Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1854-10-27

"
In Virginia, there are five Protestant sects, each
larger than the number Of Catholics in the State and
the aggregate Of which exceeds tho Catholics by Il
maj )rity Of 765, ,426 vo,arics.
Now, what has such a majority Of numbers, and ot
wealth OF natives md OF Protcstanls, to fear from
such nnoitreS Of Catholics and naturHized citizensi
hat IL the necessity for this master minority tn re-
aort to secret Organization agans; snch minority
put fairly: Would they or2ani:c at oil against me
Catholics and Ndtur0l,:r3 citizens II the Cath0itcs
and Ndtnroi:ed citizens rcrc IN TIC Ike mnior'fy ot
Numbers, and Of rcdlth T mGjoritics dnd m'h0ri-
tie. ,rrcrsed7 To retire i'll secret with such
| majority, docs it not confess 10 something which
dares not subject itself to the scrutiny Of knowledge
and would have discussion Know Nothing of its de-
signs and operations and ends Cannot the Know
S"things trust to the leading Protestant churches 10
defend themselves and the souls OF all the saints, aud
sinners too against the influence of Cn.holics' Can't
they trust To- the patriotism and fraternity OF natives
t, guard the land against immigrants! In defence oi
| the great American Protestant churches, venture
to say in their behalf, that the Pope, and all his
priests combined, ara not moro jealous and wachtui
in their masters work. the rork for the mastery,
than our Episcopal, Presbyterian Baptist Metho-
dist, Lutheran, and Congregational clergy. They are,
whole church militant, with their arnror bright;
they are jealous they are jealous they arc watchiu
they organized, embodied however divided by
secaranism, yet banded together against Papacy, and
learned and active, and polite too rs any brother
hood OF monks. They need such pot's'co' organi-
zaon to d.tend the tu.h. Are they united in II! DO
what end! In the name of the. religion, ask them
| Why not rely on God! Aud do the Know Nothings
| imagine that the pride and love of country are SO
dead in Native hearts, that secret organizations are
necessary to bcget born patriotism TO protect
| us from foreign influence! Now, in defence of our
people, say for them that no people upon earth are
| more possessed with nationality Us q strong passion,
than the reenen of the United States OF North mc-
rca. Nowhere is the iinl and domestic tie stronger,
nowhere is the tie of knship moro binding, nowhere
| ia tbera In,.,- he,
| the surest foundation of the love OF country-no-
where is any countrys romance of history more felt,
nowhere arc the social relations on better moral
foundation, nowhere is there as clear identity o pa
reutage and offspring, nowhere are SONS and dausi-
ters educated to liberty, nowhere have any poo
pie such certainty of the knowledge Of the reward OF
vigilance, nowhere have they such freedom
Of sclf-governmeut, nowhere is there such trained
hatred Of Kings Lords, and aristocracics no
where is there more sef-dependence, or more
independence of the Old World or its traditions
i'm a word no where is thcre country whose peo-
pie have, by birthrght, tythe Of what our people
have to make them love that land which is hcir
eountry and that spot which is their home am all
| American Nireinian Proudcr thnn over to have
said, IL am Roman citizen! So far from Brother
Jonathan wanting national feeling he is justly sus.
pected abroad of little too much pride anu bigotry
of country. The Revolution and the last war with
Great Britain tried and the late conquest OF Mex
found not wanting in the sentimentality ot ma
t,onolism. Though so young, we have already dla.
4 city dandy may have his coat cut IN Paris but nc
would fight Frcnchnan in the cloth 0f his country
as quick to-day, "a Marion man ever pulled the
trigger Of Tower musket against red coat English
in rs. And peaoo has tried our patriotism uorc
than war What people have moro reason TO love a
country from thelabor they have bestowed upon its
| development by the arts of industry No: as long
AS the memory OF George Washington lives. as long
IA there shall be 2 Of February and 4th of July,
as long the everlasting mouual lns Of this continent
stand, and our Father OF Waters flows, there will he
fathers to hand down the stories which make our
hearts to glow, and mothers TO sing "Haii Columbia
10 their b8bes-and that song liz not yet stale. There
is no need 10 revive sinking patriotism i'll the hearts
Of our people. Aud who would have them be sc!Rsh
| in their frcedoml Freedom. Liberty! SELFISH and
ercius,rc Never; for it cousumeth not III It's Use,
but is like fire in n,asniying by impHrns lis sparks
and ts rays OF light and Of heat is there any neces-
sy from abroad for such secret political orsau'zn'
tions Against whon and against what, Is 1t leveli-
| oil Against foreigners by birth.
