en made to the full membership of the order.
Occasionally the candidate would confess to having been more of a
transgresser than his questioners had anticipated.

The following is a sample of the questions asked a candidate for
admission: Grand Commander to candidate, "Are you in favor of
the acquisition of the Island of Cuba?" Candidate, "I am." Grand
Commander, "In case of an invasion of the island, would you lie awake
nights and steal into the enemy's camp?" Candidate, "I would." Grand
Commander, "Let it be recorded, he will lie and steal," and then an
immense gong at the far end of the hall would be sounded and the
candidate would imagine that the day of judgment had come. The scheme
of bouncing candidates into the air from a rubber blanket, so popular
during the days of the recent ice carnivals was said to have been
original with the Sons of Malta, and was one of the mildest of the
many atrocities perpetrated by this most noble order.

Some time during the summer a large excursion party of members of the
order from Cincinnati, Chicago and Milwaukee visited St. Paul.
Among the number was the celebrated elocutionist, Alf. Burnett of
Cincinnati, and Gov. Alexander Randall of Wisconsin. They arrived at
the lower levee about midnight and marched up Third street to the hall
of the order, where a grand banquet was awaiting them. The visitors
were arrayed in long, black robes, with a black hood over their heads,
and looked more like the prisoners in the play of "Lucretia Borgia"
than members of modern civilization.

On the following day there was an immense barbecue at Minnehaha
Falls, when the visitors were feasted with an ox roasted whole. This
organization kept on increasing in membership, until in an evil hour
one of the members had succeeded in inducing the Rev. John Penman
to consent to become one of its members. Mr. Penman was so highly
Indignant at the manner in which he had been handled during the
initiation that he immediately wrote an expose of the secret work,
with numerous illustrations, and had it published in Harper's Weekly.
The exposition acted like a bombshell in the camp of the Philistines,
and ever after Empire hall, the headquarters of the order, presented
a dark and gloomy appearance. The reverend gentleman was judge of
probate of Ramsey county at the time, but his popularity suddenly
diminished and when his term of office expired he found it to his
advantage to locate in a more congenial atmospher