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iimts unto fttvtiiml Columbus, FRIDAY MORNING, JULY 13, 1855. FOR GOVERNOR. IIERSCIIGL Y. JOHiWX. FOR CONGRESS -Ist District-- James L. Seward , ol Thomas. 3d. “ James M. Smith, ol I pson. 4th *• Hiram Warner, of Meriwether. sth Jno. 11. Lumpkin. Olh “ Howell Cobb, ol Clarke. The Congressional Race in the Third District of Alabama. We enjoyed the privilege of hearing the dieoussiolt between Messrs. Dowdell and Watts, at Girard, Ala., on the 11th inst. SUBSTANCB OF Mr. WATTS* REMARKS. The discussion was opened by Mr. Watts, in a speeeh of two,hours. He commenced by giving an account * of the manner in which he was brought out as a candi date. He had decline to be a candidate last spring. But a Convention of the American party had assembled at Auburn and, finding it impossible to harmonize upon either of the gentlemen who were before them, had unanimously nominated him for Cqpgress. He had ! accepted the candidacy solely with a view of producing : harmony among his party friends. He had not sought | the office. He next adverted to his views on State aid. J He approved what is commonly known as Judge’s bill, by which the credit of the State was proposed to be given to all roads, of 50 miles or over in length, at the rate of $7,500 per mile for every 10 miles finished. He enlarged upon the mineral resources of Alabama, and contended that railroads were necessary to’develope them : He contended that theie was no danger of loss j to the State as the most ample securities were demand ed by the bill. He next referred to a clause in the Ala bama code by which all persons were prevented from serving on a jury who could not read or write, lie bad, be said, voted to retain the clause in the code, and it was charged by his opponent that he had thereby 1 used his influence and vote to degrade a class of his fel- i low citizens. He aid not so regard it. Jury duty, ho contended, was a burthensome duty not sought after by most people la voting, therefore, to exclude a cer tain class of persons from the jury box, he amply re lieved them from an onerous duty. These issues he contended, however, were not involved in a congress ional race. lie next called attention to the Philadel phia Platform of the American party which he heartily endorsed and stoed upon. He argued that the Phila delphia Platform was the soundest upon the slavery question ever adopted by any national party. He con trasted it wirh the Whig and Democratic Platforms of 1852. The Philadelphia Platform, he contended, was the only national Platform ever adopted which had -- conceded the right of a Territory to come into the Un ion with or without slavery as the people elected. It was also the only Platform which had declared against tho abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia.— Both the Whig and Democratic national Platforms were silent on these points. Ha claimed great credit for his party because its Platform was so souud that it drove all the Freesoilers out of the Grand Council, and asked why Southern men could not get upou it? He next turned his attention to President Pierce and his admistraticn. He denounced him and his adminis tratioh as freesoil. He referred in proof to the inter ference of the administration in New York in the quar rel between the Ilat-ds and Softs ; and to the appoint ment of Reeder as. Governor of Kansas. He next indulged in a glowing eulogy upon the Union and especially commended that article in the Philadel phia Platform which declares the union of the States “the paramount political good.’’ lie also read from Washington’s Farewell Address. Ho then depicted the influence of Foreigners and Catholic, paupers and criminals upon the United States, lie said Catholics were under the influence of the Pope, and that Bishop Hughes had traveled through the country organizing the Catholics and had 100,000 men at his command. There were, lie said, 4,000,000 For eigners in the United States, the majority of whom set tled in the Northern States and swelled the power of the Abolitionists. He also charged that they came to this country opposed to slavery and were the tools of the Abolitionists. In proof of this referred to the opions of Kossuth, Muzzini and other foreign pa- i triots. He closed with reading extensively from Wash ington, Jefterson, Jackson and Calhonn, all of whom, lie said, wore opposed to foreign immigration. The constitution, ha said, conferred upon Congress the power to regulate naturalization, and it ought to be exercised so as to exclude Foreigners from the polls until they have resided in the United States 21 years. His speech was well received by his friends and elicited frequent applause. He is a graceful orator, acconi- j plight'd debater and the boldest advocate we have yet 1 found of the principles of Know Nothingism. 