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Brown, Charles : Remarks of Charles Brown, of Pennsylvania, on the Proposed Mission to Rome. Delivered in the House of Representatives, Wednesday, March 8, 1848

Printed at the Congressional Globe Office, Washington, D.C., 1848

Original publisher's beige paper wrappers. Text printed in black ink. 5 3/4" x 9." Eight pages, complete. Pages are clean and intact except for light age toning throughout, moderate foxing on first two leaves, small occasional spots of foxing or discoloration on rest of pamphlet, small dampstains in margins at top edge and tail of spine, and moderate chipping and splitting along spine. A Good copy. A speech that was originally delivered before the United States House of Representatives on March 8, 1848 by Charles Brown (1797-1883), an American politician. He served as a U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania from 1841-1843 and 1847-1849. He was a Democrat. In this speech, Brown counters many of the past arguments made by Lewis Charles Levin, a fellow Congressman from Pennsylvania. Levin was a founding member of the American Party (also known as the Know Nothing Party or Native American Party) and a chief representative of his party's views which were staunchly nativist and anti-Catholic. Levin became well-known for his heated rhetoric against immigrants and Catholics. Toward the beginning of his speech, Brown addresses a bill that would possibly send an American diplomat to Rome. Brown states his support of the separation of church and state and appears to make an appeal to leave religion out of Congressional discussions regarding diplomacy. He proceeds to vehemently argue against contentious statements that had been made by Levin. However, after making these counterarguments, Brown discloses the main subject of his speech, the Philadelphia Nativist Riots (also known as the Philadelphia Bible Riots or Native American Riots) which were a series of riots that happened in May 6-8 and July 6-7, 1944 in Philadelphia. IBrown adamantly defends Catholics and Jesuits regarding the events and states that they were acting in self-defense. Brown states, "[T]hey [Catholics] were seeking no quarrel with the Natives [American Party members], but all attending to their own business in a quiet and peaceful manner. ... At no time did they assault any Native, nor destroy his dwelling, nor assault or destroy any Protestant church. No Native was killed but where the dwellings or churches of Catholics were being assaulted or destroyed. This could not have been, had they been acting offensively instead of defensively. These facts prove stronger than words, that these outrages were begun by Native Americans [American Party members], and carried on by them alone." Brown then sharply denounces Levin, "The first act of outrage and murder, the first dwelling and church that were burned, and all that followed them, were more attributable to the gentleman [Mr. Levin] himself than any other person, if they were not attributable to him altogether. He it was that began in Philadelphia to preach effectively a crusade against foreigners and Catholics." The origin of the Philadelphia Nativist Riots was the conflict between Protestants and Catholics. Philadelphia had an established Protestant Scotch-Irish community who viewed the new immigrants, many of whom were Irish and Catholic, as a threat. False rumors began to spread that Catholics wanted to ban the Bible from public schools when, in fact, they simply wanted to read the Roman Catholic version of the Bible, not the Protestant version. The tensions eventually broke out in violence and over twenty people, including Protestants, Catholics, and military officers, were killed and several Catholic churches and Catholic-owned homes, businesses, and buildings were destroyed. City and state troops put an end to the riots, but Irish Catholics were scapegoated as the main source of the violence and destruction. However, the riots, as well as the American Party, received national attention and criticism. The American or Know Nothing Party was founded in 1844 and dissolved in 1860, largely because the party lacked cohesion and was split on the subject of slavery.. Book. Book Condition: Good. Binding: Soft cover

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