The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1872-07-06
rHE DUTY OF A PUBLIC JOURNAL.

THE DUTY Uf a fUbhlU JUUhNhh |
Several of our Republican friends i'll
this parish have approached us re-
Gently and asked lis to abandon the
cause of Liberal Republicanism and
support the nominees of the Philadel-
mia Convention. The reasons given
for urging us to adopt such course
have been these: l. That nearly all
the colored voters of the parish Will
cast their ballots for Grant and Will
son. and the colored voters being
largely in the majority, will OF course
carry the parish against the Liberal
Republican ticket. 2. That the old
est and most bitter Democrats OF the
State are supporting the Liberal move
ment. in the hope that its success Will
give them the political ascendency IN
Louisiana and thus enable them to
expunge from the statute books the
laws that have been passed by Re
publican Legislature granting equal
public rights and privileges to all
men. without distinction of race or
color. Our friends very properly as
sumed that we would not join in a
movement if we could be convinced
its success would achieve such a re-
suit
The answer we have uniformly re-
turned to the behest and arguments
giyen above is this That we are sat
isfied the triumph of Liberal Republi-
can principles and candidates at the
coming election will mark the COM
mencement of a new era of prosperity
for the State and nation by securing
the Inauguration of honest and eco
nomical government; that, therefore,
when we espoused the Liberal cause
we did not pause to consider whether
it was likely to prove triumphant III
the United States, State of Louisiana
or Parish of Ascension; that, having
Joined the movement from n sincere
devotion to, and determination to up
hold, it's enunciated principles, we are
willing to ascribe the same pure mo-
tives to our co-workers i'll the cause,
whether they have heretofore been
classed as Democrats or Republicans.
There may be a few men who would
be base enough to stultify themselves
by assuming q belief in Liberal Repub-
lican principles which they do not
feel in order to attain power to enable
them to violate those very principles,
but we can not and will not believe
that this class of men form even a re-
spectacle minority of that portion of
the people of this State or nation who
are striving for the election of Greeley
and Brown.
We are pursuing the course which
we deem it the duty of every public
journal to do; that is, advocating
what we deem to be just and right,
and endeavoring to instruct ignorance
rather than follow in its wake because
it is the ruling power at the ballot
box. We are not working for office,
and our friends may as well make up
their minds to that fact now as any
time, and not ask us, because a ma
) iority of the uninstructed voters OF
; Ascension parish are supposed to hold
: views different from our own, to de-
sert the glorious cause of Liberal Re
publicanism and its standard bearer
honest Horace Greeley, a man whose
ability, whose honesty, whose sincere
devotion to the welfare of his country
we have been taught to respect and
admire from earliest childhood.
J The New Orleans National Repubtt-
can says this; 'AThe DoNALDsoNvILLE
: CHIEF is the best printed and worst
edited country paper sustained by
2 by plumber in the State. 1t belongs to
the Yarmouth clique Gratified, as
e we are, by the compliments paid to the
9 topographic and editorial departments
! of our journal, we have not the heart
to take the National to task for the
little characteristic inaccuracies con-
. tanned in the foregoing extract The
CHIEF is neither sustained by plundel
nor owned by :" the Warmoth clique
whatever corporation that may be-
q but how could we expect the Ma.
. fioDcI Rpnub1ienn tn s1y opv+lino