It sometimes renders useful services to the public.

It sometimes brings to the notice of the Government evils the existence of which would otherwise have been unknown.

It operates, to some extent, as a salutary check on public functionaries.

It does something towards keeping the administration pure.

On the other hand, by misrepresenting public measures, and by flattering the prejudices of those who support it, it sometimes produces a slight degree of excitement in a very small portion of the community.
"How slight that excitement is, even when it reaches its greatest height, and how little the Government has to fear from it, no person whose observation has been confined to European societies will readily believe.