Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1871-08-03
Catholic associations thereupon re.

SOiNeu tnaJ tney WOulu attach lHchi
if they did; and as they did attack
them last year, and killed several OF
the Orangemen, there was no doubt
that they would keep their word.
The Roman Catholic party having
thus distinctly announced that they
would make a riot if the procession
took place, the city authorities sur
rendered, and forbade the procession,
The surrender was made under the
absurd preteXt that professions in
the streets are not matters of right,
but of toleration, and that they may
be forbidden when The peaceis likely
to be broken!
That is to say, that every public
parade Of peaceable citizens through
the streets may righttully be forbid
den if band OF desperadOes and
assassins announce that they do not
choose to favor the procession, and
will attack it if it appears. Upon
this principle, if some French ce7cie
had declared that it would assault
the Germans If they paraded on
Easter Monday theauthoritiesm might
rightfully have prohibited the ceie-
bration Of course, in the present
instance, everybody knows that if
the circumstances had been reversed,
and the Orangemen had declared
that they would attack Il Roman
Catholic procession, they would have
been sternly warned that their blood
would be upon their own heads, and
the Roman Catholic parade would
not have been prohibited. Nor il
the talk about the celebration Of for
eign events and the feuds and AM
mosities of other lands less absurd.
If there were Italians in New York
who chose to perpeiuate the strife O.
Guelfs and Ghibellines, and to parade
in honor of their respective heroes
and events, their right to do so would
be indisputable, and equally indis-
putable would be the duty OF the
authorities TO protect those Italians
peaceably parading. -.
The principle laid down in this
ridiculous proceeding Is that lhc
right Of American citizens peaceabiy
to assemble may be arbitrarily at
nuiied by q police superintendent
!, upon the threat of unlawful disturb
unce OF the meeting. The truth l.
! that the police and the whole miilla
ry force of the State exist for the
! protectIOn Of that right and siiiilia.
. rights. In the very elimination oI
, events before the war and III tint
week following tho eAecuti~n vi
> JOhn Dsowa = skysoch MAS Ann0ulp'1s.
, in Philadelphia upon the then situa-
I: tion Of the antisiavery movement
The friends Of slavery Instantly II.
solved that it should not take piace.
!, They placarded the walls with virtu-
D al invitations to u riot. They ap-
I pealed in the papers to the moat
!. infiamed passions. Large numbe!a
OF what were called respectable citi-
zens waited upon the mayor ana
3 told him that the hall would DC
, demolished and the streets woui,t
run with blood If he did not stop the
speech. But the mayor-it was
: Alexander s. Henry--replied tina,
although he deprecated the speech as
much AS anybody, and wished with
all his heart that IL might not be
delivered, yet that the right vi the
7 speaker was fundamental right Vi
I an American citizen, and that he,
:. the mayor, was officially bound unoti
his oath to protect him to the las.
gasp, If it took all the police and Ill
the militia at his command, ana that
he should certainly do his duty.
There was a tremendous riot; but III"
mayor did his duty, and the rioters
were conquered.
1t Is only necessary to compare this
: action OF Mayor Henry in Philsdei-
phia twelve years ago with that oi
g Mayor Hall on the llth Of July in
this year, to see the difference be-
T tween magistrate who masters the
= mob and one who is mastered By H..
The feebleness Of the note in which
. Mr.. Hall sought to prevent the
D Orange parade did not conceal hi,
i, evident consciousness OF his duty.
He knew as well as anybody precise
ly what that was, and what the
: welfare of the community demanded:
I but he had neither the courage to du
his duty nor TO leave it undone.
But even in this Tammany-riddeIl
city the protest against the base sur
render OF the rights Of free people
J TO religious mob was SO unanimo's'
D and indignant that the Tammany
= Ring was frightened, and the GOV
, ernor was called in, or came IN, to
! reverse the whole proceeding.
But the facts will not be forgotten.
We have constantly said that the
! character of Democratic rule can best
F., be studied i'm the city of New York.
and the events of the recent Orange
l celebration illustrate it TO the whole
g country. The most sacred rights Of
I free assembly ami Of religious liberty
were yielded br the most representa-
: tive Democratic authority in TIA.
t country TO the mere threat Of 2 reli-
. gious riot: and only when driven 10
il by an overwhelming public ifdie.
nation did the Democratic Governor
, interfere for the protection Of peacea-
, bIe citizens. Thus has il alwaye been
r with the Democratic party. IN The
old days it mobbed American ciil,
zeDs peaceably assembling to plef1a