Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The American. (Omaha, Nebraska) 1891-1899 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 4, 1895)
2 AN OPEN MEE1ISU. Turner H'H, Kansas City, Filled to Overflowing by People Anxious lo Know Something About the A. I. At Kansas City, Mo., Sept. 24. Su preme Vice-President J. H. Jackson, of the A. P. A. of the Unite 1 States, spoke to a mlxi d aud'enoe of about 2 500 peo plo at Tumor Hall lat night The hall was crowded to Its fullest oapaoity. lie spoke for tearly two hours, but did not exhaust the subjot, and he will apeak again at the fame place on Thursday evening. On the platform were seated, by Invi tation, Julge John B. Stone, Dr. S D Bowker, ex-Judge Richard Field, Judge J. M. Jones, B. Howard Smith, Frank Sluta, Recorder O. H. Qaeal, County Counselor L. H. Waters, Harry Hlnde, Harvey Jonea and many e ther. The ball was draped with the national colors, and the speaker's table was cov ered with the folds of an enormous flg, while the pillars supoortlng the bal wiy were entwined with bjntlng. The t p ai"nce was decidedly pretty. TVe di-akc- was introduced by F. M. O IT rd. who o'd of their having first tit t In a e u4 oom, and of their long a wn-m ''l. ndshlp, and of the many 'm r Hi c araoterlstles of the speaker l I is '" I y aaacl'izen and publio in in. He closed by saying that he was tb bot;n defender of the principles of the order, and challenged any man, from the Kingof Spain to a village con stable, to meet him for discussion of the merit of tbe doctrines taught. Mr. Jackson snld he was glad to have an opportunity of presenting the doc trines of the organization and the prin ciples they hold sacred. He declared it was the most important question In the minds of the people at present, and declared that in raying that he was not unmindful of the many other mat ters that were pressing for attention and action. He predicted many excel lent things for Missouri in the future, declaring it one of the grandest states In the land. It was a state in which he felt frco to speak his sentiments, for Le knew that within its borders there were the greatest liberties and freedom of expression for honest sentiments, nd that tbe people would never sur render that sacred right. It was a worthy state in the Union that was the home of the free, where there was but one country, one people and one flag, nd no ctLer banner would ever be al lowed to float over it at any time. He was glad of an opportunity to speak of the principles of the order. There was a belief prevalent that tbe order was to be in national politics, and that belief wa right. There was to bo a presentation of Its principles to the state and national convention, and their recognition and endorsement asked not with bended knee, for they wou'd not. ard did rot expect to ever bend the knfe to any power or organi sation, Americans loving their coun try and loyal to the flag bent the knee to ro power. "Did you notice anything peouliar and unusual in your state election here last fall, and did It signify anything to your mind?" he asked. There was a cheer, and as it subsided he Bald: "It told the people in thunder tones that even In Missouri no man could stand on a platform that denounced the order as unpatriotic and find favor with the masses. It also showed, too plain to be misunderstood, that here In your city no man could run on that platform and be elected to represent you in the balls of Congress. Btess God, we don't have to be represented by them. It Is significant. "I am a Democrat from Texas, but I can tell you tbat the malignant con demnation of the A. P. A. by Governor Stone had much to do with the star tling changes that took place in the state when ten changes in the congres sional delegation were made. Lt me say that no delegation was ever chosen that stands nearer the loyal hearts of the people thai, the men gained in this state. Let William J. Stone, who led that bitter fight of condemnation on our order, ever set up his banner, and we will eclipse his light with an ease and certainty that will send him back forever to private life. We'll do it. You just watch and see. The day has gone by when such men as Stone can set up and dictate and control politics in the State of Mis souri. Ho is a back number, and we'll convince him of that f,et yet. And that fellow O'Meara. Lord bles me! He represents the strike element of the land. You can read the nationality of every man who was ever at the head of an organization that combated law ful authority by pronouncing his name. The A. P. A. is opposed to strikes, and it is opposed to O'Meara and such men." The speaker declared he would never condemn any man's religious views or opinions. He respected the religious opinions of every man. Any man who slightingly referred to any man's re ligion was unworthy the respect of the public. "We are tolerant of all creeds, and I have never said one word dis paraglng the religion