Southern sentinel. [volume] (Plaquemine, Parish of Iberville [La.]) 1848-1858, 1849-12-05
The Press and the Legislature.

-Four of our acquaintance, printers, have been
elected to the Legislature of this State-and we
doubt not there are several other members who
either belong or have belonged to the iypes.-
This fact gives hope that the narrow-minded-
ness that have distinguished the last two or
three sessions of the Louisiana Legislature,
will be frustrated in the approaching one. We
all know that Legislative bodies, State and Ma
t%ional, frequently take the liberty, as a right be-
longing to their Legislative capacity, to be ex-
c~essively liberal, such as voting extra donations
to clerks, and so forth. But by some strange
tatuity, of late years, particularly in this State,
our Legislators, through their acts, have array
ed themselves in opposition to the Press-the
very pillar of their own elevation, and the safe
ty, happiness and power Of the country! Our
reason for this assertion is based upon the zeal
by which members seem to have been infuenc-
ed in their opposition to every measure that have
come up during the last sessions which could
give the least pecuniary advantage to news
paper publishers. In their great anxiety to pre-
vent this, they have lost sight entirely Of the
true interests of their W constituents and the
State, and return home with their pufed-up
vanity and belief that they have at least added
a spoke to the wheel of political economy. We
are warranted in the above remarks, first, from
the low price given for the public printing, which
cannot be executed properly at the rates voted
ut the last regular session, which euen the N. o.
Courier would not have accepted, had it not
been peculiarly situated, with an abundance of
old material, which would answer very we'll for
a patron so poor as the STATE, who could not af-
ford to give a price that would authorize the
purchase of ney type, &c. Secondly, we al
lude to the vote of the last session, relative to
subscribing for city papers for the use of the
Legislature, which particularised those author
lied to be taken. And thirdly, We refer to the
act which those Legislative wise-acres created,
(Which has no precedent in any other State in
the Union) which prevents Sheriffs' Sales from
being published, and upon what ground we
cannot conceive, unless that it might put a few
moro extra dimes in the pockets Of publishers,
and enable them to live less like slaves than
they really do, thus doing a real injury to the
community pecuniarily, while at the same time
the measure was Of that spirit which aimed to
wrest from the people the right bower of their
MORAL and political salvation Ito crush the We
ry means mot devoid Of tact, however) which
could spread forth their own weak and imbe-
Gle acts.
We trust that our brethren of the Press
throughout the State will join us in keeping
a watchful eye upon the next Legislature, and
let condemnation fall unsparingly wherever it
is deserved, without favor or the fear of party. |
1t is high time that something of this kind was
done. For, since Louisiana has been admitted
into the Union, her Legislatures, generally
speaking, have not combined the talent necessa-
ry to control the affairs of a Municipality.