The Sun.
London, England, 1844-10-29 00:00:00

THE FOREIGN PRESS.

England has been the parent of the Press. She
it is that cherished, developed, and protected that
new and mighty power which, yet young, might so
easily have been crushed, and was crushed in all other
countries, by the too natural jealousy of tho-e it
power. How ungrateful is the offspring to the mot her
which nurtured. There is not at this moment a ti►-
reign press, liberated from the hands of the censor-
ship, which has not taken for its daily task to revile
and calumniate England, and preach the necessity of
eternal enmity and war towards her. The French
press speaks for itself, near enough for us to hear it :
all its parties, alike monarchic, aristocratic, sacerdotal,
constitutional, republican, Jacobin, uniting in one
theme : the necessity of knocking old England on the
head, previous to each setting about the fulfilment and
enjoyment of their peculiar schemes.
If from France we fly off in disgust to America,
we see the self-same task performed by the press, with
equal recklessness and less ability. An intelligent
correspondent of the Times, the " Genevese
informs us that the American press has in-
formed its public, not only that England is labouring
to destroy slavery in Mexico and Texan, solely for the
purpose of dissolving the American Union, but that
England has also supplied a large amount of money
to the ultra-Liberals, in order to defeat the tariff
people in the new elections. Thus the amiable press
of America represents us at the same time as in-
triguing with the American Whigs for the destruc-
tion of slavery in the south, and with the American
Locofocos for the destruction of the tariff. There is
no limit to our Machiavelism or our money. We are
the great primum mobile of all ill, in America as in
France ; bribing M. Guizot ani Mr. Webster, Gene-
ral Jackson and Abd-el-Kader. And, to avenge all
these imaginary misdeeds, Frenchmen of all parties
and Americans of all shades threaten us with war and
annihilation.

Perhaps, however, it is merely France and America
that are mad in their estimation of us. Is there not
some one free country that does ux justice, e-pecially
amongst the countries that we have freed and consti-
tutionalised ? There are three kingdoms which we
have so favoured, Spain, Portugal, and Greece.
What is public opinion in all three with regard to
England ? What saith their press with regard to
England ? They all speak the same language ; de-
nouncing the English as the most insolent, avaricious,
treacherous, tyrannical, base set of people on the face
of the earth. It is not the Spanish Carlist, but the
Moderado Spanish Liberal who will tell you this, and
who will print it, and who wiil be believed. Even
the poor Greek has, like a parrot, taken up the same
tune, and hoots Senhor Mavrocordato as a wretch
worthy of the bow-string, for harbouring English
ideas!
What are we to think of this heap of injustice and
insanity? Has the press been intended to be not a
shedder of light, but of more monstrous and more
baleful ignorance than darkness and slavery together
could have engendered ? Is it not to be an instru-
ment of peace, but of war ? Judging by what Nse
see, could we suppose the freedom of the press ex-
tended to all countries, the inevitable consequences
would be, not better understanding or enlightenment,
but all Europe converted into an arena of wild beasts
devouring one another.
Upon reflection, however, we are inclined to con-