New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1845-01-14
Washington and o,connell.


SIa-You viii, | trust, a!lJw me 10 address
you remark or two upon late article Of yours,
which, though pretty regular reader of your re-
spected journal, have but jast observed, ina Dos
ton newspaper.
The main object Of the article seems to haze
been TO animadvcrt upon 4 certain letter recently
addressed by Ex-Governor Seward 10 Repeat
Society at Albany.
This enlightened and philan;hropc gentleman
is cha'gcd, amongst other misdemcanols, with
strange Inconsistency in that, while asserting
for Itishmen exclusively the right of making laws
for Ireland in which you agree with hin) he yet
denies, you alegc, similar right to Americans,
his own country,ren. After close inspection |
can, beg 20 say, discover nothing of this denial
in the letter-not even in that rather cquivocal
index Of meaning, the spirit, wherein alone, it is
veil TO oossryc, you profess to have discerncd it.
True, he vindicacs the right persons of foreign
birth, after they are ccnstitu,ionally qualified, 10
take part in American law making. But, then,
such persons he calls and considers, moi Irish
men end Germans, but Americans; whereas you
would, 1t seems, persist in deuomlnsting them
foreigners So that if there be any more than
n verbal difference between you, tant piS pour
UOuS II is you who will have been chargeablc
with The inconsistency and disloyalty you mpute.
MIR. Seward, in phr2sao,ogy as in principle, does
but follow The Constitution, that ultimate rca-
son' OF all good republicans.
This, however, by-thc-by. Mr.. S. ii he deem ii
requisite, can ansGor for himself Ny business
at PRESENT is but with the following paragraph Of
your article -" We demur too, both 10 The JUS.
| lice and the taStc-fur an Amerlcan-of chasing
OConDcl aud Washington together the vio-
lent, foul.moutlied, self seeking brawcr Of fac
| ten and crecd-wIth the serene, the Impartial,
the wise the moderate, the dsintcrestcd, the SELL
sacrificing, The lnimtable founder OF L Nation -
Now, why for an american, in particular 2
You base yuursefthls very article upon the axiom
that all truth is of universal application Ger
tainly the same may be ptodicattd Of Justice. and
with far fewer restrictions than your proposition
would practically require. Whence then peculiar
Justice fer Americans And is it discreet in .,
eulogist thus to appeal in behalf Of Washington,
to the prejudice or if you will have it SO, the pa
triolisIn,) Of his countrymen On the point of
taste will not waste words; 1t is arbitrarytO
c!oveIb in even the subjects OF It's proper Jurls-
| dlct!on.
There is then, take IT, for all, but one and the
same Justice applicable TO the classification IN
question. LIE. Washington and O'Conncll be
compared candidy by this rule. In doing so
briefly, | not only renounce the advantage of the
NATIONAL the sectional Justice, for resoItng 10
which would have your high example and au-
thority. More than this, forego even the sim-
pie equity Of supplying the essential complement
OF your picture-palrioticaly ono. SIDED as 1t is
presenting, indeed professeGly, but the carcature
of one of The figures and the apothcosis Of tho
other. Though what you would call a foreign
err yield TO no American-not even 10 "a native
in honest reverence for the memory Of Wash
inaton. Nor ought my esteem for bis character
and services be deemed less real, or perhaps re-
Specialize, for being calm and considered.
But were differently disposed you, sir, could
not well complain Of rctorlion of your own p'in-
| cpc and at Jour own provocation. If Washing-
ton is YOUR ceunryman and you think him the
founder Of natlon,' O'Conuc is not only a
countryman of mine by my birth, and regarded
by the impartial world as already the regenerator
and probably destined 10 be the founder ola nation
but he is also entitled to my humble vindlcatlon
by still closer, though scarce dearcr tie. Yet,
as have said, | shall keep within the record
which you have chosen 10 furnish
The piolent, foul-mouthed, sey-secking
bratclcr Of a faction and creed" The abusive
feature OF these epithets demands, l suppose, no
moro serious reply than that they appear with q
peculiarly bad grace lii u daily register OF Amerl
can or2toIy, parliamentary and political. But II
Mr.. O'Conntll be self seeking, how can nc be
called, at the same time, the champion Il. G..
| brawle,') OF faction and creed And what
is this faction, this creed, thus contemptuously
designated? Why, eight millions Of souls-lio
Irish people And what is it Mr.. orc. braw,s
for The right of this people to lcg;slatc FOR it
sell right, too TO which the american vouch-
safes It's assent; the same right, in fine, which
it was the sole mciil (or the forunc) Of Washing
| ton to have won for only oRc-third this number
of ms counrymcn. But it is not, you may say
in thair objects you find the disparity but in their
| means: IL was not by foul mouthed brawhng'
that Washington served freedom. To which
answer, in The first place, that 1t were scarce
merit not to have abused that which it would
have been folly to use-lolly in Washington espe
cialIy, who, it may be confidently affirmed, were
the tongue the proper weapon OF the warrior,
would have never been the founder OF even q
village corporation. In the second place, | ac-
| cept your issue upon the means, considered and
| compared with reference to Their merits Watcher
Of quality or con,riyance. The method OF Wash
| ington was used by hundreds before him, savage
and civilized 0'Conneli'S was entirely OF ms own
orirination. Wasliington's is proyerhialiy game
| of chance; which mailman may WIN and 4 few
months, or even moments, determine. That OF
O Council is preeminenlly one of skiil-of skill,
TOO, various and consummatc; the labor OF hle'
and which supposcs in the successful player, al
most every virtue, both of The intellect and the
heat. As to its Intrinsic supsriority-its collat,
cral advantages in tue economy both Of property
and life, in political instruction, IN associative
observation-disclosures above all It's conformity with
the highest morality, natural and Evangelical, 1
am quite wiling that any intelligent American,
with a gram Of candor, shall be Judge between
thcnl 1t is, | think, no rash prcdicllon' mat
O'Cunnell VIII be revercd as. not merely thG
fuoder of nation, but, what is better and
r4rer, Of principlc-and such pTlnc'pe -
when the patriots of the sword Washington, |
t,us,, excepted will as the poet Sings
-. Be forgotten Us fools. emembereda as worse.