CHINESE SOCIETIES
Earliest Secret Chinese Societies.-The earliest notice we have of a secret Chinese league is towards the close of the Han dynasty (A.D. 185). Three patriots, having then associated themselves, defended the throne against the Yellow Cap" rebels, a society numbering among its members the flower of Chinese litterateurs. From that time until the establishment of the present Tartar dynasty (twelfth century), the League showed few signs of vitality. But at the beginning of the eighteenth century five monks and seven other persons bound themselves by an oath, which they ratified by mixing blood from the arm of each, and drinking it in common, to overthrow the Tsings, the present Tartar dynasty, and restore the Mings, the dispossessed Chinese dynasty. The name of the society they founded was Pelin-kiao, or the White Lily. The' members relied on a prophecy that one of them should be emperor of China. The leaders were Wang-lung and a bonze named Fan-ui.
The former made himself master of the town of Shoo-changhien,' but was soon driven thence, and eventually captured, and executed with many of his followers. In 1777 the Pe-lin-kiao again appeared, only to be defeated again ; the heads of the leaders, including those of two women, were cut off and placed in cages for public inspection. In 1800 a sect called the Wonderful Association, and another, called the Tsing-lien-kiao, supposed to be the Pe-lin-kiao under a new name, conspired against the ruling dynasty, but unsuccessfully. Under the reign of the Emperor Kia-King (1799-1820)arose the Th'ien-Hauw-Hoi'h, that is, the family of the Queen of Heaven, spread through Cochin-China, Siam, and Corea, with its headquarters in the southern provinces of the empire. The society on being discovered and, as it was thought, exterminated, arose again under the name of the Great Hung League; Hung literally means flood, and the leaders adopted the name to intimate that their society was to flood the earth. To avoid the appearance of all belonging to one society, they gave different names-some borrowed from previously existing sects-to the branches they established. Thus they were known as the Triad Society, the Blue Lotus Hall, the Golden Orchid District, and others. These soon attracted the attention of Government, and for some time they were kept in check.
About 1826 the chief leader of the League was one Kwang San. It was reported that, to make himself ferocious he once drank gall, taken out of a murdered man's body, mixed with wine. He resided chiefly at the tin-mines of Loocoot, where the brethren then swarmed. The directing power was vested in three persons; the chief, with the title of Koh, i.e. the Elder; the two others took that of Hiong Thi, i.e. Younger Brothers. In the Malacca branches the three chiefs were called Tai-Koh, eldest brother, Ji-Koh, second brother, and San-Koh, third brother. The oath of secrecy was taken by the aspirant kneeling before an image, under two sharp swords. Whilst the oath was being administered the Hiong Thi had also to kneel, the one on the right, the other on the left of the aspirant, and hold over his head the swords in such a fashion as to form a triangle. The oath contained thirty-six articles, of which the following was the most important :-III swear that I shall know neither father nor mother, nor brother nor sister, nor wife nor child, but the brotherhood alone; where the brotherhood leads or pursues, there I shall follow or pursue; its foe shall be my foe." The aspirant, with a knife, then made an incision into his finger, and allowed three drops of blood to fall into a cup of arrack; the three officials did the same thing, and then drank the liquor . In order further to ratify the oath, the newly-sworn member cut off the head of a white cock, which was to intimate that if he proved untrue, his head should be cut off.
More recent Societies.-In 1850 Tae-ping-wang, the noted revolutionary leader, made a fresh attempt to restore the Ming dynasty, from whom he pretended to be descended. With his defeat and death the League again subsided into obscurity. In the spring of 1863 a quantity of books were accidentally found by the police in the house of a Chinaman, suspected of theft, at Padang (Sumatra), containing the laws, statutes, oaths, mysteries of initiation, catechism, description of flags, symbols, and secret signs of the League, all of which were published in English in a 40 volume at Batavia in 1866. But this discovery showed the League to be still in existence, and about the year 1870 it started into activity again; in Sarawak it assumed such a threatening aspect that the Government made a law decreeing death to every memberipso facto. The disturbances at Singapore in 1872 also were due to the secret societies of the Chinese in the Straits Settlements. On that occasion the Sam-Sings, or "fighting men," were the chief rioters, taking the part of the street hawkers, against whom some severe regulations had been issued. Murder and incendiarism, torturing and maiming, are the usual practices of the League, which again made itself very obnoxious in 1883 and 1885. The section of the"Black Flag," the remnant of the Taepings, as also the` , White Lily," were the most active in their demonstrations against the Tsing dynasty. The last police reports from the protected state of Perak, in the Malay Peninsula, say that in 1888 secret societies "caused endless trouble and anxiety," although in 1887 four members of the Ghee Hin Association were sentenced to twenty years' imprison- ment for conducting an agency for their society. Half the Chinese in Perak are members of secret societies, tickets being found upon them whenever the police have occasion to search them.
The Straits Times of the 17th September 1889 contained full particulars of the trial of a number of prisoners who were proved to be members of the Ghee Hin or Sam Tian secret society at Sarawak. The six leaders were shot ; eleven, being active members, carrying out orders of the leaders, beating, frightening, or murdering non-members, were sentenced to receive six dozen strokes with a rattan, to have their heads shaved, to be imprisoned during the Rajah's pleasure ; seven others, against whom no specific charges were made out, were dismissed on swearing to have no further dealings with the society.
Towards the end of the year 1895 a number of Mohammedans rose against the Chinese Government and captured the capital of the province of Kansu; the secret societies in Central China joined the Mohammedan insurgents. Their success, however, was of short duration ; in the month. Of December of the same year the insurrection was crushed, and some fifteen of the leaders were captured and beheaded . Others made their escape. Among these was Sun Yet Sun, or, as he is also called, Sun Wen, a medical man, well known in Hong-Kong. His being made a prisoner in the house of the Chinese Ambassador in London in the month of October 1896, until, at the instance of Lord Salisbury, he was released, is no doubt fresh in the memory of the reader. He asserted that he was kidnapped by the Chinese Ambassador's people, by being induced to walk into the Ambassador's house; but it is a curious circumstance that San Wen, who evidently knew something of London, should not have known where the Chinese Embassy was located, especially after all the excitement caused by Li Hung Chang's visit to the Continent and to England.
