Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1855-06-20

TIE NATIONAL WOODWORKING CONTENTION.
we have deferred any review Of the do-nes q
the know-aotbings at Philadelphia until we should
recsive reliable intelligence of what was actually
done. While waiticg for such Information, We may
rena k, tbst its reputed object, to naionaiize the
concern, and establish It as Union saving scheme,
has siglay failed 1t has not only shown its ma
biity to "ssve the Union which, by the way
needed saring from the mschinstions OF know no
thingisn more than ffofl any other daneer-ou' II
has proved unable to saue Itself 1t asspit upon me
rock of slavery. The delegates from the OILY
States which the know-nothings have carried or
could hope 10 carry have shown themselves to be
fanatical abotonists, and even the hope Of the ma
tonal aspoils has not been sufficient to secure their
silence when the question Of slavery interferes.
There is no longer the slightest hope of effect
ing national know nothing organization which
shall even ''ignore the agitation of the slavery
question" The organization can no longer pretend
to be national. And the question now comes up,
what interest can the South possibly have in pros
ecuting this war on the religious rights of the mere
handful OF quiet Catholics among us, and on the
civilrights of the few foregn-born citizens among
us, with the proof we now have that the very Or
ganizat ion, got up ostensibly to "put down foreign
influence" is TO be welded to put down slavery, in
the only quartar where it has power2 This Know
nothing crusade, partly by the hope held out by
Southern encouragement, has already placed in the
House of Representatives hundred abolitionists,
and in the Senate no less than eight ferocious anat
les of the same class, when, but for this same
crusade, not q dozen could have been elected.
By the.help Of know-nothngism, the abolitionists
have already secured, or nearly so, thenext House.
One fortress is thus stormed. They have secured
the election of aboitionsts to the Senate 10 every
free State where an election has been held this
year With similar results for another year or two
that fortress will give way. Where then, is the
President as the Southern know-nothngs bave
now conclusive proof that the northern know
nothings will not aid them in electing. In the
name of all that Is sensible then, why should this
ORGANIZATION be perpetuated in the south? 1t can
not hope to carry more than two or three Southern
States-we do not believe it can carry one Why
then, should it be continued? Is it not the very
extreme of folly, to encourage bittes war against
mere handful of inofensve Catholics and foreign
ers who are good citizens among us and identified
with us in interest and sympathy, at moment
when, in addition to our old abolition enemy, we
Lave to contend against northern know-nothingism
on the same abolition platform? The patriotic
among the know nothings-sll who do not have
the single wish of using the organization as mere
machine for securing to themselves ofice-must
abandon it, when they that it has failed to &C.
complish the purpose of founding national party.
That hope is scattered Northern know-nothing-
ian is simply ferocious abolition organization-a
fusion of two fsnaticisms-and can any portion of
the Southern people be mad enough, when such
imminent peril from abroad threatens US, to engage
in the work of melting prejudices against our ct-
zeus of another religion whose truth to the South
has never been doubted2 Can any Tennessean
hesitate at such q crisis ?