The Findlay Jeffersonian. [volume] (Findlay, Hancock County, Ohio) 1870-1881, 1877-08-24

terity to mark their warning and proph-
ecy that the descendents of this order
of knighthood and their connections
would form the nobility Tin the United
States) on one side, and the mass of peo
pie on the other would he made the in
significant rabble
The indignation ron 50 high that Con-
gress was on the point Of providing by
law that no members Of the society
should be eligible to Office. Rhode Is
land passed law disfranchising its
members. John Adams and Jefferson
each joined in the general alarm, and
the Inter seemed to believe that he had
caused the hereditary feature to be
changed. From a letter of the Marquis
de Lafayette, of June D, 1854, to John
Adams, he, too, then must have believed
that "heredity' in the society was given
up at the May meeting in 1874.
a commitsee of Congress then report
ing On the admission of new State. re
ported that no person holding IAN here
ditary title or order of nobility should
be eligible to citizenship in the new State, >
and this tor the purpose of excluding
only members of the Society of Cincin-
natl.
The first part of the eighth clause of
section 9, article III of the Constitution
Of the United States was put in asa sup
posed blow at the title Of nobility" al
ready constituted by This society. 1t is
certain that at the first general meeting
Of the society, in May, 1874, material al
terations in the articles of the society
were agreed upon, and among other al
terations the hereditary article was
modified so as to give to each member
the right to name his successor by last
will and testament. But these alterations
could not take effect until agreed to by
all the State societies. They were never
so agreed to, and at the second general
meeting of the society 1t was resolved
that the alterations for want of such
agreement could not take effect, and
that the original articles remained in full
force.
The society still exists, and its heredi-
tary members hold regular meeting.
Hon Hamilton Fish, the late Secretary
of State, is the President of the general
society in the United States. He is a
son of Lieu Col Nicholas Fish, of the
Cd New York Regiment in the war Of
the revolution. President Fish, by vir-
tue of his Office, is entitled to wear and
is the possessor of the brilliant decora-
ton presented to Gen Washington, the
first President of the society, by Roch-
ambeau, d Estaing, Lafayette, and 9th
ers of the French officers, who were ad
mitted to membership as token of their
gratitude to the society.
Gen Lafayette, in the summer of 1921,
attended meeting of the Society of
Cincinnati on his birthday, where he
met the few survivors of the revolution
belonging to the society, and many more
holding membership by "heredity."
Mr. I.arz Anderson, of your city, can
show you his title of nobility" as he is
the hereditary possessor OF decoration
fan eagle and ribbon"-blue rsbbon;
and on the reverse side OF the medallion,
borne on the breast of the bald eagle, will
be found the motto, "Esto perpetua."
The "Great Republic" can still boast
of one institution" perpetuated by
hereditary membership.
WARREN KEIEER.
SPRINGFIELD, o, Aug z.