In justice to the Taepings and other secret associations in China, it must be stated that the insurrection was and is the war of an oppressed nationality against foreign invaders. The Mantchoos or Tsing dynasty are an alien tribe, ruling over the vast Chinese empire; their government is one of the most despotic the world has ever seen; their laws are so ruthless and unjust, that it would seem they could never be carried out, did not the blood of millions, perishing by every kind of frightful death that the most diabolical cruelty could invent, attest the fact of their being obeyed. Yet British ministers did sanction the enlistment of British officers-Bible Gordon being their leader, what a satire!-and men in the service of the Mautchoos, whom they further supplied with arms and artillery.
Lodges.-From the book published at Batavia, and mentioned above, we extract the following information:-The lodge is built in a square, surrounded by walls, which are pierced at the four cardinal points by as many gates; the faces are adorned by triangles, the mystic symbol of union. Within the enclosure is the hall of fidelity and loyalty, where the oaths of membership are taken. Here also stand the altar, and the precious nine-storied pagoda, in which the images of the five monkish founders are enshrined. The lodges, of course, only appear in out-of-theway places, where they are safe from the observation of the Mandarins; in towns and populous neighbourhoods the lodge is dispensed with; .the meetings are held at the house of the president. The instruments of the lodge are numerous.
First in importance is the diploma; then there are numerous flags; there is the "bushel," which contains among other articles the "red staff," with which justice is done to offenders against the laws of the society ; the scissors, with which the hair of the neophytes is cut off; a jade foot measure, a balance, an abacus, &c.
Government.-The supreme government is vested in the grand masters of the five principal lodges, and the affairs of each lodge are administered by a president, a vice-president, one master, two introducers, one fiscal, thirteen councillors, several agents, who are otherwise known as "grass shoes," " iron planks," or "night brethren," and some minor officials, who, as indicative of their rank, wear flowers in their hair.
In times of peace the ranks of the society are filled up by volunteers, but when the League is preparing to take the field, threats and violence are used to secure members. The neophyte, as in Royal Arch Masonry, is introduced to the Hall of Fidelity under the "bridge of swords," formed by the brethren holding up their swords in the form of an arch; he then takes the oath, and has his queue cut off, though this ceremony is dispensed with if he lives amongst Chinese who are faithful to the Tartar rule ; his face is washed, and he exchanges his clothes for a long white dress, as a token of purity, and the commencement of a new life. Straw shoes, signs of mourning, are put on his feet. He is then led up to the altar, and offers up nine blades of grass and an incense stick, while an appropriate stanza is repeated between each offering. A red candle is then lighted, and the brethren worship heaven and earth by pledging three cups of wine. This done, the seven-starred lamp, the precious imperial lamp, and the Hung lamp are lighted, and prayer is made to the gods, beseeching them to protect the members. The oath is then read, and each member draws some blood from the middle finger, and drops it into a cup partly filled with wine. Each neophyte having drunk of the mixture, strikes off the head of a white cock, as a sign that so all unfaithful brothers shall perish. Then each new brother receives his diploma, a book containing the oath, law, and secret signs, a pair of daggers, and three Hung medals. The secret signs are numerous, and by means of them a brother can make himself known by the way in which he enters a house, puts down his umbrella, arranges his shoes, holds his hat, takes a cup of tea, and performs a number of other actions.
Henry Pottinger, in a despatch to Lord Aberdeen (1843), perhaps alludes to a secret society, saying: "The song being finished, Ke-Ying, the Chinese commissioner, having taken from his arm a gold bracelet, gave it to me, informing me, at the same time, that he had received it in his tender youth from his father, and that it contained a mysterious legend, and that, by merely showing it, it would in all parts of China assure me a fraternal reception."
Seal of the Hung League.-Every member of the Hung League is provided with a copy of its seal, which is printed in coloured characters on silk or calico. The original is kept in the custody of the Tai-Koh. Various descriptions of it have been given, and as they differ, it may be presumed that there are more seals than one. But all of them are pentagonal, and inscribed with a multitude of Chinese characters, the translations given showing no real meaning ; the whole is a riddle, which it is scarcely worth while attempting to solve. To give but one sample. In an octagonal space enclosed within the pentagon there are sixteen characters, which, according to the interpreters, signify: "The eldest brother unites to battle-order ; every one prepares himself (at the) signal (of the) chief. (The) swollen mountain stream spreads itself (into) canals ; ten thousand of years is (he) this day." By many members it is worn as a charm, and great care is-taken to conceal its meaning from the uninitiated. As a charm, the seal may be as effective against wounds or death in battle as were the amulets furnished in the fifteenth century by the hangman of Passau, until a soldier had the curiosity to open one, and read, " Coward, defend thyself! "
The Kolao Hui.-The secret society which at the present day seems most powerful in China, is that known by the above name. It was at first a purely military association, whose object was mutual protection against the plunder and extortion practised by the civil officials in dealing with the pay and maintenance of the troops. It is believed that the initiation consists in killing a cock and drinking the blood, either by itself, or mixed with wine . It is also believed to use a planchette, whose movements are attributed to occult influence; gradually persons not connected with the army were admitted; the ticket of membership is a small oblong piece of linen or calico, stamped with a few Chinese characters. The_ possession of one of these, if discovered, entails immediate execution by the authorities.
The society is anti-foreign and anti-missionary, and is believed to be at the bottom of all the riots against foreigners, and especially against foreign missionaries, which have lately occurred in China. Of course, as long as missionaries, instead of making it their business to convert the heathens at home, will go among people who don't want them, and in China will establish themselves outside Treaty limits, they ought to be prepared to take the risks they voluntarily incur, but whenever attacked, they make the Chinese Government pay them liberally for any inconvenience or loss theymayhave suffered of course, with the assistance of English gun-boats. In1891 the Ko lao Hui, which is also anti-dynastic, caused inflammatory placards to be posted up in various parts of the empire, which the authorities immediately tore down, only to be posted up afresh; the society also distributed antimissionary pamphlets, with titles such as this : " The Devil Doctriners ought to be killed," wherein the missionaries are charged with every kind of crime against morals and life; the Roman Catholics are more severely handled than the Protestants. In September 1891 it would appear that the society was organising a rising against the Government, and a Mr. C. W. Mason, a British subject, and a fourth-class assistant in the Customs at Shanghai, was implicated in the project, he having been instrumental in introducing arms and dynamite into the country for the use of the conspirators. He was sentenced to nine months' imprisonment with hard labour, and he was further, at the expiration of that period,' to find two sureties of $2500 to be of good behaviour, and failing in this he was to be deported from China. This latter happening on his release, he was sent out of the country in September 1892.