3 f Substance or Mr. Dowdell’s Remarks. Mr. Dowdell aroae to reply amid the shouts of his friends, who were clearly in the majority. Alter the applause had censed, Mr. Dowdell commenced hie ad dres and for two hours followed the tracks of his op ponent in a most crushing reply. He bad come out as a candidate under the old republican rule that every of fice was open to every citizen. He relied upon the strength ot Ins cause, and the intelligence, and virtue of the people for support, and submitted his principles to the arbitrament of public opinion, that great conserva tor of republican liberty, from whose scrutinizing glance the American party hid itself in dark holes and cor ners to nominate its candidate and erect its Platforms. Ho iuteuded before this canvass concluded to atrip the van from this secret organization ana to expose its bid den deformities to the people of the district, and had no doubt but that public condemnation would rest both upon its candidates and its principles. Mr. Watts was nominated by a secret caucus which met at Auburn wah closed doors. He had, it is true, declined to run as a Whig candidate, but no sooner was he wooed by the American party than, like the maid— “A little still she strove, and much repented, And whispering, she would nee’r conseat-coxsiED.'’ This nominating caucus had erected no Platform, though, he learned, cue was under discussion. Mr. M atts was, therefore, sent adrift without a Platform until the Grand Chiefs of the party met in Philadelphia and maoe one for him. That Platform he would dis cuss tally before he closed, but would first cull a-- tension to one or two votes which hi* opponent had given ae a member cf the Alabama Legislature, not for the purpose of bringing ontsiJe issues into this canvass r b-it to let the people know what sort of political princi pies his opponent enteruiued. They could judge f fo2 * hat Mr. Waits had done at home, what he would pro -20.y do as a member of Congress. The State advocated and voted for by Mr. i tfvt * 6# 8 &‘Batur, wcaJd have entailed upon tis-e State ■ a| debt of near 18,000,000 of dollars, taking the roads charted by the Legislature as the basis of the es timate. This would have bankrupted the State and | deprived her of some of her moat valuable citizens.— The securities proposed to be taken to protect the State from loss are altogether illusory. The liens upon the private property of stockholders could be easily avoid ed by deeds of trust and removal from tho State, and the mortgages upon the roads, whose expenees would be probably greater than their income, would not be worth the paper upon which they were written. The endorsement of Mr. Watts by the people of the district, though it would not effect this policy directly, would be a quasi sanction of it, and would give him additional j power to carry it out in the future. Mr. Dowdell is I not opposed to internal improvements. He believed, j however, that they could be beet constructed by private j companies whose interest and object it would be to make them profitable. He instanced the internal im provements in Pennsylvania which had cost the State about 40,000,000 dollars and were offered for sale for 10,000,000 dollars. Mr. Dowdell then went on to say that the object of the American party in proscribing certain classes of citizens was to erect in the United States a native American nobility. They had found a suitable repre sentative in Mr. Watts, who, as a member of the Ala bama Legislature, had voted io a minority of three against striking out of the Code a section which depriv ed that class of persons who could not read and write from the privilege of serving on juries. Mr. Watts says in excuse, that jury duty was an onerous burthern— one that was not sought after by the people. So is the duty ®f raising and educating a family an onerous bur then; so is the duty of bearing arms in the defence of the country an onerous burthen. Would any citizen oonsider himself favored, if he were relieved of these burthens? It required, said he, as much intelligence to vote as it did to serve on a jury, and predicted that if this policy were carried out, the next step would be to deprive persons who could not read and write of the privilege of voting. This outrage upon the public liber ties was already proposed by some of the Northern Councils. Mr. Dowdell then took up the Philadelphia Platform and riddled it thoroughly. He was not, he said, as tonished that the first plank of tha Platform was the ac knowledgment of the existence of a God : he supposed the brotherhood had gone up to Philadelphia in a re pentant mood after the Virginia elections aud, like all men in distress, felt inclined to confess their sins. lie hoped that the recognition of a God would exercise a j