Year: 1867

There is nothing like ignorance to facil-
itate conclusions. A man who knows a
great deal is often troubled to weigh argu--
ments and reconcile testimony man who
knows little is frequently oppressed with
a sense of his want of full Information; but
fellow who knows, nothing, with the ad-7
ditlonal advantage of not knowing that
there is any thing to know, is released from
these impediments; can be as dogmatic as
he pfeases, ana is in little danger of being
put to shame by future accessions of in
formation. Our cotempOrary of the Ohio


State Journal appears to be one of those
persons who found a large amount of posi-
tiveness upon, rather a light stock of in


formation; and yet from the remark in one
of his articles, that sit is Certainly tiresome
and sometimes discouraging to keep on ex-
posing error" he would appear to be gen
tleman with a large amount of work upon
his hands, and vast responsibilities, at the
recollection of which he was now and then
liable to get a good deal worried and IA
tigued. q" ''i''l 90 ''-A ~ >'ssst


We find our contemporary aforesaid. in a
recent number, enlightening the rest of


mankind upon the difference between Re
publican and Democratic doctrines, in the
matter of State rights; and it is not to be
disputed that he lays down rather start
ling line of distinction: which, that there
may be, no mistake, we copy in his own
words: r. q -.sf t--. r-- ..


''Weo hold that the Constitution of the
United States, and the laws made in pur-
suance thereof, shall be regarded as the SUI
preme law of the land, anything in the
Constitution, laws or usages of any State
to the contrary Notwithstanding. The DEM
ocratic doctrine, on the contrary, is, that
the laws or usages of any State (no matter
how unjust or barbarous they may be),
constitute the supreme rule of action with
in the limit of such State, the Constitution
and ldaos Of the United States to the contrary
notwithstanding. ~ "# .- -..


mold times it was the custom, among
journalists, when an individual committed
himself in this way, to assume that he
knew he was telling falsehood, and call
him a liar, with perhaps an insinuation in
regard to the responsibility of some of his
relatives. The better and more modern
way is to admit that the man is honest but
ignorant, and charitably to charge the
error to his stupidity rather than his ma
lignitv. We suppose that the editor of the


State Journal believes the Democratic doc
trine to be what he describes; but in that
case. what supernatural ass and idiot he
must be- We feel very sorry Tor him and


his friends and y tamily-it he has
either of these articles, and would counsel
the placing him in an asylum, under the
care of some benevolent minded matron,
with permission now and then to peruse
the articles of some mild Democratic news
paper. 1t is this class of men ignorant
and yet too wise in their own conceit to be
capable of 1earniDg--the conclusions of
whose weak judgments are dictated by
their stronger passions and rtjudices-
that make the name of Journalists syno-


nvm or disrepute, and the equivalent of all


that is narrow, shallow, inconsistent and


mendacious; who, forbidden by their low


instincts and petty ambitions to elevate
themselves, degrade the profession, what


ever it may be, to which they belong.


For his own sake-thodgh we subscribe
to the proverb about "braying fool" &c.
we will inform the State Journal that if
there isa single member of the Democratic


party who does not hold fully and implic-
| lily, and without equiyocalion or mental
reservations that "the Constitution of the


United States, and the laws made in pursu-
ance thereof are the supreme law of the
land, any thing in the Constitution, laws
or usages of any State to the contrary not
withstandfng," we have never yet seen that
member; from which it follows that his
definition of Democratic doctrines is as un-
true as it is palpably irrational. If he is
Ignorant in the matter, his ignorance is pit
iful !; If dishonest, he is an exceedingly poor
rogue and miserable one.