r
THE NEW YORK PRESS.
EDITORIAL OPINIONS OF THE LEADING
JOURNALS UPON CURRENT TOPICS.
OMFILKD HVKBT DAT FOB EVKltlltQ TELEGRAPH,
"Washington Correspondents of the Great
, juauies.
from the Citizen.
It is the province of Washington reporters to
furnish news, which they do, with more or less
reliability, for the benefit ol their readers; but
this news is o often tampered with in the iu
tettwt of some political or commercial "rliifc,"
that the truth is seldom fully told. It is sup
posed to bo an aim of journalism to expose
Jrauds or abuses of privileges in public posi
tions, among public officers. Like many other
f impositions regarding affairs, this one Is falce;
lor there Is not a reporter or correspondent
thi re who diires to attack any department with
out previously consulting the, interests of Hie
political or commercial ring which be repre
mtp. Some there are, (Hepraccful and unprinclplod
Jlobennaus, leprc.-cutiiig several diUerent anti
poilal interests, who both attuck and deiend the
pdqic public officers or measures, t or int-tancc,
tbeie is one well known to the world of nevvs
pnf eidotn as an iiirtomitable Worker, and to the
rotiunucnt lund ol the Senate as a suc.-,estul
Htatnn extractor, who Is engaged by the Boston
Journal, New Yoik lornnurcial. New Orleans
Tmes, and New York Independent, besides sub
hcrviiis the interests of several prominent Sena
tor of mixed political kidney. To the New
4rlrans 'limes, read by people who hate Gene
Tale Hanks and Butler, be toleeraphs nnws cat
minted to please their predictions: and to the
Boston Journal, rend by people who admire the
two preat b.'s.hc telegraphs other ncw",arrans;ud
to add to their already great appreciation of
them.
The most abject view of this flunkeyism is,
Jiowever, lound in the tyranny of Department
:iud Bureau head.'", lor they occasionally arro
pate to themselves the power of excluding Irom
thi"ir otlices all correspondeuls who do not
color despatches iu the manner dictated by
them. To be excluded Irom any department
results , in being "ueat" in the publication ol
news from that source, aid consequently great
-rl.irt is made by the reporters to ''keep on the
Tight side" of tho.-e autocrats. It Is not nuces
bmv that absolute exclusion should be ordered
tin thecal ot an obstmperoi's correspondent,
ior r retusal to furnish news is equivalent, and
con be accomplished in a more diguiticd
jnanner.-.
All these facts preclude the possibility of
truthfulness in Washington despatches, such as
are read by the millions of newspaper readers
over their breaking coll'ee every morning-. The
readers ot the tribune. Times, tfirakt, and World
would open their eves with wonder, if lor a mo
ment they could obluin a trlimpse at the diaboli
cal machinations which result in the publica
tion of these telegrams Little do they know
t)t the labor perloimed in obtaining ues, and
the corrupt practices ana inlluenees resorted to
?y the poor wretches who manufacture that
most prominent feature of the metropolitan
newspaper, the "Washington column."
Guerillas there are, who bushwack abontthc
Departments, listen at keyholes, steal copies of
orders, speeches, or opinions, and sncasinglv
obtain news at the sacrifice of decency, and
then sell it to tho highest bidder. AN'ew York
mau trades new with a Cincinnati man, pro
vided the latter will agree "not to let nnother
lew Yorker have it." A Radical will trade a
rood Copperhead or Conservative Item with a
.Democratic correspondent for one ot ''his
kind." Nothing but strife, bickerins, tradiuor,
Hciewing, cheatiutr, and constant, wide-awake
activity, results in success as a Washington cor
respondent of a daily paper. For all this,
liovsever, good salaries are paid, with immense
chances lor perquisites.
The chief correspondents of the Now York
papers probably receive $5000 a year, and, in
The main, are eeutlemen ot ability, with good
cliiiuis to respectability. Their understrappers,
Lowever, aie, with a few exceptions, men of
little principle, who jump at a chance for
jiioney-makiner, and are capable of almost any
imaginable measures for the purpose of pro
eiinmr u "item." Always on th- alert, well
versed in the habits of our public men, and
risking their necks sometimes, they manage to
l.eep posted regarding every crook and turn in
political, commercial, or social matters. Of
course they are indispensable to the success of
the 'Washington column," and, strange to say,
very often niiikc themselves iudispnsab!c to
6umo ol the prominent men of the nation.
Anions other notable matters connected with
the s inject under consideration is the influence
exerted by correspondents in procurius npp ihl
niint, pardons, contracts, and also their con
neciton with business men in New York and
other large commercial point--. To procure an
appointment, pardon, or contract, it is not
necessary to act directly witn the power which I
is authorized to eraut it, as the nio-a etl'ecuve i
mode is to manipulate the privau secretaries,
clciks, and attaches of the department from
which the lavor a-ked lor must emanate.
Jlouey is an etlcctive orsau in procurins -any- !
thing; but there are vain, ambitious men '
men who generally succeed in crawling into i
places of minor position and power who are
gratified with a newspaper mention of tlieir !
jianies. I
Ho it is that correspondents make frients and
influence with the "power- that be." The cutet
uiglcra of Department,, and Cabinet Minister
sire sometimes amenable to such influences, us i
veil a their suboidinates, and on the
Johnnie, tickle me; ticklo me, do;
You ticklu me, aud 1M tickle you
pj'iuciple.astonlshingthinss ar,. eilccted. It i- not 1
to be imagined that the editors of the news- !
papers used in the ticklinir process are aware of I
these facts for nil editors are suppos -d to be i
lionest, and would eituer put a stop to it or pro- !