wholesome influence over the order and bring them back | to a reverence for truth, charity and equality, which | are among the highest attributes of the divine nature, j Mr. Dowdell could not stand upon a Platform which j recognized “tho union of the United States as the para mount political good.” Ho stood on the Georgia Plat ; form which regarded the Union as “secondary to tho j rights and principles it was designed to perpetuate.” | Mr. Watts had admitted that he had taken all the de i greeFof the order. There was one among them called the Third or Union degree, which pledged him “to : maintain and defend the Union of these States ; to dis ! card and discountenance any aud every attempt, com \ iug from whatever quarter , to destroy or subvert it, or to weaken its bonds. ’* This oath is in the teeth of the Georgia Platform, whioh specifies four distinct cau ses connected with the subject of slavery, alone, for whioh the Union ought to be dissolved. N© man who j has taken the Union degree can stand on the Georgia i Platform, nor is he worthy of the confidence of the ! Southern people, at this time, when abolition threatens ■ to deprive us of our dearest rights, and our safety de i pends upon a firm and unflinching maintainance of the Georgia Platform. | Mr. Dowdell next objected to the Philadelphia Plat ■ form, because it “pretermits any expression of opinion as to the power of Congress over slavery in the territo j ries.” The power of Congress over slavery in the ter ritories is the great issue in the contest —the North I affirming and the South denying the power. In failing j to deny to Congress Constitutional power over slavery | in the Territories, the Philadelphia Convention left tho I South at the discretion of Northern abolition. True, { they say Congress ought not to exercise the power ; but who believes that abolition will be restrained by “ought not.” Very different is tho language of the Geergia Platform—“shall not” is the only language the South can hold with safety in this crisis in our affairs.But | suppose Congress should exerc'se the power, not denied I to them by the Grand Council, what remedy does the ! Philadelphia Platform prescribe? By the 4th article of that Platform it is expressly declared that “in doubtful or disputed points it (the meaning of the constitution) may only be legally ascertained and expounded by the judicial power of the United States.” Now, however, | outrageous may be the act of Congress, sustained by the i Federal judiciary, there is no redress, on the Philadel | phia Platform, for by the Ist corrollary to the 4th article is i inculcated “'a habit of reverential obedience to the laws, whether national, State or municipal, until they are ; either repealed, or declared unconstitutional, by the proper authority. 5 ’ Mr. Dowdell next called attention to the position I taken by the Philadelphia Convention upon the subject ! of slavery iu the District of Columbia. The Georgia Platform makes the abolition of slavery in the District by Congress a just cause for the dissolution ol the Un ion. Th Philadelphia Plati ‘rm “pretermits” any ex pression of opinion on the subject of constitutional pow er, and contents itself with declaring that “any inter ference by Congress with slavery, as it exists’ in the District of Columbia, would be a violation of the spirit and intention of tho compact by which the State of Maryland ceded the District to the United State* and a breach of the national faith’’—the precise position taken years ago by Martin Van Buren 1 j Mr. Dowdell then compared the Philadelphia Piat i form with the national Platforms of the Whig and Demo j eratie parties. Both the Whig and Democratic nations] Platforms endorsed, he said, the compromise measures, the fugitive slave law included ; and he, therefore, held that they occupied as high ground on theeubjeet of slave ry as the Philadelphia Platform. He further contended that these cld parties had conjointly applied the princi pies embraced in those measures in the passage of the Nebraska-Kansas act; and were as much more worthy of the eonfioenceof the South as acts were above empty professions, which were all the South had yet got from the American party. Mr. Dowdell then admitted, for the sake of the ar gument, that the Philadelphia Platform was as sound an one as the South needed,and then asked where are the men and where is the party to can-y it out ? Twelve Northern States sectced from the Grand Council rather than swallow it. Two more protested against it. The : delegates from New York have been repudiated by iheir constituencies ; and California is alone left, of the j l;ee States, standing upon it with the Sooth—California, j that gallant young State upon the PaciSo, with one half j her population composed of Foreigners-and Catholics, j and