Southern sentinel. [volume] (Plaquemine, Parish of Iberville [La.]) 1848-1858, 1857-04-11
THE PRESENT.

| State when it was necessary and urgent for the
people to forget for a season their political par
t~iaIities and prejudices, that they might the bet
ter go to work in correcting the evils of the
past, and placing the affairs of the State in a
sound, heaIthful and economical condition, that
time is the PRESENT. 1t is the present, be-
cause the pecuniary affairs Of the State were
| never perhaps, "within the memory of the old
est inhabitant," conducted or managed with
less wisdom and economy, and we might say
honesty because an institution, which is our
safeguard and which should be our pride, is
allowed to perish through neglect, while igno-
rance and crime are springing up out of its
ruins, and while thousands of the peoples
money are recklessly Iavished on unimportant
or unworthy objects; because of the mismans
agement of The public lands, which should
have been the basis for the support and ads
vancemeDt of a wise and liberal system Of Ed
ucation-if not to the protection from over
flow because of the low and corrupt cons
dition of our General Assemblies, in which,
for Il number of years past up TO The 10Th of
last month, growing worse apparently no
man Of any intelligence could fail to have dis
cerned a reckless disregard of public duties
and the mockery of legislative oaths, the ig-
norance and impudence congregated as repre-
sentatives of the people, the attention given
to matters of no interest and passing silently
over others Of the most vital Importance, val
liable time thrown away in political haggling,
and last though not least the extravagant waste
of the peoples money in thousand ridiculous
ways. Because of these and a multitude of
other evils and vices in the affairs of the State
which we could ferret out, had we the patience
and could afford the space to publish, the PRE-
SENT, trumpet.tongued, calls upon the people
to throw off the shackles of Partially and pre-
JUDGE of every description, as well as the
trammels of habit, and declare that reforms
ton must and shall take place!
It is to the Democratic party then that We
are forced 10 look to for this needful and ur-
gent reformation. The strength which it has
invariably evidenced, and the spirit manifested
by its adherents, and we may add too their lib
crafty, force upon US the belief, whether plea
SAINT or not, that success will still follow the
efforts of that party. What nobler ambition
then could animate it, in the direction of pub
lie affairs in the Legislature and every branch
Of the State government, than to merit by its
acts the appreciation of all classes of men
The first object of the Democratic party, in
this needfuI reform, should be the formation of
a Legislative body composed of men taken
from the very heart of the working and busi>
ness communicated who have regulations
for probity Of the highest order, who were ne
yer known to be engaged in political wrang,
ling, and who, it is known, have conducted
their own private affairs with system, economy
and success-men, in fine, who have worked
for, and who know the value of, money--who
knowing but little of a ''game of draw" are
very apt, when at the capital, to seek that res
pose which nature requires, and be at their
posts next morning at the proper hour 10 per-
form those duties they have sworn to perform.
and which should be the proudest and most
solemn duties known to man.
Yes, we appeal to the Democracy to step
forward in this great reform, so urgent, SO
necessary to State progress and State honor,
because that party is greatly in the ascen~
dant, in the State as well as in Iberville, Ito
which parish our remarks are mainly directed)
ard what of honor or degradation is connected
with the management of public affairs, will
brighten or blacken its career.
Here in this parish where the American par
ty is irretrievabIy broken and dissolved. the
scattered columns of that party will only be
seen at the polls, we are sure, when good and
able men are presented by the Democrats for
their suffrage, and they will be ready, we are
equally confident, to applaud Democratic ac-
ton in the General Assembly when that action
becomes worthy of the appreciation of honest
men. We do not say that there has not been
such action we only regret that there are
many evidences to the contrary--such as vast
ing the public funds in bonuses to clerks, run.
ners, pages, (already paid like princes,) giving
exhorbitant sums for work which could be done
just as we'll for half the money-and god
knows what else.
As for ourself we shall stand an indepen-
dent Sentinel upon the watch-tower, giving