American Union attempts to block appointment, anti-Catholic grounds.

The Order of the American Union At Work.
The hatred of the Northern Republican for a Catholic church is only matched by the hatred of the carpet-bagger for the county jail. It is well-known that some years ago an anti-Catholic secret society was hatched by the enterprising bigotry of New England Republicans, dubbed “The Order of the American Union,” and sent upon its avowed mission: the practical disfranchisement of the foreign and Catholic population in this country. It spread rapidly, and now numbers thousands of members, with Lodges in twenty-six of the sovereign States of this Republic. It has its grips, its dark-lantern meetings, its passwords, its shibboleth– and it means mischief. We rely upon the liberal and conservative spirit of the South– its gentle, unobtrusive piety, as well as upon its prudent statemanship, to rebuke this bigots’ league. Let the country know that the Southern people love liberty of thought and liberty in religious belief too dearly to conspire against any decent and law-abiding citizens because they worship the same God under a priest as we do under a preacher. In this connection the following clipped from the Washington Star will be read with interest:

“Very strong opposition to the appointment of assistant appointment clerk of the Treasury Lamphere as appointment clerk is being developed.– The fight against him is taking a religious aspect. He is bitterly opposed by the Protestants, who consider that his appointment would be a concession to catholicity. The Order of the American Union (anti-Catholic) is working against him, and a petition signed by, it is stated, at least four hundred thousand persons has been brought to the attention of the President, requesting that he be not promoted. It should be stated that Mr. Lamphere is not a Catholic. His wife is, however, of that faith, and his is supposed to have Catholic tendencies.”