Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-04-10

upon no church. It simply provides that
none Of the public moI,ey shall go for the
support OF any church or Of any institution
under sectarian or ecclesiastical control.
The time in this discussion has been en-
tirely consumed. except this minute, by the
other side OF the House. and the more
they have talked against 1t the more it has
become apparent that it is the only ground
on which the American people can safely
stand"
MIR. Fitzgerald ON the A. p. A.
Mr.. Fitzgerald Of Massachusetts, opposed
the amendment.
1T has been stated" sai1 Mr.. Fitzgerald.
never made any opposition at all to the
appropriations for these institutions until
the night before. and then they bombarded
the committee room and insisted upon the
stricken out.
'The antmus Of this organization" he
proceeded, lis well known. Members Of the
House have been iraportuned. not in the
broad spirit Of liberality and American
ism. to oppose this bill because it appro-
priated money for Catholic institutions /
stand upon this floor born and bred q Ro-
man catholic, and proud of 1t, and deny
the right OF any secret, oath-bound organi-
cation to come before the legal representa-
tives OF the American people. and by its
9ark; deep, underhand methods. seek to
heion which 1 profess of the honest rights
and privileges and dues of American citi-
z Ea What apology is there for a Roman
catholic to live in this country? Is one
necessary? Look at the deeds Of bravery
and heroism and craftsmanship that have
teen performed by Roman Catholics.
challenge any member Of the A. p. A.
organization in this House, or any mem
Der in sympathy with it, to name any
sphere in life or any public duty that has
been badly filled or lily performed by men,
bers OF the Roman Catholic Church. In
the great war Of the revolution Washing
ton had no firmer friends or firmer sup
ports than the Roman Catholic members of
his staff: and when we look at the great
raval struggle, which was the pride and
glory of the American people at that time
the first name that springs to our lips is
that of an Irishman, a Roman Catholic,
Captain John O'Brien. who achieved the
first great naval victory of the war off
the coast of Maine. 1t was not asked
whether Kosciusko or Pulaski or Lafayette
were Catholics when the thirteen colonies
were struggling for their independence. AT
that time could you find any fanatics? At
that time could you find persons stealthily
creeping around from one end Of the coun-
try to the other in secrecy intriguing
against mans religion?
In Case of War.
Il know we talk about the breadth and
liberallty Of the American people in these
days; why. sir. 1t is not to be compared
with the breadth and liberality and wis
dom that were exhibited in those times.
My friends, If we should have war with
England on account Of the Venezuelan mat
ter, or war with Spain account of the
Cuban matter. where would the members of
this famous organization be-where would
they be found? They would be found in the
same place and under the same auspices
that they were found in the war of the re-
bellion. taking the steamers for Nova
Scotia to put themselves under the pro-
lection of Queen Victoria and the British
flag. Those would be the conditions that
would exist, and those are the conditions
that always exist when people try to strike
with knife in the back. 1 wish to quote
here our martyred Lincoln, who, in 1859,
said:
II am not know nothing, that is certain
How could 1 be? How can any one who
abhors the oppression of negroes be in
favor of degrading any class of white peo-
pie? Our progress in degeEeracy appears to
gan by declaring that all men are created
equal We now read it. except negroes
and foreigners and Catholics. When it
comes to this 1 shall prefer emigrating to
some country where they make no pretense
of loving liberty-to Russia, for instance,
where despotism can be taken pure. and
without the base alloy of hypocrisy
In conclusion he quoted, amid round of
beginning:
Thou. too, sail on, o ship of state.
Sail on, o Union, strong and great,
Humanity with all it's fears,
With all the hopes of future years,
Is hanging breathless on thy fate"
Mr.. McRae's Proposition.
Mr.. McRae Of Arkansas opposed the
amendment, and said:
This paragraph looks to me as if Con-
gress were now turning its attention in the
direction in which I have insisted it ought
to have gone years agc-that of providing
some rational and just system of public
charities il the District of Columbia. The
committee has not proposed complete and
permanent system, as it should have done
yet If the provision be amended as l have
proposed it will put the whole of the appro-
priations in the hands Of and under the con-
troll of the District Commissioners and treat
all private institutions alike"
Mr.. McRae's amendment was to transpose
the non-sectarian proviso, but was ruled out
of order by the Speaker.