In November I89I a famous Ko lao Hui leader named Chen-kin-Lung fell into the hands of the Chinese Government. He had been staying at an inn with about thirty of his followers. Gagged and bound, he was taken on board a steam-launch kept ready to start, and carried to Shanghai. His examination was conducted with the greatest secrecy by the magistrate and deputies of the Viceroy and the Governor. On his person were found several official documents issued by the Ko lao Hui, and a short dagger with a poisoned blade. He was addressed in the despatches as the "Eighth Great Prince," and was evidently the commander of a strong force. Three examinations were held, but Chen preserved the strictest silence. Torture was employed, but in vain; the only words that could be extracted from him were, "Spare yourselves the trouble and me the pain ; be convinced that there are men ready to sacrifice their lives for the good of a cause which will bring happiness to this country for thousands of generations to come." Then more gentle means were employed, but with what result is not known. The Hui League has various offshoots, which being known to be in reality mutual aid societies, are secret societies in name only, and therefore attract but little attention from the Government. One of the largest of these offshoots is the "Golden Lily Hui," which flourishes in the western provinces of China. Its members are divided into four sections, respectively marshalled under the white, the black, the red, and the yellow flag.
That the popular feeling against Christian missionaries in China is very strong cannot be denied, and for the last two or three years has displayed itself in frequent attacks on their persons and property. Even at the present time such outbreaks are almost regularly reported in the European press. A pretty plain intimation was given to Sir Rutherford Alcock on his bidding adieu to a high Chinese official. "I wish," said that functionary, now you are going home, you would take away with you your opium, and your Christian missionaries."
A law passed in 1889 in the Straits Settlements for the suppression of Chinese secret societies, according to a report issued in 1892 by the Protector of Chinese in those settlements, has led to the disappearance of those dangerous organisations. But it is admitted that it will take many years for the Triad element to become extinct ; the action of the Hung League is merely suspended, and out of it have sprung many minor societies, as offshoots from the parent society, who send gangs of roughs to brothels, coolie-depots, music halls and shops, demanding monthly contributions, under threat of coming in force and interrupting the business of the establishment. The fighting men of these societies are kept in the lodges by the head men on the proceeds of the exactions thus levied. The expulsion of the head men, as the speediest remedy of these evils, has been tried, with as yet only partial success.
THE COMUNEROS
Introductory Remarks.-The downfall of Napoleon, by a pleasant fiction, invented by historians who write history philosophically, that is, chisel and mould history to fit systems drawn from their inner consciousness, is said to have made Europe free. True, the battle of Waterloo and the Congress of Vienna restored the kings to their thrones, but to say that Europe was thereby made free is false. Instead of one mighty eagle hovering over Europe, the limbs of that ancient Virgin were now torn to pieces by a flock of harpies ; instead of one mighty ruler, a host of petty tyrants returned to revel in the delights of a terreur blanche. Religious despotism, by the restoration of the pope, was to be the fit prelude to the political tyranny which followed the "Restoration." But the Napoleonic meteor, in its flight across Europe, had shed some of its light into the dense brains even of the most slavishly loyal German peasant, accustomed to look up to the kingly, princely, or grand-ducal drill-sergeant as his heaven-appointedLandesvater,sothat he began to doubt the ruler's divine mission. ~ Hence secret societies in every country whose king had been restored by the Congress of Vienna-in Spain, France, Italy, Germany, Austria. Some of those secret societies had been fostered by the princes themselves, as long as their own restoration was the object aimed at; but when the societies and the nations they represented demanded that this restoration should involve constitutional privileges and the rights of free citizens, the '° restored" kings turned against their benefactors, and conspired to suppress them. But such is the gratitude of kings. However, turn we to the secret societies formed to undo the evils wrought by Waterloo. I begin with Spain.
Earliest Secret Societies in Spain.-Even before the French Revolution there existed in Spain secret societies, some averse to monarchical government, others in favour of clerocracy. Among the latter may be mentioned the "Concepcionistas," or "Defenders of the Immaculate Conception" (523), who carried their zeal for Ferdinand VII. And their tenderness for the Church to such a degree as to desire the return of the blessed times of the Holy Inquisition.
They also sought to get hold of the management of public affairs, to turn them to their own profit; and the dismal administration of the Bourbons shows that they partly succeeded. Probably from this association arose that of the "Defenders of the Faith," Jesuits in disguise, who in 1820 spread themselves over Spain, taking care of the throne and altar, and still more of themselves. During the reign of Ferdinand VII. also arose the "Realists," who, to benefit themselves, encouraged the king in his reactionary policy.
Freemasonry in Spain, the Forerunner of the Comuneros.-After the French invasion of 1809, Freemasonry was openly restored in the Peninsula, and a Grand Orient established at Madrid; but it confined itself to works of popular education and charity, entirely eschewing politics.
The fall of Joseph and the Restoration again put an en to these well-meant efforts. In 1816,some of the officers and soldiers, returned from French prisons, joined and formed independent lodges, establishing a Grand Orient at Madrid, very secret, and in correspondence with the few French lodges that meddled with politics. Among the latter is remembered the lodge of the "Sectaries of Zoroaster," which initiated several Spanish officers residing in Paris, among others Captain Quezada, who afterwards favoured the escape of the patriot Mina. The revolution of the island of Leon was the work of restored Spanish Masonry, which had long prepared for it under the direction of Quiroga, Riego, and five members of the Cortes.
The Comuneros.-Afterthe brief victory, badly-concealed jealousies broke forth; many of the brethren seceded and formed in 1821 a new society, the "Confederation of the Communists"(Comuneros),which name was derived from that memorable epochof Spanish history when Charles V. Attempted to destroy the ancient liberties, and thus provoked the revolution of the Commons in 1520, which was headed by John Padilla, and afterwards by his heroic wife, Maria Pacheco. In the battle of Villalar the Comuneros were defeated and scattered, and the revolution was doomed. The new Comuneros, reviving these memories, declared their intentions, which could not but be agreeable to Young Spain ; nearly sixty thousand members joined the society: women could be initiated, who had their own lodges or torres, or towers, as their meetings were called, and which were presided over by a "Grand Castellan." The scope of the society was to promote by all means in its power the freedom of mankind; to defend in every way the rights of the Spanish people against `the abuses and encroachments of royal and priestly power ; and to succour the needy, especially those belonging to the society. Some of the more advanced of the Comuneros were for beheading the king, or exiling him to the Havannah, on the principle that to put a house, whether domestic or national, in order, it was first necessary to get rid of all greedy hangers-on and parasites, and the Spanish throne and the royal family of Spain with them came under the above designations. But the nation thought otherwise.