Tide tor a little tickling lor their own personal 1
prutineation. Sometimes the-e Great Mo"uls
interpolate a litrle tickle in the Washin "ton
li sputches after the.y have been received Irom
the telegraph office, and they very cl ten direct
their auents to tickle thus and so, ereatly to the '
tliMtrraugemeut of the jdan of said a'jents.
One of the correspondents is clem of the '
Printing Committee, with a salary of nearly 1
$2000 a jer; editor of the "Dme-to! the Mes- 1
nage and Documents," tor which he receives I
S1000; compiler of the "Index to tin- Globe " I
sdso a $1000 job; and arranges the "C'onare's- I
Bional Directory," makes other comnlarirn i
and does other odd jobs; so that, with his iu-t-otue
trom his press connections, he probably
tlears $10,000 a year.
Very naturally Washington correspondents,
who make it their business to get news, are
profitable friends of business men; aud I ven
ture ti say that not a few wool, whisky, cotton,
or gold dealers and brokers have received tele
grams from them since Congress met, in advance
of the publication of newsregarding proposed
changes ot tariff, revenue tax, or the disposi
tion of public funds. Arouud the Keveuue
Commission, the Finance Committee, the Secre
tary of the Treasury, and, in fact, everybody
and everything connected, no matter how indi
rectly, with the revenue of the nation, a veil of
pecrecy is thrown, which hides Irom the knowl
edge of all but a few lucky friends or I'aul I'rys
the intention of ttie Government. This secrecy
may be beneficial to a lew; but the masses lose
by it, as it is not thorough, and tho reporters
who bucceed in obtaining miorniation hud it
more profitable to sell their news to certain
zings thau to make it public to the world.
About two years ago, a certain Chicago firm
was advised by some one here to invest in
whisky, as some one knew tuat the Ways and
Cleans Committee of the House would recom
mend, and probably succeed in, increasing the
internal revenue tax on that article. The firm
Invested, and in a few days realized handsomely.
Thereupon some one received a comfortable
Jittle bonus ot $1000.
Juough has been said, however, to give your
ictfdcrs some idea of Washington rcportorial
HIE DAILY EVENING TELEGRAPH. PHILADELPHIA, WEDNESDAY.
life that Is, the lifeol the telegraphic renrteis
ot the daily press. It makes no difference from
ulience he conies North, fonth, Kast, or West
lie man wlio attempt" to eive the Interests
ot a iiady, newspaper as its WashluRtot repre
fent.itlTel unless in the capacity of rhief cor
icspotidetit, with money enough at hand to buy
guerillas, will be obliged to do many mean
thiLg- it henncceede.
Plunder In Congress.
From the Tribune.
.The. subject of the Increase of Congressmen's
salaries to toOOO came up in the House Inci
dentally last week. A faint attempt was made
to suggest a review of that action, which was
speedily butled down. The Chairman of tho
Judiciary Committee, to which the question
was referred, complacently observed that, as
Congress voted the increased compensation, it
would of course ftand by it, and, therefore,
any action on the subject by that Committee
would appear to be useless. By others, the
Milncct was turned Into a joke, the point of
which wa that it it is proposed to refund the I
extra con pensation, "don't you wish you may !
get it ?"
We suppose we may, without giving offense, ;
express our couvictions on the abstract subject '
of stealing. We disclaim, of course, on sucli a 1
delicate subject, all personal allusions. Hut this
we say: That when a body which ha access to i
the public treasury is elected t i serve a piven
term nt a certain rate of i ay, they have no
right, because they have nccts to the treasury, i
to help themselves to more. If they do, thjv '
take from their employers that to which they
bae no claim. There is in the city of New i
York a municipal body who are all 'Bed to ba :
notorious public robb rs. They are commonly
reported to be thieves and swindlers on a large
scale. An American bums witn iudignalion to
hear it said that the foremost city of the conti
nent is in the hands oi men who would have
been a cliscrace to Sodom. hat do these men
oo? They simply help themselves Irom the
public treasury. Thev are within reach of the
t(l-r,)lif Km- n.wl !. I nfV llmln . ! 4-
''nwiiii uu.iuinnu:j nuu LUta p'JVAtia J1ULU II.
They rob the public.
ftow we stiouiu like to know where the essen
tial difference is between such a body as we
have imaffined and the municipality of New
York? Where is the riill'eience In the priuciple
ot their action ? Kach vctcs itself money trotn
the public treasury. Kach helps itself to what
it wants 11 oui an open publ.c cheni, because it
is open. Suppose we say each takes as much as
he dates Where, then, is the difference iu the
criminality of the transaction ? I
lint 91 no shall sav. it members of Congress '
raise their o n salary trom ;KH)il to 50i0, they
are to lie classed with the iotainoas members of i
the New ork "limu Wo sav no such tliiuar.
