The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1838-08-29
THE PREss--THE PoRTRAIT OF THE
OFFICIAL ORGAN.

THE PREss--THE PoRTRAIr OF THE
OFFICIAL ORGAN.
The liberty OF the press Is Of inestimable
value TO aefree and enlightened people Il is
the Egis Of liberty--to US, il is the life-spring
Of our whole system Of polity. Butte make
II efficient, il must be virtuous to make Il re-
sPected, it must be tolerant; to make il no.
nored, il must be dignifed. Whenever il
cetsesto respect this safe standard, confidence
IS Withdrawn, and its conservative character is
lost in the servitude Of passion, venality and
RIGHTEOUSNESS
II is much 10 be deplored that ignorant
and vicious men have been invested with any
Of the powers and privileges Of the Press
Such men know not how to regulate its lati-
tude, respect its honor, or preserve its useful
ness they make il the vehicle Of defamation,
the instrument Of bad passions, and the organ
Of base ambition. Of this class, we would
include the official organ, which we think
has done more to degrade the Press, to dis
tract society, and dshonor the country, than
all the affiliated papers that belong to its fra
terniiy. Unmindfal Of that scrupulous dignity
that belongs to, and which should ever mark
the character Of the organ Of the Government,
il has stopped to every act Of meanness and
yenality, and has poisoned every stream that
flows from the Executive fountain. 1t has,
as far as it could reach, fixed standard Of
public taste, morals and demeanor, better
| suited to the dark days Of Vandalism, than to
the enlightened age in which we live. Draw
ing upon the resources of vulgar and pre-
JUDGED mind, and stimulated by malignant
passions, il INDUCES in the widest latitude Of
licentiousness and the most INSCRIPTIONS per-
sonalities. No dignity Of station, no length
Of public service, no display Of patriotism, no
guarded virtue can escape its yindictiye at
tacks. Every departure from its own arbtra-
ry standard, however warranted by enlight-
ened conviction and demanded by imperious
duty, is denounced rs apostacy, and treated
with insult. The right Of opinion, which is
the sacred Inheritance Of man. it inyades. and
every independent act, it charges TO the ac-
count Of corruption. II dares to grasp the
reigns Of power. and would drive the nation
along its devious paths, to goal darkened by
dishonor and encompassed by ruin. II insults
the loud remonstrance Of the sovereign will,
and mocks the lamentations of suffering
country This is the official organ, the Go
vernment eyemplar! And who is the person
that Yields this scourgel A vulgar, profane
and yenal editor, who has stained with dis
honor every cause he has touched, and pol
luted with grossness every party with which
he has acted. The common fellowship Of
harmony and good will, and the generous
sympathies Of society have never found an
abiding place in his bosom. The turbid Wa
tiers of strife and the gusts Of morbid temper
are his congenial elements. His ambition
springs from tyranny, and his glory from OPP
preston He is Jack Cade in character,
and Jacobin in practice. False 10 every
] trust and laithless to every promise, no obi
CATION is binding and no covenant is sacred.
His moral and physical structure are cast in
the same mould, and both are stamped with
an obhquify that proclaim a warning. He
moves through society like an evil spirit,
brocding mischief and scattering the symbols
Of a whitening sorcery; and he stands in the
midst Of society an animal upas, despised by
his adversaries, and summed by those who
use him. This is the man who would be
thought to be the exponent Of the Executive,
and the clstos morum Of the nation.
We congratulate the country that he has
accomplished his own downfall, and that his
scourge is harmless. The execrations Of an
abused and insulted community are gather
gfor him a full measure ofretributiye justice,
when there will be "a whip in every honest
hand to lash the rascal naked through the
world"
THE AssAILANT OF THE NAVY.