Democrat and sentinel. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1853-1866, 1855-03-15
EBENsBURG, MARCH Is, 1865.

tuition, Instantly BECOME the wrong of the whole
nation, where man may speak. write, and
publish whatever seems to him right, and there
is no one to make him afraid, this feature in
political sociefy naturally attracted attention
Z i have heard of such political organizations
ip other countries, and under different circum-
stances. When foreign despot put his foot
upon the neck Of PROSTATE Italy, and. the sur
wing friendsof liberty CROPPED at midnight
amongst the fallen columns of the temples of
freedom when they were watched and hunted
down with freachery and the 9ibbet constant
ly before them. they cong ,t q 1ztY q secret
of the Italian republics. History, however,
is fun of such combinations where virtuous
ruler was to be assassinated or dethroned, or
a legitimate government overthrown by trea-
sonabie conspiracy. Such combinations, how
ever, are new and uncalled for in this land of
ours. 1t is not long since we had to lament
the degradation of a people, who, after long
years of odious, grinding tyranny, achieved
their liberties, and then, as if weary of their
burden voluntarily. and on bended knees laid
them down at the feet of despot. But lib
erty to them had been a sort of afever dream,
felt the touch of the scorching and desolating
lava of revolution. and fearing its recurrence,
sought refuge in the calm of frigid despotism
whose icy bosom, like frozen sea, is untossed
by the tempest and unmoved by the tide
This is their apology, such as it is. We, on
the contrary, achieved our liberty, and or
ganized it by written constitution, under
which we repose' quietly, peacefully and pros
perously. We have had but one serious strug-
gle about the extent to which that constitution
abridged our liberty. That struggle grew
out of an attempt by the government to inter-
fere with the freedom of discussion, the license
of speech, and the freedom of the press,
matter deemed vital by our republican fathers.
They resisted, and after great and earnest eff
forts, succeeded in establishing firmly these
great privileges, so intimately interviewer with
the very spirit of liberty. and, indeed, essen
tial to its very existence. What excuse can
we offer for contemptuously spurning these
privileges now. or for sprrendering them vol
unfairly in exchange for the dictation of Sc
cret irresponsible councils, for attempting to
govern the country by means and by persons
unknown to the people at large; none, none
whatever The exaction of an oath or pledge
of secrecy and fidelity in this country by
political party, is a confession that the cause
in which it is enlisted is incapable of inspiring
attachment or respect. As.t
l regard the suggestion of the apprehension
of tumult and violence from foreigners as sim
ply absurd 1t could have no possible appli-
cation except to very few localities 1t is
not pretended that it applies to the well-or-
deIed society of the South. Indeed, / do not
know il, at last, the explanation of this strange
feature in the Know Nothing organization
does not lie nearer the surface than we have
imagined 1t may be that the early founders
of the order. when they looked at their follow
ors, experienced the same feelings with which
Falstaff surveyed the results of that recruiting
service in which he said he had g misrsed
the Kings press most damnably." Jack look
ed along those ranks which were filled by
discarded, unjust, serving men, younger
sons to younger brothers, reyolted tapsters,
and ostlers trade fallen. the cankers of calm
world and long peace" where men of the
stamp of Mouldy, and Bullcalf, and Feeble
Forcible Feeble -shone conspicuous; and he
said to himself, g If be not ashamed of my
soldiers, am souced gurnet 1 will not
march through Coventry with them, that's
fat" This may be SO; and it may be that,
finding the new recruits but slight improve
ment upon the earlier levies, they determined
W Wdlt uutti Lpc plpitC Syo, ua11iSu Ny ehC
imposing majesty of numbers, would overlook
individual imperfection. This is not an ac-
cusation, but conjecture, and party which
resorts to secrecy must submit to conjectures.
If we could get at the real origin of this
party, | am inclined TO belieue that it would
be found that at the outset it had but very
limited aims.that it did not contemplate
national organization, and perhaps not po-
litical organization. 1t is quite probable that
opposition to foreigners was leading feature
in it; but it was rather social than a politi-
cal antagonism. Opposition to Roman Cath
olocism was resorted to because a large por-
ton of the foreign population we're Roman
Catholics. and opposition to them was calcula-
ted to enlist the religious prejudices of the
country in favor of the new. party. IT is pot
to be denied that foreign labor and skill affects
the price of wages in some parts of the coun-
try. Nor is it to be denied that some foreign
ers have, at times, acted in manner to pro-
woke resentment. 1t is not to be denied that
certain tenets of the Roman Catholic Church
are repugnant to Protestant ideas of the right
of private Judgment and free inquiry 1t re-
mains to be shown. however, whether these
Know Nothings have the advantage of the
Roman Catholic Church in this respect. The
new party saw at once that 1t might safely re-
ly upon the sympathies of the Protestants,
and that il would attach to itself the fragments
Of the old Native American party. The pla-
cling of the emblem of our Saviour above the
stars and stripes in a procession, was thought
sufficient to prove that the Pope of Rome had
design to establish temporal supremacy in
the United States of America. An instance
here and there, of tumult and violence. on the
part of foreigners, and some foolish declara-
tiops, made by crazy German sentimentalists,
associated With the idea of a rapidly increas-