Newspaper Page Text
journal # Jpesscngtr.
JAMES T. NISBET AND SIMRI ROSE,
EDITORS.
IMPORTANT ACTS OF CONGRESS.
THE NEW COURT OF CLAIMS.
AN ACT TO ESTABLISH A COURT FOR INVESTIGATION OF
CLAIMS AGAINST THE CNTTED STATE3.
Re it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa
fives of the United States of America in Congress assem
ble I, That a court shall be established, to be called a
Court of Claims, to consist of three judges, to be ap
pointed bv the President, by and with the advice and
consent of the Senate, and to hold their offices during
good behavior : and the said court shall hear and de
termine ad claims founded upon any law of Congress,
or upon any regulation of an Executive department,
or upon any contract, express or implied, with the
OoTernme it of the United States, which may be sugges
ted to it bv a petition filed therein, and also all claims
winch may be referred to said court bv either house of
Congress.’ It shall be the duty of the claimant in all
to set forth a full statement ot the claims, and of
tho action thereof in Congress, or by any of the depart
ments. if such action has been had; specifying, also
what person or persons are owners thereof of interested
therein, and when and upon what consideration such
wsoa or persons became interested. Each of the
judges shall receive a compensation of #4,o<X> per an
num, payable quarterly, from the treasury of the United
States, and shall take an oath to support the Con
stitution of the United States, and discharge faithfully
the duties of his office.
Sec. 2 And he it further enacted, That a Solicitor
for the United States, to represent the government
before said court, shall be appointed by the President,
bv and with ihe advice and consent of the Senate. It
sh ill be the duty of said solicitor to prepare all cases
on the part of the government for hearing before said
court, and to argue the same when prepared ; to cause
testimony to be taken, when necesaarv to secure the
in'erest of the United States; to prepare forms, file
in’errogatories; and superintend the taking of testi
mony ; in the manner prescribed by said court, and
generally to render such services as may be required
of him from time to time in the discharge of the duties
of his office. Said solicitor shall be sworn to faithfully
discharge the duties of bis office, in the manner nre
scribed for the qualification of the judges in the first
section of this act; and he shall receive a compensation
of three thousand five hundred dollars per annum for
hi.- services, to be paid quarterly from the treasury of
the United States.
Sec 3. And be it further enacted. That the said court
shall have authority to establish rules and regulations
for its government; to appoint Commissioners to take
testimony to be used in the investigation of claims
that mav come before it; to prescribe the fees they
shall receive for their services; and to issue commis
sions for the taking of such testimony, whether the
game shall be taken at the instance of the claimant or
of the United States, and also to issue subpoenas to re
quire the attendance of witnesses in order to be examin
ed before such Commissioners; which subpoenas shall
h ive the same force as if issued from a District Court
of the United States, and compliance therewith shall
be compelled under such rules and orders as the Court
hereby created shall establish. When testimony is
ttken for the claimant, the fees of the Commissioner
before whom it is taken, and the cost of the commis
si >n and notice, shall be paid by such claimant; and
when taken at the instance of the government, such
fees, together with all postage incurred by the solicitor
at iresaid. in his official capacity, shall be paid out of
the contingent fund provided for said court. In all
crises, when it can be conveniently done, the testimony
■hall he taken in the county where the deponent resides';
and the commissioner taking the same is hereby au
tl orized and required to administer an oath or affirma-
U* the witnesses brought before him for examination.
Sec. 4. And be it further enacted, That in all cases
where it shall appear to the court that the facts set
f rth in the petition of the claimant do not furnish ativ
gr ound for relief, it shall not be the duty of the court
to an’horize the taking of any testimony in the case,
until the same shall have been reported by them to
Congress, as is hereinafter provided: Provided, bow
e er, That if Congress shall, in such case, fail to con
-1 rm the o; inion of said Board, they shall proceed to
t-tk- ihe testimony in such case.
Sec. 5. And le >tfurther enacted. That in taking tes
timony to be n*ed in support of any claim before said
court, opportunity shall be given to the United States,
to file interrogatories, or by attornev to examine wit
ne<-e. tin ler such regulations as said court shall pre
scrih ; and like opportunity shall be afforded the claim*
a it, in cases where testimony is taken in behalf of the
United States, under like regulations.
