The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1853-04-21

can be recommended by the general fairness
and ability with which it is conducted think
that the National Era is the one which, above
all others, should be employed to print the pro-
ceedings and debates of the Senate
But ! am against the whele thing ] am
against adopting this, which will prove TO be
but an entering-wedge, so far as the Intelligen-
Ger is concerned. | have therefore an amend
ment to offer, to strike out all after the word
resolved" and to insert provision that the
publication Of the proceedings and debates in
the Union under the present system shall be
discontinued. / shall not object to the con-
tnuance of the publication in one paper ,
though | am free to say that would be per-
fectly content to discontinue all this paid re-
porting, and to leave the whole business to pri-
vate enterprise, in the perfect conviction that
everything which is said, and which is worth re-
porting, will be reported. Without OBTAINING the
Senate in any further remarks, move to amend
the resolution by striking out all after the word
resolved and inserting the following:
That from and after the present session,
the publication of the proceedings and debates
in the Union be discontinued"
Mr.. BUTLER, Mr.. RUsK, and Mr.. WELLER,
supported the resolution, on various grounds
such as that of courtesy to minority, magma
nimity to an opponent, free and fair discussion,
the necessity Of giving wide publicity to the
debates Of the Senate, &c, &c.
Mr. CHASE. If this were a simple qucs-
ton Of magnanimity, DO not think that should
DO at all behind other Senators but regard
it as question of public duty think that
those who advocate economy in the public
expenditures, and the reform of abuses in the
Government, have an opportunity at this time
to display their sincerity. have not said n
word against the National lntelligencer. Con-
servatism is always respectable. Progress is
sometimes too earnest, too emphatic to be en-
tirely within the limits of what is called by
conservatives, respectability What have we
paid already for this publication | have
shown TO the Senate some items of this expend-
iture, but have not shown them all. We paid
the Union, under the resolution of August 1918,
S49 1918. We paid the Intellgencer, up to
the time whenit voluntarily discontinued its con-
tract, something over $4,000 We have paid
these large sums to those two papers, and now
as the Senator from Iowa justly observed when
the lntegencer has voluntarily discontinued
its contract and we have substituted the Globe
for it, the simple question is, whether we shall
and thus have three corps Of reporters and
three printers OF debates ut the next session in
stead of two
As have said am willing to give up the
whole system as bad experiment. 1t costs
more than it comes to- do not think it de-
srable, in any point Of view, to continue it
and will unite with any gentleman in a prop
ositon to discontinue the whole system Bnt
if we are to have the system at all, certainly
VIC want but one corps Of reporters We do
not want two oorps-much less do We want
three. Every Senator who looks at the report |
Of the proceedings of the Senate in tho two |
papers will find very frequently diversity, but
not very important differences, for think that
the reporters of both of those papers are az
able and accomplished men as their profession
furnishes. What we want, if We want any,
thing to go ont under tho sanction of the SEN
ate, IL an authentic record of their proceedings
to stand to all time and not to be cOntradicted
by reference to anything else. If you want
any system OF reporting, you want one corps Of
reporters only. That will cost you enough, rs
! have shown. Ii will cost you mt least $4,000
a year for the Senate, and | do not know how
much for the House
1t Is very well suggested by friend near
me, MIR. BoRLAND that, however this may be t
with regard to the future, there is no pr0prety {
IN going back and republishng our past de-
bates. Who believes that those speeches will
be read if you print them! The session has
passed away, The interest in the debates is
gone and now, if you print those speeches and
those proceedings at the rate of four dollars
per column, who will read them Hardly any,
body. ! think that tho whole system would
better be discontinued, and that we would bet
ter make II beginning of discontnuance now.
We ought to make beginning with the Union,
because it is the paper which represents the
majority in this chamber, and it is q paper for
which the majority have sufficiently provided
by giving to its proprietor the public printing.
You have given HIM an estate in that, and
there il no reason why another estate should
be given to HIM under tho idea Of publishing
the proceedings of the two Houses
Then, Sir, so far ~ the dissemination of in
formation IL concerned, have shown To the
Senate already that if you wish to place tho
opinions or the arguments Of the members of
this body before the greatest number of read
ers, and especially ii you want to correct
those errors Of opinion which in the Judgment
Of very considerable number of gentlemen
here are dangerously erroneous, there is an
other paper to which your attention ought to
be directed paper which, as | stated before,
has more circulation than all the other papers
Of this city combined The errors OF that pa
per ore scattered throughout the whole coun-
try. Ii is read North; 1t is read South and it
Is road abroad. And, sir, it is read by class
of persons who are thought, by great many
gentlemen here, especially, to need the cor
rection of their judgments. If you want to
correct the Judgments of Wings, is it not far
L. ..,I. a
these Independent Democrats | call them by
their right name, but know it IL the custom
here not to call them 10y that name. Is it not
great deal better to correct their errors. They
want too much retOrm--too much progress.
They are in too great haste, gentlemen think,
TO bring about the millennium. Place your
speeches before them; correct their errors
dlsabuse them OF their false impressions with
regard to these sub jects and thus you may do
very important act towards bringing about
that era of peace, and harmony, and union,
about which we hear so much.
The Senator from Texas Mr. RUsK said
that he thought was in error in saying that
there il great deal of trash which goes abroad
from tho two Houses Of Congress. That may
be. But we know how much goes into the re-
ports which il not Of the slightest consequence
am very far from saying that the deliberate
ly-exprosscd opinion Of any Senator is trash
listen to Senators when they speak with inter-
est and instruction and, so far az their argu-
ments are concerned, | am very far from char
acterizing them ns anything but able, import
ant, and valuable. But SIR, We know how
much OF the most trivial character is continu-
ally recurring here. Who desires that all that
should go abroad 1t does not, allow me to
say to the gentlemen, enhance the dignity of
the Senate and the reputation of this body
has not improved in the judgment Of the coun-
try since this system of reporting was COM
menced And if you continue this system, and
add job after job, reporter after reporter, and
printer after printer, my word for it, it will go
down under tho same public odium under
which constructive mileage and extra compen.