On being' initiated the candidate was first led into the "hall of arms," where he was told of the obligations and duties he was about to undertake. His eyes having been bandaged he was conducted to another room, where, after he had declared that he wished to be admitted into the confederation, a member acting as sentinel exclaimed: "Let him advance, I will escort him to the guard-house of the castle." Then there was imitated with great noise the lowering of a drawbridge, and the raising of a portcullis; the candidate was then led into the guard-room, unbandaged, and left alone. The walls were covered with arms and trophies, and with patriotic and martial inscriptions. Being at last admitted into the presence of the governor, the candidate was thus addressed: "You stand now under the shield of our chief Padilla; repeat with all the fervour you are capable of the oath I am about to dictate to you." By this oath, the candidate bound himself to fight for constitutional liberty, and to avenge every wrong done to his country. The new knight then covered himself with the shield of Padilla, the knights present pointed their swords at it, and the governor continued: "The shield of our chief Padilla will cover you from every danger, will save your life and honour; but if you violate your oath this shield shall be removed, and these swords buried in your breast." Both the Masons and Comuneros sought to gain possession of superior political influence.' The former, having more experience, prevailed in the elections and formed the ministry. Hence a contest that agitated the country and injured the cause of liberty. In 1832, the Comuneros endeavoured to overthrow the Freemasons, but unsuccessfully. Still Masons and Comuneros combined to oppose the reactionary party.
They also succeeded in suppressing Carbonarism, which had been introduced into Spain by some refugee Italians. These societies, in fact, though professing patriotic views, were nothing but egotistical cliques, bent on their own aggrandisement. How little they were guided by fixed principles is shown by their conduct in Spanish America. In Brazil they placed on the throne Don Pedro, and in Mexico they established a republican form of government, just as it best suitedtheir own private interests. But such is the practice of most patriots.
Clerical Societies.-But the royal party also formed secret societies. Among these we have mentioned the "Concepcionistas," or Defenders of the Immaculate Conception," founded in 1823 (see 520 ante), with the sanction, if not at the instigation, of Ferdinand VII. This was followed in 1825 by the "Defenders of the Faith," also previously referred to, and in 1827 by a third, known as the " Destroying Angels." The existence of the last is denied by clerical writers, but that it did exist, and that the Minister Calomarde was its chief, are facts proved beyond dispute. The doings of these clerical secret societies covered the king, a. despicable character in every way, with disgrace, and involved the country in constant internecine war and ruin, which are matters belonging to history. But as specially concerning the secret societies of Spain, it should be mentioned that at that period they were split up into four distinct parties (1) the Aristocratic, who received great support from England; its objects were the restoration of the constitution, and a change of dynasty. (2) The Mineros, whose head was General Mina. They were chiefly military men, closely allied with the Aristocrats, and largely subsidised by England. The American Government, with a view to the conquest of Mexico, also favoured them. Opposed to them were (3) the Republicans, whose designation indicates their object. (4) The Comuneros, who, though also desiring a republican form of government in Spain, opposed the plans of the third party
THE HETAIRIA
Origin.-The secret society which bore the above Greek name, signifying the "Union of Friends," is, like Carbonarism, one of the few secret associations which attained its objects, because it had a whole people to back it up; a support which the Nihilists, for instance, lack as yet, and hence the present non-success of the latter. The origin of the Hetairia may be traced back to the Greek poet Constantinos Rhigas, who lived in the later half of the last century, and who plotted a Greek insurrection against Turkey, but was by the Austrian Government, in whose territory he was then travelling, basely delivered up to the Porte, and executed ht Belgrade in 1798. But the Hetairia he had founded was not destroyed by his death ; its principles survived, and a new Hetairia was founded in 1812, on lines somewhat different, however, from those of the old society.
The Hetairia of 1812.-In 1812 a society was formed at Athens, which called itself the "Hetairia Philomuse." Since Lord Elgin had carried off whole cargoes of antiques, the need was felt of protecting the Greek treasures of antiquity. The object of the Philomuse, therefore, was to preserve relics of ancient art, to found museums, libraries, and schools. At the same time the members hoped by peaceful means to improve the social and political condition of Greece. They were conservative enough to place their hopes on princes and the Congress of Vienna. Count Capo d'Istria, the private secretary of the Czar, who possessed in the highest degree the confidence of his master, did his best to gain the goodwill of the Congress. The princes and diplomatists, composing it, had then drained the cup of pleasure to the dregs, and it seemed to them a pleasing variation to surround themselves, amidst fetes, balls, and amateur theatricals, with the halo of ancient Hellenistic interests. Ministers, princes, kings, were ready to wear the golden or iron ring, on which the ancient Attic obolus was engraved, the countersign of the Philomuse. The Emperor Alexander, the Crown Princes of Bavaria and Wurtemberg, joined the society and subscribed to its funds. But these were not the men or the means to deliver Greece from the Turkish yoke, which had been the object of Rhigas, and of those who thought like him.
The Hetairia of 1814.-Hence in 1814 a new Hetairia was founded with purely political objects. It was called the "Hetairia" or "Society of Friends" only, and stood to the Philomuse in the same relation the sword stands to the pen. It was founded at Odessa, where Greek and Russian interests always met, by a little-known merchant, Ikufas, of Arta, and two other obscure men of honour, Athanasius Tsakaloff and the Freemason, E. Xanthos, of Patmos. These men deteirmined to achieve what Europe refused to do-to raise the Cross above the Crescent; and in the course of years they succeeded. The fate of Rhigas taught them secrecy.
