The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1845-12-18
THE DAILY UNION.

were concerned, be could say that, in the district In
which he lived, Industrious more patriotic,
more orderly, ora more thrifty set Of men than
| they, existed nowhere. He knew some among
| them-men whom the gentleman would have pre-
vented from setting their foot on this continent
who had 70 work two years to get money TO pay
| their pssshge, who were now among their most
wealthy ctEenn, He thought il would be worse
than folly 10 pass law meeing . residence Of 81
years necessary for these men. If they did SOL they
took awey their energies, and left them nothing to
stimulate them As they were, they felt an interest
in the welfare Of the country, in every good measure
accomplished or proposed He wished to attach
them to this country and in that view the law was
wisely framed on the principle that kindness would
do what coercion never could. For the reasons sta
ted he would vote for the reference to the Judiciary
| Committee.
Mr.. JEFFERSON DAVIS said he would
oppose the resolutions ON two grounds. He
thought they deserved no attention anywhere.
They called upon that House to purify the ballot
box. Well, if there was anything impure in TIE
bellot-box in Massachusetts,, they could purify il
themselves, and not come there. They might attend
TO their own concerns, bit they had no right to come
there, and assert there any impurity in other
States. He objected to his reference secondly, be-
cause, far it called for modification Of laws,
| it justly belonged to the judiciary Committee. Was
| there any new principle in the matter which
| required investigation, that they csed for a
specel committed or was the whole matter
settled from the first existence of their gov
| ernmen' He claimed that naturalization ex-
listed before tho constitution, and that the con-
stitution was written merely to secure previously
existing rights. II such were the case, they had no
right to disfranchise men coming to this country.
What were the objects of those asking special
committee! That it was founded in patriotism, or
that 1t was upon the shpposion that the Judiciary
| had not enough legal learning. he denied. If spe-
cisl committee were appointed at all, he would ask
hat OH he from tha 9TH Nhnua yhn
were inclined, in any State Of the Union, to repeal
the naturalization laws, might do SO, but not ask
government to interfere. f'ke principle involved
was one to which the maxim, in medic sid prius
did not apply. They must admit foreigners as
| at present, or exclude them altogether Was it
not plain, if they were entirely excluded from
political rights they would stand inimica to the gov
| ernmeni But, besides that, what effect would a
| change have on the character of emgrants' Mr..
| d. went on at length, eloquently to stgmatizc
the motives which actuated the present movement.
He said the national greatness of the United States
was to be in a great measure attributed to emigra-
ton; that the history of mankind proved its saluta-
| ry influence. The exclusive policy of Spain, as
| well as the anti-comniercal spirit of China-which
was, in spite Of her edlcs and great walls rebuked
| by handful of British troopsAsliowcd the power
| of commerce to benefit mankind. Every barbarous
people exclusive and jealous; but in proportion
as they became civilized, they mingled with other
nations. Europe was following the example of this
| country. France had allowed the rights of citizen
ship to emigrants, and it was likely England would
soon give up the old, narrow policy SHE still adhered
to. How far they were indebted to foreigners for
the achievement of their liberties, was not now the
question: but he thought it the best way to draw the
ties closer which bound them to this country; and
he never was more surprised than when he heard
the name of the ustrious Washington alluded
to, as the father of nativism-a man who was .a
born for no cline or country, but for the
world-a man who in all his correspond
ence recognised liberty and protection to all, on
the broadcast basis and distinctly calls this country
''the asylum of all nations;" and who, in his last
letter to Jefferson, abiding to the wars of Europe,
| said, "Why do they rot give up this little contest
for territory, and come out here to the West where
there is territory enough for ALI" He concluded by
saying that the only interest his constituents had in
the matter the smplIhcation of naturalization,
that those who came from abroad should have no
difficulty in obtaining their certificates and, by vir-
the Of the laws of the land, be invested with the
rights of citizens. Therefore he objected TO- refer
| ence to any committee which must be nimical to
extending the rights of naturalization, and because
the Judiciary Committee had the greatest amount Of
legal knowledge relative 10 the matter 1t was not
his purpose to enter at large into III but should an
opportunity again be presented, he would be glad
to address few further remarks to the House.
| Mr. GROVER was entirely opposed TO refer
ence of the resolutions He believed they the
offspring of feeling Of modification at the result of
the great canvass Of 1874 They charged frauds,
upon whom, Not alone upon foreign citizens, but
upon the regularly constituted judiciary Of the coun-
try, whose duty it was to issue certificates of natu-
ralizaon; and also upon those citizens who attend
ed foreigners as witnesses when they applied for
those rights of citizenship. He saw no magnanimi-
| ty in concedng to the demand made for a special
committee If they did IF they sent forth re-
port from that House, at the instance of the gentle
man from Pcnnsylvana--such a one as that COM
mittee would ISSUE he feared the streets of Phadel-
phia would again be drenched with blood; again
the flames would rise from the temples erected for
the worship Of the living God again would they hear
| the midnight screech of the poor unprotected sons
of Erin, or people of Germany, seeking where they
might hide until order restored, and the violated
laws resumed their supremacy.
He was opposed 10 anyl such reference. He
asked that those who made this charge of fraud
against naturalized citizens and against our u-
dicia officers, should go before impartial commit
tee, that all might have hearing. Did they say
they wished to purify the ballot-boxes' That was
all sheer nonsense. The gentleman from Virginia
| [Mr. BAYLYl had most eloqucnty satisfied them all
this morning that that was question with which
the United States had nothing to do; that Congress
had control the elective franchise whatever;
but that each State within its own confines could
confer the right of voting upon whoever they saw
/ ft--whether upon minors, females, or foreigners,
as they touched these shores if they pleased.
Entertaining these notions, Mr.. q. would have
|
not for the principle he entertained that every petit
ton from respectable portion of the citizens Of
this confederacy entitled to hearing. In con-
formty with this view, he had always voted for the
reference Of petitions on the subject of abolition,
not because he favored that object or felt any SYM
pathy with it, bat because he believed report from
an impartial committee, fairly made, and extern
sively circulated would allay the excitement on the
subject, and cause less Of these petitions to be pre-
| scented.
| He had been perfectly astounded to hear portion
of the remarks of the gentleman, from Pennsylvania
to hear the disrespect which he had manifested
for the principles Of the declaration Of ndepend-
ence. He had been astonshed to hear him date
our existence nation from the adoption of the
federal constitution; he had been surprised at the
tcmerity with which he would tear some of the
brightest pages from the history of the American
people. But he was not surprised when he found
that the spirit lying at the foundation of the native
American party one of the spirits rebuked in
|