Daily evening star. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1852-1854, 1854-06-15
A POSITIVE EVIL.

steamers news" coursing over the country
with lightning speed after the arrival of each
succeeding Cunarisr at Halifax, or Collins
liner at New York, Is invariably full of the
grOssest and most palpable Interpretations
of the truth Of occurrences on the other side of
the ocean, which is made plain to US on sub
scquently examining, at our leisure, files Of
the English and French papers coming over
by the same arrivals. we have lately taken
pains to ascertain how these bogus American
telegraphic accounts originate.
Now, We find that the reporters, in their
haste to be first with the news, are in the abit
of contenting themselves with sy nopsis cnlled
from the columns of Winner Smiths Liver
pocl) European Times. That nominal jour
nal is a mere rehash Of the columns of the
Liverpool Advertiser, which, in turn, 10 but
rchash cooked by provincial hands, and,
therefore, ignorautly bungled; for the English
press out Of London is but concentration of
English prejudices and national vanity of the
one-sided accounts Of affairs for which the
Lordou Nescs long since became notorious
That journal, while protesting liberalism, is
proverbid for being the most bitter and vio-
lent reflex Of vulgar English prejudices Its
foreign news is always rinctured with its
manias or phobias. If it announces that an
English expedition lie sure to succeed, when
accounts from II are received, the Vsws swears
stoutly that it has been successful, though all
the world besides may be aware that the &C
counts out Of which it twists such impressions ,
really teach the reverse. Indeed, Gas true "a
the foreign advices of the Neps,'' has come to
be by-Hord in London newspaper circles, TO
designate accounts in which no man of com
mon sense will place confidence We are in
duced to cali American public attention to
the source from which these bogus telegraphic
stcrics come, because repeatedly of late, they
have been found to be fagrantly afar off from
the truth.
They are about as true as the Washington
Affairs statements flor facts made up by the
New Ycrk Herald, under the little of "the
Herald for California or some such claptrap
name. 1t will be recollected that about once
in every fourteen days the Herald gathers
such budget of its roorhacks from this city
by mail and telegraph, TO be imposed upop
the green 'uns On the Pacific, coast for yerita.
BILE truth. As there, az well as on this side.
people exclaim Of its wo1ders-sOh its merely
q story Of the HeTaLds"-that journal does
comparatively little harm by its labors of this
sort
The American telegraph reporters, however,
by trusting the Liverpool Times implicitly,
do much more mischief, as they lead the un-
Initiated to shape their business engagements
upon the presumption that their " first accounts
of the steamers news" are all true. not one in
thousand seeing the contradictions to be
found in the London Times, Ga!itgnani, and
other reliable nsrs papers
This system Of telegr aph- reportorial heed.
less misrepresentation of occurrences + as been
rendered most glaring by the events of the
current European war. Wilmer Smith are
eternally prating about English, French and
Turkish victories and, of course, so are our
telegraphers. Up to the present time, how.
ever, every one Of them have turned out to be
matter of moonshine Whatever we may think
Of the war, it is undeniably true that every
account concerning 1t so far telegraped to the
American press has proved to be erroneous.
What occurred before Odessa, and Sir Charles
NaPler's alleged victories, &C., furnishing sig
nal examples Of the correctness of our position.
re advise the American reading public
hereafter 70 wait for mail accounts Of the news
rom ADr0ad' before croditing foreign news, if
they Wish to escape being sadly bitten.