The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1855-04-12
THE FRUIT BEGINNING TO APPEAR.

THE FRUIT BEGINNING 10 APPEAR.
"Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs o
, thistles?" Whatsoever a man soweth, tina
shall he also reap"
Possibly the friends of human rights begir
by this time to understand the philosophy EN-
bodied in these words of Holy Writ. Las
week, the Era contained brief notice of tn,
dreadful riots which disgraced the Election fo
Municipal Officers, held on the I'd inst, in Gin
cinnati. On the fourth page the reader vii
find a more particular account. The bite
prejudices of caste and race were inhamed I,
the highest pitch; knives, firearms, and ever
cannon, were freely used; the conflict was
! bloody one; and the ballot boxes in one Of thu
| wards, where the Democrats had the majority
were destroyed.
In our discussion Of the subject Of naturali
cation, three months ago, we had occasion t.
enlarge upon the beneficent operation of on
hitherto liberal policy towards foreign immi
grants, in wearing away insensibly their nation
al prejudices, and identifying them with thu
native-born population; predicted the mos
mischievous consequences from the working o
the new policy of the Know Nothings, just 81
far as they should attempt to carry it out
Array society in castles, we said, and you put
at hazard the very existence Of the State
Nothing should be deprecated more than q
conflict Of nationalities or races in one coun
try; it must divide and waste its energies
retard its development, engender violent and
malignant passions Garry out the Know
Nothing policy, and Parties will be organized,
not with reference to great Questions OF
! Principle. but on issues between natives and
| foreigners and the inevitable antagonisms be-
tween them will render the former more jealous,
more intolerant, more proscriptive, and the
latter more clannish, more exclusive, more
Anti-American. We further showed how the
new policy would tend to diminish Immigra-
ton, how it would lead the naturalized Ger
mans and Irish to sink their national differ
ences and controversies, and combine together
against the common oppressor; and we took
special pains to point out the reason why it
would be cordially sustained by the supporters
of Slavery, viz: its certain operation, if estab-
lished, to prevent that accession of population
from abroad, which has so rapidly multiplied
the free States, and augmented their political
power.
Behold the fruits, and then say, whether
men can gather grapes from thorns, or figs
from thistles.
Cincinnati where Know Nothingism has
had time to bear fruit, has this year been the
theatre OF bloody conflict of races, which has
rendered fair expression of the will of the
People at the ballotbox impossible.
One year ago, in that city, in struggle on
the Common School Question, the Germans
generally united with the native-b born citizens,
against the Irish. and the result was peaceful
triumph of the Right. This year, by the pro-
scriptive policy of the Know Nothings, German
and Irish naturalized citizens were driven to
combine against common oppression; and a
similar combination is going on in the West, in a
new secret Order, called the Sag NIGHTS, which
has already carried the municipal elections in
Toledo, Sandusky, and Cuyahoga Falls.
As to the effect on Immigration, it is, per
haps, too early to verify our reasoning by an
appeal to facts. Still, we cannot forbear call
ing attention to the remarkable decrease in
immigration for the last three months as shown
by the following report of the Commissioners o
Emigration, New York:
The number of immigrants arriving at the
port of New York continues extremely small
The total for last month amounted to onl,
2,069, according to the records of the Com
missioners of Emigration. OF this number
9l2 were from Germany, 4i5 from Ireland, 335
from England, OF from France, 80 from Swift
zerand, 79 from States, and the remainder from
other countries The number of arrivals for the
last three months is shown by the following
i II