Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1876-09-28
"SONs OFLIBERTY.v
Its Reasonable Character---SOme Ex-
tracts from the Testimony Of
its mbers..Interesting
dI IN. Reading for "Re-
:. .f.. form" Demo.
crafts.

itS McHUtTtssfuttftStfuG ft
dI IN. Reading for "Re-
fOrm'' Demo.
Gratis.
The Chicago Tribune of Sept. 22d
gives a full account of the order
known as the ASons of Liberty en-
bracing organizations in Indiana, 1
Illinois and other Western States.
The following extracts give insight
into the character and extent Of this
order: s'ai Hi $50 aro gal 1aa eav %
At the celebrated trials in Indian
apolis, in September, 1864, OF several
persons charged with treason, there
was mass Of testimony concerning
these organizations in Indiana, Him
ois, Ohio, Missouri, and . Kentucky.
From this volume we make some ex.
tracts pertinent to the proceedings in
our own State. DIR. Bowles was one
Of the chieftains in Indiana, and was
at the Chicago meeting. Felix g.
Stidger, a member OF the order testi-
fed: aeiaslo .-vo'iol - vfaa -aa
The order OF the Sons of Liberty
was a continuation OF the order of
American Knights, though all the
members OF the former were not, in
all cases, deemed worthy to be Sons
of Liberty, Had been told by MEM
bers that the Order of American
knights was changed to the Order Of
the Sons OF Liberty. In conversation
with DR.. Bowles he gave programme
OF the operations of the Order. Illi-
nois was pledged to forward $4,000
men to concentrate at st. Louis, and
to cooperate with Missouri, which
was to furnish 10000, and these COM,
bined forces were to cooperate with
Price, who was, to invade Missouri
with 10000 and more, IL possible, by
the assistance Of JEFF Davis. These
100000 men were 10 hold Missouri
against any Federal force that could
be brought against them. Indiana
was to furnish 10000 to 10000 men to
cooperate with other forces that
might come from Ohio, and all were
TO be thrown on Louisville to coop
crate with whatever force JEFF Davis
might send into Eastern Kentucky
under Buckner or Breckinridge. DIR.
Bowles gave me this as the pro-
gramme of the war at that time.
On the 9Th OF October, 1864, Judge
Advocate General Holt made an Of
fetal report ION the Order of Ameri-
can Knights or Sons OF Liberty,
western conspiracy in aid of the
Southern Rebellion" In this report
he states that this secret association
first developed In the West in 1862.
under the various titles "Mutural
Protection Society," ~Circle Of Hon.
or" ETC., but more widely as the
knights of the Golden Circle. He
states that during the, summer and
fall of 1868 there were some partial
exposures of the Order, and in the
North a secret Order was instituted
intended TO be general, aud aiming at
more positive results than its prede-
cessors, which afterwards was known
as the o. A. K, or Order Of American
Knights. vallandigham was sup
posed TO be the founder OF this Order.
In time the secret signs and charac-
ter OF the Order having become
known, further notifications in the
ritual were made, "and its name was
finally changed to that Of the o. s.
L. or Order of the Sons OF Liberty
or the Knights of the Order of the
Sons of Liberty" The new name
was at once generally adopted
throughout the Vest The Order,
however, had received various local
designations. t'ai d. ,suif4s -gtir.
In that portion Of the report, di-
rected to the specific purposes and
operations OF the Order he enumer-
ates these purposes under the follow
ing general definitions iF- - ,fs
1. Aiding soldiers to desert and
harboring and protecting deserters.
2. Dis,ouraging enllstments and
resisting the draft. 'c t'-
8. Circulation OF disloyal and treas
enable publications.. POD 3ni ~ 9oi,i5
4. Communicating with and giving
intelligence to the enemy.
5. Aiding the enemy by recruiting
for them, or aiding them to recruit.
within our lines. lt. lO
6. Furnishing the rebels with arms,
ammunition, ETC.. asi -
z. Cooperating with the enemy in
raids and invasions. i
8. Destruction OF Government
property. h
9. Destruction of private property
and persecution Of loyal men.
10. Assassination and murder.
IL. The establishment of North
western Confederacy.
The report of this Order thus
closes:
In the presence OF the rebellion and
of this secret Order-which iSbut its
echo and faithful ally-we canuot but
be amazed at the utter and wide
spread profigacy, personal and polit-
ical, which these movements against
the Government disclose. The guilty
men engaged in them, often casting
aside their allegiance, seem to have
trodden under foot every sentiment
of honor and every restraint OF law,
human and divine. Judea produced
but one Judas Iscariot, and Rome,
from the sinks of her Generalization,
produced but one Catiline; and yet,
as events proved. there has arisen to-
gether in our land an entire brood of
such traitors, all animated by the
same parricidal spirit, and all strug-.
CLING with the same relentless malig-
nifty for the acknowledgements OF our
Union. OF this extraordinary phe-
nomena-not paralleled in the worlds
history There can be but one explain
alton, and all these blackened and
fetid streams OF crime may well be
traced to the same common founda-
ton. li r fia,-s -.
SOS h9iia, i8g' au