The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1893-06-16

age OF illiteracy. and for the backward
ness OF intellectual activity characteristic
OF the State to-day.
II the Revolution really began In North
Carolina, as the natives OF that state con
tend, 1t was because the people were even
more inflamed by q desire Tor religious
freedom than by the wish for political In
dependence. The Bill OF Rights ana state
Constitution. adopted by the Provincial
| Congress at Halifax In December, l1'e, as
serted the natural and inalienable right OF
men to worship Almighty GOD according 20
the dictates Of their own consciences. III
was further laid down that there should be
| no establishment OF any one religious
| church or denomination In the state Oh
| North Carolina in preference to any other.
| Neither should any person. on any pretence,
| be compelled to attend any place OF worship
| contrary to his own faith or Judgment or
be obliged to pay for the purchase OF any
globe or the building OF any house OF wor-
ship, or the maintenance Of any minister.
contrary to what he believed right, or had
voluntarily and personally engaged to per-
form. On the contrary. all persons should
be ut liberty to exercise their own mode OF
worship. These declarations involved the
downfall of the Established Church. 1t only
remained for the laws Of the new State to
be brought into conformity with the new
Constitution Marriage was put on proper
footing in 177s by law giving the privilege
OF performing the ceremony to nll minister's
alike. Next, the terms Of the Affirmation
for Quakers. Moravians. Mennonites. and
Dunkards were fixed. The restriction OF
school teaching to men fortified with tho
certificate Of tho Anglican authorities. OF
course. disappeared. and the law respecting
the caro- of the orphan children OF Quakers
was repealed.
1t is evident that North Carolina. from
the moment that it declared itself an in
dependent State. assorted an exclusive and
unchallcngcd authority over religious mat
tors. 1t could, had it so chosen. have re-
tanned the establishment and endowment
Of the Anglican or Episcopal Church. 1t
might have established the Presbyterian
Church. as it was then, and is still. estab-
lshed in Scotland. 1t might have given
Calvinists OF the Congregational type the
same privileges which they enjoyed ut the
time in tho colony of Massachusetts. 1t
might, had majority OF the colonists been
Catholics, have made Catholicism the re-
ligion of the State. 1t did mono OF these
things; but, In its fundamental organic
law, it made, as we lave seen. a close APP
proach To universal liberation. Nevcrthe-
less, there was ono provision, which. in
process Of time seemed to require amend
ment. Tho thirty-second section OF the
State Constitution Of l77G read as follows:
" No person who shall deny the being OF
Cop or the truth OF the Protestant religion
or the divine authority either Of the Old or
New Testament. or shall hold religious
principles Incompatible with the freedom
and safety of the State. shall be capable Of
holding any Office or place OF trust or profit
in the civil department within the State" AS
time vent on. there were various interpre-
tatons Of this section. One theory held that
it clearly excluded atheists and such deists
as made parade Of their intidelity by pro-
claiming the Scriptures to be false. Others
thought that it disqualified jews also. on
the ground that the latter must ncccssari-
ly deny the divine authority OF the New
Testament. Still others maintained that
Quakers. Mennonites. and Dunkards were
disqualified. because their belief that arms
cannot lawfully be used in defence Of ones
native country Is subversive Of its freedom
md rcpugnant to its safety. Many law
yers declared, and their views seem to have
been followed in practl that the clause in
question excluded nobody: that. for want
Of specified tribunal TO eXpound and en-
force it. the provision was dead letter.
There is no doubt that the clause had been |
aimed at Roman Catholics. But 1t had never |
been interpreted against thom. THOMAS |
BURKE who publicly profcssed tho Catholic !
faith. was n member OF tho Continental |
Congress from South Carolina. and in 1871. |
was elected Governor OF the State. There |
wns no State Office. from that Of Governor |
Town to that OF constable. which had not at |
one time or another. been filed by a Catholic. |
Perhaps the most distinguished Of these |
was WILLIAM CASTOR, who had been sue
,essively member OF the State Senate. n
representative in Congress. and Il Justice of |
he State Supreme Court No complaint |
seat upon tho bench; nevertheless. 1t was
bought best to amend the section in Ques-
ion when tho matter came up in the Con-
;titutional Convention OF 1885. In the Con-
,titution OF North Carolina. framed and
adopted then. the word christian" was
Instituted for Protestant and thus,
n the words uttered by Judge CASTOR at
he time. was the carcass OF the last rem
lant of religious persecution inferred. lest
is residential ctTuvia should poison tho
of freedom.
Dastrucfivc Prnpositinn