Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1860-02-28


AT THE PENNSYLVANIA EDtToRIAL Coz
vExT1oN held at Harrisburg few days ago,
resolutions were adopted against the pro-
posed repeal, by Congress, of the law al
lowing the free circulation OF newspapers
in the counties in which they are printed,
and the free exchanges between editors.
And the Convention did right, although it
may not appear very disinterested on the
part of us, or any other publishers, to say
SO. They did right, because the PROPOSE
ton before Congress, to cut of all mail
privileges, was only in reality a blow in the
dark at the joint interests of publishers
and their readers. There are only few
newspapers in the whole country that could
afford, at the present ridiculously low pri-
ces at which papers are furnished, to keep
mp their exchange lists and pay regular
postage on them. They would, nine
tenths of them, be obliged either to raise
the prices of their papers, or else lop off
all but select few of their exchanges,
in which latter case their news budgets
would necessarily be very meagre. Any
way it is looked at, therefore, it would be
an injury to newspaper readers. Such
proposition is very little and trivial any
how, in its nature 1t is of the Kind known
in domestic economy as "stopping at the
spiggot and wasting at the bung." While
millions are squandered, unchecked, by
government agents; while countless sine
cure offices are every day being invented
in order to make places for partisans, it is
proposed to ''sweep back the sea with the
broom" by hitting blow at the news
papers. ~
To the credit of the Press of the country,
none of them-except one New York pa
per, and that selfish, purse-proud paper
that is altogether ignored by the editorial
fraternity-have lent any countenance to
the project. And it is also to the credit of
the Senate, and especially of Senator Cam
eron, who moved the exception, that they,
while cutting offtheir own fanking privil-
eye, excepted the right of i'free exchange"
to the press This whole fuss about the
franking. privilege to members of Con-
gress, and "free exchange" to the press,
IS mere upstart sham that has very little
in it. Like the excitement on the heels Of
the John Brown raid, there is nothing heal
thy about it. Ithes arisen in consequence
of the alarming conceptions that have
become manifest, and is now urged more
for catch penny party capital on the hus-
tings than anything else. Members vote
for il for fear their competitors will make
handle of it before the people, and not
because they look upon it as an important
measure affecting the real interests of the
country. The ranking privilege is alike a
privilege to the representative aud his
constituents, and with all its abuses is
productive of spread of intelligence
among the people, second only to that of
the common schools. 1t is privilege
that the people would miss much moro
than misrepresentation, for in many thin
lysettled districts it supplies hundreds of
families with almost their only reading
The speeches which they get, are read by
them after their days work is done, and
being always or nearly always interlarded
With the queries and short speeches Of
opposing members; both sides of the top
les oE=the day ere fairly presented. In
this #ay taste for reading is implanted
1aths young minds of hundreds of poor
fanilieC snd they. grow up understanding