New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1852-01-05
r1o,.ufh md hi. Fee-.

discourse On the ore SIDE Is Ituotp'c' bu'y'
Justice. Humanity; on the other Selfish
ness. Prudence, PreceGeLt, txpediency
and tia, the latter is inyinciby shy of COM
ing TO close action with the former. In
spesking of discussion, we DO rot refer to
the oatribes Of the Courier and Enquirer,
which has been repeatedly convicted OF the
orossest falsifications Of History aad the
most imBudent denialS OF the authenticity
Of official documents in its thlck-and-thln
advocacy OF Austrian Despotism and Cos
sack domipation. The American People
are never quite 20 sure that their natural
IMPULSE Is the night one as when they hnd
that paper going its length against them.
Neither do we take into account the wretch
cd clubbing and shufing whereby parcel
of third-rate attorneys in Congress have
labored to disgrace the American name and
have succeeded to the extent OF covering
their little selves with enduring infamy.
But we refer TO the respectable and really
influential opposition of journals Of charac-
ter like TIE National IntehgeHcer. 1t
seems to us that these habitualiy begin the
discussion at the wrong end, and devote
their energies TO showing that we cannot
do all that Kossuth requires of us in behalf
of foully enslaved Hungary, when the true
inquiry is, What ougM we to do 2
Whether kossuth asks too much or too
little is quite a secondary consideration.
Let US sum up the principles which seem
to us to have been immovably established
by kossuth's Speeches, and see what can
ne said in opposition to them. They are
|. There is such thing as Public Lar,
which every Nation is morally bound to
obey, and which none can disregard with
out warning on the rights and menacing the
existence of other Nations;
,. THIS Public Lar of the World IS nee
eSSGrily under the protection and guardian
SKIP Of ALL cicii:ed PowerS, so that any
one which suffers it to be violated without
resistance or protes. is guilty of in6delity
to its duties as wei as to its own vital In
terests;
3. The conspiracy Of Russia ruth AUS
trid ,chereby Hungary ,ods crushed and en-
Shared WAS such a rioiatlOn Of Pubic Law,
which other Nations, and especially Free
Nations, were morally bound to resist, and
a repetition of which, in the face of such
protests as these Nations are bound to make,
would be a fragrant outrage on the Laws of
Nations and the Rights of Mankind.
These airmatons are not barren alb
stractions-thev relate directly to our du'
ties and our honor as Nation. Are they
true or false? The journals which lead
tie opposition to Kossuth are bound to look
them in the face If they are true, the fact
that they are at variance with certain pre-
possessions, traditions, injunctions, if it be
fact, may come up for consideration in It's
order, but not at the outset. Let us regard
Truth and Duty first, Authority and Pre-
cedent afterward.
ible of kossuth's opponents, our mission
: is to propagate Republicanism by precePt
and example, not by cannon and the bayo-
met Tue-mOst true Who Except
perhaps the Flibustiers) ever contended
that We should 90 10 war for the propaga
ton of Freedom We are not affirming
the duty OF going to war at all-let that
come up in its order. But how idle al
pirate of the influence of our example while
the Despots are allowed to combine unre-
sisted and trample the life out OF any Peo-
pie that is impelled by our example to shlyer
ats chains Naples, so long ago as 1920,
was impelled by our example and kindred
Influences to throw of the horrible yoke of
her tyrant at once, Austria, as the instru-
ment of the Holy Alliance sent an army
thither, put down her people, crushed her
Constitution and restored her despot TO alb
solute power Spain soon after tried alike
experiment in the path pointed out by our
example. and was likewise crushed by a
French army. doing the viii of the Holy
despots In neither of these cases was the
King deposed by the Peoples uprising, bu.
simply required to govern with some regard
TO the Nation wishes and vital el!-5eing
This Despotism would rot allow, and 50 con-
spired to put It down by the strong hand.
But when a similar conspiracy was on foot
with regard to the South-Amerlcan Re-
publics. our Government said, Moths
IS coming too near our own borders-we
cannot permit it'-and the Despots de-
sisted. War was not incurred by the Moa-
roe declaration. but Peace was secured