whose delegates m the last Congress voted Baani I moasly with the South on tbe parsage of tho Nebraska- Kansas bill. Such a party, with such backing, is powerless to de fend the South in tho Union, and is pledged to submis sion to any outrage which may be sustained by a fede ral court. In reply to the question, why could not Southern men join a party whose Platform was so sound that it j drove all the Freesoilers” oat of the Grand Council ? j Mr. Dowdell answered, in addition to the objections al- j ready urged against its principles, that even the South- j eru men who belonged to the order were not tit to be • trusted with the guardianship of Southern Rights. • In ; proof of this charge, he iustanced the fact that not a < Southern delegates to the Grand Council tvas known i to approve the Nebraska-Kansas act; that mauy of j them bad denounced it as an outrage upon the North ; j and that by the confessions of Albert Pike, of Arkansas, \ tbe Southern delegates ignominiously proposed in Grand ■ Council to ignore the subject of slavery in their Platform and were only deterred from doing o by the stern re fusal of the Northern members to blink the question. Mr. Dowdell next spoke of President Pierce’s admin- j istration. The great measures of his administration I met his cordial approval. lie approved his vetoes ! by which millions of the public money was preserved from the greedy hands of public plunderers. The South owed to him the Nebraska Kansas act—that great measure of justice by which the odious Missouri 1 restriction was repealed and a brand ©f infamy removed from us and our institutions. In most of these measures he had enjoyed the co-operation of Southern Whigs and the immediate representative of his audience, Hon. James Abercrombie, than whom a more faithful repre sentative never occupied a seat en the floor of Congress. His appointments were iu the main judicious. The purse, the army and navy were in tho hands of true Southern men. All the more important Foreignffitiis sious were filled by Southern men, or reliable northern friends. lie did not approve of the removal of G. C. Bronson. It did not, however, lie in the mouths of the Know Nothings to object to it. Shortly after his remo val, he was a candidate for Governor of New York, j but failed to get a single Know Nothing vote. There wa3 not, however, as much difference between the Hards and Soft* iu New York as most people supposed. Five softs and four hards voted for tho Nebraska bill. He thinks Reeder ought to b removed. He next paid his repeots to the proscription of For | eigners and Catholics by the Know Nothings. He | differed with Mr. Watts about the power of Congress jto regulate the right of suffrage. The Constitution re- I serves to the States to say who shall or shall not vote, j and auy interference by Congress with this right,would ; be iu serious and dangerous conflict with States Rights, j The South never can surrender to a Northern majori |ty iu Congress to say who shall or shall not vote. This j power might be extended to admit free negroes to vote ; as has already been done by some of the Northern i States. Mr. Dowdell was in favor of excluding crim inals. This, however, was in the purview of State le gislation. The laws already in existence were compe tent to this end. There was a class of political crim inals whom he would welcome with open arms, each, for instance, as John Mitchell, whose ablo advocacy of our peculiar institution, entitled him to the gratitude of | every Southern man. He was not opposed to the im ! migration of poor men. Poverty is no crime. The | glory of the mission of our blessed Saviour was “The I poor have the gospel preached unto them,” and the j test of decipleship was “I was a stranger and ye took ! me in, naked and ye clothed me, hungry and ye gave me meat, sisk and in prison and ye visited me/ 5 I Acting upon these divine precepts, the boast of our fa ■ there was, that “America is the asylum ’for tbe oppres* 1 -°d of all countries aud the martyrs of every creed.”— j Should we, their descendants, reject the precepts and 1 practice of our fathers,close our ears to the cry of the suf i sering and oppressed aud repulse them from oar shores, j then may we dread the judgments of the Almighty, for | it is written “Thou shalt neither vex a stranger nor op press him, for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt: j If thou afflict them in anywise and they cry at all unto ; me, I will surely hear their cry, and iny wrath shall | wax hot, and I will kill you with tho sword; and your wives shall be widows and your children fatherless.” Mr. D. had no apprehension that the influx of for eigners will endanger our institutions. The last cen sus shows that there are 7,500 only in Alabama, and but | a fraction over 2,000,000 in the whole