Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1855-07-01
From DE Presbyterian Critic.
THE AMERICAN PARTY

There IS no demand whatever for a
great national movement against the
Catholic church. The recent excitement
in the country has been, in the main,
the result of a corrupt movement of un-
principled politicians, to excite the Pro-
testant feeling of the people and to ride
into power upon the tide. They have
run foul of the great maxim, which they
have so conspicuously set forward amony
their principles, as if for the purpose of
exposing the profigacy of the whole
movement, by violating in practice what
they praise in theory. 1t is absurd to
deny, that making the mere religious
sentiments of a man the reason for re-
tusing to vote for him, is a violation of
the great principle of religious liberty.
1t Is allowing a principle of discriminate
ing the political aspect of a vote to be
sound and just; which would be wicked
and unprincipled, if embodied in a law.
II our neighbors make their dislike to our
Presbyterian sentiments the ground of
their refusing to vote for us, it is perfectly
useless to disguise that we are under DO
itical responsibility for religious opinions
that, quoad hoe, we are suffering for
them. The Objectionable feature in this
view OF the case is, making religious
opinion unattended by any viciousness
OF action growing out of it, a ground for
a universal discrimination in political af-
fairs, affecting permanently large masses
OF citizens. This is our first and great
objection to the American or Know-Noth-
ing party; if is violating the very prin-
OF of
fesses to conserve; and has adopted
construction of that principle which strips
it of all practical force, leaving it a dead
letter in the statute book, and abandon
ing its control over the political action of
the people.
We object again to a political moy e.
ment against the Catholic Church, be-
cause there Is no necessity for it, if the
American people will properly employ the
legitimate agencies of opposition which
are in their power. The simple and suffi-
cient condition of the preservation of
the Republic from the arts of Romanism,
Is the full and efficient support of the
Protestant Church--the complete and
animated maintenance of the domestic
missionary enterprises of the various
Protestant denominations. This is the
great conservative clement of our politi-
cal systemic sustain and vivify it with
the vigorous energy which it ought to
possess-and it need not be feared that
any OF the great social or political in
terests that are conditioned upon it will
ever come to harm. 1t is the onlv-not
less than the only-legitimate power,
which can be effectively employed to
restrain Popery and maintain the insti-
tutiOns of our Government All perse-
cution, no matter how disguised in form
or limited in extent, will inure to the
benefit of the bod Y enduring it. The
policy then, of restraining Popery by
political disabilities inflicted upon the in
dividual Catholic, is suicidal in the ex-
treme. 1t will concentrate and intensi-
= the attachment of its members, and
render them more and more unapproach-
able by Protestant instruction. 1t will
create sympathy, and thus open wide the
door TO proSelytism, and it will put the
Church in an attitude far more attract
i've as the victim of an unjustifable cru
sade than it is at all entitled TO assume
from its intrinsic charms. How long is
the world to be learning the lesson and
never coming to the knowledge of the
truth, that all means but reason and
love to affect the opinions of men, only
result in strengthening attachment to
their original convictions? The princi-
pie of this opposition to POpery Is vi
cipVs, and the more completely 1t is
carried into effect, the more disastrous
will be the result The more complete
the political victory over Popery, the
more it will be benefited. The only eff
fective--as it is the only lawful, general,
and permanent agency of opposition to
the POpish Church--is the true Protest
ant Church of Christ under its various
forms. We have no right 70 complain
of the inefficiency of a means until we
have employed it and fully tested all its
capacities. Let the people of the United
States double their support of the great
domestic missionary work, and they may
safely abandon all political agitations
against the Catholic Church.
We object again to the American party,
that it is condensing the Catholic and
Foreign element in our population into
a political body, distinct from the mass
of our citizens, armed with all their pow
er, to do mischief, and animated by all
that hostility which is natural to men
suffering under an ostracism of their re-
ligion and birth. provoked by an attempt
10 diminish their full equality with other
citizens. Now what does Know-Noth-
ingism propose to do for the remedy of
this evil which it has created q? 1t only
proposes 10 render Catholic and Foreign
citizens ineligible TO office Itleaves them
the power to vote, and the right of un-
limited emigration in the future-the
two great means of mischief, if they are
pleased to use them. There can be no
femedv for the Pope's control over the
Catholic vote, except in taking away the
elective franchise altogether. Now it is,
TO say the least of ii, The most manly
and honest policy, TO prohibit the entry
of a Catholic and a Foreigner altogether
into the country, and to the rights of cit
izenship, rather than invite them to come