The Portland daily press., 1878-04-23
TUESDAY MORNING, APRIL 2s.

fine. There is no fslsehood in defamation Of
him so pslpable aud self evident that the rest
will not adopt it and give it the slight publicity
Of their extremely limited circulation These
weak and senie Hiatribas have been served up
Tor years on the uost trifing pretexts and fire.
9uently without aay pretext at all They are
generally very much after the Sairey Camp
fashion, very abusive bat decidedly iucoherept
and meaningless. They amuse the Senator
friends and do no possible harm except in so
far as they serve to show "to what base uses"
types may sometimes be perverted Occa.
sionaly, when there has been a State Couven-
ton in which Mr.. Conkling has taken part, or
Congressional measure is on the tapis about
which he will not obey the injunctions of these
self-constituted advisers-supposing that they
ever meet his eye, which is a matter of great
doubt-they waltz around him with chorus of
denunciations which would be positively terri
flying if it not as plain as day that it is all
theatrical sham of the poorest kind. As it is
it produces no impression whatever upon any
body who possesses average mental capacity,
and the exceedingly aggravating way 10 which
the Senator will persist in following the die
tates of his own judgment in apparent uncon-
seriousness of the existence of these officious
censors keeps them in a state of Oh ronic exas-
peration.
Of course any little occurrence like the pub
LEGATION of fiction such as the World was
taken in by, supplies base for these purvey-
ors OF afternoon news, on which they can build
large pyramid of red hot invective. They
sre not the people to take any thing back after
they have once uttered it and so their first con-
lecture in respect of the authenticity of the doc
ument must be maintained thereafter, no mat
ter how clearly it is proved to have been erro-
neous These are the kind of laboratories in
which the thing called public opinion is beaten
into shape. Can anybody wonder that their
productions are held in such trifling account?
Is it at all strange that the amount of influence
they exert is too inconsderabe to bs worth
estimating? The fact is we are sadly in need
of a renovated and elevated medium of daily
REORGANIZATION of popular thought and
general news. The proportion of chaff to W heat
is enormous. 1t is not always possible to de-
termine whether what one reads is true, or even
whether the party giving it currency supposed
1t to be trne. 1t is often essential to get at the
motive which inspired the publication in or der
to reach logical conclusion as to thu credi
bilisy of the thing published.
In this particular instance all the differences
were against the genuineness of the production
The process of interviewing has grown to be
recognized feature of journalistic literature.
The custom is to send reporter to any gentle
man whose opinions ara to be put on record.
The questions and answers are elaporately
framed so as to fit each other deftly, and the
result is statement which before ing printed
is to be read over and agreed TO as correct by
the person who is to be held responsible for it.
There is no pretense that any of these prelimi-
naries were observed in respect to the alleged
interview with the New York Senator. He
was not consulted, and the issue of such a
paper containing criticisms aud structures upon
his Senatorial associates without his knowl-
edge and sanction cannot be justified BY any
code OF ethics recognized among conscientious
men. 1t must be treated as the invention of a
clever but INSCRIPTIONS writer whose desire to
turn the fruits of his pen to profitable account
overcame his sense of rectitude
YARMOUTH