The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1855-10-31
NEW ENGLAND FANATICISM MORE THAN ONE
HUNDRED AND FIFTY YEARS AGO.


Most Of the fanaficisms that have afflicted happy
country either taken their rise in the New England
whg States or have retained for the longest period their
hold upon the ympahies of the people of that quarter of
the Union. At this day. whether regard New England
as the headquarters Of conflicting religious creeds
rendezvous for oil Of theories upon oil of sub
jecs as the fountain-head of unnumbercd schemes
against the peace and perpeuy of the American Union
fail to be surprised that among people who
have contrved to build up vast commerce and
tensivc an internal trade whose schools
admirable whose public SO learned, and whose
history presents many successful struggles against
barren soil and nhospabe climate doctrines at
impracticabe and visionary, at dangerous and de-
morazng, should have obtained, repeated OCCASIONS
much influence If we 60 back however to the earliest
period Of colonial history shall find that naticsm
seed planted long ago by those whose descendants
constitute the controlling population Of those States in
which dsorganzing principles may be said reign
preme.
We read with wonder and delight of the extraordinary
prs endured by the original founders Of Massachusetts,
sympathze with them in the suiferings they endured
before and after they escaped the expressions of the Old
World and admire the fortitude and which
they sustained in advancing their interests in the
try but with the volume past open before eyes,
the events of The present daily presented to obser
walton, we cannot fail to be arrested by the cxtraor
binary similarity between the prosecutions OF Mas-
sachusetts two hundred years ago and those OF the
times in which we live. An old book published in
Boston in the seventeenth century, almost entirely
of print but which have been enabled examine
contains relation of the suerngs Of the people called
Quake in New England from the time of their frs, ar
rival there in the year 1885, wherein their mercess whip
pings chainngs nngs imprisonngs starvngs burnings
in the hand cutting off of ears, and putting to DEATH
with divers other cruelties inflicted upon the bodies Of in
nocen men and women, oil for conscience sake are de-
scrbcd. The laws against the Catholics enforced
with cruelty by the existing the time we
speak of that only equalled by the barbarty with
which the Quakers were prescribed and punished Among
the sins for which the Quakes suffered was being imprs
oned and whipped for keeping their hats on for not
ing to the meeting Of the Purans and because they
shipped another God and looked be saved by another
Christ than their enemies for perssng in this worship
they were bsnished the colony, upon pain Of DEATH
after fortnghts notice law also passed against
the admission of Quakers into the colony Several cases
are given in the volume referred to- of which the following
specimens:
And the arrival Of eight more the marshal and
stable abroad with warrant search the boxes
chests and trunks of the Quokes for books
they then Imprisoned and order given that
should visit them suffering them peak confer with
any person. The bid them heed they broke
Of the ecclesiastical laws; for IL they did, they
to stretch by halter and then bauished the de-
tanning their goods for their fees taking away their bedding
and cent them away without tyes and their very Bible