Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1855-09-01

hospitality with gratuitous privileges unne.
cessary to the enjoyment of those inalenable
rights of man-lite, liberty, and the pursuit o.
hdppineSs-privilege wisely reserved to the
natives of the soil, by the governments of all
other civilized nations. But, familarized by
| habit, with the exercise Of those indulgences
and emboldcned by increasing numbers, q
vast majority of those who constitute this
! foreign body, now claim as an original right,
that which has been so incautously granted
ms favor-thus attempting to render inevi-
table the prospective action of laws adopted
upon principle of mere eXpediency, made
variable at the will of Congress, by the ex-
press terms of the Constitution, and hereto
fore repeatedly revised to meet the exigen-
cies of the times.
In former years, this body was recruited
chiefly from the victims of political oppres-
sion, or the active and intelligent mercantile
adventures of other lands and it then con-
stituted slender representation Of the best
classes of the foreign population, well fitted
to add strength to the State, and capable OF
being readily educated in the peculiarly
American science political self-government.
Moreover, while welcoming the stranger Of
every condition, our laws then wisely deman-
ded of every foreign aspirant for political
rights, certificate Of practical good citisen-
ship. Such a class Of aliens were followed by
no foreign demagogues-t they were purchased
by no parties-they were debauched by no
emssaries of Kings. A wall of fire separa-
ted them from such baneful influence, erected
by their intelligence, their knowledge, their
virtue and love Of freedom, But for the last
twenty years the road to civil preferment and
participation in the legislative and executive
government OF the land has been laid broadly
open, alike to the ignorant, the vicious and
the criminal and large proportion OF the
foreign body of citizens and voters now con-
stitutes representation of the worst and
most degraded of the European population
victims Of social oppression, Of personal vices,
utterly divested by ignorance or crime, of the
moral and intellectual requisites for political
self-government.
Thus tempted by the suicidal policy OF these
United States, and favored by the facilities
resulting from the modern Improvements of
navigation, numerous societies and corporate
bodies in foreign countries have found 1t eco
nomical to transport to our shores, at public
and private expense, the feeble. the lmbecile,
the idle and mtractable, thus relieving them
selves of the burdens resulting from the vices
Of the European social systems, by availing
themselves of the generous errors OF our own.
The alms-houses Of Europe are emptied
upon our coast. and this by our orn incitdti0n
hot cauIually, or to trivial extent, but
Systematically. and upon constantly increa-
sing scale. The Bedlams of the old world
have contributed their share to the torrent of
immigration, and the lives of our citizens have
been attempted in the streets of our capital
cities by madmen, Just liberated from Euro
pean hospitals upon the express condition
that they should be transported to America.
J I ~ hu of bn
punishment of crimes has been commuted for
banishment to the land of the free and Grim
inals in irons have crossed the ocean to be
cast loose upon society on their arrival upon
our shores The United States are rapidly
becoming the lazar house and penal colony OF
Europe; nor can we reasonably censure such
proceedings; they are legitimate consequent
ces of our own unlimited benevolence and it
is Of such material that we profess TO manu-
facture free and enlightened citizens by a
process occupying five short years at most,
but practically oftentimes embraced III q
much shorter period of time.
| The mass of immigrants, formerly cast
among the Natives of the SOIL has increased
| from the ratio of in 40 to that of l in I "a
| like advance in Is years will leave the Ma
tives of the soil in minority in their own
land Thirty years ago these strangers came
by units and tens-now they swarm by thou
sands. lit is estimated that 100000 will ar
rive within the present year, Formerly
most of them sought only for an honest liveli
hood and provision for their families and
rarely meddled with those institutions, o
which it was impossible they could compre
hend the nature; noc each new conner seeks
political preierment, aud struggles to faster
| ON the public purse with an avldity, IN strict
! 1, md rth
of public trust-haying been SENT for the
purpose of obtaining political ascendency il
The government of the natioI-having been
SENT to exalt their allies to eower-having
been SENT to work revolution from repub
lican freedom TO the divine rights OF mon
archs.
From these unhappy circumstances has
arisen an imperium in Imperio-a body unln
formed and vcious-foreign in feeling, preju-
dice and manner, yet armed with a vast ano
often acontrolling influence over the policy o
a nation whose benevoence it abuses. anc
whose kindness it habitually insults;-a body
as dangerous to the rights OF the intelligent
foreigner, as to the prospect of its own imme
| date progeny, as it is threatening to the lib
critics of the country, and the hopes Of na
tional freedom throughout the world a body
ever ready to complicate our foreign relations
by embroilng US with the hereditary hates
and feuds of other lands, and to disturb oul
domestic peace by its crude ideas mistakine
licence for liberty, and the overthrow OF indi
vidual rights for republican political equali
ty "a body ever the ready tool of foreign
and domestic demagogues, and steadily en-
deavoring by misrule to establish popular tyr
amy under cloak of democracy. Amer
cans, false to their country, and led on to
moral crime by the desire Of dishonest gain
have scattered their agents over Europe, In
ducing the malcontent and the unthrifty to
exchange life of compulsory labor in foreign
lands for relative comfort TO be maintained
by the tax-paying industry of our over-bur
dened aud deeply indebted community.
Not content with the usual, and less objec
tionable licences Of trade, these fraudulent
dealers habitually deceive worthier class o
victims, by false promises OF employment, anS
assist in thronging the already crowded ave
nues Of simple labor with a host OF competi
tors. whose first ocquaintance with American
faith springs from gross imposture, who's
first feeling on discovering the cheat. is rea
sonable mstrust, if not implaeable revenge
The importation of the physical necessities o
life may be burdened with duties, which man,
deem extravagant; but the Importation Q
vice and idleness-of seditious citizens an
factious rulers--is not only unrestricted D.
any thing beyond a nominal tax, but is aetu
ally encouraged by system which transform
tbs graaf natrimonv of the nation purchase