The New era. [volume] ([Portsmouth, Va.]) 1845-1847, 1846-09-29
"AS WE

JeR0eT OF the OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
ton, SC.
The talented and mercurial gentlemen who
have elevated the Southern Standard" with its
gigantic proportions /! in the city of Richmond.
seem 10 be excessively annoyed with our " little
Sheet" which is, by the by, il size is an evidence
of talent, some inches larger than their own
Sheet and they put us in mind of tho lrishman,
who, having been at a Fair all day, without get
ting into a fight, could not think Of going home 90
ignobly, and throwing one corner of his cloak owe
his shoulder and trailing another On the ground,
passed through the thickesto of the crowd to bring on
a catastrophe; no sooner had some Unfortunate
wight trod upon ii by accident, than The enraged
owner turned round to avenge the insult. aud 60,
into a glorious row. So with the Standard men
1t seems we have trodden on their cIuak-wc pub
lished their prospecius-we introduced their own
d" Declaration of independence " to our readers,
and have. repeatedly, copied from their paper, yet
they growl and look black at our" little sheet'-
and ask" Do you bite your thumb at us. Sir ~
to which, in the gentle language of Shakespeare's
Sampson, We reply, No sirs. do not bite my
thumb at you, sirs bu, | bite my thumb, sirs."
We might GO on with This quotation, but we
will make room for the article of The Standard,
as We like our readers to know all that the "steel
gauntlet" con;aius:-
The NEW ERA-As WE ExpEcrED.-There
is a little sheet published some where about the
Navy Yard in Portsmouth called the New
Era, b" in which we very early perceived evidences
of hostility 90 The establishment of the Standard:
how engendered or whence derived. we know not.
In alluding 10 The Wing cutlery against Mr.. Wal
ker for his conduct towards Mr.. Childress, we
said, if the facts were known we believed i, would
turn out that the office was Of that dignity and
character that fully justified Mr.. Walker in de.
clining to give it toa Wing. TINS New Era"
In commenting on the transaction, seems TO enter
tain a Jealousy Of any interference with its peculiar
prerogative of defending the adminisl ration
Speaking of ourselves, it says:
I'VE would advise our new friends of the Rich
mond Standard TO understand the facts before they
commence a defence, lest they may do more evil
than good by their ill judged zeal"
Does The editor mean to assert that if The facts
were understood there would be no defence for
Mr.. Walker2 Upon the presumption that every
man is innocent until he is proved to be guilty.,
we will not believe it,"
II thus appears that the head and front of our
offence is in daring to caution our contemporaries,
to moderate their zeal so that their ~jndgment
might have fair play-and as The gentlemen have
thought proper to question Us, we feel no indispo-
ton TO extend our lesson.
In the first place, Childress was a wing out of
office. and had no political right to apply for office
under a democratic administration and the at
tempt TO %smuggle himself in. was both mean and
contemplate, as no new places were created, and
either a wing or a democrat, then holding office,
would have to be displaced to make room for him
therefore, we hope The Secretary will stand {" ear
cused " IN the eyes OF the generous editors Of the
" STANDARD for refusing to be imposed upon
Having SEINE twenty odd years experience as a
political writer. We thought The 8 Standard did
MOI act wisely in giving currency to an unofficial
friendly letter from Secretary Walker, which had
been UNANIMOUSLY spread before the public nv the
wings, with the consent of Childress, for the pur-
pose of injuring the administration, and which
Childress, as a man of honor, should have kent sa-
cred from the public eye. In publishing that let
ter too, the STANDARD went a bow shot beyond its
wing contemporaries in lis introduction, and in il.
zeal TO defend =" the Secretary, stated that
ChIldress " had removed his family to Washing.
ION " " under faith of Mr.. Walkers promise -,
Now this was not The fact, and therefore our
caution, that I" they should understand The factso
which is taken with such bad grace by The Stand
ard. Mr.. Childress had not removed his family
- tbNJ pU hHuCFSIUHu Inc
facts, how can they ercuse themselves for pub-
fishing what they knew to be untrue2 Was it to
excuse MIR. Walker, or to arouse sympathy for
the martyred Childress? We do not even agree
with the Standard, Z" that political opinion. in
the great majority of subordinate offices, merely
executive, should not be made one test Of fitness
Tor ONCE we contend for directly the contrary,
and say that every Administration should be sus-
tanned by subordinate officers, entertaining poIiti.
cal views consonant with the head of the Govern-
ment, and not be surrounded with political spies,
who think it both yirtuous and meritorious r. DO.
cieve and betray.
les sirs we mean TO assert ~ that ,dsr.
Standing all The facts, there was no deCence for
Mr.. Walker, as certainly there was none necessn.
ry, as we think we have most conclusiyely sboyp
above. He had but done his duty to his partv
and his country, and the laws and usages Of 60.
vernment were his defence-and to undertake IN
set up any other, is TO presume him guilty Of
some infraciion of one or the other, which we
deny.
With regard to our being jealous Of the " Stand
ard" Tor interfering with our F." peculiar preroga-
tive OF defending The administration, Heaven
forgive them the thought. They may become
the champions, par eKcellence, Of the Administra.
ton, and they will never excite our bile-we have
peculiar kEack Of speaking the truth npon all
occasions. which units us for the honorable r,.,
Of Defenders Of the Administration =" VIC ,evor
had the power nor the inclination
ITO crook the pregnant hinges Of tho L,oo
That thrift might follow awning N"'
and our poverty atiests our honesty in this par,ic.