Sz f \ 6. And he it further enacted, That if any person
shall knewinglv and wilfully swear falsely, before said
C ‘U r t, or before any person or |iersons commissioned
bv them, or authorized bv this act to take testimony in
a case pending before said court at the time of taking
s iid oith, or in a case thereafter to be submitted to said
c nirt, such person shall be deemed guilty of perjury,
and, on conviction thereof, shall be subjectea to the
s im o pains, penalties and disabilities, which now are
o shill be hereitier by law prescribed for wilful and
Corrupt perjnrv.
Sec. 7. And he it further enacted. That sa>d court sßhll
keep a record of their proceedings, and shall, at the
commencement of each session of Congress, and at the
c ’mu encement of each month during the session of
Cooere-s. report to Congress the cases upon which they
shall h ive finally acted, stating in each the material
fiets which they find established bv the evidence, with
their opinion in the case, and the reasons upon which
s tch Op’nion is founded. Any judge who mav dissent
1 o n the opinion of the majority, shall append the rea
{ m for such dissent to the report; and such report, to
gether with the briefs of the solicitor and of the clai
nant, which shall accompany the report, upon being
made to either House of Congress, shall be printed in
the same manner as other public documents. And said
court shall prepare a bill or bills in those cases which
shall have received the favorable decision thereof, in
{uch form as, if enacted, will carry the same into effect.
And two or more cases may be embraced in the same
b 11, where the separate a mount proposed to be allowed
ii each ca<e shall “he less than one thousand dollars.
J ud the said court shall transmit, with said reports,
the testimony in each case, whether the same shall re
ceive the favorable or adverse action rs said court.
Sec. 8. And be it farther enacted, That said reports,
and thp bils reported as aforesaid, shall if not hnallv
sc'ed upon during the session of Congress to which the
S iid reports are made, be continued Irom session toses
a on, and from Congress to Congress, until the same
shall be finally acted upon; and the consideration of
B.iid reports and bills shall, at the subsequent session
of Congress, be resumed, and the said reports aud bills
be proceeded with in the same manner as though final
1y acted upon at the session when presented.
Sec. 9. And be it further enacted. That the claims re
ported upon adversely shall be placed upon the calen
dar when reported, and if the decision of said court
shall be confirmed by Congress, said decision shall be
conclusive; and the said court shall not, at any subse
quent period, consider said claims, unless such reasons
shall be presented to said court, as by the rules of com
mon law or chancery in suits between individuals would
furnish sufficient ground for granting anew trial.
Sec. 10. And be it further enacted. That it shall be
too duty of ihe Speakerof the House of Representatives,
v- ithiti a reasonable time after the passage of this act,
to appropriate such rooms in the Capitolin Washing
ton, for the use of said court, as mar be necessary tor
their accommodation, unless it shall appeartotheSjieak
cr that such looms cannot be appropriated without in
terfering with the business of Congress ; and in that
event the said court shall procure, at the city of Wash
ington, such rooms as may be recessary for the conve
nient transaction of their business.
Sec. 11. An I be it further enacted, That said court
shall have power to call upon anv of the departments
for any information or papers it may deem necessary,
and have the use of all recorded and printed reports
nmde by the committees of each house, when deemed
to be necessary in the prosecution ot the duties assigned
tv this act. Said court shall ap|>oint a chief clerk.
hose salary shall be two thousand dollars per annum,
and an a-.-i-’ant clerk, if deemed necessary, whose salary
shall be fifteen hundred dollars per annum, and a mes
senger, whose salary shall be eight hundred dollars per
annum, to be paid quarterly at the treasury. The said
clerks shall be under the direction of said court, in the
performance of their duties, and for miscouduct and i
incapacity, may be removed front office by it; but, when
s i removed, said Board shall make report thereof, with
the cause of such removal, to Congress, it in session,
or at the next session of Congress. Paid clerk and as
sistant clerk shall take an oath tor the faithful discharge
of their duties. Provided, That the head of no depart
ment -hall answer any call for information or pa|ters,
if in his opinion, it would be injurious to the puulic in
terest.
Approved February 24,1855.
New Postage Law.
Below we present, from the Daily Globe, the main
ft attires of the New Postage Law, passed among the
closing acts of the present Congress:
The bill provides that, in lieu of the rates now estab
lished by law, there shall, after the commencement of
the next tisca. quarter, be charged for every single let
ter in manuscript, or paper of any kind in which infor
mation shall be asked for, or communicated in writing,
or by marks or signs, conveyed in the mail for any dis
tance between places in the United States not exceed
it g three thousand miles, three cents; for and distance
exceeding three thousand miles, ten cents. Fora double
leiter the chatge is to be double, for u treble letter,
treble, utid tor a quadruple letter, quadruple these rates.