of any priest or nun, and never intend to," he de clared. "We have no war to make on THE AMERICAN. AIMING AT ENGLAND, HUT the Catholic rollglon, and any man who says we have tells the umruth. We be lieve the Constitution means just what It says relating to the right of every man to worship God according to the dictates of his own conscience, and any man who attempts to narrow that lib erty is a bigot and does wrong " The speaker crltlcUed tbe Protes tants who endorsed the order but did not join for fear of It burtlng their busi ness. He declared that if the fore fathers of the country had possessed no more courage than they the whole land would have been humbled at the feet of Great Britain. He wondered why any man should feel that way In this city, for he knew of the strength of the order here. One council had 1,700 members and was still growing. He sail he wanted the people on the Lord's side, for pure politics and honest elections, and referred with great compliment to the appointment of J. H. IUrrls for election commissioner, and stated that no man in the state stood higher or had a more rugged honesty. He referred to the city of Omaha, where scores of the policemen were shown to be Brit ish subjects, never having been natu ralized, and yet were serving to enforce the laws of America. Loyalty to the Union was the first requisite of the or ganization, and it was opposed to any but American citizens doing duty as of ficers. He spoke of the decree of Pope Leo in 1885, advising the members to go into politics, and said from that the A. P. A. was born in 1887, and had grown to counteract it, and then asked who went into politics first. He also said that the members of the order would name the next Governor of Mis souri, and he would be named by the delegations from this city; and the statement was greeted with loud shouts of approval. In closing, he returned to the decla rations of Governor Stone and Con gressman Tarsney. He spoke of Tars ney as an ex-congressman, and said he would travel 500 miles any time to get a chance at Governor Stone and debate the propositions of the loyalty of the organization, and would hang his hide on the fence without fail. U. S. Council No. 10, Jr. O. U. A. M. meets first and third Thursdays each month in Patterson Hall, Seventeenth and Farnam streets, Omaha, Neb. C. H. Davidson, councilor; J. C. Cornwall, corresponding secretary. Visiting brothers welcome. When down town drop in at John Rudd's and leave your watch, if it is out of repair, to be fixed. 317 north 18 St. HITS THE UNITED STATES. THE 1TI1LIC-SCH00L QUESTION. The Roman Ca'.holic school system, as outlined In the official declarations of tbe popes and councils, maintains: 1. That all religious education is the exclusive function of the Roman Cath olio Church. 2. That all secular education also is its exclusive function. 3. Tbat the state has no right to teach in matters secular or icligious. 4. That the state and church should be united, and tbat the Roman Cath olic should be the only religion of the state. 5. Tbat in a nation where state and church are not united, and where Cath olics cannot control the entire field of eduoatlon, they should, as far and as soon as able to do so, found parochial schools for Roman Catholic children. 0. That these schools have a right to a share of the money raised from the whole community by taxation for the support of public schools, and that the public-school fund should be divided at once between the public and the paro chial schools. 7. That Catholics who pay for paro chial schools ought not to be taxed for public schools. 8. That while Catholics are so taxed, no text-books or instruction injurious to Catholic interests should be allowed In tae public schools. What that means we know in Boston, where a text-book that had been in use for many years was thrown contumeli ously out simply because It bad a foot note of less than a dozen lines explain ing that the sale of indulgences was one of the causes which brought on in part the reformation under Marti" Luther; this when tbe statement in the text-book was unquestionably accurate, and not made in any bitter or partizan spirit. What are our American educational principles? I venture to summarize them under eight heads: 1. That the duty of self-preservation and self-development gives a free peo ple the right to educate their children in public schools under the direction of the state. 2. That while the common schools may teach common morals as much as does the common law, they are not to give distinctively denomlcational or sectarian religious instruction. 3. That all religious denominations have the right to establish and main tain church schools, colleges and semi naries at their own expense. 