The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1850-04-14

appears TO be very worhily engaged in attempts TO
abolish the barbarous practice Of punishment BY the
scourge His efforts, however, will fail Of produe-
ing any good reeult, unless he can awake Congress
10 some action on the subject. The practice Of fog
gang rs as old as the time Of Cyrus, and was in
duiged IN to compel the Ariatcs to go to battle
from that time 10 the present, has been the dis
graceful policy Of several countries TO keep up this
miserable barbaric custom. In the French navy il
docs not exist; but in the English army and navy,
il has yet its supporters. Among others, Field Mar
shall the Duke Of Wellington, maintains the ncces-
sity fo~ sustaining this cruel without which,
he contends, il would be impossible to maintain
wholesome discipline. We have some small imi-
tators of the Iron Duke in this country also; but
the whole system is no repugnant to the general
feeling of the people Of this country that Congress
could be well employed in adopting some new 20
icy with respect TO punishment in the naval service
When the new cabinet comes in, may hope for
| II commencement in this reform.
We are aware of the arguments used in defence
of the practice; but they grounded upon nothing
but oldtraditons, recordedhy IIerodotus and Coro-
ner Wakley of London; and the sooner they are ex
Ploded by such liberal views govern the discipline
of the French navy, the beneficial will it be to
our seamcn, and the creditable to country.
Who that has been stripped and dashed by the To-
rarii Of man-of-war, has not had his moral sense
wholly blasted by the degrading infection Who
that has thus suffered by the lash, does not feel
that custom is heartless tyrant, and that people
who support such tyranny are participators in the
act! II is in vain to hope, from wholly disgraced
man, bowed down with the infamy of such punish
ment, anything less than bitter and dangerous
contempt for laws and the people who sustain them.
And above all, the genius of institutions is op-
posed to such degrading barbarity which was the
characteristic Of Rome in its most degenerate days.
The Romans, however, did not permit the mischief
Of the system to take effect upon society. They
followed up their whppings with the cruci6xon of
their vctim--as did the Jews, also, recorded in
the history Of Jesus Christ.
That We should SO long have tolerated such an |
evil. is astonishing Yet We must not despair. Our
legislators must examine the eubject, and adopt |
plans Of more wholesome character for discipline
in the navy. Men are always more readily led |
than driven-and humane and liberal kind of |
punishment for characterization would result in ele-
waiting the character Of our scamen. and diminish |
much the opportunities for exercising severity. |
Let Congress get rid Of the numbering old cabinet |
that does good and much evil, and then give |
half an hour to this subject. Throw away the |
cat-o'-nine tails
TonAcco AND BLAcxGUARDrsx.--Phlos
Greeley, the busy socialist has applied his usual
logic TO demonstrate that tobacco and black guard
ism result each from the other. blackgu he
says is naturally a of tobacco, and user Of |
tobacco, necessarily, blackguard. The truth Of |
his areumen, is great that of most his articles
on political and social subjects Our definition Of
BLACKBOARD does not necessarily imply, however,
that he must tobacco. When we find man
eIclaming, You lie, you villain, basely wilfully,
lie we know him 10 be a BLACKBOARD. When we
zee man with dirty shirt. his coat collar inva-
nably put out Of shape, his irowsers htched up /
over his muddy, COW hide boots or behold him at
public table, gulping down everything before him,
like an animal who really belongs TO pen, then |
we suspect the BLACKBOARD IL before Us. And when
we Observe man with old greasy hat, wearing |
q thread-barc, white coat for years, and, with |
money enough, preaching about Associations Of
labor and on giving employment to tailors, hatters
and seamptrcsees, to whom he seldom gives any
other encouragement than empty words, then we !
invariably think Of political ckguardism and
impcetur. In fact, we well convinced that
there are more ways than one OF o. being up to
snuf," and that We have practical illustration of
il in our contemporary every day.
The blast Of the Tribune socialist however ~ !
not against the tobacco itself, any more than was
the "countcr-blast' of King James, Of Scotland. !
II If another attack upon the South. Its purpose !.
to injure the sale Of Southern staple and we
shal expect cotton to be shown TO be useless and
dangerous article Of these days. and by similar
logic and illustrations The philosopher will pro-
badly assert that he has only used limited quantity
Of shirt, he has, that an inch of segar has been
a life-do~e for bis weak nerves. To such shifts
does political DISAPPOINTMENT DIVE Between
the Weed OF Albany and the weed OF Southern
plantations, the modern Horace is RAPIDLY pcrishing
and while he holds TO the former, with Seward
20 help him. he IL IN danger Of being destroyed by
the essential oil Of the latter, whicn has given
him some severe fits Of the palsy recently. Smoke
that!
APPOINTMENTS BEYoRE TIE SEyArE.--Thoae
highly excited and anxious gentlemen who4e
names are before the Senate for confirmation.
should prepare their minds for following their old
pursuits. Seward has coniriyed TO hold up bags Of
pap before their eycr, but they will &c, none of
them. The rickeity cabinet will tumble 10 pieces.
and the wings will come forward and attend to the
wants Of new batch Of applications. which will ,
relieve the Senate from much trouble They de- 4
spached Austrian Webb's business pretty quickly, I
bu, they will have le-s trouble with the other APP
pcintments There v room for great hopes. The 4