The evening Argus. [volume] (Rock Island, Ill.) 1861-1871, 1865-11-01
Translated from Courier des Etats Unls for the
Missouri Republican.
Catholics of Missouri.

About six weeks since, we published the
resolutions of q presbyterian convention, held
at Pittsburgh, and wherein the catholics
were denounced as the hereditary enemies OF
the American republic. A religious war was
toreshadowed, and invitation gwen to
protesrants of all denominations to unite
against the common enemy, free TO tear each
other to pieces latter having destroyed the
infamy."
We attached but little Importance 10 this
demonstration, citing 1t only as o symptom.
and of which the sole advantage was to show
more clearly the intolerance which governs
the fanatical presbyterians, purltans and
-phllanthropists of New England, their
birthplace, and whose influence Is tels thro'-
out tho United States.
But now, in Missouri, Intolerance passes
out of theory into practice, and from the 40
main of speculation into that of tact. The
new constitution of Missouri 10 well known.
1t is equally known that It was formed by
religious and political fanatics, whose object
was to exclude catholics and cathollclty from
the state, in order to give tree license to their
hate. and. by driving away the opposition
which is mainly composed OF catholics, to Sc
cure to themselves an incontestable suprema-
CIV. To attain their ends, its authors have
declared that no minister OF any sect what
ever shall exercise his office, without taking
an oath the test of which Is prescribed by
the constitution. Little does 1t matter what
this oath imports, 1t Is sufficient that 1t vlo'
lates the conscience of clergymen, that ii
should not be exacted, and the archbishop OF
St Louis, offended at a measure which Is a
direct attack upon his clergy, forbade the
priests of his diocese from taking 1t.
immediately the civil authority ragged
against the non conforming priests, aud.
faru dan naaf w
else than that priests have been arrested,
placed under bail and condemned to fines
The one last tried is the Rev. Mr.. Cummings,
of Louisiana, who has been sentenced to pay
q fine, and who ON his refusal, has been
thrown into prison.
The defence of catholicity is no part of our
province, but. in this instance, the great
questions of the liberty of conscience and of
the separation of church and state are at
stake. If any other than catholic oommup
ity were attacked, we would use exactly the
same language Since 1889, when the Vir-
gilman. Jefferson, laid down as a state maxim
religious federation and the mutual and abso-
Lutte Independence of church and state, it is
the frs, time that, in the United States, there
is a departure from this fundamental and
benefcent principle.
The abnormal condition of the catholic
clergy of Missouri furnishes in itself use
full lesson. 1t Is another proof that the purl'
tanism of those overpraised pilgrims of the
Mayfower is still alive, and has lost nothing
of its odious intolerance. The puritans re
gard with g jealousy not unmixed with fear
the rapid increase of cathoiicity in this couu-
try. They foresee the day when they will
lose the majority, and no measure 10 too re-
pugnant to them to stave OFT this late. They
themselves strike FIRST at freedom of
conscience, without a thought that, later. aud
by way of reprsal, the weapon they now
employ may be turned against themselves -
During two centuries they have forgotten
nothing. learned nothing. The puritans of
onr day, whose false philanthropy has secur-
ed . momensary popularity, are truly the