4. That nevertheless it is highly dan gerous, and may easily become treason able, for any denomination to maintain schools which teach allegiance to any foreign pontiff as superior in authority to the President of the Unit d States 5. Tbat church and state are to be kept forever separate, but that the American system while separating the church from the state, does not sepa rate the state in all particulars from Christianity, and that therefore a rec ognition of Christian mora's with com pletely undenominational devotional ex ercises is not out of place in the publio schools. 6. Tbat the school-fund is not to be divided, and that those who contribute to the support of parochial or private schools are not to be exjused from taxes for the public schools. 7. That there shall be no distinct ively denominational or sectarian text books in the publio schools, aid no seo tariaa Interference with common-school education. 8. That state supervision shall be so extended to all private schools as to prevent important mischief to the state arising from their deficient or mislead ing instruction of those who are to be the future citizans of the state. Tbe school question is the conflict between those two sats of educational principles. In the p esent confusion of public sentiment It is very important to raUe the inquiry, What are the tests of a right settlement of the public a hool question? Let me mention several on which I am very sure we shall be agreed. 1. A ruht settlement of the school question require! us to remember that a good plan will work well both ways. It will protect the substantial interests of Catholics when Protestants are in the majority, and of Protestants when Catholics are in the majority. I want a perfectly impartial administration, for nobody kaows how soon some of the states may be under the control of an overwhelming Catholic vote. The time may come when Protestants in certain commonwealths may need to invoke the strong arm of the law to support their rights. I would have no law that I as a Protestant am not will it g to obey, and as a Protestant I will not ask a Catholic to submit to any law to which I am not willing to submit. 2. A right settlement will surely pre vent a sectarian division of the school fund by the nation or by any state. 3. It will forbid the estiblishment of a state church either by the nation or by any state. The nation is forbidden to establish a state church; but no com monwealth of the nation is so forbid den. Utah admitted as a state might establish a Mormon church; New Mex ico brought in might establish- a Cath olic church. We talk of political union between Cana la and the Uaited States. Tha Province of Quebec, made a com ni mw alth under our Constitution, mlpht. en ct a Catholic state church. 4. A right settlement will bi historic or distinctively American, and the product of our experience for two bun drtd years. 5. A right settlement will reach the entire population, so as to produce the largest possible number of Intelligent and moral citizens. 6. A right settlement of the school question will certainly allow in the common schools moral instruction as to any acts forbidden or prescribed by the common law. Mexico has abolished parochial schools because of their educational defi iencles and political mischievous nets. Liberal Catholics in the repub lic south of us have so legislated that no parochial school can be established in the City of Mexico, and no priest has the right to wear hU cassorkon the streets of that municipality. The clergy exercise a powerful influence among the common people, but their political power has departed. No prieBt and no bishop in Mexico is allowed to hold real estate. Titles vested in re ligious orders are worthless. In Chili you cannot send a student to a nun or priest for instruction without paying a fine for the support of the public school. Similar regulations exist in Uruguay and the Argentine Republic. Let the Protestants of North Amer ica study their duties in the light of the action of the Catholics of South America, who have abolished Roman parochial schools and expelled Jesuits from all places of political and educa tional influence. Satolli has said that the decrees of the Baltimore council are in force. He has done nothing to impair allegiance to the canon taw. Charles Jerome Bonaparte declared at a recent national council of Catholic laymen at Balti more that the pope, though in exile or a prisoner, can never oe a euoject. i'hat national council de clared tbat the government ha no right to pass any law affecting any interest of the pupe without his previous full orient S ;ih doctrine is considered tr...uu in Italy. What ought we to say to it here? It is really an assertion of a veto power of the pope in our American Common wealth. What shall we do with such an assertion? liow shall we treat it? Thus, and thus, and thus tearing the paper in shreds. And may God be with us as he was with our fathers! Applause. -A ddress by liev. Joseph Cook. No. 8. Issued Iit Pross and Literature Committee. Price l per 1.000. If to be sent by tuull. add SO ce.ua for postage. Address 1. A. Lansing, secretary, Box 1W, Boston.
