The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1853-11-10
HATIONALITIEs.

The best thing foreign immigrants can do
when they make their home among us, Is 70 lei
the dead Past bury its dead" Let them
leave behind their prejudices, their rlvalries,
their petty nationalites and make up their
minds, as they are to be cordially received and
treated as American citizens, to be American
citizens. We cherish no hostile feeling towards
them-our doors are opened wide tor their re-
ception-they can entitle themselves by SIM
pie declaration of their intention to become
naturalized and by remaining here just long
enough to attest il. to the political privileges
enioyed by the rest of us. Demciiated with
us under the same sky, on the same soil, in the
same circumstances, with the same privileges,
they fall under the influence of the same nat
ural laws and political institutions and we oil
become assimiated as one family. We pass no
laws to coerce uniformity Of manners or customs
or language-but uniformity comes to pass nat
urally, spontaneously, by the workings of the
like circumstances in which we are all placed.
As we do not aim by acts of legislation, or
national combinations to coerce uniformity, to
compel immigrants to fall into our way OF think
ing and acting, let them not attempt by sepa-
rate organization to keep themselves apart
a distinct and peculiar people. Do they wish
to perpetuate in this New World the miserable
divisions and jealousies which have paralyzed
the strength of the masses OF the Old world!
Do thew wish TO see the United States of Amer
lea a mere conglomeration of rival races, OF
Jealous nationalities, alien in language, IN Gus
toms in sympathies, instead of one grand fam
ily, knit together by common interests and a
common destinyl Not the great majority OF
them They are willing to be known as Amer-
ican citizens, to think, and act, and speak, as
American citizens But, occasionally, some OF
them act as if they thought European civliza-
ton was better fitted to this continent than the
civilization which has already taken root here,
and been determined by its peculiar physical
conditions and political institutions. They would
import the discords of the Old World into the
nationalties, which have pre-
vented anything like well-concerted movements
in favor of liberty in Europe, to this country
building up here petty nations of Germans,
Irish, Swedes, Norwegians, insulated and alien,
each laying its plans to obtain the control OF
the country which has welcomed them to its
highest privileges This, we repeat, is the pol
icy not of the great majority Of foreign imml-
grants, but of few demagogues among them,
inflated with ideas of their own Importance or
enemies at heart to American civilization.
These men should understand that while
Americans intend to keep an open door to the
stranger, to make him one with them to place
him on an equal footing with themselves under
the Constitution and laws they know how to
protect themselves and their Institutions against
alien combinations, whether at home or abroad
Uniformly, when any serious attempt has been
made to organize the foreign elements in our
population, for distinct, separate, antagonistc
operations, it has been promptly met and baf-
aed. Witness the blasted schemes of the Jes-
iits for the overthrow of the Common School
System in Massachusetts, Michigan, Ohio, and
,ther parts of the country. We rejoice, too
% record another instance in which foreign |
organization for another purpose has been frus-
rated:
81. Louis Election-Allusion was made in
,ur columns, day or two ago, to the new is
ues introduced by the Germans of St. Louis
nto the election pending there for Judge of
L o. tho Col
he Republican of the 25th ult it will be seen
hat the German organization met with an
defeat:
at would be mock modesty for us to say
hat we are not gratifed with the result of the
and has been elected by ma ority that ought
10 be hattering to any man. We have as yet
not full returns, but 80 far they indicate that
Mr.. Lacklands majority will be overwhelm-
ng-largely over the candidate of those who
desired to subvert our Grand Jury system, and
10 destroy the restraints on the observance of
the Sabbath The result of this election is
signal, and, we trust, final rebuke to all those
who wish to introduce foreign and iu6del
changes into our moral, social, and political
system.
ave do not claim the election of Mr.. Lack
land as party triumph, in any political shape;
and we are pleased to have here the opportu-
nifty of saying that men of all part,es-the most
violent partisans of the Democrats as well as of
the Whgs-united to give him support, because
of their antagonism to the views and purposes
of this new, foreign, revolutionary innovation
upon our institutions"
So will it always be. Any attempt to per-
petuate nationaties in this country, by politi-
cal organization, will be nipped in the bud.
Ireland and Germany and England are on the
other side of the Atlantic there let them re-
main. The People Of the United States are not
English, or Irish, or Germans-they are Amer
leans; and the few selEconceited dcmagogues
among our foreign immigrants who refuse to
honor their name, while they would abuse the
privileges to which it entities them, would do
we'll to leave country whose institutions they
cannot appreciate. New ideas may undoubt-
edly be suggested by foreigners; they may pro-
nose reforms of substantial value but the right
made to urge them is not by organizing them
selves as party antagonistic to the nativc-born
population. No good can be accomplished by
such a movement sufficient to compensate foI
the vast evils that would result from the or
ganization of parties in this country on the
ground of difference of race.
THE "0RGANp has received additional IN
formation from its unknown correspondent ir
Cuba that the Captain General is busily EN-
ployed in making proselytcs to the apprentices
system. The correspondent says that instead
of thirty or forty thousand, one hundred thou
sand Africans are proposed to be brought in
II seems that he communicated the news of THU
important project last May, and is sure that i
will soon be confirmed by news from Europe