Nashville daily patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1855-1857, 1855-12-04
The Necessity for an American Organi'
ZaIiOn.

cation.
There are many patriotic citizens who have
taken position against the American Party, for
the reason that they honestly believe there
is no necessity at present for such an Organiza-
ton. They admit that there are dangers tObe
apprehended from the immense increase OF the
number of persons from foreign countries set
Ting amongst US, becoming citizens, and taking
an active part in all our elections; but they dc
not regard these dangers so imminent and sc
pressing as to justify the formation of pure
ly American Party. We believe those who
occupy this ground would abandon it, if they
would take the trouble to investigate the sub
ject and look at it in all its bearings. At
tachment to party, the fear of losing Office
the Misrepresentation Of the interested, the
falsehoods and slang of demagOgues, have done
much to prevent a thorough examination Of
the facts and arguments which give impor'
lance and strength to the measures of reform
proposed by the American Party, and show
the necessity for immediate action on them
With the hope Of inducing some Of those who
are with us in sentiment and feeling, but are
not yet satisfied that they ought to act with
US, to examine the matter for themselves, we
propose this morning to present them with
view of the subject, which should make
them set to work seriously.
ms there any reason 10 apprebend that for
4 eign 0oters aDiU at dny time outnumber the ma
tiDe UoterS? This is an interrogatory, the an
swer to which, as we shall gveit, will astonisl
those who are calmly sleeping upon the edge
of precipice, unaware of their danger. 4
An active opponent of the American PSfty
without giving the census of 1850 a complete
examination, states the number of native and
foreign population as follows:
Natives, lI78757S
Foreign, 2,2lO,SS9
With statement ike this before them
Gov. JOHNSON, and Others ike him, would
sneer at the idea of danger, and decaim most
eloquently about the smallness of the number
of foreigners against whom the American
4" crusade is directed The number of for.
egners is not correctly given-it is much
larger-but we accept 1t as a basis for an ar.
gument
The danger from predominance of foreign
votes ia the ballot-bOx, Is not immediate it is
true, but still it is not very remote. By refer
ence to table No. 20, of the census of 1850
the reader will find that the whole number o.
males, native and foreign, over the age O
twenty-one then in the United States is stated
to have been 5,663,7S This then covers
the whole number of voters in the country a
that time. The foreign population, as giver
above, was at the same time, 2,2l0,628. Two
thirds of this number, it may safely be estma
ted, were males. This is about the proportion
which the males bear to the females amongst
the emigrants from foreign lands; and the
males are generally full-grOwn.
We may, therefore, say that, of the foreign
population in our midst, there were 1900, O0C
who were voters in 1850, or could have beer
voters, under our naturalization laws, had they
chosen to avail themselves of these laws. De
duet this number from the total number o.
males in the country over twenty-one years Of
age, and we have 4, l63, 1856 as the total native
vote in 1850. This exceeds the actual vote
largely; but it is adopted as giving the highest
possible number that could be entitled to a
authority alluded to, above, that cites from the
census the whole number of native and Amer.
lean population, also states that the total emf.
grafton to the United States in 1854, was 81, =,
755. 1t was hundred thousand greater, but
we will take the lesser number as correct
! Now let us look forward from 1850 to 1870, {
period of twenty years. To ascertain wha
will be the native vote in 1870, we have only
TO ascertain the ratio Of the increase of oul
population, less the increase by emigration
Mr.. DeBow, in his compendium Of the census
years, to be three per cent. per annum. Thi.
embraces both the increase by births on tn,
soil, and by emigration.
Our population in 1850, was, in round mum
! bers, twenty millions. The increase of tire,
per cent. is 100000. OF this, in 1854, Owe
100000 was by emigration, leaving say 800,
600, equal to one-and.a-half per cent. as tn,
increase of native population, Applying thi
ratio of increase to the number of native vote
in 1850 as above stated, and we find the in
crease in the number of voters for one year e
be 60,2O6, and for 20 years 1904, 100. ADD
| this number to the total vote in 1850, and W,
have 5,3G7 900 as the total native vote 1870
Now let us look to the foreign vote, which
in 1850 We have estimated at 100000.
Assuming that the emigration for the whole
period from 1850 to 1870 will not exceed tha
ofls54 as stated, to-wit: 3l7,755, that two
thirds of them are males ove.' twenty-on'
wears of age,-and we have 100000 foreigner,
thrown upon our shores each year, all Of WHOM
may become voters under our present laws il
five wears from the time of their hnding. Thi,
for twenty years, amounts to four millions
and added 20 the vote in 1860, gives Il tots
foreign vote in 1870, only fifteen years hence
Of 5,5o0,OOO, or nearly t,oo hundred thousand
majority OUer the Hatire UOte
In this estimate no allowance has been mad,
for the deaths which may occur 10 the foreign
population, nor for the fact that those arriving
during the las: i've years of the period named
could not become voters; but We have taker
as the basis of our estimates the figures giver
by an opponent, which fall one hundred ant
Fifty thousand short Of the actual pumber tina
arrived here in 1854
If we were 70 take the namber as officially
renorted onr estimate of the foreign popula