The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1875-09-09

ffi -ft aEaeeg ssf es}zt5s.-izl Ess! > p
ent with the rights of conscience.
The same provision, enlarged in it
Iscope, is found in the present Consti
| tuition, which declares, Article /
Sec. 2. All men have q natural and
indefeasible right to worship Almighty
God according to the dictates Of theiI
own conscience No person shall he
compelled to attend, erect. or support
any place of worship, or maintain any
and no preferences shall be given, BY
law, to any religious society; mol
shall any interference with the rights
of conscience be permitted. No relig-
ious test shall be required as quafffi-
cation for Office, nor shall any pefson
he incompetent to be q witness on &C
count his religious belief but nothing
herein shall he construed to dispense
with oaths and afirmations. Relig-
ion, morality aud knowledge, h0Wev-
er, being essential to good government,
it shall be the duty Of the General As
sembly to pass suitable laws, to pro-
tect every religious denomination in
the peaceable enjoyment Of its own
mode Of public worship. and to encour-
age schools, and the means of instruc-
ton.
And now, what is the Geghan Law
Let me read Il, aud you will sse thai
every word that have said Of il h
strictly correct, and the clamor against
it has not the slightest foundation in
reason or truth. 1t reads as follows :
"a Bill to secure liberty Of conscience
in matters OF religion to persons inn
prisoned or detained BY authority
ofiaw. fei Or a 49, Is, =
"SEcr1eN 1. Be it enacted by the
General Assembly of the State Of Ohio
That, as liberty Of conscience is not
forfeited by reason Of conviction, Of
crime, or by reason Of detention in
any penal, reformatory Or eleemosy-
nary institutioa, or any House of
Refuge, Work-house, jail or public
asylum Of the State, no person IN any
such instituti0n shall be compelled to
attend religious scorship or instruction
of a form schich is against the dictates
Of his or her conscience; and it shall
be the duty Of every Director, Trustee
Superintendent or other person having
i'm charge any such Institution to fur
nish ECU AL FACILITIES 70 all
such persons for recciping the ninis-
trations of the dMthorized c,ergynsdn
Of their o,on religious dissemination or
pc, sudsion, under such reasonable
rules and regulations as the Trustees,
Directors, Managers or Superintend-
ents shall make but no such .rules
shall be SO construed as to prevent the
clergyman Of any denomination from
fully administering the rights of his
denomination to such inmates; pro-
vided such ministratiens entAil no ex-
pense on the public treasury.
SEC. 2. THIS act shall take effect
from and after its passage"
i' GEO. l.. CONVERSE,
Speaker of House Of Representatives.
ALPHoNso HART,
President of the Senate.
Pissed March 80, 1875. 'lA& -. .
When this bill irst passed the House
OF Representative there we're 60 votes
for and 80 against it, and among those
who voted for it were seven sonspicu-
ous Republican members, one of
whom, am told, was and is Protest.
ant preacher Of the Gospel. But ina
nediately afterwards the idea entered
the heads Of tho party managers that
some party capital might be made out
of the bill that it might be made to
assist tho anti Catholic and Know
Nothing cry about to be raised for
party purposes and hence these seven
Republicans were induced by party
consideratisns to forege their judg.
ment and to vote for = reconsideration
of the bill, and emily four days after
they had ysted fer the bill. four.of
them voted against the bill aud three
of them omitted to vote 1t all. Now,
il the bill were q bad bill, why were
seven Republicans found voting for il
before the party lssh was applied to
their backs7 and Why did three of
them stand out SO far rs to let 1t pass
without their dissent7 If it Is . bad
law why did NOT the Republican State
Convention condema it sud demand
it's repeal? They were ready enough
to condemn the Legislature, but you
find not one word in their platform
condemning the law. II it .is . bad
law why did the Republican Cenven-
ton Of Hamilton County, only last
Wednesday, refuse to pass = resolution
demanding it's rePeal7 II it is a bad
law why has not some Republican ora
tor, from General Hayes down to the
least Of them, or some Republican
newspaper, great or small, pointed
out wherein it is bad? Nine.tenths,
ct least, Of the members who voted for
the Geghan bill were Prstestants, or
sympathize with Protestantism. Net
. few of them are earnest and active
members of Protestant churches.-
Some of them represented constituen-
cies in which the Catholics are scarce
ly one in enc hundred Of the people.
Did these men succumb to Catholic
dictation? Were the seven Republic
cane, the Protestant preacher included,
who at first voted for the bill, servants
of the Pope? Is there any man, not
an idiot, or utterly blinded by preju-
dice, who does not see that the charge
is absurd, that ii Is . trick of party
managers, who sre willing to leopard
religion, coavulse society and COW the
seeds Of perpetual discord il order to
achieve party success? To hear Z
Radical stsmper talk of the Catholic
church you would think, If you knew
no better. fhat'ail the members Of that
church are under the absofute domfn.
ion Of theirsp priests that the priest has
but to point his finger, and his whole
flock vote for the party at which" hi
points. There never was more un.
founded assertion,never . greater libe
against body of American freemen
| In matters Of religion the Cathoii,