We make uo such allegation. We make every
psslblc di'f laitner. The members of Congress
are gentlemen anil honorable men. We know j
that bv their titles. But will everybody be
charitable? The members of Congress wanted
more money. Thev went up to the public chest
in a body, and took it. That is the simple
lact. I he propriety of the action bcinsr niie
tmned. the resnonse to the sutreeston is tocn-
lar. "Don't ou wish vou niav cet ;t back V is
Mibstantiaily the reply. Tue run ty-ninth Con
gress has an honorable record, with one excep- 1
tion. The members took mouev to w hich they I
w ere not entitled. This blot on thir record has
caused many a true Republican to exclaim,
"Out, damned spot 1" There wa-s a perilous
conflict iu the elections. Men swallowed their ;
regrets, and their indignations, and their con-
deninations of this fact, ohoosins to overlook ,
everything but the one main issue. They con
tddcied that patriotism demanded as much as
this. They kit oilier things to be reviewed at
other times. The increased compen-ation was
one ol them. There -weic plenty of men who
lelt the net to be a foul stain upon the party to '
which they belonged, and in whose glorious ,
retord they claimed a personal share. They
lelt their own individual pnde humbled by it.
Their banner was no longer clean. It had the s'm ut
of greed upou it. Theysull bjre italoft, but they
averted their laces, and to the taunts of their
enemies they were silent. Now, when the sub
ject is ulluded to iu the popular branch ot Con
press, it is nit t with a chuckle: "We have
taken the money. You think it should be re
funned, uon't you wit-h .vou may cet it ?" Kven
the "ring ' could not improve upon that style of
talk.
Now. what U tho plain duty of Congress hi
this matter of raising salaries? Shall Congress
cxeroise no power over the pay ot Congress ?
Certainly, hut not oyer its own pay. It it be
said that thf salary of members of Conim-ss is
insufficient, let it be turned oyer to a proper
committee of the body lor investigation. It it
shall be determined that the compensation is
inadequate, aud should be increased, then let
the increase be applied to prospective service
lo lut ure Conaresses only. This is the only
honorable uyd manly proceeding. It is the only
way the thing can be done without ocaudiilixing
the whole body. Nucli an example of helter
skelter crab for extra pay as was made bv the
members Jast session, such a shirkiug of per
sonal responsibility for a dirty act, but h a
dodcing ol yeas and navs on the vote, s'lt-li
attempts to retieat Into the dark to avoi I cen
suie lor an act that would not bear the l uht,
were a buriiinu disgrace. It the present tm
gress is too mean to do anything but nk til k on
the subject, let that which is to assemble on ttie
4th of March have the grace to enact otomptlv
T li ii t no Inline Congress shall raise their on
pay. it they will not do so much as that, we
may someday have a Com?rue elected that may
conclude to tak" fifty thousand dollars a yiar
apiece rut of the Truusury. instead of live tlnni
sand. On principle, the onj.' act would be ju.-t
as defensible as the other,.
Hit It ut Last.
rum the 't imes.
The question of rail way signals iu England,
ourn a-d era niny remember, has attracted much
attention of late vcars. The engineering mind
cl the country has been exercised in a tucst ear
nest way to devise means for enabling passen
gers to communicate with the guards in case of
accident, or attempted violence iu any separate
carriage. We had intimated in these columns
that the vulgar strap, which we have always
made use of here in the United States, has not
been ineffectual in the prevention of murders,
outrages, rapes, aud so forth on board railway
tiains, inasmuch as by simply pulling it an ordi
nary passenger train might be brought t a
stand in a very short space of time. Regardless
ot any supuestions of ours, the cim-lnci-ring
experiments to which we refer nave gone on iu
Lonoon and other parts ot the United Kiugdom.
And it would appear from a report in the Lon
tiou limes that rcienutie labor aud research
have at last met their just reward.
We do not, peihups, thoroughly understand
all tile technical points iu the London l imes,
report; but we have no doubt that tho whole
thing hluees upon the establishment of a cer)
tain chemical affinity, with which every pasen.
e r on tetting aboard coes fully chart-ed at
the Company's expense. Our London contempo
rary, in the issue of the lath inst., says:
"yesterday experiments were made in trains
runuiner betwetu the Victoria Station aud the
Crystal Palace, lor the purpnse of testing an in
vention for establishing communication between
pi.ssengeis and guard while the train ii in
motion, several railway directors, officials,
and other gentlemen were present. The in
vention was patented by Messrs. I.e Keux and
Wishart, the object boingto placo the commu
nication in the power of every passenger as well
as between tho front guard and rear guard,
ibc signal shows at once to tho guard and
driver the compartment from which the signal
was given, and afterwards the passenger who
pave the signal. Tho apparatus was applied to
the last carriane ol a long train, and those who
desired to witness the effect of the experiments
Iravclled in the guard's break next the engine.
The apparatus consisted of a piece of tubing in
serted in the roof ot each carriage having at the
part which was within reach of the pamenecrs
a slit just wide enough to take the edge of a
railway ticket. In this slit was a pair of clamps
or jaws covered with a chemical composition of
an turntable nature, but tho ignition ot which
could olIv take place by the contact of another
composition having chemical affinity. The
pnwHeiifjer's ticket was tl ped with the chemical
affinity apd on the ticket being inserted In ttie
slit ot the tube a match was liebted which dm
chmeod a rocket on the loof of the carriaje,
and ignited a colored fire, which burned tor
several minute.. The pa-senger's ticket, on
being inserted in the (dit, was at once disfigured,
and tnus proved unmistakably who gave the
sienal, The rocket was heard Irom one end to
,,h?,,l't,1.r,r ofItbe train, arid the lleht burned
brilliantly. It appeared that there was no gear
to get out of order, and U was stated that the
apparatus could bo cheaply applied, that trains
could be made up' without interfering with it,
and that it was as effii lent in slifualluig wbon
one part of a train was accidentally separated
from the other as when the train was coiu-
pieic."
