The Sun.
London, England, 1848-10-23 00:00:00

THE SUN LONDON, MON DAY EVENING, OCTOBER 23, 1849.

of public opinion." Such may be the base ideal of a
mere trader; but it implies a lamentable dereliction of
the sense of public duty and responsibility; or even of
the ambition which is the next best stimulus of a public
writer. Let the drama " holds the mirror up to nature;"
it is very different when the teacher holds tho mirror up
to prejudice. And who are the public for whom jour-
nalism condescends to become a mere " reflex?" Not
the great national mind, our country's genius, embodied
in its immortal literature. Not the purest and most en-
lightened spirits of the present day, not the millions,
with their throbbing hearts and seething brains, that pro-
perly constitute the people, the real public. No, only
that class which can afford, either in luxury and curio-
sity, or for the purposes of pecuniary gain and commer-
cial speculation, to buy a daily newspaper. These mate-
rials, and these only—limited, prejudiced—sordid—form
the image to be reflected by journalism. And so it will
be, with co small portion of our newspapers, until the
work of honest and independent journalism is appre-
ciated by the people at large, and that appreciation
evinced by proportionate support.
Men of mind have too readily submitted to be tools ;
and they reap their reward. Name them, and hold the
rod over them, says the partisan Peer; keep them name-
less, and make them simply a reflexion of what others
think (or think they think), says the great Daily News-
paper. Thus the fittest training for political knowledge
and aptitude is only a road that leads to contempt. A
vacant office makes the Minister run over the list of un-
paid Lords is his family or party connexion. The news-
paper fellow may serve him as a clerk, perhaps, and be
allowed to drudge through the work without emolument
or honour. In this there is a certain amount of public
aequiesence. It is not censured by reflective journalism.
It is the upper class:interest and the middle class syco-
phancy, not without a leaven of lower class prejudice.
Writers must learn more of that self-respect which their
position tends so strongly to keep down; and the people
must get wise enough to see that only able and:respon-
sible servants in public offices can save them from pecu-
lation, plunder, and blunders ; and just enough to insist
that, from whatsoever class they come, the qualified
labourer shall, exclusively and fully, reap the recom-
pense of his toils, PUBLICOLA.

ourtbWbritton

NEWMARKET RACES.
(THIS DAY.)
(BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.)

(Continued from our Third Edition.)
MATCHES.
Elegance filly beat Provost filly.
Bridle beat Clerk of the Council.
Bridle received from Clerk of the Council.
Itemembraace beat Gardenia.
THE CRITERION STAKES.

Nina ... ... ••• ••• •••
Elthiron ... ••• •••
..• •••

... 2

Elegance filly ...

... 3

FRANCE.

The'French Government appears determined to put
an end to the ultra-democratic and Socialist clubs,
whose existence is incompatible with good order or
public tranquillity, for we find that the Club of Cha-
ranne, the Club of the Grosse Tete, and the Club of
the Acacias, in the Rue Saint Antoine, have been
closed by virtue of an ordinance issued from the coun-
cil chamber.
Letters] from Tarbes' announce that the patato dis-
ease has appeared in the worst form in the department
of the Upper Pyrenees.

SWITZERLAND.
Letters from Berne of the 15th, in the Allgemeine
Zeitung of Augsburg, announce the following elec-
tions to the National Council :—For Berne, MM.
Ochsenbein (thrice). Neuhaus (twice), Karlen, Junk,
Schneider, Vogel, Kohler, Stockmar, and Pequignot ;
for Basle, Dr. !Hatt ; for the Grisons, Latour and
Planta ; for Vaud, Blanchenay, Eytel, Veillon, Pittet,
Suter Bron, Vittel, Grivaz, and Meysire, all candi-
dates of the Patriotic Association in Vaud, and Radi-
cals, according to the Federal Gazette. General
Dufour has often:publicly declared that it is impos-
sible for him to accept an election to the National
Council.