The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1869-01-14
John COV0oe and the Catholic
Church.

Until within very recent period the gov
ernment of the United States has maintained
Minister at the city of Rome. We remem-
her that son of the late Commodore Stock
ton, Of New Jersey, and General King. of
Wisconsin. respectively held that position.
About two years ago, or perhaps less, the
Radicals in Congress, on some trifing pre-
text, refused to make the usual appropra-
tion to pay the Minister, and as a conse-
quence the Office ceased to exist. On Wed
nejday, the 9th instant, when the consular
and diplomatic appropriation bill was before
the House of Representatives, the following
interesting debate occurred:
The consular and diplomatic appropriation
bill was ther taken up Mr.. BRooKs moved as
amendment to insert an appropriation for the
mission to Rome, and expressed his hope that,
the Presidential election being over, and reli-
gious and political passions being all at IN end,
Congress would vote the usual appropriation
for a mission to Rome. The city was the head
quarters of art and the headquarters OF one of
the great branches of the Christian Church, and
visited yearly by thousands and tens of
thousands of merican citizens.
Mr COvoDE OPT osed the amendment and said
he desired to call the attention of The House to
of Rome. That Church had been used in his
own district as an element Of power by the Dem
ocratic party, in disregard of the election laws
The Catholic school in his district was the place
where fraudulent voters from other States had
been congregated, and it was the people of that
Church who used fraudulent naturalization pa
Pers. These papers, signed by j. Ross Snow
den, Clerk of the Supreme Court of PennSyl
vnnia. had been sent into his district in blank,
and had been filled up with the names of per-
sons who had not been in the country five years
There WIS not one Protestant involved in it.
They were all Catholics from beginning to end.
Mr.. WOODWARD said that if his colleague
chose to charge the Church of Rome with such
practices. it was due to a large body of respect
able citizens and to the House that he should
produce the proof. The only individual whom
his colleague had specified by name was MEM
ber of the Presby' erian Church.
Mr.. CovoDE ] said that fraudulent natural
izlton papers were used exclusively by the
members of the Church of Ro ne.
Mr. WOODWARD. | simply said that the in
dividual to whom my'colleague alluded as hav-
ing issued fraudulent naturalization papers. Is
n member, and, / believe, deacon in good
standing i'll the Presbyterian Church, is man
of the highest honor 2nd intelligence, and any
such assertion against him would be treated as
idle, if not slanderous, in PENNSYLVANIA, The
defeat of his collesg que last fall not the
consequence of any such rascality, but was to
he accounted for on other principles than the
degradation of the Church of Rome or of the
Presbyterian Clerk of the Supreme Court Of
Pennsyi yivania.
Mr. CovODE said he had alluded to the per
sons who had used those fraudulent certificates
Mr. WOODWARD. What had the Church Of
Rome to do with it3
Mr.. CovoDE. 1t was the members of the
Church of Rome who voted on these fraudu
lent papers. No Protestant engaged in it.
Mr.. WOODWARD You began by charging
that the Church of Rome did this fraud.
Mr.. CovoDE. l say it was the members of
that Church that used the papers. They came
coffee stained from the gentlemans district,
and we're voted on by those green Irish. -
Laughter
As Squeers was wont to exclaim, "There's
richness for you!" The hraz-n impudence
Of John Covode has passed into proverb,
and does not astonish those who know him.
Ia that respect none but himself can be his
parallel. That the Catholic Church, as a
Church, labored for the defeat of the 'All
gator.' is simply preposterous. John Co
vode does not stand very high in the estma-
ton of his own party. Nor should he, po-
litical mountebank as he is confessed to be.
It is a notorious fact that in every election
district in his own county (Westmoreland)
he ran behind his ticket. When, in addition
10 this, it is stated that with the exception
of two or three localities, there are but few
persons OF the Catholic faith in Westmore-
land county, Covode's slanders carry with
their own refntation. If any fraudulent nat
uralization papers bearing the signature of
James Ross Snowden were sent into West
moreland county, they were manufactured
and sent there by Covode's own political
friends in Philadelphia. We can very we'll
understand. however, why every Irishman,
whether "greeR" or otherwise, did and Ouqht
to vote against Ccvcde. In 1854 he was the
head and front Of the Know Nothing organ
cation in his own county, and was elected to
Congress by that goddess faction lie had
taken an oath to prescribe and persecute all
foreigners, and especially all Catholics
Does he suppose that the men whom he then
proposed to ostraciSe and to 'send TO Coven-
try" have forgotten all about his loving
kindness towards them2 An old Spanish
proverb says that young chickens will come
home to roost." If they have done so in this
instance it is a just retribution, and is simply
the return stroke of the political boomerang.
In view of John Covode's Know Nothing an
tecedeEts, to say nothing of his stold igno-
rance, the Irishman who would vote for him
for Congress. or even for township constable,
Gan Office on perfect level with his capaci-
ty.) would be mean enough to swear by
Castlereagh and dishonor the graves of Grat-
tan and O'Connell