“The standing armies of Europe are now simply armed police; for, as all the nations are owned by one power—­the money power—­there is no longer any danger of their assaulting each other.  But in the greed of the sordid commercial spirit which dominates the continent they have reduced, not only the numbers, but the pay of the soldiers, until it is little better than the compensation earned by the wretched peasantry and the mechanics; while years of peace and plunder have made the rulers careless and secure.  Hence our powerful association has spread among these people like wild-fire:  the very armies are honeycombed with our ideas, and many of the soldiers belong to the Brotherhood.

“Here, in America, they have been wise enough to pay the soldiers of their standing army better salaries; and hence they do not so readily sympathize with our purposes.  But we outnumber them ten to one, and do not fear them.  There is, however, one great obstacle which we have not yet seen the way to overcome.  More than a century ago, you know, dirigible air-ships were invented.  The Oligarchy have a large force of several thousands of these, sheathed with that light but strong metal, aluminium; in popular speech they are known as The Demons.  Sailing over a hostile force, they drop into its midst great bombs, loaded with the most deadly explosives, mixed with bullets; and, where one of these strikes the ground, it looks like the crater of an extinct volcano; while leveled rows of dead are strewed in every direction around it.  But this is not all.  Some years since a French chemist discovered a dreadful preparation, a subtle poison, which, falling upon the ground, being heavier than the air and yet expansive, rolls, ‘like a slow blot that spreads,’ steadily over the earth in all directions, bringing sudden death to those that breathe it.  The Frenchman sold the secret of its preparation to the Oligarchy for a large sum; but he did not long enjoy his ill-gotten wealth.  He was found dead in his bed the next day, poisoned by the air from a few drops of his own invention; killed, it is supposed, by the governments, so that they would possess forever the exclusive monopoly of this terrible instrument of slaughter.  It is upon this that they principally rely for defense from the uprisings of the oppressed people.  These air-ships, ‘the Demons,’ are furnished with bombs, loaded with this powerful poison; and, when an outbreak occurs, they sail, like great, foul birds, dark-winged and terrible, over the insurgents; they let fall a single bomb, which inspires such terror in the multitude that those not instantaneously killed by the poison fly with the utmost speed; and the contest is at an end.  We have long labored to bring the men who arm these air-ships, and who manufacture this poison, into our organization, but so far without success.  The Oligarchy knows their value, and pays them well.  We have, however, bribed one or two of their men, not themselves in the secret,