The Placer herald. [volume] (Auburn, Placer County, Calif.) 1855-1991, 1863-04-18
Ex-Secretary (now Judge Smith on the
Pope.

President Lincoln a short time ago ap.
pointed member of his Cabinet, Mr.. Smith
of Indiana, United States District Judge for
the Indiana District, to fill the place of the
venerable Judge Huntington, deceased. The
first appearance before the public of Judge
Smith, since his appointment, was in har-
angue at Masonic Hall. Indianapolis, on the
Goth of January TO Judge Smith it made
no difference that Southern Indiana, where
he WAS speaking, was first settled by Catho-
lies. 1t made no difference that Col. Mul'
lens Irish regiment-the 35th Indiana
that fought so herorally and suffered so
severely at Murfreesboro, were all Catholics,
and nearly all from the neighborhood where
he was speaking. He took the occasion of
his first speech, after being made Federal
Judge, to hurl the mos. wanton insults in
the face of Catholic devoees of the "drv.
Yelling old dotard called the Pope" A
correspondent of the Indianapolis Sentinel.
however, was quick in giving him a suitable
reminder, in the following manly letter:
at seems to me strange that, while the
Pope and his followers attend to their busi'
ness and disturb nobody, there should be =
disposition among outsiders to attack them
with such virulence The opprobious epi
thets applied to the Pope by Judge Smith,
last night, in his speech at Masonic Hall,
cannot but wound deeply the feelings of all
Catholics and prove satisfactorily that the
Judge is anything but a Christian. Does he
forget that the chair he now occupies
has scarcely been vacated by the death
of the lamented Judge Huntingdon who
was not 'dotard, but devoted follower Of
the one whom Judge Smith is pleased to de-
nominate "a driveling old dotarl, called the
PopeP Does he forget that the venerable
old Chief Justice Taney-by far his superior
is also a follower of the dwelling old
dotarl called the Pope9 Does he forget
that the hero of Murfreesboro, the only sucl
cessful General in the present war, is also a
devoted follower of the drivel'ing old do
tard called the Pope?" If Judge Smith
wishes to mention rulers who are 'dotards'
and imbeclles, he need not 90 abroad; he can
find them at home, engaged as well as HIM
self, in sneering at the Pope, and talking
about the Pope's bull against the comet
which had ne, er any existence except in the
imagination of the pseudo father of beiev-
ers
"What does Judge Smith know about the
"A
raised against him by all that stupidity, ha.
tired and bgotry can invent, does not stand
simply on natural means, but must be sup
ported by Gods special grace-an article
not possessed we should suppose, by Judge
Smith, from the expressions 'chartably' used
by him.
Judge Smith will permit me, in conclu.
sion, to remark to him that there is neither
Justice or policy, while tens of thousands Of
the bravesL in our army are pouring out their
blood on the battle field, or langushing in
hospitals with disease contracted in the SER
vice of our country, for an eX-Cabinet officer
to heap abuse and opprobrious epithets upon
the head of one whom they love and vehe'
rate and in whose defense Catholic soldiers,
and their name is legion, are ready to
shed the last drop of their hearts blood"