The weekly Oskaloosa herald. [volume] (Oskaloosa, Iowa) 1855-1885, 1876-09-14

ANTI-SECRET SoCIETY.-A lop cared
Yahoop who, from his continued reference
to mules must belong to that family,
lectured in this city last Monday and Mon
day night against secret societies. We
heard it, and more contemplate mass of
lies and Misrepresentation we never
listened to. He claimed to give the work
of Masonry, but he acknowledged, when
questioned by one of his followers, that
he had never taken the degrees in the
Lodge, but had taken them from such
lecturers as himself. We regret that every
person in town did not hear him, and hope
if he comes back, as he says he will, that
all will go. He says the members of
secret societies are slaves, that they can
not leave the orders, that they are rascals,
vagabonds, Everything but tramps) at the
bottom of all mischief, responsible for the
hard times, and for the rebellion and if
one-half the charges he made are true
they never should be allowed in decent
community. He says but for Masonry
there would be no mshops, for that
Masons uphold the saloon-keepers and
will not allow them to be driven out of
town. Our citizens know about how much
truth there was in all this lecture by that
statement, for no conduct is corrected
quicker by Masonry than drunkenness.
And the City Council of Oskaloosa, COM
posed of eight members, that passed the
prohibition ordinance, consisted of six
Knights Templar, one entered apprentice
and one outsider, and they passed the
ordinance TO II second reading by unani-
nous vote, without any outside influence.
He said MGS0ns took an oath something
like this As the sins of all the world
were piled upon oar SaUi0ur's head" and
in the next breath declared that Masonry
was Christlcss order, and enlarged eX-
ceedingly on that item, and yet few
moments later he read the platform of the
society to which he belongs, on which Il
Presidential ticket is being run, and al
though God is mentioned several times in
it, Jesus Christ is not named. According
to his talk Il Mason can meyer sever his
one knows TO be false. He says Masons
are bound to obey their superior officers in
all things, even to murder. Poor Masons !
What slaves you are. As Masons elect
their own representatives and make their
own laws, and elect their own officers
from their own members, it strikes US they
are freer than any church members in the
land The highest officer of Oskaloosa
Lodge has no: as much authority in New
Sharon Lodge as the youngest member of
that Lodge; and yet that poor looney said
that jeff Davis was a Mason, (somethlng
we never heard before,) that the Judge he
was arraigned before was a Mason, that
Davis outranked him, and hence COM
manded his own release and it was granted
because the Judge dared not refuse to obey
his superior officer. This and much more
just such soft trash composed his lecture.
The Friends refused several times to let
him address them, but finally he got in by
some hook or crook to speak to them; and
got beautifully sold by an Odd Fellow
whom he thought was going to expose that
order, but who rather spoke of its benefits.
The membership of the Masonic fraternity
here is generally known, more than half of
it is composed of farmers, and as whole
will compare favorably with church or
society. We leave it to our citizens wheth-
er the charges made against them are true
or not.