obtained the chieftainship of the party and inveigled its too pliable
ranks into the prostituting embrace of this foul conspiracy, to overthrow
the government and crown with success the cause of the confederate arms.
It must be readily seen by every honest man of ordinary intelligence, that
such an affair could never have gained a foothold among our people under a
truly loyal condition of the opposing party. The truthfulness of this
assertion is so very forcible to the candid reader, that illustration or
argument in support of it would be superfluous. However, occasional
incidents will serve better to connect popular leaders with the subject of
these sketches, and call to the minds of participants practical facts.

Brig. Gen. Charles Walsh, some time during the winter of '64 and '65,
received his quantum of a fund, of which we shall hereafter speak, to
purchase arms to be distributed in the 1st Congressional district of
Illinois, comprising the county of Cook, and the scene of the late Chicago
conspiracy, the enactment of which was to be the signal for a general
conflagration of our cities, and thus fulfil the prophecy of Jeff. Davis,
that the grass would grow again, on the streets of the cities of the
North.

Do the leaders of the Invincible Club, among whom are W.C. Goudy, John
Garrick, Malcom McDonald, and Dr. Swayne Wickersham, remember that that
institution was to be the public mouth-piece of the Sons of Liberty, in an
address to the Democracy of Chicago, to have been issued during the
Presidential campaign?

Do they also remember the joint delegation of Invincibles and Sons of
Liberty that received Vallandigham and the Woods of New York, on their
arrival in Chicago to participate in, and mould the proceedings of the
National Democratic Convention?