Democrat and sentinel. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1853-1866, 1856-02-27
gesIstatias.
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

HARRISBURG, Feb. IL.
The House resumed tho consideration of
the bill TO incorporate the franciscan Broth
ers of Cambria county-the question being on
the indefinite postponement of the whole sub
ject, which was not agreed TO, as follows -
Yeas, %, Nays SO.
Mr.. SMITH, said-I had hoped that moth
ing would bave been introduced of so fragrant
a character as to force me to say any more
upon this question. But it appears as if the
hearts Of the opponents OF the bill had been
indoctrinated with the virus of hatred anti
christianity. No bill [ presume was ever in
aroduced n this House that met with such
violent aud bitter opposition as the one new
ander discussion and no Hsember that ever
satrodsced bin had any portion of his con-
stituency so wilfully and wfckedly maligned,
as the Catholic portion of miae has been.
The charge that my friend fron Berks drew
them out on this question, is happy pretext
for them, and they are wefeome to all the
comfort they may derive from it. 1t is but
pretext however, for from the first introduc-
ton of the bill. they showed their teeth and
every move and gesture gave the most un-
snistakable evidence that their Know Nothing
spirits were troubled The gentleman from
Darks may have drawn them out little early,
.bus none the more surely. 1t was a random
action fr.in their cowardly bush-whacking po-
sition into an open fight, At the oasct they
opposed the bill wholly on the grouad that it
cs;ae within the province of the Court to in
corporate. dsclaiming anything like malice or
religious intolerance; but as soon as the best
legal authority in this House made it clearly
manifest that it was not within the power of
the Court to incorporate, disregarding their
previous declarations. that they would not op-
pose it on sectaEian grounds, their speeches
taerned with religious Intolerance and blgotry
aud Mr. Speaker, this anti-Amerlcan, anti
Christian spirit of religious bigotry is the
tuestion which underlies their whole move
,nent. They are actuated by no other motive.
As I stated before Mr.. Speaker, L had made
up my mind not to occupy any more time IN
discussing this question, but some of the re-
marks OF the gentleman from Armstrong were
of 80 fragrant character, that l cannot suffer
them TO pass unnoticed
Trampling upon every principle of honor
and manly feeling he made assertions, which
are most uni just and unwarrantable. He
said. that AS an offset to the speech of the gen.
tleman from Cambria. that he would state
that the only Company that deserted the A
reriean flag aud went ovel to the Mexicans
was Irish Company, commanded by Ca
tholic, aud when asked by the gentleman from
Fayette to name the Company he replied that
DE did not know the Company, but he was
told the Captains name was ORiley.
Now Mr.. Speaker in reply to the gentle
mans assertions, l take the responsibility to
say, that No company in our army in Mexico
did desert our hag and go over to the enemy.
That Mr.. Speaker is base slander upon our
American Arms. In the next place ORiley,
as he called him, never had command of
company in the American Army, and was
citizen of Mexico at the time. and deserted
before hostIiities commenced between the T.
nited States and Mexico, and again Mr.. Spea-
ker, it is not true that he was Catholic
His name also is Riley and not O'Rlley, but
the gentleman in the bitterness of his soul,
affixed the letter d to his name With the hope
that it would make the matter the more odious.
The gentleman if he knew anything about
'ahe matter. must have been aware that Riley
was Protestant and at one tune a leader of
1.-The Native American party in this State---the
leader of a mob in Philadelphia where sacri-
Qgious hands set lire to, and burned to ashes,
~afoiy Temples dedicated to the worship of the
alvlng CO tie was the leader of party
winch now under new name, binds its mem-
zoers ey an inifoas oath to carry out the same
anu American. aud anti Christian principles;
- ~1A -NiioW tu0u Il common 0OSpl-
Ealty. denying to them the endowment Of lib
.erty and property, and still worse than ali
denying them the right to approach their ma,
ker in the manner that to them seemetb hest
Such Mr.. Speaker, is the character of the
man whom the gentleman asserted was the
Catholic commanding company in the Amer
ican Army in Mexico. snd snch the character
of the assertion made By the gentleman in his
set off to the speech of the gentleman from
Cambria
Mr LONGAKER said-Mr. Speaker
Under ordinary circumstances, would not
claim the attention of this House to indulge
n few remarks upon this question. But as
the opponents of thus bill have labored hard to
aedpe tleir position, and have been very par
ticu'lr TO aisclaim all intention to oppose it on
tae ground of Hostility to any particular class
of TeiIglonists; aud as the gentleman from
Lawrence (Mr. MGomb) has raised the hue
and cry that, because these corporators are
Roman Catholics, it win be a sufficient pass
port to carry this measure with the Democrat
&c nae abers Of this House, deem it equally
important that should define my positioa.--