of a free
newspaper admits into his publication impartial strictures on the
proceedings of the government, is not more likely to act an honest and
disinterested part toward the public than a vile sycophant who, ob-
taining emoluments from the government far more lucrative than the
salary alluded to, [Fenno was printer to the Treasury Department at
a salary of twenty-five hundred dollars a year finds his interest in at-
tempting to poison the mind of the people by propagating and dis-
seminating principles and sentiments utterly subversive of the true
interest of the country and by flattering and recommending every and
any measure of government, however pernicious and destructive its
tendency might be to the great body of the people?
JEFFERSON DEFENDS FRENEAU
The fact must not be lost sight of that the struggle was no longer between the editors of the two Gazettes, but between Ham- ilton and Jefferson. The fight became so open that Washington found it necessary to call his two secretaries together and ask them to cease their attacks one upon the other, making his appeal that the interests of the country demanded that such attacks as were appearing in the two papers could not work for the good of the Commonwealth. Washington even asked Jeffer- son to dispense with the services of Freneau. This, the Secre- tary of State refused to do. His defense may be quoted at length as it disproved the charge so often made that Jefferson was an actual contributor to The National Gazette:
While the government was at New York I was applied to on be-half of Freneau to know if there was any place within my department to which he could be appointed. I answered there were but four clerk- ships, all of which I found full and continued without any change. When we removed to Philadelphia, Mr. Pintard, the translating clerk, did not choose to remove with us. His office then became vacant. I was again applied to there for Freneau and had no hesitation to prom- ise the clerkship to him. I cannot recollect whether it was at the same time or afterwards, that I was told he had a thought of setting up a paper there. But whether then or afterwards, I considered it a circum- stance of some value, as it might enable me to do what I had long wished to have done, that is to have the material parts of The Leyden Gazette brought under your eye, and that of the public, in order to possess yourself and them of a juster view of the affairs of Europe, than could be obtained from any other public source. This I had ineffec- tually attempted through the press of Mr. Fenno, while in New York, selecting and translating passages myself at first, then having it done
