Year: 1862

lishsd in the daily newspapers He might, or
| anybody might have hazarded shrewd guesa
What mores However, facts are facts, AS s
certain old lady used to say, and there is no
disputing that Wikoff is at home in prison
again, and Of course Louis Napoleon and Lord
Palmerston, and the other great magnates OF
the earth whose friendship he has shared, will
rally around him in his new winter quarters,
and the Chevalier may be expected to have a
good time generally


The Greatest IntellsctuaI Institution or


the Age.


BY general consent, alike Of its friends and
its enemies, the New YORK HERALD is decided
to be the greatest intellectual institution and
the electric moving power of the age. Our
natural modesty would prevent us from assert
ing 30 high position for ourselves; but con-
temporaneous and rival journals so unani
mously assure us of the fact, and so consist
emily act upon this decision, that it would be in
vain for us to longer affect doubt or refrain
from announcing it.


If anything, from an earthquake to an cleo
ton, goes wrong in this erring world, the news
papers Of both continents unite in blaming
the HERALD as the cause of the mischief. II
anything goes right, they leave us to infer that
the HERALD shall have the credit Of the happy
occurrence. For months past the English pa
pers have been blazing away at the HERALD on
account Of the Trent affair, and we have been
visited with the most severe condemnations be-
cause our power and our influence have created
all the trouble. American journals have thought
it for their interest to republsh these English
attacks upon us, adding to them the spice of
envy and indecent malice. The presses Of
France and Germany would probably have fol-
lowed the example of our other contemporaries
were it not for the fact that but very few of
their editors understand word of English;
and those who are acquainted with our Ian
guage are indebted to the HERALD for their
news, and swear by it, ,'as the old knights swore
by their swords. We have no doubt at all that
the papers of Peru, Chile and Bolivia are firing
their popguns at us without ceasing, and ac
cusing us of having excited their little revolu
tions. The prints of Turkey, India and the
Cape of Good Hope doubtless slash away at
the HERALD, and hold us accountable for every
disorder, raid and disturbance. The young
Hysons who manage the rising journals of
China and Japan of course pitch into the
HERALD. rejoicing at that ignorance of their
language which prohibits us from replying, and
confident many Of their American imita-
tors-that we can never survive their hostile
blasts. Geographically speaking all the world
is constantly attacking or praising the HERALD,
and we reciprocate the compliment.


But this habit of making the HERALD respon-
sible for all events is carried to the greatest
excess in our own country. For over twenty
years past we have been accused of causing
every revulsion in business, every bank suspen-
sion, every election defeat, every political revo-
luton. every social change, every religious re-
form, which has occurred here. If we predict
crisis-as in 1857-we are charged with Great
ing it. If we refrain from predicting it, then
we are guilty Of neglecting the public welfare.
If we oppose q candidate-Buchanan, for ex-
ample---our opposition is asserted to have elect
ed aim. If we support nomination-like that
of Fremont-we are told that our support de-
feated it. If we leave all the candidates to
take care of themselves as we did in the last
Presidential canvass, we are blamed for not
backing this one or fighting that one and our
neutrality is made the scapegoat for all the
trouble. Every deceased politician will tell
you that the HERALD killed him; and if we were.
an Indian We could adorn an immense wgwam
with the scalps Of political sachems and war
riors Of our own slaughtering. We con-
coct or we explode social theories every
now and then, and are one day accused by .
pious journal of being an infidel, and the next
day are sneered at by an inidel sheet for being
good Christian. We accept all this blame ~
praise in disguise. Our enemies shoot down
each other with these cross fires and leave us
unharmed In history we find that the best
men were always the worst abused, and the
principle will hold good when applied to
newspapers. Our thousands upon thousands Of
subscribers and numerous advertisers attest
that our friends far outnumber our foes, and
that the praise of the HERALD Is not less lavish
and unstinted than the blame. We strike
balance between thetwo and are very we'll
satisfied with the result But is not all this
proof that the influence which attracts 40 much
comment is as universal as the comment itself?
Now, the Importance attached TO the HERALD
is ascribed, also, to every one who is, or who is
supposed to be, connected with It. If we
change one of our Washington reporters II
creates a greater Juror of excitement than the
dismissal of member of the Cabinot, and all
| the other journals announce the event in large
type, write editorial essays upon 1t, and pub
lish the biography of our presumed dtache.
| A man can live year after year unnoticed and
unknown until some one starts The rurnor that
he is connected with the HERAI.D and forthwith
he ia afflicted with notoriety, aud all bis sayings
and doings are duly chronicled. Take, for
instance, the case Of the Chevalier Wikoff-
Here 10 man who has undergone all sorts of
adventurous tribulations, and written books
about them He has been the hero of love