Everv letter or patcel not exceeding half an ounce in
weight is to be deetntd a single letter; and every addi
tional weight of half an ounce, or less than half an ounce,
ia to be charged with an additional single postage.
Upon all letters passing through or in the mail of the
United States, excepting such as are to or fiom a for
eign country, the jaistage is to be pre paid, except upon
letters and packages addressed to officers of the Govern
ment on official busine 8, which shall be so marked on
the envelope. And from and after January the Ist,
1656, the Postmaster General may require postmasters
t® place postage stamps upon all prepaid letters upon
which such stamps may not have been placed by the
writers All drop letters, or letters placed iu any of
fice not for transmission through the mail but for de
livery only, are to be charged with postage at the rate
of one cent each ; and all letters which are hereafter ad
vertised as remaining over, or uncalled for, in any post
office, are to be charged with one cent each, in addition
to the regular postage, both to be accounted for as oth
er postages now are.
No postmaster, or other person, is to be allowed to
sell anv postage stamps or stamp envelopes for any
larger sum than that indicated upon their face, or fora
larger sum than that charged therefor by the Post Of
fice Department; and all person who violates this provi
sion is to be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, on
conviction, is to be fined in any sum not less thuu ten
nor more than five hundred dollars.
And further, that for the greater security of valuable
totters posted for transmission in mails of the United
States, the Postmaster General be, and hereby is, au
thorized to establish a uniform plan for the registration
of such letters on application of the parties posting the
same, to require the payment of the postage as well as
a registration fee of five cents ou every such letter or
packet, to be accounted for by the postmaster receiving
the same in such manner as the Postmaster General
shall direct —provided, however, that such registration
shall not be compulsory, and it shall not render the
Post Office Department, or its revenue, liable tor the
loss of such letters or packets, or the contents thereof.
The New Bounty Land Law.
The Commissioner of Pensions has issued the follow
ing instructions for carrying into etfect the new Bounty
Land Law:
Where the service has been rendered by a substitute,
be is the person entitled to the benefit of this act, and
not his employer.
In the event of death of any person who, if living,
would be entitled to a certificate or warrant as afore
said, leaving a widow, or if no widow, a minor child or
children, such widow, or if no widow, such minor child
or children, is entitled to a certificate or warrant for
the same quantity of land such deceased persons would
be entitled to receive under the provisions of said act,
if now living.
A subsequent marriage will not impair the right ot
any such widow to such warrant if she be a widow at
the time of her application. Persons within the age of
21 years on the 3d day of March,,lßss, are deemed
minors within ihe intent and meaning of said act.
To obtain the benefits of this act, the claimant must
make a declaration, under oath, substantially, according
to the forms hereto annexed. The signature of the
applicant must be attested, and his or her personal
identity established by the affidavits of two witnesses,
whose residences must be given, and whose credibility
must be sustained by the certificate of the magistrate
before whom the application is verified.
No certificates will be deemed sufficient in any case
unless the facts are certified to be within the personal
knowledge of the magistrate or other officer who shall
sign the certificate, or the names and residence of the
witnesses by whom the facts are established be given,
or their affidavits, properly authenticated, be appended
to the certificate.
The official character and signature of the magistrate
who may administer the oath must be certified by the
clerk of the proper court of record of his county, under
the seal of the court. Whenever the certificate of the
officer who authenticates the signature of the magistrate
is not written on the same sheet of paper which contains
the signature to lie authenticated, must be attached to
said paper by a piece of tape or ribbon, the ends of
which must pass under the official seal, so as to prevent
anv pajiet from being improperly attached to the cer
tificate
Applications in behalf of minors should be made in
their names by their guardian or next friend. —Where
there are several minors entitled to the same gratuity,
one may make the declaration. The warrant will be
issued to all jointly. In addition to proof of service,
as in other cases, the minor must prove the death of
his father, that no widow survives him and that he aud
those he represents are the only minor children of the
deceased.
