The Rhode-Island Republican. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1809-1841, 1837-04-19


ernment, or performs a service for it, and
is paid, becomes thereby subsidized and
proaigate, and sells his conscience along
with his commodities and labor
Can the head of a department, by Gov
ernment advertisement, corrupt or subsidizc
the press, any more than bank, a corpor-
alton, or merchant could, by giving their
to newspaper; especially
where the employment from the latter sour
ces is so much more profitable, SO much
larger in amount, and SO much more widely
distributed, aud generally upon grounds Of
strict party preference
The committee do not believe that the
employment of newspaper to publish what
the law requires to De published, for fair,
equivalent, is to he regarded in the light Of
favor or patronage, any mGre than the en-
ployment of any other mechanical labor
10y the Government or by private citizens.
| Besides, would it not he well for those
who make this charge Of me.cenary cor
rupton against editors and printers of news
papers, to reflect tha, 1t is their own party
press they censure; for the plain reason,
That the administration need not buy up
the newspapers that already support It's
measures, aud that, if there is any buying
or corrupting, the traffic must be carried
on with those editors and printers who op-
pose the administration :
Ii, then the allegation is merely that the
officers of the Government, who are requir-
ed by law to employ the newspapers, exer-
else their own discretion, resolve the whole
question into an inquiry il,so motives, (not
an inquiry into violation of law,) mn inqui.
ry which the committe have shown is not
within their jurisdiction under the resolu.
tion referred TO them
And, If this call upon the departments
had been adopted, and could have been
carried into effect, of what avail would have
been detail of all the post Offices, every
proposal forTmnii contracts, for work, for
supplies, and the like, within the provisions
of law, to detect abuses, or 10 discover
whether the press of The country was " sub
sidized" and corrupted by being paid
for its mechanical Iuborl Had such re-
turns been made in answer to the proposed
call, this committee, instead Of imquiring
into the condition of the Executive Depart-
mcnis, mus, have resolved itself into mere
auditors Of newspaper accounts.
Again if the administration, in the use
of its legal employment of the newspaper
press, corrupts and subsidies that press
aud if the press of the country is suscep,i-
BILE of such corruption how happens il
that the opponents of the administration,
though in n minority, sustain SD many
more newspapers than nrc sustainedby the
party in powerl Of the daily press, for
instance, in The city of New York, there
arc nine opposition to too Administrations
papers in Philadelphia, sil to tpo ; in
Baltimore, four to one in Boston, seo,n to-
tuo !; in New Orleans, sir to fuo in Alba
ny, fcO to one and even IN the CITY of
Washington, tuo 10 one ;-making, III sew
en- of the principle cities, MTty-siI oppo-
silion to cfcUen daily administration poperr
A like comparison extended throughout Tho
Union would show nearly the same result.
The committee have dwell longer on tins
topic than its real importance might seem to
f demand. They have done so, because y
appeared to be one Of the mos, yehemently
/ urged grounds of accusation against the ex'
, ecu,ive officers, and was brought before the
committee for decision seven distinct times
by ,he mover Of the call, in the form OF re.
, solves. amendments, and questions To wit
J nesses, and was each time rejected ny re
, the committee for the reasons here stated.
!, The object was to get at practical results,
, and not, by mass OF papers, encumber all
inouiry or examination into the condition of
The Executive Departments, and the dis
charge of the public duties by their officers
and ocents. liz this, as in all other cases,
the rnlc the committee uniformly adhered
10 In Irf,
any net Of abuse or violation OF law, or neg
lcct Of duty, complained of from amy quar-.
ter, aud presented in any specific form OF
allegation susceptible Of investigation by
any known principles Of evidence. They
believed it to be neither practicable, nor
within their powers, to call upon the Exec
uliyc Departments for history of every
ac, of those departments during the las.
eight years, and then 60 into an examina-
ton Of the history, to detect, II possible
some act that might he construed into vi
olaiion of law. a. well might citizen 10
arraigncd by public prosecutor, and CALI
ed upon to relate every transaction OF his
own life, in order to discover whether thers
was no, some act for which an indictment
would lie against him.
On the grounds heretofore explained, tho
committee rejected questions to witnesses az
to any supposed possible connexion OF OFF,
GERS Of the Government with the newspaper
press, except in ncsses where 1t appeared thos
such connexion, if proved, was violation
of law or Of some rule or requistion OF tho
department with which such officers are
connected.
A question proposed to the Postmaster
General tpagc T2i Of JournelD as to politi-
cal combindtions Of officers Of the Executive
Departments to influence the public press,
was permitted to be put, on the ground tha'
the combination charged might he in the
nature Of conspiracy, and, therefore, a vi
ol,lion of law. The answer Of Mr Ken