Tsakaloff, who had years before formed a secret league of Greek youths settled in Paris, had some experience as to external forms, and so had Xanthos as a Freemason. The number of grades of their Hetairia was seven-Brethren, Apprentices, Priests of Eleusis, Shepherds, Prelates, Initiated, and Supreme Initiated. The latter two grades were invested with a military character, and directly intended for war. The candidates for initiation had to kneel down, at night, in an oratory, and to swear before a painting of the Resurrection, fidelity, constancy, secrecy, and absolute obedience. Little, however, was imparted on admission to a higher degree, the object being mainly to render the initiation more impressive. The brother was told to have his arms ready, and fifty cartridges in his cartridge-box; the Priest, that the object of the Hetairia was the deliverance of Greece : but like all secret societies, this one did not remain untainted from egotism, falsehood, and humbug in general. As the priests were allowed to introduce neophytes, who had to pay them certain amounts of money, the office of priest was much sought after; but it must have appeared strange to many of the candidates, that whilst the priest bade them swear on the Gospel, he at the same time informed them that he initiated them on the strength of the power conferred on him by the High-Priest of Eleusis. The leaders, further, did not hesitate to boast of a secret understanding with the Court of St. Petersburg, yea, it was intimated that Alexander was the Grand Arch. The Hetairists have been blamed for all this; but it cannot be expected that a revolutionary military league should in all points be faultless, and keep within the rules of civic honesty. Legal means were of no avail; cunning and deceit are the weapons of the oppressed. Politicians have to accommodate themselves to the fancies and prejudices of
Signs and Passwords.-Someof the signs and passwords were common to all the degrees, but others were known to the higher grades only, each of which had its peculiar mysteries. The Brethren saluted by placing the right hand on their friend's breast, and uttering the Albanian wordsipsi (pipe), to which the other, if initiated, responded with sarroulcia (sandals). The Apprentices pronounced the syllableLon, and the person addressed, if in the secret, completed the word by uttering the syllable don. –In the higher grades the formulas were more complex. The mystical words of the Priests were, "How are you?" and ° As well as you are; " and again, "How many have you? " and"As many as you have." If the person accosted had reached the third degree, he understood the mystical sense of the question, and replied, '1 Sixteen." To be sure of his man the questioner then asked, " Have you no more? " to which his equally cautious friend replied, "Tell me the first, and I will tell you the second." The first then pronounced the first syllable of a Turkish word meaningjustice, and the other completed it by uttering the second syllable. The sign of recognition was given by a particular touch of the right hand, and making the joints of the fingers crack, afterwards folding the arms and wiping the eyes. The Prelates pressed the wrist, in shaking hands, with the index finger, reclined the head on the left hand, and pressed the right on the region of the heart. The Prelate addressed responded by rubbing the forehead. If in doubt, the mystical phrases of the Priests of Eleusis were repeated, and if the answers were correctly given, the two repeated alternately the syllables of the mysterious wordva-an-va-da.
Short Career of Galatis.-Tl;e sect consisted at first of but few members. In 1819 the Directory or Grand Arch was composed of the three founders only and four other persons: Galatis, Komizopulos, A . Sekeris, and A. Gazis, with whom afterwards were joined Leventis, Dilcaos, Ignatios, and Mavrocordato, and finally, Patsimadis and Alexander Ipsilanti. Galatis early betrayed, and almost ruined, the cause of the Hetairia. Exceedingly vain of his admission to the Grand Arch, he went to St. Petersburg, where he proclaimed himself as the ambassador of the Hellenes, in consequence of which the police arrested him, and an examination of his papers revealed the whole secret of the Hetairia. The Czar, vacillating between his philo-Hellenism and the fear of revolution, was persuaded by Capo d'Istria to set Galatis free, and even to award him compensation in money for his imprisonment. Later on, when Skufas conceived the bold idea of attacking the enemy in his very capital, and bad therefore settled at Constantinople, Galatis excited the suspicion of thinking more of his own advantage than of that of his country ; he was always asking for money, and when this was refused him, he uttered threats, whilst 'alluding to his intimacy with Halet Effendi, the Minister and favourite of Mahmoud. Thereupon the Hetairia decided that he must be removed. Towards the end of 1818 he was ordered on a journey; a few trusted Hetairists were his companions. One day, while he was resting near Hermione, under a tree, a Hetairist suddenly discharged his pistol at him. With the cry, "What have I done to you?" he expired. The murderers, with a strange mingling of ferocity and sentimentality, cut these last words of his into the bark of the tree.
Proceedings of the Grand Arch.-Skufas had died some months before, but thanks to the stupidity of the Turkish Government, Constantinople remained the seat of the league. The Grand Arch met at Xantho's house and instituted a systematic propaganda. In all the provinces of Turkey and adjoining states 11 Ephori" superintendents were appointed, who each had his own treasury, and authority to act in his district for the best of the common cause; only in very important cases he was to refer to the Grand Arch. Gazis undertook preparing the mainland ; Greek soldiers, who had just then returned from Russia, were sent to the Morea and the island of Hydra. But it was essential to gain possession of the most important military point inthe Morea, of Mani, usually called Maina, and by means of the patriarch Gregor, who was initiated into the secret of the Hetairia, Petros Mavromichalis, the powerful governor of Maina, was seduced from his allegiance. The emissaries of the Hetairia knew how to reconcile tribes who had for centuries been at feud, and to gain them for their cause, so that in 1820 the Hetairia had secret adherents all over the Peloponnesus, on the Cyclades, Sporades, on the coasts of Asia Minor, the Ionian Islands, and 'even in Jerusalem. It was now felt to be necessary, to appoint a supreme head; the choice' lay between Capo d'Istria and Alexander IpsilantL The former was a diplomatist, the latter a soldier. Capo d'Istria declined to mix himself up in the matter, at least openly, because his master, the Emperor Alexander, was unwilling to appear as the protector of the Hetairia. Ipsilanti undertook its direction; and as soon as it was known that he had done so, the hopes of the conspirators of the eventual support of Russia rose to fever-heat, and Ipsilanti in 1820 found it advisable to leave St. Petersburg and go to Odessa, to be more in the centre of the movement. But though a soldier, he was no general, and allowed himself to be carried away by the enthusiasm he saw around him . Though contributions in cash came in so slowly that he had to make private loans, he lost none of his confidence. In July be appointed Georgakis commander of the "army of the Danube," and Perrhavos chief of the "army of Epirotes."
He himself intended to enter the Peloponnesus, and to set up at Maina the standard of independence, fancying that the Peloponnesus was a fortified camp, outnumbering in soldiers the Turkish contingents. But he was soon convinced of this error, and he was advised to make his first attempt against the Turkish power in the Danubian principalities; and though other counsellors rejected this proposal, lpsilanti decided to adopt it, guided by the fact that the treaties between Russia and the Porte forbade the entry of an army into the Principalities, unless with the consent of both parties. Should the Porte, in consequence of the ,Hetairist rising, send.troops to Bucharest, Russia would be bound to support the Greeks.
