the University of Paris charged them with
being governed by 'secret laws.' In 1649, Palafox, Bishop of
Angelopolis, in his letter to Innocent X., accuses them of
having 'a secret constitution, hidden privileges, and concealed
laws of their own.'"

What will our Democratic Protestant opposers of Know Nothing _secret
lodges_ say to this? What will our Democratic advocates of Popery say to
the principles of such an organization, and to its "horrible oaths?" But
hear the Roman Catholic King of Portugal, in his manifesto to his
Bishops, in 1759, only ninety-seven years ago:

"In order to form the union, the consistency, and the strength
of the society, there should be a government not only
monarchical, but so sovereign, so absolute, so despotic, that
even the Provincials themselves should not have it in their
power, by any act of theirs, to resist or retard the execution
of the orders of the General. By this legislative, inviolable
and despotic power; by the profound devotedness of the subjects
of this company to mysterious laws with which they are not
themselves acquainted; by the blind and passive obedience with
which they are compelled to execute, without hesitation or
reply, whatever their superiors command," &c.

But our Democratic anti-Know Nothings not only object to our having
formerly kept our ritual concealed, but especially to our denial of the
existence of our organization. Let them procure a copy of the secret
instructions of the Jesuits, styled "_Secreta Monita_," and in the
preface they will find these _lovely_ words:

"The greatest care imaginable must be also taken that these
instructions do not fall into the hands of strangers, &c.; if
they should, _let it be positively denied that these are the
principles of the society_," &c.

But again:

"Auquetil, in the fourth volume, page 333, of his History of
France, gives an account of the celebrated case of the
bankruptcy of the Rev. Father Jesuit La Valette, the Jesuit
agent, for three million francs. Their ships had been taken by
the English; the bankers in Marseilles, who had accepted bills
of exchange to the amount of one and a half millions, required
prompt payment. They wrote to De Sacy, the General Procurator
of the Missions; he wrote to the General at Rome, but the
General died at the same time; and before a ne