Carolina watchman. [volume] (Salisbury, N.C.) 1871-1937, 1911-01-25

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causes must necessarily produce
the best effects Therefore, thu
American progress being baseo
upon the best principles, must bt
superior to other civilizations A
European writer of renown has
said: "Scratch European civlliz'
alton, and you always find the
bloody tyrant of the middle ages,
and the rottenness Of many
corpses. Scratch American civi.
lization, and you find at the bot.
tom of it Christianity and free.
DOM Behold your old trees
whose sweet fruit you are now en-.
j ying! Behold your old sun,
shose splendid beams are illumi-
mating you nowl Behold the col
i'd basis upon which you have
builded what you call with pride
my country" and what for
eigners call with admiration
America" !"
A renowned critic has said:
"W. thout the Bible and Pilgrim 8
Progress the English literature
canLot be explained.
Without the conception of free
dom and Christianity the Ameri-
can history would be riddle un-
answerahle, Look desply at
every old American institution,
and time and again you viii fnd
thsm founded upon freedom and
Christianity. From North to
S7uth, froin East to West, la
reaas and IN war, in the country
and III the city. in the home and
IN the school, the soldier and the
politician, the farmer and the
banker, the old and the young
American, loves Christianity and
freedom.
believe that there is such q re-
ality as American thought; that
there are certain principles which
belong to the American Govern
ment; that there are certain feel.
ings which are experienced by
none but an American. But such
. reality bslievs mr=t be attrl-
buted neither to your American
ml)lionairss, nor your American
railroads, nor even your Ameri-
can schools and universities, but
to more primitive and superior
cause-to your pure conception of
Christianity and freedom, which
for me constitutes Americanism.
And your sublime conception con-
corning Christianity and freedom
has hot only built up the Ameri-
can national character to the
strongest and perhaps the best
among mankind today, but it has
also through its large. powerful
and profitable influence bettered
millions Of other peoples belong
iug to different nations of the
world. How many millions of
foreigners who have never known
before what Christianity means,
who have never enjoyed the sweet
blessings of social and political
freedom, have learned here in
America, through your teaching,
to be both faithful Christians and
good citizens. How many thoug-
ands Of Italians, Poles, Russians,
Mexicans, Cubans aid SO on, who,
before their coming to America,
were ignorant, bigoted, immoral
and dangerous, after having lived
here for some time have become
civilized, honest, active, iutelli-
gent. useful citizens to mankind,
loyal to their God, and good pa.
triots to their respective nations
How many thousands of them re.
turn to their old homes, not only
rich and civ .lized, but also apt
and ready to circulate and propo.
gate American doctrines, civiliza.
tion and Christianity? And even
more than this your conception
of Christianity and freedsm hat
accom- plisL ed a great deal of good
even to the Roman Catholic
Church, the oldest, strongest and
most numerous of all the Chris.
tian denominations. Amerlcans
are accustomed to say-and ]
think they are correct in some re-
spects-that the American Cathol.
iclsm is many times better aud
purer than the Catholicism oi
Mexico, Spain and other R Rsman
countries. Both Protestants and
Go fhaliae, a lila 4h:,