Union. The j proportion between native and foreign born i* less than at any previous period of our history. If the country j has heretofore received no detriment from foreign immi • gration, why need we apprehend any in the future, when it is certain that every year will diminish the relative proportion in favor of the native born. The extension ! of the time for naturalization would not diminish the ; number of immigrants, except better dosses, nor ! diminish the power of tho free States in Congress. The i representative power of these States depend not upon the number of voters, but the number of persons. It 1 is not true, as contended by Mr. Watts, that all the I foreign immigrants in the Northern States are aboli ■ tionists. i It is a note-worthy fact, that the North-western I Staff s principally settled by foreigners, have always i delegations to Congress more favorable to Southern in terest than other Northern States. -Mr. Dowdell here paid an eloquent tribute to the patriotism and gallantry jof our foreign born citizens whoso blood had been freely pound out upou every battlefield from tho heights of Bunker to the walls of Mexico. Mr. Dow dell did not sympathize with Mr. Watts and the Amer ican Party in their mad war upou the Catholic Church- : es. No proof had ever been furnished, and he believed could not be, that Bishop Hughes had travel- j led through the country organizing secret political so- ! oieties. Tbe Catholic clergy professed to be. and were, * obedient to tho civil power, and owed no allegiance to a ! foreign potentate inconsistent with their duties as citi- i zens. The whole history of that Church ia this coun- j try bore overwhelming testimony to the truth of this ■: assertion. i ! The South, at least, has no cause to quarrel with j them. C>n the list of the 3,000 New England clergy- ! j men who denounced the vengeance of God upon the ; Senate of the United Stales for the passage of the Kan- ! : sas Act. not one Catholic’s name was inscribed. And it never should be forgotten that the troops who march- > ; through the streets of Boston amid the taunts and • jeers ot the Frees oilers and delivered the fugitive Burns to his master, w*re Catholic Irishmen. Mr. i Dowell scouted the idea of converting a man from er- i rors in religion by stripping him of his civil privileges. Iho circulation of the Bible the preaching of the Gospel, and the influence of the Holy Spirit, he con 1 viur. re 6 amply sufficient to accomplish this most dt-sira- i ble end. : i .-it this point Mr. Dowdell turned aod inquired cf j f Mr. Watts it he was favor of the acquisition of Cuba, j Mr. M attfe said be wg not. Mr. Dowdell then dwelt i j upon the importance of this Island to the United States, i and especially to the South. It commanded the trade ! j ° ;re ijj if es Mexico. EtForis were mnv being made j to concert it into a free negro colony. The prosperity of th® country depended upon its immediate acquisition. He coaid not conceive why Mr. Watts objected to its acquisition unless upon the ground of his opposition to Cathuiies and Foreigners. If the principles of the American Party compel Southern men to assume posi tions so antagonistic to Southern interest, what hope is left to the South for progress or safety upon the success of such a party ? The same principle carried out, would have deprived us of Louisiana Territory, Florida, and our reoent Mexican acquisitions. Mr. Dowdeil next adverted to tbs extract* pur porting to be taken from the works of Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Jackson and Calhoun favoring the views of the American Tarty. He regarded them as garbled extracts, perverted from their trne meaning and intent, and utterly inconsistent with their known opinions, pecepts and practices. lie concluded by a short reference to his Congrea sional oareer. He had endeavored, he said, to be a faithful representative—his competitor found no objec tion to his votes or his speeohes. He had stood by tho Nebraska Bill. The American Party were engaged all ! over the Union in an earnest endeavor to defeat the 1 friends of this measure, and should he be beaten down it would be counted an anti Nebraska triumph by our enemies at the North. The time had come for Southern men to uuite —he had fought shoulder to shoulder with Southern Whigs : in sustaining that great measure of justice to the South | and earnestly called upon ail men, who agreed with him | in sentiment, to come to his support without reference to party distinction, and by his election to send'up to ! the true men of the North tho emphatio assurance that - the South will stand by her friends. This able and elo ‘ . quent address was received with storms of applause.