Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1879-10-29
Mr.. D. o. Barr and the Catholics.
A DESIGN ON THE PUBLIC SCHOOL
SYSTEM.

Mr.. u. -. Barr ana Cno CdLQOllcS.
DESIGN ON THE PUBLIC SCHOOL
SYSTEM.
From the Philadelphia Bulletin.
The Republican party has avoided
all illusions to the fact that Mr.. ID. D..
Barr, the Democratic candidate for
State Treasurer, is a Catholic, properly
regarding mans religion as having
nothing to do with his qualifications
for a public Office. But the friends of
Mr.. Barr have brought the question
up by issuing circulars to pastors OF
churches, asking for lists of their men,
bers. When this was complained of,
it was asserted that the old list of
Democratic voters had not been handed
over to the new Committee. But this
is denied, as is stated in the following
from the Pittsburgh Commercidt-Gd-
zette, which appends also curious cir
cular of the campaign of 1877, in
which the public school question was
introduced The Commercial says:
Candidate ID. O. Barr and his
brother John c. Barr, are both catching
it on all sides We showed on Satur-
day morning the falsity of ID. o. Barr's
statement that he had sent his circulars
to Protestant clergymen as well as
! Catholic clergymen, and now the state
ment made by John G. Barr is also
shown to be false John G. Barr stated
to a Telegraph reporter that none ol
| the Charmen of the Democratic State
Committee, since the time of Wallace
(including the latter)' had left any
thing in the way of data necessary for
the conduct of the campaign to their
successors. To prove the falsity OF
! this statement and clear his own skirts,
| Capt. William McClelland wrote to K.
Milton Speer, of Huntingdon, and the
latter gentleman writes back acknowl-
edging that he received full data from
Capt. McClelland, when he succeeded
| the latter as Chairman, and also adds
that he (Speer) offered his full data to
Mr. Miller, the present Chairman, but
that Mr.. Miller made no reply. Mr..
Speer also says that he attributed this
silence to the fact ID. o. Barr had
months before secured all the lists in
Spcer's possession. So the facts are
then the Democratic Committee adj
dressed the circulars only to Catholic
priests, and not for the purpose simply
of securing general list of voters, but
for the special purpose of hunting out
the Catholic voters.
"The circular sent to the Democratic
State Convention, in 1877, to delegates,
for the purpose of capturing Square
Timber Noyes' delegates, shows how
d. o. Barr feels on the public school
question:
"Dear Sir: We solicit your infu-
ence for the nomination of ID. 0. Barr,
Esq, of Pittsburgh, for State Treas
urer. He is opposed by some because
he is a strict Catholic He is proud
of his faith, and you know that all
good Catholics are Democrats. The
school question cannot come up in this
campaign, but if it does he is prepared
to meet it. He is in favor of pro
rata distribution of school funds to all
denominations, and then all could
have their children brought up in the
faith of their parents. This would do
away with the common schools of this
State, and be great saving to the
State. If he is nominated and elected
State Treasurer he will use his inhu-
ence to effect this chnage. His
brother, James p. Barr, is editor of
the leading Democratic paper of the
West, and their views correspond.
This is, of course, confidential. We
understand that you hold similar
views, and for that reason send you
this card. Do not let Republican see
it.
Allegheny county Delegation,
Pittsburgh, August l6, 1871"