The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1849-09-26
From the Richmond Uhig.
The Infamous System OF Espionage!
THE BEST JOKE OF THE SEASON.
n Ills aIa..f la

From the Richmond Uhig.
The Infamous system OF Espionage!
JOKE THE SEASON.
30 tits sport to
The engineer hoist with his own petard.
The IYhig of this morning will convulse the
Wings of the universe with laughter. There has
not been such rare sport since-the Lord only
knows when. Certainly In our day and generation
we have experienced nothing approaching it. Our
sides are sore from laughing, and we have fattened
ten pounds within the week chuckling over the in
comparable achievement. May it have the same
deectable effects on all our readers
The old fox Of the Union is caught at last, nicely,
adroitly, beautifully trapped, and in has snare,
About a month since we published in the shape
of a letter from Washington an extract from let
ter written from the same place to the Richmond
Enquirer IN 1927 Ii contained an infamous propo-
siton to establish secret system of espionage
throughout the Republic. We felt repug-
nance to seem, by publishing it, to give countenance
to such an abominable project, and some friends
from the country have complained of our admitting
such detestable proposition into our columns. But
we said nothing. We felt presentiment that we
were about to hook the veteran and artful dodger.
He eyed the bate long time, nibbled at it very
gently, and last Saturday fairly gorged it. Lo and
behold him futtering in the dust With the ex-
ception Of change of date, and the first two
fences prefxed to gild the bait, and the substitu
ton OF Locgocoism for coalition and Union for
:" National Republican, (the Wing paper at that
day,) the letter is exact transcript of portion
of letter signed "Aristides,' published in the En-
qirer of l4th April, 1929, and copied into Niles Re
gister of May 2, 1929!
We copy the entire article of the Union, and pray
the reader to closely every sentence OF the text
and the comment, and bear in mind all the while
that all the fsrocious blows of the Uion directed
against the infamous proposition and its authors,
applicable to themselves alone
Observe that he begins by expatiating upon the
horrors of the Spanish system Of espionage, intro
duced by the Spanish governor general OF Cuba,
and practised by the despots of Europe-"Me most
uIof t.UI Of/ NIL no Hpy,rps nff,
these bad as they are, are nothing in comparison
with ''the secret and Infamous system of espionage"
instituted by ''he agents and ,ninions Of the Cab
net' ''They Invoke their friends in the country TO
become secret spies and irormers against their Demo
cratic neighbOrsr' "Base and tnfdnlous (exclaims
the virtuous and indignant Ritchie) such prop
osition is we actually find it made in so many iDords
(his own, twenty years ago. when he was organic
ing the Jacksonian Dynasty in the following let
ter, written in this city, and published in the Rich
mond Whig of August 2S." "We publish the let
ter entire, CONTINUES this consistent and immacu
late patrio In order TO prone the existence OF this
shameful system of secret nquisition, Che does prove
it, with vengeanceD and to show the fsrociOus
spirit of prescription which pervades the bosom of
the writer, and which can find its parallel only
TIE French vsuolsssion IF 1898 !,' Gemini. how he
docs pile up the agony! "Br,4sui and songuinary
human butchers" What cruel old man he must
be thus to stigmatize his 0fspring, The elder
Brutus was not half 80 mercilcss.
He gives the "letter entire,'' and then, having
taken BREATH proceeds with fresh torrent Of indig
nant vituperation. "The italics our own, Eek
claims the sole organ and we have made use of
them TO bring out in bold relief the infamous propo
stion which the letter embodies." Bless your old
soul, and many thanks for your palms, Ii was the
very thing we wished you to do. at is such
WRETCHES"-(Oh Lordyi this is being person
alp at is such WRETCHES as the writer of this
letter, that now cater for this Admnistration"-(a
slight mistake, old gentleman; you should have
said, that catered for the Jackson administration
th.(
by the Cabinet of the Greatest and Best, if you
please
This secret system Of espionage, told, ''in-
yades the sanctity of mans home, follows his
footsteps into the public thoroughfares, ferrets out
his private interests and affairs, and watches and
notes down his speech uttered even in the conf
dence of friendship" II is most detestable sys-
tem-and we can find no language strong enough
10 give expression TO adherence Of it. "But
Continues this veteran and virtuous scribe,) this
Infamous system does not stop here" What
worse than represented abovel L. that possible?
Yes, and the old man makes il plain a pike
staff by employing the very words Of his own
respondent in l629-who was willing 10 continue
hs most helpless pduper ia he toorid, if he could
only get this system enforced. "But this Infamous
system (says the frank and indignant Ritchie)
does not stop here. IL invites portion Of the c
zens Of this country 10 turn secret spies and
itforuers, and TO lay in wait about their neghbors'
domics, 10 watch their footsteps in order secretly
10 pick up their unguarded and casual Ell pressions
and to report them 10 the Government, that they
may be punished by prescription" Every word
true as preaching!
But the peroration is grand We put il in italics,
"to bring il out in bold relief" Here il il:
"We inUoke the candid and serious attention Of
he dmuican people 10 the facts tnhich haze stated,
and tohich THE LETTER ABOVE ABuTDANTLy PROVES.
We call The attention Of the honest and patriotic qf
all parties IA Pennsyivania and Maryland ,cbo
so soon 10 express their judgments upon The acts and
MEASURES Of this Naturalization, 10 The state of things
utich not only ezia here, bat throughout The country.
We ipUoke The american people 10 conten
plate the nature and tendency of This monstron and
detsstdbe system. Whdf is IL 10 lead TOT Ind tchers
Is IL TO end? WILL 1T NOT BREAK coSFI-
pESCE BETwEEr MAN AND MAN? (Why didn't
you think of this when you were advocating il in
1927 Does not strike at The ueyv uifdis Of society
Ot comes mighty near it, And, u persisted IN,
'ctn IL not LEAD TO DEEDS OF VIOLENCE AND RLooDl
Shocking to contcmplateD We again inpoke the
american people to contemplate The nature and con
sequences of this pie and infamous sustern of secret
espiorage hch has been established under the patron
age " the Cabinet and ,ohich IFS shameless insfrp-
merts and agents are attempting 10 ertend 10 erey
nsighborhood IN the Union" Eheil Jam satis'
We take this TO be the finest invective ever de-
livered by any human being against his own abom-
nations. Satan himself could not rebuke sin with
more fcrvid eloquence, and with moro honest
glow OF irreprcssibe indignation. "Rifchie on the
infamous system Of espionage' will stand forever
A No on the catalogue Of acknowledgements
But poor Bundlecund and Richie What must
be their feelings when they get the news, and find
themselves holsted by their own pctard! VIC
would give fifty thousand pounds of California gold
dust, II we had it spare, TO witness their first in
tcrview. II would be scene for painter of
genius Oh, Bundlecund Bundlecund, oh
And then what becomes of their boasted sogacify,
their inyncible cunning and all the varied " arts
of able editors'' What must the Democracy think
of such leaders, Caught in syringe that could
not have ensnarcd woodcock! But the fact is.
the Locofocos, with the loss of Office appear 10 have
lost their wits. One can trounce them easily
boys trounce frogs Still say we-Long hft 10 The
asitt, Richie and the sagocious Bundiecundl For
the present take our leave, with the assurance
that unless you keep your eye, open, you shall hear
from again before many days. ddie,, adored
Bundiecund, Adieu, bsioved Riichie,
From, The Washingfon Union If Sept. IS, 1s4o.
The Cabinet system Of Espionage.
In our paper Of Tuesday We alluded TO the system
Of espionage established in this country by the Cap
tain General of Cuba, for the purpose of detecting
the republicans OF that island who may come here
ff.rb plf