— If the other oountiea of the District will do their duty i as Russell will on election day the triumph of Mr. Dow- ‘ dell is secured. • _ _ ! ~ { , Who will the Know Nothings Nominate for President in 1856. j We had supposed that the secession of the delegates j from 12 of the free States and the protest of the dele | gates from two more es the same, had dissolved the connection of the Northern and Southern “brethren” ;of the order. That, at least, is the impression the ae-* knowledged leaders of the party in Georgia have en ! deavored to impress upon the Southern mind. We I find we are mistaken. The Alabama Journal , a Know | Nothing organ gives the true history of the matter.— I Hear what it says : | Selection of 4 Presidential Candidate.—Ac j cording to the resolve of the American Convention, lately held in Philadelphia, a National Convention of the party will be held in Philadelphia, on the 22d February next, : to nominate candidates for President and Vine-President |of the United States. In this convention each State will j be entitled to a number of delegates equal to the Senators j and Representatives of such State in Congress—being one I from each Congressional district, and two from the Svatv | at large. j It is time the members of the Order South was looking j after this matter, lest they find the triggers sprung on , them without notice as has happened before in the order. ; As far as can be seen from the developments making, a strenuous effort is being made to foist the notorious George j Law on the country for the Presidency. His great wealth, | great skill, industry and unscrupulous management by ; bribing the press and members of councils may achieve j this purpose and men bo called on to sanction by their votes a nomination which would be disgraceful to the Re public. j Nothing is said in reference to Fillmore by the north i ern and central organs of the pjrty or elsewhere. The ! discussion lies between Law and Houston, either a dose I too nauseous for contemplation. Nothing is said about the true patriot and statesman, j Fillmore; he perhaps is too honest for the times, and must !be tabooed for the benefit of demagogues. It is time stall ; events that the Whig friends of Mr. Fillmore were in mo | tion if no others, and organize to sustain him. — Alabama j Journal , July 10M. It will be seen that in the next Grand Council the i ratio of representation will b© changed. The North | will hav# the ascendency. The States which seceded | will have the majority. They will modify the Platform ;to suit the temper of the Northern mind. A Free ’ soiler will probably be the nominee. If this is not the J programme, why, “in the name of all the Gods at onco” I did the Southern delegates change the basis of repre ! sentation so as to give the ascendency to the Freesoilere ? | Wii! the Alabama Journal answer this question ? We would like to propound another question to the | Journal, but fear its secret oaths have tied ite tongue: It is this : On what occasion were “the triggers sprung ■ on the South without notice ?” A Southern press is not a faithful watchman that does not warn the people iof treason in its own party. Come out with the truth j brother Bates. Who sprang the triggers ? What | gudgeons were caught in the trap i Do you allude to i the election of Bartlett, the Kentucky Freesoiler, to the • Presidency of the order 't Do you refuse to answer ? Why, pray ? Have you j given up “the freedom of speech and of the press’’ to ! the order ? Alas, ala*, that the sons of the revolution I should sell their liberties—blood bought—for a mess of ! pottage. The Know Nothings m Louisiana. j The State Council met at New Orleans on tb 4th > | July. The following nominations were made : for Gov ! emer, Charles Derbigny; for Lieut. Governor, R. G. 1 Beale ; for State Treasurer, J. V. Durable ; for Auditor of State, Walter Rossmsn ; for Attorney General, Ran- | deli Hunt; for Superintendent of Education, O. D. i Stillman. The Platform adopted is of the usual sort, i except the 9th article. It is in these worde: 9. While we approve of the platform adopted by the late National Council of the American party, at Philadel phia, we reject .the application of the principles of the ! eighth article to American Catholics, as unjust, unfounded ! and entirely unworthy of our country- We shall forever I continue to protest against any abridgement of religious ! liberty, holding it as a cardinal maxiin that religious faith j is a question between each individual and his God. We | utterly condemn any attempt to make religious belie! a test for political office, and cau never affiliate with aur party which holds sentiments not in accordance with these. * ! j This is a complete answer to all th charges made by bigoted Know Nothings in other Stat3 against the ! American Catholics. They are pronounced “unjust, unfounded and entirely unworthy of our country” by j