The Portland daily press., 1869-04-08
Ca.hslie school. i'm America.

Last Sunday Rev. Father Hecker of NY
York delivered an address in Music Hail. Bos
ton, on the Condition of Religion in Ameri
ca" This gentleman was formerly trans
eendentalist and was one of those who origi
mated the celebrated "Brook Farm" expert
ment some twenty-seyen years ago After
wards he became a Catholic, and has sine,
been engaged in clerical work in England ant
in this country. The general tenor of his re
marks in his Music Hall lecture was to the eff
feet that any departure from Catholicism nee
essarily leads to atheism, and he illustrated
his theme by an allusion to the alleged ration;
aistic tendency of the modern New England
intellect But the declare ton of this distin-
guished Catholic clergyman which demands
especial attention is that in which he claims a
part of the public school funds for the support
of separate Romish sem-religious schools,
making the claim fallaciously on the ground
that such course is alone reconcilable with
democratic principles: He said:
don't ask to teach Protestant children
Catholicity don't ask it. We don't wish it.
Let them teach their own children; but we
claim they should not teach our children. Is
that any more than fair play? All we ask is,
If we can give certain amount of the taxes
that go for education, we have also right to
say how that taxation should be distributed
Now, then. these public sciIoUis,-we don't OPP
pose them for their children; they may build
public school on every corner if they wish
but we claim that we want schools not where
a secular education can be obtained only, but
where religious education can be obtained
also. We don't want our children to grow up
like those around them, and believe neither in
God, man, nor the devil. What we ask is only
fair play, in Democratic government. Cath
Ole Austria does this for the Pedestrians;
Catholic France does this for Protestants PRO
testant Prussia does this for Catholics; Pro-
testant England does this for Catholics Shape
on Americans, the pretended lovers OF fair
play, not to give to the Catholics what Aus
tria and France do to the Protestants
The principle he contends for, though the
Catholic clergy throughout the country siren
uously support it, is essentially undemocratic.
The theory of our institutions is that the public
money shall not be used for the purpose of CIV
ing instruction in the tenets of any religion.
Our schools are for giving instruction in the
elements of secular knowledge, and the gener-
al principles of morals which are unchangable
and which underlie all religious creeds The
idea OF substituting religious schools is conso-
nant enough with the governmental systems
in the countries that he mentions as having
adopted it, but not with our system. Here it
must be combatted with the same vigor that
1t is advocated, even though there should be
some truth in Father Hecker's threat to Gov
ernor Andrew that if the demands of the
Catholics were not complied with in this re-
gard they would sometime get the upper
hand and have their revenge. 1t must be |
combatted because compliance with it would |
involve the surrender of one of the most pow |
erful agencies in existence for breaking down |
the barrier that separates naturalized from ma
tive born citizens. The proposed segregation |
Of the Catholic children and their entire edu- |
cation, literary and scientific as we'll as relig-
ious, under system that is in its nature an |
tagonistic to democracy, would have most |
baneful effect in preventing the assimilation of |
people of foreign birth with our own, and in |
for many years that most desirable |
of Americans becoming hon.
ogeneous race. There is Away danger in the |
condition of nation that embraces different |
races that are distinctly separated by the lines
Of religion or nationality, as well as by geo.
graphical lines.
However unfortunate the consequences to
which we have pointed might be in them
selves, they would furnish no ground for re-
'usal to the demand of the Catholics, if that |
demand were a rational one But its absurdi- |
y will be instantly seen when it is remember |
I'd that all Of the infinite number of religious
denominations in the United States might
With equal propriety make the same claim.