Wisconsin tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1847-1854, 1852-10-07
NatIYiSm

and King State ticket in Pennsylvania as
candidate for Justice of the Supreme
Court. In 1867, he was a member of
the Convention which framed the present
Constitution of Pennsylvania and there
in (See Convention Proceedings, vol. v.
p 544)
MIR Woodward moved to amend the
amendment, by adding thereto the words
''and that the said Committee be also IN
structed to inquire into the propriety Of
so amending the Constitution as to PRE-
VENT any foreigners who may arrive in
this State after the 4th day Of July IS4I.
FROM ACQUIRING THE RIGHT
TO VOTE OR TO HOLD OFFICE
IN THIS COMMONWEALTH
In support of this proposition, Mr..
Woodward said, (p. 446-7)
"Sir | appreciate as much as any man
living the many political rights and privi-
leges which l. in common with the people
of the United States, am now ENJOYING
and 1t Is my honest impression. that WE
Do BUT SQUANDER THOSE PRIV
lLEGES in comforting them upon per
sons who choose to come and claim them
tie knew that great portion of those who
come among US from foreign countries
consist frequently of the WORST PART
OF THE POPULATION OF THOSE
COUNTRIES. that they are UNAC-
QUAINTED WITH THE VALUE
OF THESE PRIVILEGES. and that.
therefore, they Do NOT KNOW HOW
TO VALUE THEM [ think that. in
thus comforting indiscriminatelv upon all.
we are DOING INJURY TO OUR LII
Berries AND OUR IN STIT u
/ l o n S; and [ believe that, if the
time has not yet come, it will speedily
come, when it will be indispensibly neces-
sary either r this body, or some other
body of this State or of the United States.
to inquire whether it is not right to put
some plan into execution by which for
eighers should be prevented from CON
trolling our elections and brow beating
our American citizens at the polls"
Judge Woodward continues
And what claim have the foreigners
from any c0Untry-aye, Sir. from ana
country, which is strong enough to Justify
US in PROSTITUTING OUR POLIT-
ICAL. PRIVILEGES by comforting
them carelessly and Unfortunately ON
every individual who may reside here for
two or three years-become a naturalized
cltizen-and then command our Offices
There are very many OF these emigrants
who know nothing Of political privileges
IN their own country before they emil
CRATE to this: The world is unknown to
them, or if they hear of it at all they hear
of it as something in which they have no
participation. Is not this the fact? Sir
We II L-pn-r- Fhaf Z IL
many of these emf gratis never enjoyed
any political privileges themseIves-that
they HAVE NO KNOWLEDGE OF
THEM, AND LEAST OF ALL. HAVE
I HEY ANY KNOWLEDGE OF.
OUR PEOPLE OUR VERN-
VI lent, OR OUR INSTITUTIONS.
The requirement of this knowledge is not
the work of day They have no SYM
pathy IN common with us they have no
qualifications to RENDER THEM FIT
RECIPIENTS OF THESE HIGH
POLITICAL PRIVILEGES"
Only last fall, (Sept. 6, l851,) he de-
Tended the above proposition as follows
who would complain of my PROPOSE
ton Certainly no foreigner then in the
on his way to this country
hone who should choose to come before I
the 4th of July, l84I-for none of these T
were to be excluded from anything-ei-
Their a residence or political privileges a
mong US. Nor could those who should /
choose to come after the 4th of July. /
l84l, complain, for they would have had .
nearly four years notice that then acre
not 10 share IN or political PrjCileges"
Now, imagine the wings putting up
such candidate as this, and Just think /
what a noise would be made about it -
n. T. Tribune.