Los Angeles daily herald., 1886-10-21
His Reasons for Abandon.
ing the Republicans.
IT is UNSOUND ON LABOR.
LET Us Sink Our Ships, and Pass
From Our Enemies. the Repub-
licans. to Our Friends, the
Democrats"

immediately after the adjournment of
the San Francisco convention. He gives
his reasons in letter which appeared in
the Courier de San Fraacisco last Sat
urday, and Of which the following is n
translation:
Should naturalized citizens vote for
Republican candidates at the coming
electons
To that question | answer decided
No! For the following reasons: As long
as we were satisfied that no difference
was made between naturalized citizens
and citizens born in the United States,
the vital question of our rights, of our
future, of our property and influence
was not dependent on politics, and we
believed that the nefarious doctrine of
Know.Knothingism was destined never
more to figure on the political horizon of
California. Unfortunately such is not
the case. Last Fourth of July, the an.
niversary of that American independ.
ence toward the achievement of which
onr ancestors did not work the least, we
witnessed the choosing as orator OF the
day of man the most hostile in Cali.
fornia, not only to the naturalized ele.
ment but even to the descendants of
naturalixed citizens, SO long as their
narqe or religion indicated their origin.
Faithful to his mission, that hater Of
Catholics and foreigners delivered an
eloquent speech, no doubt, when taken
from the American party standpoint,
but which was nothing else but an
odi0us TRADE against all naturalized for.
eigners audacious enough to consider
themselves the equals of Americans
born. Some may say that the very
large audience on that occasion by its
very attitude taught the orator a lesson.
Far from that, those in attendance were
there by invitation, and he received
rounds of applause and was almost car
ried of in triumph.
It may be said also that the next day
the newspapers of all compilations pro.
tested against the utterances of the or
ator. Not at all. The Democratic
journal alone raised the cry of "shame,"
The Republican organs published no.
thing except praise for the speaker.
One paper, believe, as a matter of
form, stated something that might pos
sibly be construed into slight blame.
Intoxicated by his success, the pro.
prietor and editor of the Argonaut con.
tinued his merciless war against all
parties naturalized or Catholics. His
writings were reprinted in several Re.
publican journals, and he worked to
such success that at the close of the
Republican Convention at Los Angeles
the supporters of the party publicly
boasted during the progress of ratifi-
cation orgie, OF being successful for
once in nominating pure American
ticket. No Germans, no Irish, no Ital-
ians, especially no Jews, not single
foreigner.
Later, having discovered that one of
the candidates nominated at the Con-
venti0n was Catholic, and that an
other, notwithstanding his American
name was an Englishman who had had
the double audacity to come to this
country when years of age, and more
over to present himself as an American,
the Grand Priest of Americanism imme-
diately called meeting of his disciples,
who wiped out the two names unworthy
of Republican ticket, replacing them
by those of pure.blooded Kuow-Noth-
ings.
l may, perhaps, be asked why l, a
Republican for years, who have always,
and everywhere voted for liberty, for
the emancipation of the blacks, why do
throw down my sword?
To that must answer that, as Re-
publican, was disarmed long ago.
Liberty's cause was abandoned by the
Republicans on the day when President
Hayes abandoned North Carolina and
Louisiana to the South for its Presiden-
tial vote.
Long enough has the emancipation of
the blacks been voted for; it is time to.
day that we should place ourselves in
opposition to the slavery of whites.
What else would be a republic where
man would have no civil rights |?
The Republican candidate for Govern.
or has stated that it is useless to recall
the memory of Lincoln ana the bravery
ofairant for the purpose OF winning
this fight, that something new is re.
quired. As far as / am concerned. l
can only recognize as the head of the
Republican party those men who have
retained the worship OF the martyr
President and also that of the grand old
soldier who saved his country from
ruin. Let the pygmies who have for
gotten those immortal men, or who
would essay to shorten the recollection
of their deeds to their own height, be
emoved to make place for men.
On the labor question the Democratic
party is unanimous in condemning the
employment of Chinese in any manner.
1t is not in Democratic organ that one
could find the following: "Between the
emigrants who arrive from Europe and
those who come from China no choice
can be made" But that doctrine was
discussed at length in the Republican
papers.
As to the tariff question, it has moth
ing to do with politics. The producer
wants protection, and the non-producer
free trade; that has naught to do with
whether man ia a Republican or
Democrat.
A point that we should consider is
that if the Republican press are not
treating the foreign element very harsh
iy at present it is because we are on the
eve of an election. Let us open the
papers published July 9th, 9th and 7th
last, and in them we will read who are
the friends of naturalized citizens.
1t is far from my intention to insinu-
ate that as candidate for office, a for
eigner should be preferred to an Ameri. |
oan-born, but insist that even the dis.
eussion as to whether or not a natural. |
lied citizen should have the same rights
as an American-born. is an insult to
jnstice, and breach of sworn faith.
Furthermore, foreigners have made
the America of this day. The true
American exists no longer; the Indian
Is dying or is dead. The English,
French, Spanish, Italians, Portuguese,
Germans and Swiss have made America
what it is.
The foreign element planted the vines
that adorn our hills, the hops that grow