Democrat and sentinel. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1853-1866, 1855-06-20
A Case for the Know.Nothings.

To THE EDITOR OF THE NEW YoRK TRIB-
UNE-Sir: Will you be kind enough to pre-
sent my case for the consideration of your
Know Nothing readers. | was born in Eng
land by accident, not choice; was not con-
suited In the matter / came on the faith of
your flag your Constitution and your laws I;
these told me I might become citizen of the
Republic and stand on an equal footing with
my neighbors. !" native to the manor born by
giving :. value received" The consideration
was renunciation of my birth-right, my natal
citizenship. 1 paid the consideration and
became, as | supposed, citizen of the Uni
ted States; hardly established in my new
home, [ hear the war blast and find myself
doing soldiers duty in Mexico. under my
newly adopted flag after that l bind myself
by other relations to this country I marry an
Ameriran woman and have sons born unto me,
Americans all come out into this wilderness
to carve out of this forest aud these prairies
freemen's homes for my sons. L am startled
by another sound, the scream of bigotry and
intolerance, am told the contract made be-
tween the United States and me is to be repu-
dated, that am to be deprived of my citizen
ship, or at least that it is to be robbed of its
virtue and its grace, that its attribute Equal
ity, for which prize it, must be stricken out;
I must not hold an Office; I want none, but
like not this ban. l gave away my citizen
ship for another; this was the contract. and
.s must have my bond" But you say |
shall not have it To this reply; You are
strong and can withhold it; I submit.
If it is dangerous to your institutions that
foreigners should come among you I will
leave. 1t viii be a loss and inconvenience to
me, vet leave I must / cannot stay where
+. -. - ,-aloo,,,a par live xrhara aua not as
good as another Will seek again the red
cross banner, and on the cold soil of Canada
repent ike the Prodigal. I viii take my
American wife and my American sons, and on
the threshold of their native country they
shall shake the American dust off their feet
NY bows are sons of the sires of '76( Puritan
stock, not Hessian Ike some Know Notbings,) J
but they will never know it. OF the suffer-
pgs of their ancestors. in the cold days at
Valley Forge and in the hot days at Mon
mouth they shall nothing know. One thing
/ regret; cannot take them all, for one of
nv bows has become American dust He lies
on the shores of the Old Dominion, and the
waters of the Chesapeake dash upon his grave.
He sleeps we'll let him sleep.
Here new difficulty meets me. If, as
American iurists tell me, cannot renounce
the allegiance / myself have voluntarily un-
dertaken. then am doubly cheated But if
this be not so, will England take me back ?
She may; but my wife and children England
does not know. She may recognize my wife
as part of my own individuality but my son.
they are foreigners, born in America when
their father was an American citizen. They
cannot stand on an equality with free-born
English citizens Here is the dilemma. What
am TO do? If / live here am under polit-
ical and social ban IF go to my native
country my children are under the same DIS
ability Who is responsible am not.
You told me / might become an American cit
izen by rendering certain consideration 1
gave il. AMI to be cheated and my chill
dren too
Very respectfully yours. LEX.