The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1872-03-27

Many years ago Mr.. Henry A. Wise, of
Actomac, in speech in Congress, thanked
God that there was not a newspaper establish
ment in his district. Nor was this, under the
circumstances, a foolish declaration. The
constituency Of Mr.. Wise, shut in from the
turbulent outside world at the lands end be-
tween the Atlantic Ocean and Chesapeake
Bay, were an insular people, and at that day
were not much more disturbed by the political
agitations going on around them than the
Island of Corsica. They had their old colonial
church, their patriarchal society, institutions,
habits and customs; they had their negroes,
their plantations Of tobacco and Indian orn,
boundless supplies Of the finest oy sters, crabs,
fish and game; they had genial climate,
plenty of room for all, no crowding in Of
yankees" with their unwelcome Innovations,
and they were happy people. Their news
papers, supplied from Norfolk. Richmond and
Washington by means Of their fishing smacks,
were not of character to make q newspaper
establishment desirable in Drummondtown.
Wing and democratic, they were filed with
party violence and scandalous personal abuse,
strongly suggesting the idea that to establish
a newspaper in Accomac or Northampton
county would be to make bedlam Of peace
full community. Hence the inspiration Of
Mr.. Wises honest thankfulness that there was
no misunderstanding newspaper in his district
Coming up the seacoast from Accomac to
Manhattan Island, and leaving third Of q
century behind us In the voyage, we find here
community thankful above all things for its
bountiful supply of newspapers Of every de-
scription. We find, however, that the party
press remains as it was, not the agent of har-
truth, peace and charity, but of falsehood,
strife, malice and envy; not an example of
manly strength and honorable rivalry, but Of
childish weakness and pitful personal
revenges. And the most deplorable fact in
connection with this generalization of the
party press is the fact that the very journals
which assume the loftiest pretensions have
reduced to system the meanest devices Of
Misrepresentation and defamation of character.
They hold that in party tactics, as in love and
war, all things are fair; but they forget that
en- honest and intelligent public opinion
rebounds against all dishonorable party
expedients.
Our attention has been called to the subject
from the perusal OF certain card in a morning
contemporary. The editor of an enterprising
anti-Grant weekly, who seems to have fallen
into the mistake, with many others, of a too
md in
having been called to task in certain matter
by morning daily as measuring other peo-
Piles corn in his own bushel, comes out with
an explanation which places the aforesaid
morning daily and its laurels won in the
cause of city reform in anything but flatter-
ing light. The accuser charges that the &C
cused, according to his own showing, must be
s'skulking assassin" because he has assailed
the characters of other men, and has declined
to prove the charges that, again, according
to his own rule, he is disgraced in attacking
private regulations and in then sheltering
himself behind an alias, as in ''certain attacks
upon Barnard, CardozJ and David Dudley
Field, in which these men were accused of
taking brides" &c., and that ''the writer did
not dare to publish these attacks in any quar-
ter where they could be traced to him." The
accused replies that for several years, sub
rosa. he was an editorial contributor to the
very journal from which these charges come /;
that by agreement in this capacity his
personality was kept in the background to the
final cash settlement between the parties, an
alias appearing in the account made out by
the accuser but that the accused never used
this alias for any purpose whatever. Fur.
thermore this defendant says, in reference to
Barnard, Cardozo and D. D. Field, call
need say is that have never heard directly
or indirectly, that any article of mine was
made the subject Of judicial pursuit Or inves
tigation." Finally, he says, call knew OF
could learn, aud fifty times as much, has beer
brought before the Judiciary Committee with
! out my aid or interference .--..
But what does all this, in the end, signify
| A proftless game OH both sides. We simply
refer to this affair as passing illustration O
that no-quarter personal warfare which has
controlled and still controls the party press O.
this country. We grant you that the HERALr
has gone through some hot battles of this
description, and that from the walls of Rome
| it carried the war into Africa. But having
beaten its enemies, having slenced it,
accusers, having fairly conquered our present
satisfactory position, and believing that We
| can hold it without further fighting, we say,
| like General Grant, ''Let us have peace.
Adopting our State motto, Excelsior, LEI
us strike higher. All the world is advanc
ing to higher ground; but the party
press Of the United States does not keeT
pace with the advancing spirit of the age.