Democrat and sentinel. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1853-1866, 1855-03-15
VOL 2.s.NTO. "A,

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this Discrimination on she ground that itis
/ universally recognized as to Pol5ficaI opinions,
exhibits profound sn;sccncepiion Of the ma
ture of the 'Constitufion. and hc LOFTY and be-
nignant spirit which pervades The czEce
] Of the Constitution Is 70 snnounee great lead
ling principles which are binding on cof con.
fseienees IN all our political relations ard sc-
aisnss apd 70 which We are bound solemnlYto
i.eepfofmH Hhether At the bollot box or elsewhere
]. - docs NOT undertake 70 regulste the details
Of legislation, nor to prescribe the forms of
1 political action. Il has nc< u.6dertsEen fosay
Elat constitutes prescription A. refg gious oPin-
iops, nor % ennnerat{ ~ sssfiops rnodesin
which we lnixht 80 80 11ra<rS< ~ lkux
simyly said n she'll not Sc sfpb5fed al an; and
an Saying this has e1cfuded evvy mode Of pp-
plyikg n. No one capable of erasping the
spirit and meaning OF the Consatafiosi. can
read it without perceising fhat 1t interdedto
draw broad and palpable distinction between
a mans opinions on d question of fnapee, and
his opinions respecting bis duties and relations
TO his God pf II
Asto the one the Constitution is silent; bat
as to the other, IL speaks out in the emphatic
language of absolute prohibition F fcag
1t is true the Constitution has not provided
the means of preventing the disfranchisement
not armed itself With penalties and forfeifures.
The great men who framed it hoped that the
people whose liberties it guards would never
cease to remember what it cost and Fhat it
protects. A t d ha' 'eseee7 - Llao
The other blunder to WHICH alluded, is
the attempt to deprive the Statas of . right
essential to their sovereignty and independence
right never before denied and which no
State in the Union it is hoped will ever sur
render. 1t is quite evident, that without q
change of the Constitution, Congress cannot
deprive foreigners Of the right TO vote, and the
Know -Nothings will be driven TO ask ths
States to decapitate themselves by making this
amendment or to further disgrace themselves
by igpobly abandoning right at the dictation
of this 81 cret order
propose to speak more at length on this
point in another connection These are lead
ing features in this new organization AMI
not justified in asserting that it is deficient IN
the main elements of strength in soundness of
principle, and in the practicabihty of its sub
jects When the honest men of this party
(and am far from saying that there are not
many such, who joined it in the hope that
some practical good was to be obtained, come
i to find that to attain some fapcied benefit, they
must trample the Constitution snDder foot they
viii turn from this secre. order as the deluded
Khorassan when they discovered thas the sub
ject of their blind devotion was hideously de-
formed in soul and body.
1t is denied that prescription for religious
,Qpinions, is the object of this new organiza-
ton; but from its inception to the present
| time, there has been an unceasing effort to
arouse the Protestant community against the
Roman Catholic In our State, where the
evils of foreign Immigration are scarcely felt
at all, you and know that the anti-Catholic
feeling has been operated upon almost exclu-
sively am not the advocate of the Roman
Catholic faith ; L condemn most emphatically
the denial of the right, of every man TO read
the scriptures and interpret them for himself.
/ do not believe in the infalhbility of the Pope,
or of the councils But, because it is form
,ofrehgion, and protected by the Constitution,
/ am disposed TO let il alone. At most, /
would simply turn il over to the Protestant
clergy, and commend it especially 10 the famous
three thousand in New England, who as Judge
Douglas seems to think. without, legiti-
mate employment. l repose absolute conf
dence in their ability to make head against
the Roman Catholic Church and L trust the
Protestant clergy will not surrender their
rightful calling nor make the humihating con-
fession that they are uneaqual to the task
which they have undertaken by divine ap-
pointment" by calling in the aid of political
party and the terro-s of religious persecution.
Foreign emigration to this country has both
/ its evils and benefits. 1t is q fact worthy of
consideration. that about the time, or very
short time before, the crusade a. ainst foreign
ers was commenced. English political writers
were attempting to show that the rapid growth
and prosperity of this country was due ina
great measure to this emigration ; arguing
! that it brought money, skill and industry into
! the country; that our canals and railroads
were made BY foreign labor our merchant YES
sells were named BY foreign scamen; that
much of the skill in the mechanical arts of
which this country boasted, was derived from
other nations; that the greater portion of the
emigrants brought more or less Of money with
them and in short. that our capital, and our
productive energies, were greatly increased BY
emigration. These writer's were not writing
to excuse or encourage emigration but to check
It; and they suggested the necessity ofmaasprss
to prevent the exhaustion consequent upon
the withdrawal of SO much labor, skill and
capital from England,
Now, it may be that the effeet of this immi-
grafton upon the growth of tho country is
somewhat exaggerated but still il is not TO be
denied that great advantages have been de-
| rived from It by the country at large, in tho
manner pointed out. 1t is estimated that tho
German immigrants alono bring nearly S25.
900 annually into the country. There are
evils attending this immigration; evils moro
limited in their effects than is pretended by
some, and am inclined to believe, greatly
magniGed by report. There comes, in com
pany with this labor, skill and capital, idle
L.