Now. this is really fine. You go to the rail
way station, and buv what appears to be an or
dinary railroad ticket, but which Is really a
chemical compound, bo made up that the
moment it comes into contact with anythin"
having a chemical affinity, goes off in a colored
flame with an explosion considerably louder
than a thunderbolt, indeed, sufficiently loud to
he heard trom one end to the other of a forty-mile-per-hour
train of sixty carriages. This, we
take it, Is more than a mere sclent' lie invention.
It involves something which compasses tho
ethics of social life. One can imagine a female
on whom nn outrage mltiht be attempted, pro
vided not with one, but with fllti, of thc
chtmicai-otfinity cards w hat a toi ritic row she
could make in the world! One breath is taken
away nt the mere mention of the thing. Drop
half aFCOieof those cards Into the chemieal
allmity "slit," and vou might hear the report
from I'eonn to Philadelphia, or, pcrad venture,
J'urttur.
Itcmoval of tlie Deadlock.
from the Herald.
When two muleteers meet on one of those dau
(tcrous shelves of the cloud-plerciug Andes
where only one can pass at a time, it sometimes
happens, when neither party will back out, that
the weaker mule and driver are hurled to
destruction among the rocks thousands of f'ect
below. In such a pass President Johnson aud
Congress now stand confrontiug each other;
aud here, too, if neither party will give way, the
weaker will be displaced taclcur the track.
After putting dow n by force of arms the most
gigantic, formidable, and tenacious rebellion in
the history of uny people, the victorious loyal
Stules have made known their ultimatum lor
1 be restoration of the Fubjuga ted Rebel States.
This ultimatum is embodied in the pending Con
stitutional amendment. It is lair and liberal in
its terms, it if demanded by the new situation of
things, it is calculated to re-establish harmony
between the North aud South, arid confidence
an I enterprise tor the present everywhere; and
it gives lis in behalf of the peace of the Luiou
and t lie national debt. Trensiiry and currency,
ample securities for the future. This amend
mint, then, is au ultimatum from which the
loyal States and their representatives in
Coneresg cannot recede. It must go
through, and the obstructions which block tae
way must be removed, because the North has
so decreed, and has the strength against nil
opposition irom eviry quarter aud hi any shape
to c any through its event designs.
What, then, are these obstructions which for
the time arrest the adoption of the amendment?
Straueely enough, the chief impediment is
President Johusnu, whose special djty is to
"see that the iaws are fadhlu'ly executed."
Conceding it the outset the sovereign poer of
Congress ovei the question of Southern recon
struction, he committed a fatal mistake in
departing irom this initial landmark. This
was over twelve months ago, and since that
day first iu assuming the exclusie poers ol
Congress, then in his denunciatiou ol aud iu
his lcistance to the general policy of Con
gress, good measures, bad or indifferent, and
then atter appealing to the people, and ne'tiug
their verdict upon his course he has. In his
utter disregard of the popular voice, g.ne
downward trom bad to woise, until he is
menaced with the worst ot con-equeuces, his
impeachment aud lemoval.
This penady he may escape, if be is not too
late, by backing out trotn his false position.
Otherw ise he must resign, fr, as an intolerable
obstructicn, he wid surely be removed. There
nic other obstructions, such as the old, intrac
table, and still defiant ruling pro-slavery oli
garchy ot the South and their old hide bound
party confederates of the North, aud Northern
negro-worshipping lunatics; such obstructions
as Massachusetts and South Carolina, walking
firm in arm ugainstthe amendment, us in the
Philadelphia Johnson Convention; suidi obsta
cles as the incurable tire eaters ot the South and
Ncrtliern visionary philosophers and refoimeis,
who will have nothing but the programme of
tlie ti i -t French republic, or the millennium on
Hie plm of a Koiirierite phalanx, liut nil these
ol. Unction-, and some others, are dependent
ii)'oii Piesident Johnson, and with his recanta
t.cn, r fignution, or removal, they will ah dis
I'lptar or case to block the wa. In a word,
.'1 . .ii l,ii-i. n is the deadlock against .Southern
i' i i -n it turn and restoration and if he will
. Km the key and open the door, it will be
i in! by taking oil the lock with thescrew
iii ' w r ol t in en linient.
Tlie present CongTcss is evidently finessing
with the Teiiitoruil bill of Mr. Stevens. It
masks the battery which lies behind all these
passing debates. The new Congress, elected on
the plat'orm of the pending Constitutional
amendment, will asn-mble March 4, duly quali
fied and prepared for decisive work. It not so
; proclaimed bylaw meantime, probably one of
the hist acts of the new Congress will be to pro
claim the amendment in question a part ol the
Constitution in being duly rarihcd by the Legis
lutui.soi three louitlis ol the States iepresented
in Coiii-res, and constituting, de tacto ami le
jure, the Government of the United States. This
done, the snort me law ot the land must be en
loictil by the President over all the Rebel
i States, or upou this Issue alone there will be
i ample ground lor ins lmpcucniueut and removal.
