The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1870-08-06
ALL HAIL TO THE SECRET SO.
CIETIES.
A Rabbits Views on the Subject.
REV. DR.. MAX LILIENTHAL' ADDRESS

| Daniel O'Connel, the great Irish
agitator, boasted that he was the
best and most illuminated man in
the world. Our secret societies.
the Free Masons, the Odd Fellows,
the Druids, and all their other SIS
ter societies-may now claim the
same privilege. The Ecumenical
Council at Rome has excommuni-
Gated each and every one of them,
and put them under its anathema :;
and the Anti-Secret Society Con-
vention, which met here two weeks
ago, has followed this example and
also thrown its Eliminating thun-
derbolts against the same.
These must be criminal, vicious
and dangerous institutions indeed.
against which such q formidable
battle is waged. The doctrines in
culcated in their secret meetings
must be subversive of religion,
public order and public happiness.
The doctrines promulgated in these
closed halls must be intended to
undermine virtue and morality,
must make it obligatory on their
members to preach atheism, 70
foster rebellion and bloody revolu-
ton to stifie every sentiment of
love and affection, and set man
against man in deadly and eternal
strife. Institutions supposed to be
established for such criminal pur-
poses, deserve to be prosecuted
and crushed out Of existence. So
cieties working in dark secrecy for
such dark and sinister purposes,
ought TO be considered the vilest
enemies of divine and human or
der. And if SO, Rome is right. and
the Convention is right, in perse-
cutting them with all the means at
their command. with all the power
they can WELD.
But the question arises: Is the
indictment well founded, are these
charges true? No, and thousand
times no. They are not only i'm
aginary and visionary, but an ex-
crescense of bigoted zeal and
blinded ambition. Do you sup
pose, if these charges are true,
that our immortal Washington
would have joined the Free Ma
sons2 That he of whom Everett
so beautifully said, "He was great
because he was good, and he was
good because he was great" that
be, having been initiated into the
mysteries of the O.der, would not
Indignantly and Immediately have
resigned from the brotherhood if
he had found it to be as dangerous
an institution as our new-fedged
| reformers represent it to be? Do
you suppose that he whom we love
and revere as "the Father of his
Country would havo applied for
oil the high degrees of his order,
if he had not been convinced, that
this secret society of Free Mason
ry was one Of the best, noblest and
most charitable Institutions of the
land? Oh. you all will cheerfully
agree with me, that it would be a
defamation of his great name and
cherished memory, to entertain bu.
for a moment such supposition.
and hence this fact alono would
suffice to refute tho slandcrous
attacks Of both Rome and the con-
vention. But let US examine this
question more closely, and you
will readily exclaim with me.
"Hail, thrice hail to the Secret So
cieties."
The Free Masons, the Odd Eel.
lows and kindred societies have
nothing in common aud have noth-
ing to do with such societies as the
Knights of the Golden Circle, the
Miami Tribe. the Fenisns, or other
will-o'-the wisps of the same
stamp. These are momentary
institutions. organized for tenn
porary, political, but not for hui
manitarian, purposes. Whenever
a political crisis arises-when-
ever new social problems await
their solution, such secret, con-
spring concerns will spring up
like mushrooms, and wither away
like Jonah's gourd when the sun of
the new day rises On tue horizon
of human history. But the Free
Masons and their sister societies
are gaining in moral and physical
strength, the longer they exist
for their aim is not fleeting and
temporary one, but congenial with
all, that tends to the final reconcil-
ia.ion and fraternization OF the
human race.
If ever they once had any politi-
cal meaning and intent, they had
it only till the God inspired men
of l776 proclaimed the divine
principles of the Declaration of
our Independence they had it on
ly in the dark and gloomy times
preceding this new era of human
history.
Then, when the Church ruled
with supreme and undisputed
power; when she prosecuted the
hereto and dissenter with the i'm
aginary curse of God and the
bloody, revengeful curse of man
then when princes and noblemeD,
ruled by the so called "Grace of !
Godn and -~--i:-o :. 'ISiUuory |
privileges, rioted away the hard
earned bread of the despised and
down-trod Zen laboring classes.
Men, in those dark times, the
good and well-meaning men uni
ted in secret conclave and de-
clared the whole fabric to be noth.
ing but an enormous lie. a terribly
false pretense. They proclaimed
among themselves the common
FatherhOod of God and the COM