New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1853-03-30
be held in this City, bat not adapted to sustain

be held in this City, bat not adapted to sustain
European faith in Republicanism.
Take our embassy az London, for example,
such IS We saw t under the last Democratic
Administration. Wehad just arrived in London
and we're looking out Of our hotel window, when
amacnifcent carriage drove up to shop on the
opposite side Of the way. Powdered foOtmen
and funkeys adorned the box and stand. This,
thought We, is some grand parsonage who, true
TO the Internal traditions of Norman barbarism,
finds bis honor in the degradation and brutal
izatOn of bis species, by affixing on them the
mark of degradatiOn-picking out the nOblest
looking children of toll and dressing them up
as prisoners of war once were, whose livery
marked their loss Of liberty. But casting our
eyes on the coach panels, what did We behold
A painting of the American Eagle,with shield
round its neck, looking Ike chicken pre-
maturely tied to a gridiron Ii was the cOsch
of our Democratic representative near the
Court Of ST James So, TOO, in Paris, the
American Eagle is now Prostituted to the VII
est of uses, to illustrate the liyeries and cock
cd hats Of Frenchmen, who are thus degraded
so low that by the French law they cannot ac-
cept the ribbon of the Legion of Honor. And so
throughout the material adornments Of the en-
bassy, down to the secretary or clerk, have as
a general rule been of the same damnabe pat.
tern.
The instant any mere partizan politician at
tains 70 Office abroad, as the reward for ser
vices and intrgues at home, he apes, SO far as
$4,000 year or private fortune will allow,
all the fantastic corruptions Of the Couyts Of
Europe, and utterly extinguishes the moral in
fuence which we might have had by represent
ing in Europe the simplicity and sublimity Of
our political system. The pretentious airs and
graces of these officials is the more ridiculous
when it is recOllected how little they have to
do, and that their idea " Of representing the
dignity of the country is entirely fitted to the
mental scope Of Court tailor. upholsterer
and carriage-maker
Mr.. Barney recently published letter de-
failing a conversation which he had with Mr..
Webster. 1t seems that he proposed TO Mr.
Webster to accept the place of Minister to ST.
James, to which the reply was, that the salary
was insufficient to sustain the dignity of the
office. and that Mr. Lawrence spent $4,000
a year in it, Mr. Barney rejOined that Mr.
Webster's friends would gladly raise that sum.
But the latter Indignantly rejected the prefer
Now this anecdote does not startle us.
Our "great men" are not imbued with
transcendental philosophy and therefore we
are not surprised that Mr. Webster's idea of
sustaining the dignity of American represent
alton abroad was opening restaurant and
dance-bouse for strangers and his hungry and
frisky countrymen.
The salaries of our Ministers have been
raised from $4,000 to $4,000 in the four
chief courts of Europe We view this fact
with profound melancholy. The sympathies
shown to the Republican cause by our
Representatives in Europe could not be more
bald than they have been from lSi5 to the
present time We expect little, therefore,
from the men we shall send abroad. Bat that
our dignity should be resolved into so much
poverty in livery, so much rank or puppyism
eating, drinking and dancing at the national ex-
pense, moral and pecuniary, is a subject for
dreary contemplatiOn.