! ,n aiiticq ation of his removal, at a'd events, it
; is Liven out trtn Washington that a law will
probably be passed by Congress prjvldmg tetn
' l)1",l''4i,,J',tt'e Promotion of General Grant to
: the White House as acting President a man
whose very name carries wnh it the piestige of
public contidenee and success,
i W ith General Grant iu the Executive chair,
wc know that the present unreasonable, impla
cable, and tlenunt Kebel States would speedily
! realize their true sitiii.tinn. ii,,it ii,.. ....... it i.A
without difficulty reorganized on the basis of
the amendment; and that with, it not before,
t he retuin of December, they would all be reiu
Mated In Congress and harmoniously co-operating
with the North to carry on the great work
n n !iCW r V.'on "re s,ue Ultu the Soutu
would thus fall tn with the new ideas and new
constitution ot this new epoch, caning out all
the remain ng dreg and dry bones of that old,
13 i T "'JC.v1 ,0".e ct"nt'r-stone, like that
citn hlaiery" confederacy, was Alri-
The Rebellion was a movement to perpetuate,
outside ot the Union, that system of slavery
established In the old Constitution, but whicfi
the Union had outgrown, lleuce our old pro
blavtry Constitution in the war for the Union
went down with the Rebellion, and with it
must no down all the adjuncts ot slavery such
as Calhoun's State riehts and the civil ami nol -tical
cVsabdifies attached to he African aud Uhe
slightest Intusion of African1 bUd'r" Jena
ing amendment covers all this ground and will
give us taut new constitution and that now dis
pensation lor which the rrlce has been paid of
three hundred thousand Union soldio s lying in
the.r graves, and three thousand millions of
money in tho fchapeot national debt
The results gained by these great sacrifices
will be tixed in the Constitution where they
wilUtand. President John.cn mus?no Uaer
resist this great movement. Hc mnM ive wa,
or reBiini, or he will be removed. The ad van "e
ment of General Grant to his office will make
the impeachment perfectly satisfactory to the
loj al States, and decisive to the Rebel States.
It in the interval to IBCH he shall not have
finished all his appointed work, ample time will
be accorded nim in Ins regular election tor the
succession. We like the idea of calling in the
man who put down the Rebel Statej to set them
up again under the sovereign authority of
CoPgress.
'"Tliou Hhalt Not IIrr False Wltnria,"
f rom the Wortd.
.When a writer takes upou himself the char
acter ot h hlxtorlap. hc thereby givea an Implied
pledge of honesty, impartiality, diligence, and
candor in respect to the events he narrates. It
he consciously fails Iu any of these particulars,
he forfeits his personal honor. If an uneon
K ious bias betrays him into false or parbled
statements, he is bonnd to attend to evidence
offered in rectification, and, so far ai it is not
captious, either to in validate its tuice or acknow
ledge bis eirois
The editor of the Trilnme, who has recently
publlst.t d a history ,ol the war.made ou Monday
nn elaborate assati 1 1 on the patriotism nt the
Democratic party, iu support or the charge
made in the House ot Representatives by Mr.
Aslilpy, for an unparliamentary contradiction of
w hicti a Democratic member was arraigned at
the bar ot the House and censured. The editor
of the 2ri6ne o tiers his accusations as a result
of' his recent historical researches. After a
long array ot garbled lacts, he uses this em
phatic and apparently deliberate langnaap;
"ve might multiply such tacts to infinity:" but
need we ? Suffice it that, as the result ot 'a most
anxious, intent contemplation of tho history of
our great strugcle, we do most undoubtlngly
believe that the Democrats, as a party, were not
at heart lor the Union in its terrible struggle
with Secession that they did not rejoice at its
triumphs nor deplore lts'detcats.''
shall not adopt the laconic style of contra
diction lor which Mr. Hunter was censured, for
that would rentier it impossible tor the Tribune
to make a retraction or a rejoinder. We desire
to receive one or the other. We could not be
ptovoked to bandy that offensive monosyllable
at alt. It tbeie should be need of severity we
can be severe w ithout coarse epithets. TheYn
bune makes twelve counts in its indictment. Our
spat e may not suffice to rebut the twelve; but to
avoid suspicion ot eelecting, we will take them
in their order:
I. Secession was first inaugurated In South
Carolina direttly after the popular choice rt
Pmluuitial electors tuily iu November, 18i;o,
whereby the accession oi Mr. Lincoln to the
Presidency was asred. The men who inaugu
rated it were nil Democrats that is, they had
suppoited tor President VaD Buren in 1840
Polk in ISM, Cass in ls48. Pierce in 1S52,'
liucliaunn iu Ixoii, and J. C. Breckinridge ill
lMili. There may lave been one or two excep
tions, but we know of none. There was cer
tainly no Republican among them, whether In
that or any other State. And, whatever their
impulse tc secession, tneir pretext ior it was the
triumph of the Republicans in the choice of
Mr. Lincoln aloiesaid.
Pacts may be so stated as to do the office of
falsehood, onus-ion or false connection being
equally as indel'cuFible as- invention. Tne ques
tion lutscd by Mr. Ashley, and discussed bv the
Tribune, relates to the course, duriig tlie incep
tion and progress of the Rebellion, of the Demo
cratic pait.v of (ne Xorth. The whole Southern
ptoplc. without distinction ol party, fought
loi iheir independence. It is impertinent to
reler to the course of any part of them ai au
inculpation of tho Northern Democrats, whose
conduct is alone in question. Au unscrupu
lous party writer may resort to such tactics,
but they discredit a professed historian. The
Democratic party of the Noith and that of
the South separated previous to the Presi
dential election of 1800, the Northern Demo
crats supporting Mr. Douglas, the Southern Mr.