Know Nothings themselves, who are better prepared to form an opinion on the subject than any other persons | because they live in daily contact with them. Contrast th# language of this resolution with the narrow, bigoted, and unchristian address put forth bv the Know Noth | ings of Georgia, who never saw half a aozau Catholics iin their lives. Which Council is right t Deßow' * Review for July. —This number is issued in new type, and with a greatly improved appearance. It is the opening of the nineteenth semi-annual volume, and of volume two of anew series. It is an appropri ate time to subscribe, and back numbers of any volume or series can be supplied at the New Orleans or Wash ington offices. Among the art soles for July are-— Texas j and Her Resources ; Development of Southern Industry : I Fs lure of Freo Society ; South and the Union ; w| B - j viflo ; Fhysrea) Geography of the £* • whl> the usual i variety of articles upon Statistics and Commerce, Manu factures and Internal Improvements, &c. Merchants and Planters will also find the Review a good advertis ing medium. The Methodist Episcopal Church [and ft he Knew Nothings. The advocate* of the American party have taken pains to make the country believe that the Minister* of the Methodist Episcopal church. South, are generally mem bers of the order. We believe this to be a foul slander upon this noble class of man. We all remember that at the last General Conference pf that chuich, held iu this city, that a proposition was made by a delegate from the Christian Union, the object of which was to wag® war upon Catholocism, to obtain th* sanction of the Genera! Conference to the movement. A whole day was spent in hearing the delegate of the Christian Union ; a committee was appointed to consider the pro position ; a favorable report was made ; yet th* Con ference, with almost entire unanimity, rejected the proposition. This is pregnant proof that hostility to Catholocbm is not a characteris'd*} of the Methodist Episcopal church. We have already published a por tion of Dr. A. B. Longstreet’s pbiilipic against the order. We know of other leading Ministers of the Methodist Episcopal church who have taken decided ground against the order. But we now present still stronger evidence of the opposition of this church to the Ameri can party. One of the leading organs of the church, the New Orleans Christian Advocate , has taken grounds against the order. We commend its wholesome truths to the consideration of the membership of the church. The Christian Advocate attacks the order upon moral and religious grounds. But we cannot add to the force of the article. From th* New Orleans C’hiistian Advocate. Religious Tests —Catholic Disability. Our Bphre—Eighth Article of American Platform- Principle at Stake—Catholic Interforeace—How to be Met—Misfortune to the Controversy—Evils— Practical Effects Disastrous. The sphere of our discussions is moral, religious and | ecclesiastical. Beyond this we do not propose to extend ! our remarks upon the Eighth Article of tho “American j Platform.” While presenting our readers with a sum j mary of events making up th* currant history of th* day, i and which it behooves them to know, we ha\;e tteadily recognized an implied covenant towards them, not to meddle with their politics ; to cast not a feather’s weight on either side of questions dividing them as citizens of the State. If on cur part this covenant has not been faithfully kept, this wo can say, with a good conscience, 1 we have tried to keep it, *ud are ignorant of any infrac* j tion. And we shall keep it to th* end. No mawkish sensitiveness, however, shall prevent u* ; from speaking out on a subject even with a political com | plexion, falling within our sphere. The proceedings of the Convention lately assembled in Philadelphia, whose ; platform is published in another column, were watched jby us with great interest. Ecclesiastical matters were j early introduced An attempt whs made, principally by i Southern men, to throw tfum out. But the “Catholie test” was affirmed, and finally reaffirmed. “The Roman j Catholic Church” is named distinctly. “Resistance” to i it is propounded among the things credenda and the j things agenda. If we read comctiy, every Catholic is [ prescribed, lie may be an American—native, good and I patriotic ; he may stoutlv and practically deny the power j of the Pope in civil matters as an inference from the ee | clesiasticai. Yet, for his religion’s sake, he is barred “ad | vancement to ail political stations—executive, legislative, i judicial or diplomatic.” This is a test to which ou'* re j ligious principle* and republican instincts, the spirit ot’o’ir : institutions and the liberty of conscience, as interpreted |by the age, are all opposed. No party holding it, how ever excellent be