The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1878-12-05
INDEPENDENT JOURNALISM.
The Marshall Herald SAYS:

The Marshall H-raH says:
That there sre blind, partisan Jour.
mails, such as described by the STATES
MAN, is possible. Il 50, they are few
, and far between. The rejection vii
not apply to Texas, either at present
or for thirty years past. There never
has been time when the Democratic
, papers of Texas hesitated to criticise
the course of the party or It's leaders
when the occasion called lor such ami.
madversion.
The pateFusl ancestor OF Texns jour-
nalism continues in the same earnest
vein to say:
In 1882, the Democratic organ at
Washington, under the direction of
Amos Kendall, on more than one occs-
sion took issue with the party ard
with the President himself, and Gen.
Jackson found it necessary to recede
from and essentially modify the views
expressed in his South Carolina procls-
nation. Mr.. Ritchie, of the Richmond
Enquirer, and subsequently of the
Washington Union, all his life q partI-
san editor, never hesitated to speak
out boldly wheD duty and patriotism
required it.
louisiana owes its Liberation. says the
Herald, to its bold partisan newspapers,
that crystalized public sentiment, and
consolidated its people in open resist
Ance TO tyranny and corruption. Prom
inent among these are the Shreveport
Times and New Orleans Democrat,
that have never hesitated to speak out
plainly in opposition to prominent
men. the Legislature, and the Cover
nor bimself when an occasion called
| for it.
In all this we concur. But when the
sage editor of the Herald, approving
as he does the independence of Richie
and Kendall and of the admirable Mr..
Hearsey, editor of the New Orleans
Democrat, formerly of the Times, in
the same breath denounces tbs STATES
MAN because of its ''independence.
The Herald, In all this twisted, coutra-
dictory TRADE, intends to condemn the
following from the STATESMAN:
Right or wrong, true or false, wise
or unwise, a fellow must always swear
that the party Is right aud its candi-
dates the truest, bravest and wisest
the world ever saw. The party-lead-
ers and whipperS-in and consumers of
public plunder love such newspaper,
but the people will not have or read IT,
and will not believe it. Therefore the
unlimited success of free thinking.
rutb.elling newspapers everywhere
and therefore the wretched poverty and
impotency of unwavering and blind
party organs.
The Cincinnati Commercial, st. Louis
Republican, Philadelphia Times, Spring
field (Iass.) Republican and New York
Herald are the most powerful aud pros
porous newspapers in the United States.
They confess allegiance to no party.
Very certainly they belong to none and
obey none. Some of these papers are
more and others less inclined to De-
mocracy, but they enter no party eau
Gus or convention, and deny the power
of any such body to prescribe Their
platform or direct their course. When
candidates and platforms appear the
newspaper, like a private individual
who thinks for himself, makes its
choice and advocates -coElemnF.
OF such newspapers and such people
the Marshall Herald, with inconceiya-
BILE inconsistency, says:
Whenever a journal talks in that
strain it is an evidence to rejecting
men that its conductors are either
grossly ignorant and have no fixed
views and principles, or that they are
unreliable, and perhaps mercenary.
Such newspaper is uncertain in Its
utterances. 1t is one thing to-day and
another Tomorrow. Processing to be
Democratic, it has Lo hesitancy in
counting the opposition by unjust at
tacks upon the party with which it
processes to be allied, or undue praises
of the opposition, whether Repubh-
cans or Greenbackers. To carry out
its ideas of independence, truth-tell- |
ing and fairness, it is certain to have |
one pronounced Republican on its edi- |
torisl staff, and the remainder made |
up of Bohemians of easy political |
virtue.
In proportion to the whole number |
of people in New England and of
those in Texas, there are as many hon
est, decent, truthful citizens in the one
country as in the other. Even so of |
an equal number of New England Re
publicans and Texas Democrats
one body is as honest and truthful as
the other. We do more murder and |
violence, and they of their peculiar
crimes. So of parties the masses of |
both, intelligence being equal, are
equals in truth and virtue. If we
have an honest Republican, whose ex-
elusive business it is to report 'local"
facts, the Herald only illustrates the |
uarrowness of its views, and the
breadth and omnipotence of its
ignorant prejudices, when, for this,
it condemns the STATESMAN. No
body could give credence to the
Herald when partisan question is in
volved. 1t is incapable of Justice,
and in this behalf wholly unirustwol-
thy. When it inhmates that corrup-
ton is at the bottom of honest thiLk-
ing and freedom of expr, ssion, 1t con-
tradicis its common sense. II paper
be for sale party is better able to buy
by promising offices or money than
any individual, and the corruptest of
all publications are these blind, un-
thinking partisan sheets. They are
neither respected by themselves nor by
the people. They sre the spoils of the
spoil-seekers.
THE Gentiles OF Utah have cause to
be alarmed at the expansion Of the
Mormon Church. stead of losing,
since the death of Brigham Young, the