Alexandria advertiser and commercial intelligencer. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1800-1803, 1803-08-27
From Tie ch1gsylon Courier.

were to gain a complete DOMINION uvei
Amer ca, and were to publish an ediet by
which he forbid, under penalty OF death,
any person to read newspaper on any
but one side of the question, would not the
! good people be afflicted and enraged az
having themselves put under such oes,
potic iarerdieff Nodoubt they would, and
Justly too. YET, whatever may be their
astonishment az it, we assert, that TINS |
very dsspotic, miscbievous, and, since we
must speak truth, irrational lnterdiet, some
Of them lay upon themselves.
SO bigotted, so irrationally fanatic are
some, that they push from them all the
evidences and arguments on one side, as
if they were contagious as i It were
sinful to receive any information respect
ing political circumstances that comes
from the party to WHICH they DO not De-
long. They must in this case either DIS
trust their own Judgment, or wish to re- !
main in terror. II theyopinons offered to
their perusal are false and irrational, they
cannot fear that their Judgment, beng
sound, will be corrupted by them II, on
the other hand. they are founded IN sub
ssantial reason and truth, do they think
that they are likely to.be the better Tor
! shutting their eyes against them! Why,
such notions arc the very. scum OF intel
leceual morbidness, the very essence and
spirit of wilfully blind fanatlcism. AS
| tie fanaticaI, over jealous Roman Catho-
lies, held it TO be a deadly, sin to look into
! an Feretical book, so our fanatics OF de.
| mocracy think it guilt to read any thing.
! on the side of stable government.
Ii isnot long since worthy well meaa-.
ing man from the country, took up a pa
/ per without knowing that it was CD the.
federal side, and casting his eyes upon a
particular paragraph. exclaimed, " How
is this9 / can't believe this-.l never.
heard any thing oft before!" He read on
/ a little further-ss ] can't believe it, said
he, for ! never saw it." Pray, said a
| gentleman present, do You often read the
papers. Yes, sure, he replied, What pa
pers On the honest side to be sure, said
j he, What do you call the honest side ?
! Republican, said he! You mean demo
| cratic? Yes! would not read any of
Their lies on the other side for ever 50.
much. How do you know they are lies
/ when You do not read them? Why our
| papers say so Well then, ay friend, con-
tinued the gentleman, do you take that
| to be lie which you have read. Ger
tainly, said he, / do What! AIR party
the cause of the expences of John ,Adamss
army aud navy! | viii not believe e'er
/ federal newspaper writer Ia the world IN
| it. Well, would you take the authority
| of Washington? Ay,to be sure should,
he replied. Look then, read that letter Of
his TO Mr.. Carroll. Ay, ay, said he
| Garcia good man too! He read, and
! pondered over the letter for some time.
Han I! and has Washington declared that
| ]eferson's party wele the curse of the
1 country But is this letter true? \ OIL
may guess 1t is true, or your papers would
| take care to deny and controyert it bur
knowing thar none of you will read or
see any thing, however true, on the other
| side, and knowing too that to deny II
f would be TO make the sruth more public,
| they think it enough to pass it over in 81
.ence. Ecod, said he, shaking his head,
in what is sometimes called q brown stu
/ dy, could not have thought this. Ihen
it appears that there are many true things
we don't hear. Things may well go
wrong at this rate, said he: If this is the
way we are all deceived, the country must
go 70 ruin at last. lie then adde's, an
/ determined to examine both sides of che
! question In future.
| If che same obstinate error could be put
/ down IN every citizen If they could be
/ persuaded 70 near both sides, the coun-
sells of the C0untry Wouid SOM he very