American union. [volume] (Morgantown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1855-1859, 1857-10-23
''C0RkJPTION WILL BECOME TIRE
ORDER OF THE day.

- -
to corruption, says tho Washington
American. Those in power desire to
perpetuate their rule, and unless close
lywatched blythe people, will resort to
improper andcorrupt means to accom-
plish their purpose. Openly and shame
lessly awning, as the party nov hav-
ing possession Of the government do,
that Offices and all the pccuniary bene-
fits to be derived from having the en-
penditurc of the public Treasury, arc
the objects Of political contest, and to
be considered as "spoils" won and to
be possessed by the victors, it is net a
matter Of wonder that they mako tAc
most they can out Of them, spend more
than is necessary, but take care that
all such expenditures shall 60 into the
hands of such as serve them, and labor
to perpetuato power in the hands of a
party whose only band, as Mr.. Calhoun
as forcibly as truthfuliy said, is "thc
cohesive power Of public plumber. -
Tho same emineut statesman also said,
with money they get power, and with
power they get money" 1t is thus
that all corrupt and preaigatc men,
banded together for that purpose, obs
tain and retain power over people in.
different to public affairs, and stupid
enough to be cajolcd, dupcd and bam-
boozled, and willing to DO bought with
portion Of their own money.
General jackson once said, that if
certain things continued to be practi-
ced, corruption will become tho order
Of the day" Those practices have not
only continued, but immensely increa-
sed, and corruption has become the
order Of the day. y great cutlery was
made against Mr.. j. Q. Adams Ad.
m;nistration on account Of its alleged
extravaganza, when the public expendi-
ture under him amounted only to Mir-
t3,, millions and half of dollars a
year; whereas they now amount to over
serenity millions of dollars per annum
Blu. do the people cvincc disposition
to look into the expenditures and see
what thcy are fox, how their money
goes, into whose pockets it finds its
way, who puts it there, and for what
purpose? Not at all. The party in
power ere satisfied; they care not
how much money goes out Of the treas
ury, provided those belonging to that
pGrty reap the benefit Of it; and they
are assured by their political papers,
in which they believe as religiously as
they believe the Bible, and some much
more so--that this is an able, upright,
faithful, honest, pure, administration.
But little do they know or care how
much interest those papers have in sus-
tanning those in power, or how much
they are pail for their devotcdncss.
Mr. Clay, when Secretary Of State
under John Adams, having designated
aoae half,a.dozon papers in different
parts Of the United States, to publish
the laws, dropping five Or six Of those
which had published the laws tho year
before, on account Of their vitupcrativc
and mendac;ous abuse Of Mr.. a. and
himself, resolution was introduced in
the House Of Representatives, by Rom
illus NJ. Saunders, Of North Carolina,
calling upon him for his reasons for this
change, and a most furious onslaught
vas made upon him by tho Jacks0n
party in that body, who represented
this act as one calculated to corrupt
and subsidize the press of the Union,
and dangerous to tho liberties Of tho
people
Tho debate upon this subject was
kept up for long time, and from tho
tono Of those who attacked Mr.. Clay
then leaders Of the Jackson, afterwards
the Democratic party, one would have
supposed that direct, open, undisgui-
scd and unblushing attempt had been
made to bribe sundry leading papers,
or purchase their support by the use
Of tho public money. If 80 remember
correctly, thoro were five papers drop
ped and FIVE othcr5 selected in their
stcad, OF the end Of the year, to pub.
lish the laws, and that the compensation
Of each for publishing tho laws, was