Bit ckinrn-ige. It was not indeed a cWrdivisiou;
Mr. Douglas received a few Southern and Mr.
Breckinridge a tew Northern votes; but the
Doi glas patty, which comprised the treat body
ot tlie Northern Democrats, cannot be held re
sponsible lor those witn whom they opeuly
qniinelled. A historian, whose business is to
tell the whole truth that is, all which is esscn
tial to a correct judgment ot men and events
the truth without over-stating or uiicter-statinr;
it, without heiiihteuing it by glossesorobscurir
it by shading, should not nave ignored that great
sclisiu in the Democratic party, and have
attempted to hold the Northern Democrats re
sponsible for a movement against which they
, niiu.e an orgauled prn'est.
I II. Other Smtes at least ten of them fol
lowed Souih Caiolmn in her so-cailcd secr-sion.
Two or three more pretended or were ciaimed
to l ave done so. Iu evjiy inslance, this so
cnlied secession was substantially the act ot the
Democratic party of those States respectively.
'Hint is lo say : the great body of those who h-id
previously "run" tne Democratic machine were
early and ardent secessionists, while the mas-
of the opposite party were either ad verse or
lukt vnrm Thus, ever Democratic Governor
ol a Mate, those of Delaware and Kentucky
excepted, was at the head of the hunt tor dis
nn ion; and, of the exceptions, eacu openly con
teu neti all loreible resistance to the movement.
T his is an Hera ion ot the same charge in a
different dress; it requires no separate reply.
It is wholly irrelevant to the course ot the
Northern Demociatic party, which is the only
thing in d spute.
111. The federal Government wasthen wholly
in the bauds ot the Democratic party, save that
the House of Representatives was tied William
1'enniin.toii niodei ate Republican) having at
length been chosen its Speaker by one majority.
But in no single department did that Goveru
niciii oppose any earnest resistance to secession.
Pit sideiit Buchanan, in bib message ot Decem
ber II, 1800. squarely proclaimed that Couaress
ha'! no right to use luico to prevent the with
drawal ot a State trom the Union, nor to com
pel her to yield obe hence to its laws. To du
this he argued would be to moke tnjr on a S:ute,
which Congress had i.o constitutional power to
do. (See "American Conflict," vol. 1, p. 370.)
tuts proclamation of national anarchy was
backed by a fonnal opinion from his Democratic
Attorney-General. Jeremiah S. ltl.ick who was
iitterwardp his Seeietutv of State, who affirmed
that the use ot armed miu to enforce the laws,
m the existing S'tite of things, would be
"wholly illegal." He tuither urged that an
attempt to make a seceded State tidal her l-V. le
nd obligations "would be, ipso facto, au expul
sion ol such Stale trotn the Uuiou.'' (The very
sophistry which we hear every tlav irons the
Dunocrats of 1kc7. )
Piovukiug as this is, we will use only argu
ment. And hist a- to Congress. The Demo
tiatic party was a major ty in that body only
by the presence ot the Southern member's, and
we have sufficiently exposed the injustice of
liohling the Northern Democrats responsible
lor the doings ot a Mirty from which they ha I
formally scpaiuted by an acrimonious disruo
tion. By the middle of the session most ot
ihcse secession members had retired, leaving
the Republicans a decisive majority in both
Iloti-es, and responsible tor the legislation.
And what did they do? Nothine. I'l-psident
Buchanan tutl explaiued to them that addi
tional legislation vva- necessary to enable the
Executive to euloice the laws, but instead ot
providing lor the emergency, tuey rejected a
proposal to confer ou the President authority to
call out the militia, aud left Mr. Lincoln, their
own President, so unprovided that when Sumter
fell he had to violate the law to save the
country.
Next as to the Pre-itlent. The Tribune dis
torts the doctrine of Mr. B.tchanan by unfair
statement and wilful suppression It is'irue, he
denied the riuht to coerce States or make war
mStates; but herein he did uot differ essen
tially Tom Mr. Lincoln iu his on tbe-way
fpeibhes, inaugural address, aud early procla
intt'ious as we shill have occasion to show
more appropriately under another head. Eveu
the war Congress wh ch assembled the follow
hie July, practically accepted the same doctrine,
'ii e most importni act of the session was en
titled "An act to authoilze the employment of
volunteers to aid iu enforcing the laws and pro
tect'up public property." There wss not a word
about coercing a State in all the legislation of
the period. All language implying that thpory
was studiously avoided both by the Republican
President aud the Republican Congress.
Wind would the Iribune th nk of an argu.
meut, founded on that clrcumstauce, against
JANUARY 30, 1867.
their loyalty? Mr. Buchanan's position ws
succinctly stated in his message to Congress of
Janunry 8, 1HG1, In tne following lanatuage:
"1 certainly had no rttrht to mokff angressive
wn r ti nnn anr ktnlA r. . . ,t I .. . 1 1 . : - l
fvu ..., din, i n in n.Ti.-i;iiy HHllint-il .
that the Constitution has wisely withheld that
power even Irom Congress. But the right and
the duty to use military force defensively against
those who resist too Federal officers in the
execution ol their legal functions and agrvlnst
these who assail the pronerty or the Federal
Government, is clear and undeniable." Tuts
wa also the doctrine of the annual message, and
it is piectsely the doctttneou which Mr. Lincoln
based all his earlier action. In the lvht of
these facts, we ask candid men to judae of the
trust worthiness of the editor of the IrtUnne as a
liistoiinn.
