The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1849-08-27
THE REPU BLIC.

4
lous and os destinations against the late Secretaries
Mason and Walker, and therefore stands before the
world the original and shameless libeer of these
two eminent gentlemen
| Such is the position of the newspaper set up in
this city by General Taylor, and which Processes
10 speak for him and his Cabinet. Surely the Cab
met is worthy of the organ and the organ is worthy
OF the Cabinet.
We desire our readers to consider this
article, and to understand how completely
it bears out, to the letter, the charges that
we have repeatedly made against the
leaders of the late Locofoco party. We
have stated that they have uniformly,
for the last twenty years, opposed every
effort at inquiry into the state of the Ex-
ecutive departments, and have frustrated,
asSfar as they could, every attempt to give
information to the people on subjects
which it concerns them to understand.
Not only has this been done in Congress
by their leaders in the House and the
Senate, by embarrassing the appointments
OF committees, by thwarting their action,
by suppressing their reports, by refusing
| access to books and documents, by bully
ing and browbeating the inquiring and in
vestigating power; but it non seems TINT 1t
as made a POINT OF HONOR NTH public
| officers, that they shall not communicate
any information IN their possession even
Of a public character, If 1t is calculated to
r fleet in any manner ON the public course
| Of Locofoco o6ice-holders.
So delicately sensitive are the Locofoco
leaders OH this point, that when we stated
that we had obtained information from the
Solicitor Of the Treasury that N. DENNY
was defaulter to the amount of $155 900,
and that suit had been brought against
him-two public and notorious facts, Of
which we desired official notice before al
luding to them-it is assumed to be vio-
lation Of honor and integrity on the part
of Mr.. GILLETT to have communicated
that information SO strictly do these
gentlemen interpret their party obliga-
tons, so sacred do they hold any official
knowledge which duplicates their great
men, that Mr.. GILLETT was really under
a temporary cloud with his party, because
he was supposed to have communicated a
fact which it was thought he might have
withheld, and was, consequently, by the
code of Locofoco morals, bound to with
hold fropo Tho ,,,bl,c ,>raeeJ
| We do not overstate the case. The
Union '' disbelieved" the statement that
we had received information from the
Solicitor. Wherefore' Because it was in
formation which it was the Solicitor duty
to withhold, or which the Solicitor had a
right to withhold? Because any evil could
result to the public service from our OBJ
tanning official notice Of that which was
matter of public notorietyi Because there
was any public interest involved in abb
staining from the communications Not at
all; not at all. 1t was simply because it
was supposed to be inconsistent with Mr..
GILLETT's party fidelity; and because that
| was considered paramount to his public.
duty.
But not only did the Union ''disbelieve"
the statement; it considered it proper TO
take such notice of the fact through the
press, as would call forth an explanation
from some quarter or other Now, we
would ask if viler tyranny than this was
ever set up over the minds of menu Talk
of alien and sedition laws-talk of the
censorship of the press-talk of any of the
| restraints which have been at different times
and by different governments applied to
the opinions and actions of men We de-
sire to learn when, before, any government
or any party has established a press to
exercise this kind of dominion-to watch
the action of public officer, and to
make a victim of him the moment he is
suspected of having permitted political
adversary to obtain from him the slightest
information OH a subject of general inter-
est and public notorietyl If it is dishon-
orable for Mr.. GTLLETT to furnish such in
formation, when he has no right to with
hold tiff he occupies an Office in which
duty to his party places him under re-
straints which prevent him from doing his
whole duty 10 has country-in which bis
honor and integrity are interested in eva
sion, in concealment, in the suppression of
information, in thwarting inquiry and in
vestigation-in Withholding the fact of a
s,at commenced and the amount in confro-
rersy-it is obvious enough that Mr.. Gil
LETT is in painful situation for a man of
integrity and honor.
Consider the expression employed by
the sole organ-"improper connexion"-
"d'shonornbie or improper actin refer
ence TO the communication of fact which
he had no right to withhold. When we
state that the information was derived from
| the SOLICITORS ofice-and NOT from Mr.