That no sectarian body or fraternal order but Knights of Columbus were permitted to do war relief work in the army and navy.
That Roman Catholics compose one-sixth of the population and hold three-fourths of the public offices, being entrenched in national, state and city governments throughout the country.
That they are pouring into our land as immigrants at the rate of two millions a year.
That Knights of Columbus declare they will make popery dominant in the United States.
Let us arouse the people and save our country as the beacon light of constitutional liberty and the hope of the world.
The old soldier scowled.
“D’you take me fer a fool, young feller? And what’s this other card there, some more anti-Catholic stuff, eh? What in the devil has this rigmarole got to do with the old Tribe or the Klan or with any of those other organizations? How d’you know I’m not a Catholic?”
“I thought because you belonged to the Ku Klux Klan you couldn’t be. I thought Jews and Catholics were barred.”
“Jews. Catholics barred.” His eyes blazed and he shook his fist. “Now where do you get that? I want you to know that some of the finest soldiers among the boys in gray was Irish Catholics. A lot of the officers, too. And don’t you know that a Jew, Judah P. Benjamin, was secretary of war of the Confederate States? And the Pope of Rome was the only power that recognized our president and government? You’re a fine Southerner! No, we didn’t discriminate because of religion. Didn’t you hear me tell you that we had just come back from the Civil War and that we all united to save the South from ignorant, licentious niggers and from crooked Yank carpetbaggers and our own Southern scalawags? There wasn’t any question of Catholics or Protestants or Jews in the old Tribe. There wasn’t any question of Catholic or Jew in the Ku Klux Klan. I’m not a Catholic, but if you’re a friend of the old Tribe or the old Ku Klux Klan don’t show me any more of that stuff.”
Robert put his cards back in embarrassment. The old gentleman kept mumbling “Catholic, Jews, Klan” under his breath.