Ipsilanti's Proceedings.-Further hesitation became impossible. A certain Asimakis, a member of the Hetairia, in conjunction with the brother of the murdered Galatis, betrayed to the Turkish police all the details of the conspiracy. Kamarinos, who had been to St. Petersburg, on his return publicly revealed the futility of Russian promises; to silence him the Hetairists had him assassinated. They also endeavoured to take advantage of the quarrel which had broken out between Ali Pasha and the Sultan, whose best troops were then occupied in besieging Janina, Ali Pasha's capital. Ali, being sorely pressed by the Turks, promised the Hetairia his help, their cause being his-the overthrow of the Sultan. The Suliotes, also, his ancient enemies, were won over by him, partly in consequence of the bad treatment they received from the Turks, whose side they had at first adopted, and partly because their leaders were initiated into the secret of the Hetairia, in whose success they save the recovery of their ancient territory, from which Ali had expelled them. In March1821,Ipsilanti took up his residence at Jassy, whence he issued pompous proclamations to the Greeks, Moldavians, and Wallachians, and also sent a manifesto to the princes and diplomatists, who were then assembled for the settlement of the Neapolitan revolution, inviting Europe, but especially Russia, to favour the cause of Greek independence. But the result of the latter step was fatal to it. Metternich's policy was totally opposed to it; and the Emperor Alexander, who had ,jest proclaimed his. antirevolutionary views, as applied to the Italian rising, could not repudiate them when dealing with the Greek question! Knowing nothing of the share his favourite, Capo d'Istria had in it, and of the underhand promises of Russian help the latter had made to the Hetairia, he assured the Emperor Francis, Metternich, and Bernstorff, of his adherence to the Holy Alliance, and his opposition to any revolution, with such zeal and mystical unction, that his listeners were "deeply moved." Ipsilanti's action was utterly reproved; his name was removed from the Russian Army List; the Russian troops on the Pruth were instructed under no pretence to take any part in the disturbances in the Principalities; and the Porte was informed that the Russian Government was a total stranger to them. Capo d'Istria was compelled to write to his friend, whom he had secretely encouraged, that "he must expect no support, either moral or material, from Russia, which could be no party to the secret undermining of the Turkish Empire by means of secret societies."
Ipsilanti's Blunders.-Ipsilanti, since his arrival at Jassy, had taken none of the steps which might have insured the success of his enterprise. He did nothing towards centralising the Government, or concentrating his troops. He seemed satisfied with looking upon the Principalities as a Russian depot, and to be waiting for the hand of the Czar to raise him on the Greek throne. As if the victory were already won, he bestowed civil and military appointments on the swarms of relations and flatterers who surrounded him. Chiefs of a few hundred adventurers were grandly called generals; be placed his brothers on the staffs of his imaginary army corps, whilst he neglected and snubbed men who might have greatly advanced the revolution ; he favoured worthless creatures, such as Karavias, who, with a band of Arnaut mercenaries, had surprised and cut down the Turkish garrison of Galatz, plundered the town, desecrated the churches, and committed every kind of outrage. Ipsilanti shut his eyes when the rabble of Jassy, on hearing of the horrors committed at Galatz, suddenly attacked the Turks peacefully residing in the former town, and murdered them in cold blood. He further committed a great mistake in imprisoning a rich banker on some frivolous pretence, and only releasing him on his paying a ransom of sixty thousand ducats. This act drove a great many wealthy people to take refuge on Russian or Austrian territory, and many others to wish for the restoration of Turkish authority, whose oppression was not quite so ominous as that of the newly-arrived "liberators."
Progress of the Insurrection.-Atlast Ipsilanti, with an army of two thousand men, whose numbers were everywhere proclaimed to be ten thousand, left Jassy for Bucharest. At Fokshany, on the borders of the two Principalities, he issued another proclamation to the "Dacians," which was as unsuccessful as the former. On the other hand, his army was here reinforced by the Arnauts of Karavias, and later on by two hundred Greek horsemen, led by Georgakis, one of the most heroic of the Greek patriots.
About this time, also, according to the pattern of the Thebans, five hundred youths, belonging to the noblest and richest families, formed themselves into a Sacred Battalion. They were clothed in black, and displayed on their breasts a cross with the words, " In this sign you shall conquer." Their hats were decorated with a skull and crossbones! Still, this battalion henceforth distinguished itself above all the other troops of Ipsilanti by discipline and valour. But the chief, instead of affording those youths an opportunity of displaying their zeal, damped it by his delays and slow advance. He did not reach Bucharest before the 9th April. Here the higher clergy and the remaining Boyars declared their adhesion to the cause, in the hope that the leaders of irregular troops who had joined Ipsilanti would do the same, and thus subordinate the anarchical elements of the revolution to the general object. But this hope was only partially fulfilled. Georgakis, indeed, placed himself under Ipsilanti's orders, but other leaders, like Savas and Vladimiresko, were far from following this example. It was even said that the former was secretly working towards the restoration of Turkish supremacy.
Ipsilanti's Approaching Fall.-In this crisis, Ipsilanti's chief occupation was the erection of a theatre and engaging comedians, whilst he himself was more of a comedian than a general. He daily showed himself in the gorgeous uniform of a Russian general. A numerous staff of officers rushed from morning till night, with aimless activity, through the streets of Bucharest. Wealthy people were visited with arbitrary requisitions ; the soldiers of the Hetairia lived, without discipline, at the expense of citizens and peasants ; the Sacred Battalion only refrained from these excesses. Under these circumstances arrived the decision from Laybach, and with it the curse of the Church.
