The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1867-12-23
WASHINGTON, De-. II, 1867.


city, permit me to claim your indul
gence in few words of personal ex-
PLANTATION. Most of the numerous
corps of correspondents, who repre-
sent the leading journals " of the
country at the National Capital, are
employed for some specific purpose,
to which the collection and transmits
sion Of news and other duties of legi-
innate journalism are entirely second
airy and subordinate. Macy are but
the creatures Of distinguished Sen
atOrs, members of Congress, or other
officials, who procure Committee
clerkships or similar sinecures, and
having installed their prOtegeS in their
fat places at the public crib, expect
them to pay for their fodder by
writing up" their illustrious patrons.
The value Of printers ink, judiciously
employed, is getting to be pretty
thoroughly understood. 1t had many
illustrations during the war, and
made splendid regulations for
many officers who never knew how to
. set squadron in the field" I have
known it to adorn with stars the
shoulders of a Colonel who was al
ways taken violently sick, and had to
be helped to the rear, at the first
sound Of the enemys artillery, albeit
he was robust and jocund till that
fearfully Ominous sound smote his
ear. Equally potent in the civil de-
partment of political affairs; it has
lifted from an obscurity, that nature
intended should be eternal, many an
aspiring member of the Damphool
family, and set him in the high
places of the nation"
But subserviency to this sort of pa
tronage is not the only impediment to
Independent journalism, as illustrated
by Washington correspondence. Not
only must these hunkies continually
blow the horn of their patrons, but
the poor devil who is thus owned and
possessed must be equally ready to
write down" any and all whose
rising fame threatens to dim or ecliL
that of his master. And when, su-
peradded to these functions, his in
structions require him to trim ahd
mutilate news" to suit political. To-
cal, editorial and financial preiudices,
preferences and interests, it is evident
that the mass of special correspon-
dence" from this political cauidron
is of little value to any reader who
clings to an old-fashioned prelilec-
ton for facts.
With this brief review of the field.
/ am prepared to adopt the Language
of the Pharisee: Lord, [ thank
Thee that am not as other men
are" nor even as these poor peGders
of ink and brains. Indebted to no
man for place." cramped BY no
instructions from the managing
editor, and Lot caring a continen-
tai whether my letters find a place |
in your columns or are tumbleI into
the waste basket, [ propose to speak I
Of men and things" as | find hem. /
Fealty to party is, by many, sup
posed to imply implicit confidence in,
and blind following of, those who have !
arrogated to themselves the name of |
" leaders" Excuse me if [ shall fail |
to see 1t in just that light, and shall /
occasionally question the plenary in /
SEPARATION of men under whose leader (
ship the Union party has travelled /
quite too far on the route that leads 7
from Majority to Minority.
The Republican delegation, in the I
House, from Indiana, are beginning
TO comprehend the fact that, with the +
exception Of Washburn, they misrep- I
resented their constituents In their /
action on the impeachment resolu- /
ton. Some of them were warned to
- go slow on that matter, and mott
fed by dispatches from home that,
with no better grounds to go on than
the majority report of the judiciary
Committee. the thing couldn't be kept
up to the dignity of tragedy, but was
rapidly descending to broad farce
Charity requires the supposition
that they acted according to their
convictions of duty, but [ venture
the prediction that, if the vote could
be taken over again, every delegate
from Indiana wolld be found among
the noes" The boldness with
which the leading Republican organ
of their State opposed impeachment
the dag after the dectStUe U0te Uds
tuken, has helped on the work of re-
pentance. a EEI
1 do not mean to imply that there
Is any better feeling towards the Act
ing President He has sinned too
deeply against the party aud the
country to be forgiven; but that the
committee failed to make a case
against him, and presented an i'm
measurable mass of Irrelevant verdi
age, Is patent to every man IN the /
House who Is not crazed with preju-i
dice. That man of so much legal I
acumen as Gov. Boutwell, should have !
staked his reputation on such con-
test is the wonder of all WHO know
him; that he should be followed BY |