,
1 conclude his spleen must be diseased,
and the
"Night-mare haunts his sleeping hours"
At least l am certain, in the language
of Pope,
"Seme dres's remain,
Notyet purged out. of spleen and sour disdain.'
"Carl' says: 81 I'M sorry to say that the
simple fact that there exists such an Order
in or town, speaks IN unmistskable tones,
that christianity is at a low ebb." l fail
to see the e'point" or pertinence of this
assertion. If 'sCarP' means by it that the
Organization is anti-christIan, thousands
of Good Templars who kHOoo whereof they
affirm, pronounce it false in thunder
tones. If he means to say that secrecy in
an organization is evidence of its want of
christianity, his argument strikes at the
christian church, all societies, and even
the family circle, with about as much force
as at Good Templars for what church has
not Its secret meetings where no one has
the right to be, unless he has been regular
ly initiated, either on his profession of
christian faith, or by a regular attested
letter from another church of good stand
ing? Each well regulated family is q
secret society, on a small scale, or should
be. Perhaps "Oarl' is of that class of
men of whom Christ says in his sermon on
the Mount: FOR they love TO pray stand
ing in the Synagogues and in the corners
of the streets, that they may be seen of
men," One of Christ's first acts, on enter
ing upon his ministry, was to form a
Secret Society of twelve, and how often
did they meet with the ''world shut out!''
As 1 do not st this time propose 70 discuss
the utility of Secret Societies, / will only
say, their origin is coeEal with the crea-
ton of man, and they have increased in
potency, both moral and physical, until a
large majority of the men and women,
who lave reached years of discretion and
wisdom, belong to Societies more or less
secret in their operations. Again "Carl"
says: stIti plain that neither Christianity,
Temperance nor Morality are the incen-
tives to join these Secret Orders. They
are inducements held out, it is true, but
they are only false lighthouses" Is it
possible that the immortal ''Carl" has
authority for saying that the tens of
thousands of men and women belonging to
the so-called Secret Orders (among whom
are many of our best clergymen, church
members and business mem are all deceiv-
ers, holding out false lights to lure the
unwary, and lead astray the simple minded?
How lucky friend "Carl" that you are en-
dowed with wisdom sufficient to avoid
these 'sfslse lighthouses" lis true that
Secret Organizations may sometimes be
used for wrong purposes and become pow
erfuI engines of evil IN the hands of bad
men. Fire also sometimes breaks put and
destroys life and property at a fearful rate.
Would Carl" therefore, dispense with
fire? Railroad trains occasionally collide
doing immense damage; would "Carl,"
as a consequence, dispense with railroads?
"CarI" says again: "And yet 1 fear that
if this Order exists long that intemperaRce
will sweep Us as with the bosom of de-
struction." I think ''Csrf" better read
Christ's Sermon on the Mount, and heed
its injunctions, one of which is, Judge not
that ye be not judged" "Carl" knows
very well, he has nc good reason for
making the remarks above quoted. A
friend suggests: 'If Carl had been invited
&c become a Charter member of the Order
here, or perhaps if some n would now
volunteer to pay his initiation fee, his
scruples about s'Secret Societies" would
vanish in thin air" Be this as 1t may, he
is evidently in trouble, and all the cOnso-
lation we can now give him is to say to
him, founder on, you are only making
more foul the mire in which you are wal
lowing, while we Good Tom2lars are gaily
floating down the Crystal Waters OF the
River of Life, fearing no baneful effects
from an association of men and women
whose sole object is to reform the inebriate
and restrain the young from habits of Wee
and Intempersnce.
Yours, in Faith, Hope and Charity,
OCCASIONAL.