The New York herald., 1875-12-24
Newspaper Statesmen.

class which stays at home, edits its news
paper and minds its own business. The
other is the statesman class, which never
seems to be happy except when away from
home, and feels that its function is to let the
paper run itself while it runs the country.
OF course it is not for US to criticise our
gifted contemporaries, who believe that
journalism is only a means toward politi-
cal end. We read also with interest Of
the occasional appearance of these press
statesmen at Washington and other
places, of their conferences, of their plans
for Saving the country" In one Of the
graphic pictures of the weird and beautiful
correspondent of the World we had delight
ful etching of Light Horse Harry" Waiter
son, the editor of the Louisville Courier
Journal, taking nap ION the sofa in Speaker
Kerrs room, after the fatigues of the day"
with Mayor Wickham beaming on him. Then
we had q convivial picture in the Rubens
manner of Mr. Bowles, editor of the Spring
field Republican, distinguished statesman,
and Mr.. Halstead of the Cincinnati Com
mercidl who has attained the rank Of
nalists whose names are not unfamiliar,
dining at the board of a member of
the Cabinet. Now there is no reason why
journalists should not dine with members of
the Cabinet, especially if the dinner is good
nor should we discuss the matter had it not
come to us in the daily press. We note that
these Cabinet dinners, these pilgrimages to
Washington, produce certain results in the
shape of favorite statesmen who are drought
out" by these journalists. The Cincinnati
movement, which ended so disastrously for
Mr.. Greeley, was a newspaper movement
Every month or two we have q new candi-
date for the Presidency groomed and rubbed
down and trotted on the course. Now it is
Tilden, again it is Bristow and the singular
thing is that these nominations for the Pres
idency, this grooming of favorite candidates,
are as a general thing contemporaneous with
the visits of the newspaper statesmen to
Washington and the dinners around the
boards of aspiring statesmen.
But the favorite business of the newspaper
statesmen is to separate General Grants
Cabinet into sheep and wolves. The Presi-
dent stands between two infiuences-the
wolves, headed by Secretary Chandler, and
the sheep headed by Bristow and Jewell.
Bristow and Jewell, we are told, are always on
the point of being turned out of the Cabinet.
They are 'fghting whiskey rings and post
Office thieves" They are "endeavoring to
purify the administration Grant is ''angry
with them," and they are ''striving to sus-
tain the honor of the country in spite of the
President" So steadily has this notion been
fostered by the newspaper writers that there
is an actual impression in rural communities
that Bristow lives in terror of his life from
Grant because of his war upon the Whiskey
Ring. How far Mr.. Bristow and Mr.. Jewell
are responsible for the impressions thus Gre
ated it is not for US to say, but it looks as
if these two members of the Cabinet are
newspaper statesmen of the same class as
the newspaper generals who became SO
familiar during the war; The newspaper
general was an officer who gave more time
to writing letters to newspapers than to
fighting. He kept correspondents on his
staff. He saw that his portraits were sent
to the illustrated newspapers, and letters de-
scribing his achievements to the daily press.
But the poor devil dropped into retirement
before the war was over and has not been
heard of since The newspaper statesman
spends most of his time on Newspaper
Row. He hangs around the correspondents.
If in the Cabinet he drops mysterious hints
as to his 'desires for reform" and his diff
L
is in the Senate he takes pains to have his
independence proclaimed to the world,
along with his eloquence and virtues
He is diligent in season and out
of season writing letters and sending
packages and dancing around the lobbies
Of newspaper offices. In time the truth
comes out as in the case of Schuyler Colfax,
who was probably the greatest newspaper
statesman that ever lived, and the country
discovers that the carefully puffed prodigy
has been fraud from the beginning, and
not simply a fraud as politician, but cor
rupt, shameless iobber
We believe with grand old Doctor Johnson
that nothing is better than to purge the soul
Of can't Let us commend this advice to
Washington correspondents. This cant busi-
ness from Washington has become great
nuisance. Correspondents are men like all
of us-open to courtesies and gracious man
ners. 1t is not surprising that they should
give half column to the newspaper states
man who betrays secrets to them and plies
them with champagne, and ignore the mod
est, retiring statesman, who does not know
them after six introductions. But when that
ordeal comes which tries statesmen as we'll
as soldiers tho champagne giving officer is
nearly always as much of . humbug as
Schuyler Colfax, while the distant, silent
official is the real man after all.
MIR. Pierrepont on the Case Of Law