The Patriarch laid Ipsilanti and the Hetairia under the ban ; Sovas and Vladimiresko now openly joined the Rumelian opposition to the Greek cause; the Boyars and the clergy withdrew from it, and from the other classes of the people there had never been any real prospect of support. Ipsilanti endeavoured to weaken the force of the double blow which had befallen him by asserting that the ban of diplomacy and the Church was a mere form behind which the Czar and the Patriarch wished to conceal their secret sympathy with the Hetairia. He asserted that Capo d'Istria had secretly informed him that the Hetairists were not to lay down their arms before having learnt the issue of the proposals made by Russia to the Turks in favour of the Greeks. In the name of the Greek nation he addressed a number of demands to the Czar and his Ambassador at Constantinople, declaring that he would not relinquish the position he had assumed until these demands were complied with. Minds bolder than his advised him to make his way through Bulgaria to Epirus, to relieve Ali Pasha, closely besieged in Janina, and with the latter's help to set Greece free. But Ipsilanti was not made of the stuff to execute so daring a coup-demain; and when Vladimiresko strongly supported the plan, Ipsilanti felt convinced that he and others intended to lead him into a trap by luring him out of the Principalities. He therefore, instead of moving towards the Danube, on the 13th April, with his small army, and scarcely any artillery, turned northwards to the Carpathians, distributing his soldiers in so wide a belt that if the Turks had had any forces ready they might easily have exterminated Ipsilanti's army piecemeal. The revolutionary chief intended, should the Turks seriously threaten him, to take refuge on Austrian territory, hoping, through the intercession of the Russian Ambassador at Constantinople, to secure a free passage for himself and his followers. The Russian Government having permitted the advance of Turkish troops into the Principalities to quell the insurrection, Ipsilanti had to be prepared for a speedy encounter. Infact, under the pretence of intending resistance, he ordered intrenchments to be thrown up, and his troops to be exercised in the use of the bayonet, whilst he amused them again with the fable of Russian assistance.
Advance of the Turks.-Inthe second week of May the Turks crossed the Danube. The Pasha of Braila undertook the recovery of Galatz, which had been taken by Karavias. The first encounter took place before that town on the 13th May, on which occasion the Hetairists, by their bravery, redeemed many of the mistakes committed by their leaders. About seven hundred of the insurgents held three redoubts on the road to Braila; they had two guns. Their position fad been so skilfully chosen by their chief, Athanasius of Karpenisi, that it seemed possible to, defend it for a long time against a fivefold number of Turks. But the majority of the defenders consisted of rabble sailors taken from the ships in the harbour, and of the robbers and murderers who, under the leadership of Karavias, had rendered themselves infamous, and now felt little inclination to sacrifice themselves for a foreign cause. As soon as the Turks prepared for the attack, the bulk of them fled, leaving it to Athanasius and the few Greeks to engage in the fight. The unequal conflict lasted till night; the redoubts were bravely held by the small number of Greeks; and when darkness came, and the fighting was suspended, the Greeks practised a trick to make their escape. They hung their cloaks outside the redoubts, and the Turks, taking the cloaks for men, fired at them; at the same time the Greeks had loaded their guns in such a way, as to go off one after another as soon as the garrison should have left the redoubts, by which means the attention of the Turks would be diverted from the fugitives. Theruse succeeded; the Greeks escaped, first to a small peninsula at the mouth of the Pruth, and thence to Jassy. The greatest disorder prevailed in that town. Prince Kantakuzeno, to whom Ipsilanti had entrusted its defence, could maintain himself but a few days. In the middle of June, when tho Turkish troops advanced against him, he retreated to Bessarabia, advising Athanasius and the other Greeks to do the same. But these pronounced him a despicable coward; they, they said, were determined to defend the Greek, cause to the last, and to die honourably or to conquer. With four hundred men and eight guns they resisted,, behind a weak barricade of trees, near Skuleni, for eight days a vastly superior enemy, and by their heroic conduct threw a final halo round the Moldavian insurrection.
Athanasius met with the death of a patriot. Nearly a thousand Turks had fallen; three hundred Greeks perished in the fight or in the waters of the Pruth, the remnant took refuge on the opposite bank.
Ipsilanti's Difficulties.-Moldavia was lost; in the meantime the Pasha of Silistria bad entered Bucharest on the 29th May; Ipsilanti, perfectly helpless, was encamped at Tergovist. His troops, even the Sacred Battalion, were thoroughly demoralised; his dissensions with Savas and Vladimiresko continued. The former had readily surrendered Bucharest to the Turks, and had followed Ipsilanti, whom on the first favourable opportunity he intended to take prisoner to give him up to the Turks. Vladimiresko prepared to withdraw to Little Wallachia, there to await the result of his negotiations with the Turks ; he had proposed to the Pasha of Silistria to have Ipsilanti and Georgakis assassinated. But his treachery became known to his intended victims ; Georgakis suddenly appeared in his camp, took him prisoner in the midst of his officers, and carried him to Tergovist. On being taken before Ipsilanti he protested his innocence, declaring that he had only been trying to draw the Turks into a snare; but Ipsilanti ordered him at once to be shot.
Ipsilanti's Fall.-Ipsilanti intended to occupy the strategically important village of Dragatschau, but the rapid advance from Bucharest of the Turkish vanguard left him no time to do so . On the 8th June it encountered a Greek division under Anastasius of Argyrokastro ; another division, sent for the support of the Greeks from Tergovist, under the command of Dukas, betook themselves to their heels, with their leader at their head, and spread such consternation in the camp at Tergovist, that Ipsilanti's troops, leaving their baggage behind, took to flight. Ipsilanti thereupon with great difficulty made his way to Ribnik, with a view of being near the Austrian frontier, which he intended to cross, if necessary. In spite of the losses he had sustained, he still commanded 7500 men, with four guns. Georgakis considered the opportunity favourable by an attack on Dragatschau, which the Turks had occupied with two thousand men, to raise the sinking courage of his troops. His dispositions were skilfully arranged to surround the enemy, inferior in numbers, and on the 19th June 1821, five thousand insurgents were concentred on the heights surrounding the village, entirely cutting off the retreat of the Turks. Ipsilanti's corps had not yet arrived. Georgakis sent messenger after messenger to hasten the advance of Ipsilanti, that he might share in the honours of the day. The Turks were aware of their dangerous position. Towards mid-day they attempted a debouch from the village to occupy a height in front of it; but the attempt miscarried, the Greeks would not give way. Thereupon the Turks set fire to the village,. in order to effect their retreat under the shelter of the flames. Karavias, whom Ipsilanti had appointed colonel of the cavalry, considered it a favourable moment to gather cheap laurels; he took the burning of the village as a sign of the flight and defeat of the Turks; envious of Georgakis, he designed to rob him of the honour of this easy victory, and in spite of orders to the contrary, to adventure with his five hundred horsemen on storming the village.
