Pleasantville weekly press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1890-1911, 1898-07-20
A LETTER FROM THE
CITY BY THE SEA.
Rejoicing over the Spanish
surrender of Santiago.
THE INFLUENCE Of EIGLlHD's ATTITUDE.
HOME AFFAIRS WITH THE BREAD AND
BUTTER BRIGADE. A "DEMoNsTRATIvE"
Dominic.

The glorious news from Cuba last week
overshadowed every thing else talked of,
and the surrender of Santiago was
greeted with the ringing of bells and
the footing of steam whistles. By many
the war is believed to be near its end
and the advent of lasting peace is stead
lily looked for. One thing has been
squarely settled by our brush with Spain
and that is that American soldiers can
fight and will fight when the honor of
the stars and stripes demand it. This is
not what might termed, in newspaper
parlance, exclusive" news, for the fact
has been noted several times before dur
ing the last one hundred and twenty
years.
also within the last ninety days, and
that is the Lion is awake when her
whelps are threatened, and nowise back
ward in letting the warning hrowl be
heard. The Lion and her descendants
have had their little family quarrels,
but when the great cause of Humanity
is at stake the noble old animal remem-
bers her own teachings and is ready to
back up herown off spring with tooth
and nail. So, discarding all metaphor,
[ say all honor to glorious Old England,
and when the secret history of the pre-
sent war is written it will, l am positive,
develop the fact that to England alone
we are indebted for the non-interference
of some European nations who stood
ready to step in and threaten us unless
we were willing to continue to submit
to the insults of a miserable old Dynasty
that had nothing to recommend it to
the world but a powerful church that
has been prOstituted, both in Cuba and
Spain and all the Spanish possessions,
until it's banner was stained red with
the blood of the poor and the suffering
and the helpless. The head of this
powerful and honorable organization
himself good man-could not believe
that any one acting in the name of his
church, and commissioned by him, could
be guilty OF such crimes as were charged
against them. But the cunning Dons
had deceived the good old man, and
capped the climax by asking him to
interfere in their behalf aud demand that
all true members of the Catholic faith in
England and America should rally
around the cause of Spain to save the
ill-gotten gains that had been extOrted
under Spanish misrule, in Cuba, the
PHILIPPINES, and other Spanish colonies.
The insolent demand based upon greed
and fear, was promptly repudiated both
in England and America, and among the
very first to come to the support of the
United States government were the
ablest supporters of the Catholic Church.
Archbishop Ireland, a Christian and a
patriot loyal to the land of his adoption
lost no time in acquainting the Pope of
the true state of affairs, and the result is
that to-day the Catholic prayers and
guns are turned against the bloody rule
of Spain, in spite of the religious ties
that would naturally be in ite favor.
Thus religious predjudices are softened,
as sectional lines disappear, and our
people become more and more united as
we progress in this strange and eyentful
war
But how about home affairs right here
in our midst ? That noble band of suf-
ferers known as the Bread and Butter
Brigade have been strengthening their
entrenchments while public attention
has been diverted to the war with Spain
and have apparently had everything
their own way. They hope to be able
to successfully defy all attempts at re-
.shold the fort" for the little clique who
always have their platters right side up
when it rains plums. l hear that some
of their plans have even worried our
Reform Mayor SO that he made hasty
trip to Canada where he could cool off
and study political economy, and devise
plans to circumvent this Industrious
and alert, but never r-to-be-trusted politi-
cal Brigade.
l see in this (Monday) mornings
Re7aezO the following paragraph, which
clip to show that religious intoler-
ance, not to say fanaticism, still has a
foothold here in the closing years of the
Nineteenth Century:
"Rev. Mr.. Mundy at yesterdays morn
ing service at Oliyet Presby
Church, severely criticised Governor
voorhees, for appointing priest of the
Catholic Church as chaplain OF the
Fourth Regiment of Volunteers in
preference to Protestant minister.
His efforts were so demonstrative that
at one point, DIR. Mundy was Obliged to
discontinue his discourse and sit down."
First, let me remark, the Governor is
fortunate in having such q anarrowmind
ed assailant, for among all sensible peO-
pie it will only strengthen his position.
Next, let me remark, that | am not
Catholic myself but hard-shell Protes-
tant. I am not, however, so bigoted
that L want everybody's ideas sawed off
to suit my own ideas. | understand
that the Fourth Regiment, aside from
the Morris Guards, is composed largely
of men OF foreign birth who are Catho-
lies in their religious belief, aud | think
the Governor has acted wisely in recog
nizing that fact. Why should they not
have priest This purports to be
land of religious federation and if two
thirds of regiment are Catholics they
are entitled to some consideration.
They have enlisted in defense of their
country and venture to predict that
they will defend the old flag bravely if
they go into battle. | really have no
patience with men like the R,v. Mundy.
They belong to the dead past aud not
to the living present when such mean
and narrow predjudices are being swept
away by a more liberal spirit. DIR.
Mundy should have pounded pulpit in
the days of the Salem Witchcraft, or
when the Boston saints, Of his stripe,
bored through the tongues of Quakers
with red hot irons. He would have
been shining light when women were
stripped half naked in winter, and their
bare backs lashed with rawhide as they
were driven barefooted over the frozen
ground of New England tied to an OK
cart because they differed upon some
points of faith with the ruling elders OF
the time. To be entirely consistent the
Rev. Mundy should demand that no
Catholic should be permitted to fight in