the other principles held in c mbination, i may expect to pass before tiie conservative people of the j United States, especially of the South. It cannot budge j a step —it eanuol stand, with this millstone about its j neck. | There are thousands of the Ust men of the old par j ties who sympathize* in movement lor an essential niodifi | cation of our naturalization laws, who see danger in the j immigration of felons and paupois. nni the power of uu i naturalized persons, by voting in Territories, to shape th© 1 character of States ; but they will neither pursue or ao ; eept it upon conditions impairing religious liberty ; if the | two be disjoined, they go for the former : and in their j ranks many of the naturalized. Former party attach j ments would be sacrificed U this end, bu 1 religious lib* j erty never. We are glad it * so W e rejoice to be ; lieve this sentiment is imbedded in the hem t of the cour.- . try. It proves our civilization a thoroughly Protestant | one. No one stispewts us of Popish afiiui’iv*. The “corrupt 1 ’ i ing tendencies” of the Roman Catholic Church we take j every occasion to expose and eomiteraci. The Pope is ; a king as well as a priest, having his soldiers and hi* ■ jails. His cardinals are ins ministers of state, of war, of [ finance. The organization has ever shown a tendency to I political interference, and presented a difficulty in the ap plication of religious toleration. But the difficulty lias 1 been solved, and this is the solution : “The maintenance of the right of every man, to the ■ full, unrestrained and peaceffil enjoyment of his own re ligious opinions and worship, and a jealous resistance of I all attempts by any sect, denomination or ohureh, to ob : tain an ascendancy over any other iu the State, by means • of any special privileges or exemption, by any political | combination of its members.” i An open Bible, public schools, and a free press, are good ! defences against Catholic* and Pruteetants ; for all men love ascendancy, though all denominations have not equal instincts for it. If the Methodists ever so far for i get their-high calling and wander away from their foun. dation as to intrigue for special privileges, or form their members into political combinations, we hope they’ll en counter “a jealous resistance.” So of any other sect, denomination or church. If in their ecclesiastical char acter they stand about the ballot box at the call of the highest bidder, mark him that bids, and apply to the sect so prostituting its influence a moral and local remedy. Heretofore the religious element of the order was doubtful ; in some piaces acknowledged, in others repu diated. Up to this authoritative declaration of the Con vention the case did not address itself to us. Had the religious feature been left out of the platform we should now have nothing to say. There are principles set forth in it challenging respect and assent, and doing honor to those boldly avowing them—as, the cultivation of a na tional and American spirit, the faith of compromises, rev erential obedience to the laws, the Bible iu common schools, and the unequivocal ground taken upon the con stitutional rights and institutions of the South. Beyond the principle involved, there are grave consid erations of expediency. A misfortune has befallen the controversy as between C hatholics and Protestants. Our opponents have suddenly been put at immense advantage. The sympathies of a powerful party are unavoidably with them. Pubiie speakers and journalists are become their apologists and eulogists. Invidious comparisons are ! drawn between Catholics and Protestants, in disparage i ment of the latter, and by those who have hitherto thought and acted otherwise. A comparatively feeble sect has been elevated into un ! due importance. According to the Vrpresentation of the I census in 1850, the Roman Catholic Church has hut 1,13* i churches, which can accomodate only 6*21,000 hearers ! Not one-eleventh of the number of churches belonging | *o the Methodists, scarcely mure than one-eighth of the . number of the Presbyterians, ft has not one thirty• third of the whole number reported, while Methodists have more than one-third , and the Baptists nearly one fourth. And this handful a party aspiring to nationality propo ses to resist ! If the General of Jesuits himself had been in council he could not more tffectualiv have devised a plan to weak* en the Protestant and aggrandise the Catholic cause. Should this platform succeed to the government, we shall be put back where England was btfore the act cf Catholic emancipation. This is taking steps backwards —back of onrselves. It gives Catholic* the tremendous beceSt cf persecu tion. That cry will rally to any sect hosis of Dobi# sp:r*> its, <vfcj olufe?wis would hold :t ‘-o rel'gioue etbet rvii£>a.