He persuaded Nicholas Ipsilanti to support the mad attempt with the Sacred Battalion and his artillery, and, heated with wine, without even communicating with his chief, he led his men across the bridge leading to the village. The Turks at first retreated, as, in fact, they had already commenced a retrograde movement, apprehending a general attack. But when they discovered that Karavias and the Sacred Battalion only were coming against them, they wheeled round and first threw the cavalry into disorder; the Sacred Battalion, tender youths having but lately assumed arms, could not resist the hardy veteran Spahis. They fell, "like blooming boughs" under the woodcutter's hatchet. Georgakis arrived in time to recover the standard and two guns and rescue the remainder, about one hundred men, of the Sacred Battalion. About thirty of the Arnauts, and twenty of Georgakis' devoted band, were also slain. By this defeat Ipsilanti's last hope was destroyed. Having taken refuge at Kosia, he negotiated with the Austrian Government for permission to cross the frontier. His safety was in danger from his own people.
They talked of handing him over to the Turks and earning the price set on his head. All discipline disappeared. The Hetairists robbed and murdered one another. Among the few men of faith and honour, Georgakis was one of the most prominent. Though he would have preferred Ipsilanti remaining, he assisted his flight. Then he joined his friend Farmakis at Adjile, to continue, faithful to his oath, the struggle for Greece.
Ipsilanti's Manifesto.-Ipsilanti, true to his system of deceit, continued to spread false reports and letters, stating that the Emperor Francis had declared war against the Porte, that Austrian troops would occupy the Principalities, and that he was going to have an interview with the Imperial governor. But once on Austrian territory, Ipsilanti, who there called himself Alexander Komorenos, was seized and imprisoned in Fort Arad. There he attempted to justify his forsaking his companions in arms by shifting the want of success off his shoulders on those of others. In a boastful manifesto he said: " Soldiers! But no, I will not disgrace this honourable name by applying it to you. Cowardly hordes of slaves! your treachery, and the plots you have hatched, compel me to leave you. From this moment every bond between you and me is severed; to me remains the disgrace of having commanded you. You have even robbed me of the glory of dying in battle. Run to the Turks; purchase your slavery with your lives, with the honour of your wives and children."
Ipsilanti's lmprisonment and Death.-Treaties between Austria and Turkey stipulated that fugitives from either side were only to be received on condition of their being rendered harmless. Consequently, Ipsilanti was compelled to declare in writing, and on his honour, that he would make no attempt at flight. He then was, like a common criminal, taken to the fortress of Munkacs, surrounded by marshes, and obliged to take up his residence in a miserable garret. For years he remained in close confinement, and only when his health began to give way was he permitted to takeuphis residence in a less unhealthy prison at Theresienstadt, a fortified place of Bohemia. In 1827, at the intercession of the Emperor of Russia, he was set free, but died next year, as it was said, of a broken heart. He had lived to see his followers persecuted and slain, his family ruined, and himself unable to assist, when the people of Greece, more successful than the Hetairists of the Principalities, fought for liberty and their fatherland. Romance has thrown its halo around the prisoner of Munkacs, and the Greeks ended in beholding in him the martyr of Greek freedom.
Fate of the Hetairists.-The insurrection may be considered to have ended with Ipsilanti's flight; the remnant of his followers now fought for honour only. Readily supported by the people-as foolishly as ever supporting their oppressors-the Turks made rapid progress in annihilating the remains of Ipsilanti's army. Such Hetairist leaders as surrendered on good faith were mercilessly executed. The traitor Savas, in spite of the zeal he had shown in the Turkish cause, shared the same fate; he was shot at Bucharest, together with his officers and soldiers, and their heads were sent to Constantinople.
Georgakis' Death.-Georgakis and Farmakis, the bravest and truest leaders of the insurgents, remained. They were determined not to entrust their lives either to Austrian protection or Turkish pity, and therefore again made their way into Moldavia. Georgakis, who was ill, had to be carried on a litter. During the long and painful march the number of his followers was reduced to three hundred and fifty. The peasants everywhere betrayed to the Turks in pursuit every one of his movements, and even before reaching the Moldavian frontier he was surrounded on all sides. Moreover, he was imprudent enough to take refugein acul-de-sac, by fortifying the monastery of Sekko, which, with but one outlet, is situate in a deep gorge. However, on the 17th September, he successfully drove back the first attack of the Turkish vanguard, and his confidence increased. He was, moreover, induced by a treacherous letter of the Greek bishop, Romanos, not to allow the treasures of the monastery to fall into Turkish hands, to prolong his stay. This decision proved fatal to the remnant of the Hetairia. On the loth September, four thousand Turks, led by Roumanian peasants on hitherto unknown paths, made their appearance in the rear of the monastery, traversing the Greek lines of defence, and cutting off the defenders of the monastery, placed at the entrance of the gorge, from their comrades. Farmakis threw himself into the main building of the monastery, while Georgakis, with eleven companions, took refuge in the bell-tower. The Turks set fire to piles of wood close to it. "I shall die in the flames; fly, if you choose, I open you the door! " the intrepid chief exclaimed; at the same time he threw down the door, flung a firebrand into the powder-stores, and in this way buried the Turks who had forced their way in, and ten of his companions, in the ruins. Only one of the Greeks escaped, as if by a miracle.
Farmakis' Death.-Farmakisheld the monastery for eleven days longer, after which time his ammunition and stores of food were exhausted. On the 4th October he agreed to a favourable capitulation, which the Pasha of Braila and the Austrian Consul (!) guaranteed. The besieged were promised an honourable free marching off with their arms. But in the night, before the conclusion of the treaty, thirty-three of Farmakis' soldiers-two hundred altogether-made their escape, because they did not trust the Turkish promises. Those who remained had to regret their confidence. On the following day the Turks slaughtered the soldiers; the officers were carried to Silistria, and there executed; Farmakis was sent to Constantinople, where, after having been cruelly racked, he was beheaded.
Final Success of the Hetairia.-Thusthe real Hetairia perished, but its overthrow was not without benefit to the cause; for by the brutalities committed by the Turks who occupied the Principalities, there arose a series of complications between the Cabinets of St. Petersburg and Constantinople, which at last led to an open quarrel. Ipsilanti lived to see the issue of the diplomatic fencing in the beginning of the Russo-Turkish war of 1828 and 1829, when the real Greek people, with genuine means, accomplished to the south of the Balkans what he had vainly attempted with artificial ones in the north. But in this the action of the Hetairia, still existing as a remnant, played only a secondary part, and hence we may here fitly conclude the history of this secret society.
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