Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1874-03-27


One by one the roses fa1e. IL Il Hinton this
tine. We have always revered Hinton. In
Jalse and wicked wsrld, where much that was
fair outside was all fouiness and Tammanynes,
~rhin. We relied on Hinton. He was our guild
ing star. He denounced corruption and venal-
lily through several independent newspa ers OF
which be was correspondent As We read, we
felt that IL was good to have . Hinton. He stood
up as a rock az ainst the waves OF sea of fraud.
In nIdIpg out who was the newest Congressional
erbe- taker, who was the last ring maker, what
Cabinet officer had committed the latest petty
larceny. Hinton WAS the most enterprising on
HE Row. To adopt the learned technology OF
the profession, he scooped 'em all. Buell. or
Deacon Gibson or Dom Piatt never scooped q
thief that Hinton didn't scoop q thiefer. We
IN state Of Elm and misery; We knew by the
Bible that David lin q somewhat hasty manner,
IL Is true said that all men are lars but IL was
chiefly through Hinton that we learned that
every American CONGRESSMAN will sell his vote
and every Cabinet officer will steal. Dom ard
Buell. and the rest of them did their best,
Hinton was so severe against men who
did net earn the salaries the public paid them.
He Was so indignant that Senators would crib
soap, candles, oootjscks, syringes and things.
He down on chsyisins who surrepti-
tiously had their bibles and prayer books
charged mp as stationery. He was so out of all
aries paid them, and only worked six hours a
cay He was so high tOned-Hinton WAS Such
giltedeed correspondent. So vigorous. Not
sfrald OF taking the responsibility. So yirtuous
We knew he was virtuOus, because he said So
and he ought 10 know. We knew IL also because
be was 20 displessed with people who were not
NirtuOu=. We knew il because you couldn't fool
bim-he would sagaciously discover yillainy in
men rhJ bad covered 1t up with a whole life OF
blsmeless living. We would have bet our bot
tom dollar on Hinton-if We had had bottom
dollar. We were ready to count that day lost
hose low descending New York Sun looked
not on some dirty action done-or what was the
same thing, charged by Hinton to have been
done.
But now, as the poet says, oh how changed,
The Washington CdPitai-DOnn Piatt's Capt.
toi-pub..shes an affidavit by Hinton, in which
Hinton charges that Hinton has been drawing
a salary IS clerk OF the Pension Office for wears,
during which he has never done q days work in
Hinton swears that Hinton has ORA wn pay az the
rate Of Al 200 year for work he has ne yer done,
from the 18th OF June. 1871, through the Prssi-
Dental election of 1872 We have such coah-
dence in Hinton that would have believed il
II he hadn't sworn to il, but perhap il was best
70 put IL in the form Of an affidavit. Hinton has
grown so us,d to charging every human being
with corruption thst there may be persons who
will hardly believe him on oath, even when he
swesrs that Hinton stole two years salary from
the government. We believe him on his own
naked word 10 that effect We have been a
faithful reader OF his letters for so long that we
are reacy TO believe him without an Aft 1avit,
no matter how mean q thing he might charge
himself with doing. He has been among those
who have taught US 20 believe that men who
have had honors piled upon them by the people
are sll corrupt at heart. He has taught, with
all Of his kind, that men whose names should
have been handed down 10 the ages among the
most illustrious Of earth have been mean and
soTdId, and b2ye smutched their great names
with such dirt-such pitiful and low baseness OF
nisdoing-ss would have been uncomfortable in
the wors. OF mankind. He has helped the whole
class of which he Is a member to destroy all
faith in honesty, int gritty or purity in pubic
life. He has joined in teaching our young men
that IL Is only scoundTeiism that wins the hon
ors OF American free government. He has
helped 10 degrade and make infamous that
public service where alone in ali the earth the
people are their own rulers, and have the right
OF free choice. He individually has used the
columns CT several lar gely- circulated Journals
in throwing dirt on the American name, defl-
ing lis own borrowed nest, The is an English
man, ard doing his worst 70 make self govern
neEt ocieus among all nations. He has helped
10 furnish carrion for every vulture among the
foreign journals which have made the Ameri-
can hame 10 stink with foul oiors OF suspicion
ana distrust and calumny.
And yet, he is only. alter all, poor little in
significant clerk, fraudulently drawing a sIi-
being with as inc q comprehension OF the deli
cate and terIible power OF tie machinery he
MAS enabled by an inscrutabls dispensa.ion of
Providence to handle. as q monkey in charge
of the sslar systemic OHIO STATE Journal.
This, IL must be conceded, is pretty fai,hfal
picture CT q certain type of so called sinde-
pendent" correspondents, though Hinton is by
no means the worst specimen of the class. Most
of them carry on their work Of OBTAINING char
acter with a sort Of bitter, morose malignity, as
II looking on mankind in the light of personal
enemies; but Hinton filings his mud at public
and private character with the airy cheerful
ness of Skimpole; and, like that character,
seems astonished to find that body can OBJ
iect to being villifed in this buoyant style. The
accuracy OF Gen. Comly's photograph Of the
independent correspondent" Is illustrated by
the fact that the name of any one OF some half
dozen others could be substituted for Hinton's
without damaging the likeness. They alike are
engaged in the work of destroying faith in God
or man; in public or private virtue; in the
honor Of man or woman; and they alike have
about ~ fine . comprehension Of the delicate
ard terrible power Of the machinery they are
enabled by an inscrutabe dispe nsation OF Prov
idence to handle as . monkey in charge Of the
solar system.