IV. During that memorable winter Demo
crat c conventions were held in several Slates
that in this state (held In Tweddle Hall, Albany.
January al, 18U1) being one of the ablest and
Ftiongest that was ever .convened. But from
iioiie of these conventions, nor from the Detu
ciats in Congrrsp. nor from the thousand to
fltteen hunmcd lenioeratic journals published
in ihe country, wnis u voice raisod in depreca
tion of or dissent from these disorganizing doc
trines. On the contrary, they were generally
re-'choed, ami almost universally at qutesced in.
To this it is a sufficient reply to have shown,
as we have under the last head, that "these
disorganizing doctrines" are wiltnl perversions
ot the historian. Under a subsequent head we
shall show that Mr. Buchman's Doctrines, ns he
actually stated tuem, "were acquiesced in" by
President Lincoln himselt.
V. Seven States having seceded befoie Mr.
Buchanan's term expired, their Democratic
members vacated their seats in Congrpss, with
very rare exceptions. Ot their few anti-Democratic
members, nearly or quite every oue
lemained to the close.
Another appearance of Nos. I and II with a
new variation of costume. Tue answer need not
be repeated.
VI. 51r. Lincoln was inaugurated on (lie 4th
of March. 1801; and his inaugural address was
mainly devoted to the inculcation of doctrines
regarding secession and coercion tliP exact
opposites of Messrs. Buchanau and Black's.
Mi . Lincoln was well known to hold (as we did
and do) the right ot the people to modify or
chanae their lorm of government as transcend
ing all written Constitutions or charters; but
he, with ereat clearness and couency, jet in
perfect kindness, demonstrated that a President
must, to the utmost limit ot his ubil.ty, cause
the laws of the Union to be rc-pected aud
obeyed in every State and Territory that should
a collision of forces result, his position would
be strictly defensive and conservative that the
consequent wor would be made upon him, not
by hm. Never was a manifes'o more tirm and
lucid; never was one less irritating. Either its
docrnnes were sound, or any State might at any
time dissolve the Uniou. Yet, of the live hun
ored Democratic journals within our reach, we
believe no single one approved aud sustained
the positions of Mr. Lincoln.
It the reader will compare the summary here
given oi tne doctrines of the inatijural address
with the foregoing quotation from Mr.
Buchanan's messace, he will see that, instead of
being "exact opposites," there i no theoretical
contradiction, and a practical ideutity. The
lonowing is tne most significant passage ot Mr.
Lmcolu's first inaugural: "The power confided
to n e will be used to hold, occupy, and possess
the property and places belonging to the Gov
ernment, and to collect the duties and imposts;
but beyond what may be necessary for these
objects, there will be no inva-sion, no using of
loree, against or among the people anywhere."
Now, let us hear what Mr. Greeley himself
says of tbi3 "firm and lucid inaugural, in his
comments on it iu his history: "The habitual
tone of this remarkable paper," be says, "is
deprecatory, not to say apologetic. Mr. Lincoln
evidently composed it under the fixed impres
sion that the Soutn needed but to be disabused
ot her impressions and apprehensions ot North
ern 1 ostnity, to restore her to loyalty and the
whole land to peace. It she can be made to
feel that the new rule docs not desire to meddle
with slavery in the States which cherish it, but
v. ill hunt aud return fugitive slaves to the ex
tent ol its ability, then secession will be giveu
up, and tlie country restcred to peace and har
mony. That certainly i an amiable view ol
the situation; but it was not justified,' etc. etc.
And again: "The weakest portion ol this docu
mi nt Is lis inconsiderate talk about an 'inva
sion' of the States by the Federal Governineut,
and its quasi pledge not to appoint Federal
officers lor communities unanimously hostile to
the authority of thelniou. A su'rpeou who
should volunteer a pledee not to disturb or
meddle with any proud flesh he migtit find in
bis patient's wounds, would hardly expect to
augment thereby that patient's conidence iu
ins skill," etc. etc. etc. Does Mr. Greeley, who
is clearly the writer of the article in the Tri
bute , mean to impugn the accuracy of his own
"American Conliie t V He says 'that of five
honored Democratic journals' no siuale one.
he believes, sustaiued the positions of the
Hiaiicural.
Admitting this statement to
it discredits his diligence,
the point is trivial, shows his
hazard assertions ot which he
be houest,
and though
readiness to
has no ptoof. The Boston us', the leading
Democratic paper of New Kngland, said of
the iuauiMiral: "The Conservatives will bt glad
to see, at this time, the opening avowals of the
atioress. The pledge not to interfere with
slavery in the States; the denunciation of law
less invasions ol those States: the avowal to
protect slavery in case of a tervile insurrection;
the promise to carry into effect the fugitive slave
cb'igation, seem to 'come up to the requirements
ot the Coi stiiution. Nor is this all. Towards
the conclusion the President relums to the sub
ject, and lurthcr mnnit'ests his desire to concili
ate, by liankly endorsing the Corwin amend
ment to the Constitution, which has just re
ceived a two-thirds vote ol both branches of
ConQiess.'' More quotations to this effect can
be furnished, if they are called for.