| When we were weak Us three nfltoHs, we relied
largely on foreigners by birth to defend us and aid
| us in securing independence. Now that we arc -
millions strong, how it We have become 80 weak IN
fears as to approhend we are TO oe deprived OF
our liberties by foreigners Verify, inns seeineh US
If Know othings reversing the order O things,
or that there is another ami different feeling from
that Of the fear arising from sense oi weaKnes'.--
Ii rather from proud consciousness of over
woud kick like the proud grown fat. II is I'M e1cln-
SIZE, ii not aristocratc feeling IN the true sense
| which would say TO the friends Of freedom born
! abroad: i've had need Of yon and were glad oi
your aii when wewere weak, but VIC are now 80 nde-
pcndent of YOU that We are not compelled TO allow
vou to cnjny our Republican privileges. We dcsirc
| the exclusive use Of human rights, though to de-
prive you Of their common enjoyment will not enrich
us the more and will make you poor indeed. But
only s il eveed against foreigners by birth, but
against the Pope Of Rome.
There was once atime when the very name OF Papa
frightened US rs the children Of nursery But, now,
now! who be frightened by the temporalor eccle-
sias,ical authority of Plus lH Has he got back to
Romc from his lato excursion! Who are his bo ~
guard there Have the lips of crowned head kiss
cd his big for n century Are any SO poor Ms to
do his Italian crown any reverence Do not two
Catholic powors, France and Austria, hold all his do
mnion in desostable dependency What army,
what revenue, whnt diplomacy, what church domina-
ton in tho Catholic countries OF the Old or the
new world has hel Why, the idea Of the Pope's in
uence at this day is AZ prepostcrous as that OF gun
powder plot. would as soon think OF droading the
ghost Of Guy Fawkcs.
No, there is no necessity from either oppression or
weakness of Protestants OF natives. They nre both
free ind strong and do they now because they are rich
in civil and religious freedom, wish, in turn, to per-
secuto and exclude the falep and the down-trodden
of tho earth = God forbid!
Cd But there is not only necessity for this secret
political orcanization but It in dca'ns the spr' onr
lars and the facts of our history. Some tdmhcs III this
Republic render themselves ridiculous aud offensive
too, by the vain p.ctonsons to the cxnng accidents
of birth. We in Virginia. are not seldom pointed nj
for our F. F. V.'s Of ancestral arrogance. But,
whoever thought that prctenslon of this sort was 80
SOON to be act up by exclusives for the Republic it.
self Sumo of the ancient European people may
boast of their prooplnsts and of their being them.
selves "autochitoncs-th they had fathers aud
thers from near Adam, whom they can name rs their
first tor,rrs and that they are Of the same unmxcd
blood ORIGINAL inhabitants of their country. But
who were our protopasts English Irish, Scotch,
Germans Dutch, Swcdcs, French, Swiss, Spanish,
Italian, Ethiopian-all people of all nations, tribes,
compilations, languages and religions! And who
alone are ''autochthones hero IN North America -
WHY, the Indians The; are the only true nat'rrs-
One thing we have, md that more distinctly than any
other nation: We have our "rponymds We cnn
name tho very hour OF birth people. We
need rccur to no fable OF wot whcP lis INTO e1s
tence. 1t may be hard to fix anuo mundi or the year
of Noah's food or the building of Rome. Rome may
have her Julan epocha, the Ethlopians their cpochn
Of the Abyssines, the Arabans theirs OF the flight OF
Mahomet, tho PerSians theirs OF the coronation o ca
degerlis but ours dates from the Declaration OF In
dependence among tho nations Of the earth, the lth
day Of July 4. ID. lT16 As nation We nre but 7S
years Of agc Many person Is now living who was
alive before this nation born. And the ancestors
OF this people, about two centuries only ago, were
orcigncrs every one of them coming to the shores OF
this country, TO take it away from the AborElnes the
"antochtonoe and to take possession oi by aDthors
ty either directly dercaairy, Of Papot Powcr. His
lioliuoss tho Pope the great grartor OF all the
new countries of North America. This fiction was a
fact OF tho history Of all our first discoveries and
settlements, Foreigners in the name Of the Pope and
Mother Church, took possession Of North America,
to have and to hold the same to their heirs against
tho hentbeu forevcr-And now already their descen-
dants are for excluding foreigners and the Popes fol-
lowers from equal enjoyment of the privileges OF
this same possession SO strange is human history.
Christopher Columbus Ferdinand and Isabella -
What would they have thought of this had they
foresccn it when they touched continent and called
theirs in the name of the Holy Trinity, by authori
~ of the keeper OF the keys Of Heaven and of the
Great Grautof Of the Empire and Domain Of oarth
What would have become Of our nutional titles TO
North Eastcrn aud North Western boundaries, but
for the plea of this authority valid of old among ali
Christian Powers!
Following the discovery and the possession of the