The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 32, July 1928 - April, 1929 Page: 329
361 p. : maps ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Tadeo Ortiz and the Colonization of Texas, 1822-1833 329
than sufficient money for the expense of administration, the de-
velopment of colonization, and the fortification of these territories.
These measures are not pure inventions of modern philosophy.
All governments have adopted them in the solution of their prob-
lems, with the exception of Spain and the Mexican colonies.
If the supreme powers are deeply interested in the outcome of
this important matter and will secure the effective agreement of
the states, by making it a common cause, as it should be-for it
really is a federal question- the two obstacles that seem to be the
most difficult will be overcome and cleared away, even though it
may be only in part.
I refer to legal religious toleration. I say legal because it is
well known that, in spite of the constitutional provisions, tolerance
and even the exercise of the religion of proscribed sects really
exists in the new colonies of Texas, under the peculiar condition
that, since such toleration is not legally permitted, there results,
from a natural and religious act, an infraction of the law and a
breaking down of the morale. Besides giving rise to infractions
of the law in force, it accustoms the citizens who live at a dis-
tance to have a contempt for the law or to be hypocrites. Honest
men, with enlightened consciences, will not care to immigrate and
live among such people. So it is that religious toleration and
freedom of worship exist in name only to the detriment of op-
pressed society. Our unsettled frontiers consist of fertile and
conveniently located lands, that can accommodate millions. A Re-
public containing more than 140,000 square leagues- that is, six
times the area of France is inviting more than 200,000 inhabitants
that a thousand constitutional provisions can not stop.
In how many nations does the Roman Catholic religion predomi-
nate? And which nations will furnish these millions of settlers?
None exist of this character save Spain and Italy, and these people
are not the best fitted for founding and preserving colonies. Al-
though they would be useful, a mixed colonization from all the
countries of Europe would be much more beneficial. On the other
hand, intolerance will never contribute toward counterbalancing
the growing mass of population that our neighbors are forcing
upon us. It will always be a pernicious and anomolous influence
in the new settlements, "Every national religion," said a celebrated
moralist, "has been invented to make man vain, unsociable, and
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 32, July 1928 - April, 1929, periodical, 1929; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101089/m1/334/: accessed April 27, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.