We have met. and, as we suptmse our readers
will think, exploded, the first six counts of the
Jrilunc's Indictment. We are ready to nay the
snme compliment to the other six, when the
'jfibime shall have made tlieexplanatio'is which
are due from it lo the Ameiican public, ami to
the a-sunitd cliaiucterot its editor a a historian.
ROOFING.
6H1KG1.K HOOFS, FLAT Oil
?,1 .:T ' V li It K 1 WITH iHTT
l'fcltt 11 A POUMi-l I.OTII, and coatl with
MIltlUtiVlTA lJ.IttIIA i'AiAT, maklug
tuem pcrlectiy w ater-prool.
1 It. K I liHAVKI. HOOFS repaired with
( uilit l'ert'lia Paint, mid warninted lor five vcar.
IHAKl M.ATK IIOOKr con tod with M'lald
Cu la l't rclia Faint, which becomes as hard an slice.
For TIN, (OI'i'KK, ZI', and lltOM
J'OOKS ill is Paint Is the vr plus ultra of ad other pro.
tfciiou It lorniB a pcrtcoilv lmneivlous cover'ntt com
rieto v lesists the aciion ot the wcadier. and constl
lo lhoroiif.'li protection against leaks bv rust or
ethtrw ise. Frice ouly iroiu one to two ceuis pe square
ifS and CJIIAVEIj KOOFIXG done at tho
f hor'f't notice.
iitrrlal c ustantlr on hand and Tor fale bv the
Mammoth hkm. company.
,, , ttlXliLJLSsS ec KVI HKTT,
Ui 6m No. MfA tiKKhN htrcet
iCTX xri.'i wls'-ii - V
i
6": . . 1 faJluiXJ a .-. - i t. vit..i
ii i ii ; ; ' .,.,- rv.";esr-i'v-'':vf;Ai'v..- , V.J
6HIKOLEBOOirS(KLATOK STEEP) COVtKED
ViiU JOUji'b S.NOL1MH HOOMNU CLOTH
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makliiK them peiioctly watef prooi. LEAKY GKVKi
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.ule by tli PHII.ADM.PHIA AND PKN v ",V?" Via
KO-'lNUCOMlANY. OEOKdK HOBAm
JlSthn 0. 230 North I 01KTU H ieet.
FINANCIAL.
7 3-lOs,
ALL SERIES1
CONVERTED INTO
5-20s of 1865, January and July,
WITHOUT CHARCE.
BOSDS DELIVERED JJEHEDIATELT.
DE HAVEN &BROTHER,
mtron IVo.40 SOPin THIRD St
WILLIAM TAINTER & CO.,
BANKERS.'
No. GG South THIRD St.
JINK,
Jt LV, aurl
7-SO.s
AVOUST
CONVERTED INTO FIVE-TWENTIES
And the Difference in Market Price Amoved.
BOSDS DELI YEKLD IMMEDIATELY. CH Kih
& Banker,
$9
U flL P. gfzciLilLe&
euuL Ifclet'gjL fhrcli.an.ar, ami
trzemAcU af &'ic.cU oral aU
bzclLatiQcs. ul LcxJl cities.
LccciutU c.f fgatiLi. atuL
IaiVilx IcctLLued cjl tuicLcd
tetnxi..
DA VIES BROTHERS.
Ko. 225 DOCK Street,
BANKERS AND BROKERSI
BCY AND SELL
UNITED STATES BONDS, ALL ISSUES
AUUl ST, JUNE, and JVLY 7 3-10 H0TE8.
COMFOUND INTEKtST NOTES.
AUGUST .10 NOTES CONVERTED INTO
HEW 5-20BO-ND8.
i triumiie aperana Lioangoniouaictau negotiated
Block Bought aud told on Commission. Ill
FIRE AND BURGLAR PROOF SAFES'
EVANS & WATSON'
WAXCFACTVBEU9 OF
FIRE AKD BURGLAR PROOF
S A. E S.
I.ESK..NEII IOK
t Mercantile, or DvrelUag.Iloma r e.
Established Over 25 tear.
Over 24,0 00 safe in Vc.
The only Safes with Inside Doort
Never Lose their Fire-Proof Quality
Guaranteed free from Dampness,
old at Prices Lowor than other maker.
WARJEllOOMS i
No. 811 CIIESNUT Street,
PHILADELPHIA. 0 Bp
1867. i i aries. 1S67.
50 Sty .33 aui Sizes, at Low Prices.
Visiif-i--- J".; rll(
lllltlHl-i, HMl(fl lii
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stum
ii cities,
li er an.t
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. c
e, on ban 1
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and Entcicf ib.
liVihK ItioKis ui tie lest a
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R HCKINS & CO.,
Blanulactnicra Ol Blank Hooks.
Stationera.IEniiraveiiJ, and I'rinten,
Ko. 913 ABCU Htroet
2t 6m rp
HARD HUBBEB ARTIFICIAL
LIMBS, Anns, i.eg, Appliances lor .
I'eionnlt.v, etc eic. These LlinbaareJ
translerred irom lite In ltirm and tit:
ore thellKliteHt, moxt durable comfort-1
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n ut and our principal Wameons. I'sicniod August Id,
li3j kiay aa, lli M&y 1, lnoti. Address
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i isTORTiiVCity! vl
f( s.iii. stN: j
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