The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1859-09-28

trace would have been left of her. Asit,s tho
effects of the accident were confined to the mart
of the ship in the Immediate locality Of the pine
and was scarcely known at the other end Of the
vessel. She is now safer than any other ship
that is, can stand an accident better than any
of them. The best proof of all these good
things about the Great Eastern is the fact that
she might be run between New York and Liver
pool with profit. If that shall come to pass,
there will be more than one Great Eastern in
our waters before many years have elapsed.
We regret to learn, as we do by the Circassian,
that Mr. Brunei, her famous designer, is dead.
JOURNALISM AT WAsHINGToN.-It is not often
that we stoop to notice statement appearing
in any of the Washington journals. They are
all of them so contemptibly managed, and are
ness and ignorance, that they do not deserve
to be recognized as journals at all. Never
theless, occasions may sometimes arise to in
duce us to relax little our rule of treating
them with silent contempt, and that is es-
pecially so when the provocation is furnished
by the paper which holds certain official po-
si,ion in connection with the general govern
ment Such is the case in reference to the fol-
lowing paragraph which we find in the Wash
ington Constitution of Saturday last
THE FABRICATED WASHINGTON NEWS.
We have heretofore cautioned the public against the
absurdy incorrect statements which sent forth from
this city by telegraph aud mail and paraded under
the head Of "Important Washington Ncws' But hence
forth, we presume we may leave these correspondents
for the sensation journals TO themselves to dscred each
other and to bring their whole system of despatches
and "letter writing" from Washington into contempt.
One New York paper few days ago, published what
was pretended to be treasury statement set forth with
the crcumstantiaity that thought sufficient TO gain
for it full credit 1t was circulated far and wide, An
other New York paper contained next day Washington
despatch declaring that there word truth in
the statement One correspondent pretends that he is
authorized by person high 10 office The other affects
to be informed by the chief of the department No
well informed citizen of Washington believes ether and
yet We find in the journals all the country-espe
cay in the papers that boast of their enterprise
tivity-these fanricaons repeated. The dodge Of
the preenous of these correspondents say,
81 am authorized, &c, &c. Who ''authorzeds' who
is Fo ii would be rather embarrassing to either say
The country would wonder at the audacty of these pre-
tenders to exclusive information and the trading chaac
ter of the journals that employ them solely in the of
business, If their real status was duly exposed
The New York paper referred to as having
published pretended Treasury statement was
an obscure and Insignificant contemporary of
ours. The other New York paper that subse-
quently contradicted the statement was the
HERALD Noticing the article in question, we
sent telegraphic despatch to our correspon
dent at Washington, directing him to ascertain
whether there was any truth in the statement.
AS he learned that the figures had been fur
nished by Mr. Clayton, the Assistant Secretary
of the Treasury, he directed his Investigations
to the fountain head. He waited on the Secre-
tary of the Treasury himself and that func-
tionary authorized him to state that there was
not the slightest particle of truth in the article
and that, to use his own language, it was en-
tirely imaginary. An account of this interview
appeared in our dispatches from Washington
five or six days ago.
1t was subsequently asserted that the pre-
tended financial statement was not furnished by
the assertion. There are many modes of obtain
ing information in Washington, although the
journals Of that city do not take the trouble of
finding out any of them The particular sources
from which the two contradictory statements in
question were obtained are now given; and
whatever discrepancy is between them must be
reconcied between the Secretary of the Trea-
sury and his assistant. Mr.. Cobb will certainly
not take back the assurances he gave to our cor
respondent
As to the sneer in which the Constitution in
dulges in regard to the little reliance placed by
the citizens of Washington on the New York
journals, we have only to remark that it is to
those very Journals they have to look to ascer-
tain what is taking place even in their own city
The halfdozen miserable sheets that are pub
lished in that city only manage to exist at all
through the droppings which, in one shape or
another, they pick up around the public Trea-
sury. AS for the Constitution itself, it is owned
by little politician from Pennsylvania, and is
edited by still smaller specimen of politi-
clan from Tammany Hall, who took out his first
degrees in the Office of black republican or
gan. Its uniform ignorance and imbecility are
therefore not to be wondered at.
There is one other point in this matter which
requires to be noticed, and it is this: there are
in the government departments at Washington
some old fogy officials who imagine that all in
formation in regard to the business of their de-
partments belongs especially to themselves, and
not to the public. We protest against any such
ridiculous assumption, and we beg to tell these
fossils of a by-gone age and party, that it is the
duty and the right of the independent press of
the country to obtain from them, as public Off
GERS, such information within their several de-
partments as may be of interest or Importance
to the country at large.
THE TRANsMUNDANE TELEGRAPH.-Major p Ne
Donald Collins. to whose report on the Moscow
and San Francisco telegraph we recently called
attention, goes out by the Persia to-day on his
return to the Amoor river. On reaching st.