If a party die before the issue of a warrant to which
he would be entitled, if living, the right to said warrant
dies with him. In such case the warrant becomes void,
and should be cauc e led, and the party next entitled in
right of the service claimed should make an application;
and if there be no such party, the grant lapses under
the limitation of the beneficiaries to the bounty. If the
claimant die after the issue of the warrant, the title
thereto vests in his heirs at law in the same manner as
real estate iu the place of the domicile of the deceased,
and cau only be assigned or located by said heirs.
Application made By Indians must be authenticated
according to the regulations to be prescribed by the
commissioner of Indian affairs.
Accompanying the above instructions are the neces
sarv forms of declaration, together with an official copv
of the law.
The London Times and the English Aristo
cracy.
The London Times, the newspapnrial demigod of Eng
lishmen, flushed with its victory over the Aberdeen
ministry, and intoxicated with the applause it has re
ceived, aspires to lead in and urge on a vigorous war
against the aristocracy of Eugland. Hear what it
says:
“ Our eyes are open, and we behold that we are naked.
We ask tor talent sufficient to conduct gread affairs to
successful conclusions, and instead of talent we are of
fered in exchange high connexions, or, at best, seniori
ty. The cold shade of aristocracy is over U 9 all, and
nothing can grow beneath it except the offshoots of the
tree itself.’’
After denouncing the manner in which the war has
been managed, and telling us that the people of England
are coming to conclusions but little favorable to the sta
bility of the present “governing classes,” it thus sums
up the case against the aristocracy :
“We have been ready to allow place and patronage
to be monopolized by a few great families.—We have
been conteiit to live in our own country, strangers to
our own government, excluded from the working of
our own institutions, but it was only on condition that
our national pride should be respected, and our inter
ests and position in the great family of nations remain
inviolate. This our aristocracy have failed to secure
us, and therefore the people of England will, we hope,
demand, in no spirit of wild and theoretical leveling,
in no spirit of hatred or animosity to any person of the
community, but in the spirit of practical reform of an
urgent and intolerable grievance, that the system which
excludes plebeian talent from high offices shall hence
forth be discontinued, and that in the armv, at the desk,
and in-the council, those men shall be called to the
public service who are best able to serve the public.
We wish all success to this movement.
“It has been our painful lot to witness more nearly
than others, and to obtain more ample information as
to the manner in which this war has been conducted,
and we do not hesitate to express the opinion that
without an entire change of system, a substitution of
youth and energy for age and decrepitude—unless some
plan car. be hit upon by which merit shall be the only
criterion in the tiling up of civil and military offices—
without, in fact a complete abandonment of ihe claims
of wealth, of family and of interest, in favor of that high
er nobility which the hand of God has impressed on the
forehead of every man of talent, it is vain for us to con
tinue the present contest, and better to accept anv con
ditions, however degrading, and however humiliating,
since no degradation and no humiliation suffered at
the hands of the enemy can exceed those which our
own servility and meanness have inflicted, and are about
to inflict upon ourselves.”
Iron Batteries.
The iron floating batteries, which are constructed in
England for battering the walls of Sebastopol and Cron
stadt, it seems, are of American origin. About thirty
years ago, Robert L. Stevens, of Hoboken, made some
experiments, which proved that shot could be effectually
arrested bv a thickness of wrought iron proportioned to
the size of the ball. Some time in the year 1840-42,
Mr Stevens proposed to build a floating steam battery
of iron, as a protection, in the event of a war, to the
harbor of New York. By order of the government,
experiments were made to test the correctness of this
theory, under the supervision of a board of navy and
army officers. The result proved four and a half inches
in thickness of wrought iton to be a perfect defence
against a sixty-four pound solid shot, fired at ten yards
distauce from the target.
Upon their report of these facts, Congress directed
the Secretary of the Navy to enter into a contract with
Robert L. Stevens for building a steam battery upon
his plan, for the defence of the harbor of New York.
After the execution of this agreement, Mr. Stevens con
structed a dry dock capable of containing a vessel of
the size required by the contract, together with shops,
steam engines, furnaces, tools, Ac., necessary to the
construction of such a vessel.
About two years ago, at the earnest solicitation of
Com Stockton, then a member of the U. S. Senate,
Congress again directed the Secretary ot the Navy to
proceed with the vessel under the contract. This iron
battery is now, with the exception of a few ribs, com
pletelv in frame, and about one third planked up with
heavy iron plates. From the difficulty of procuring
funds during the severe pressure in the money market,
he was reluctantly compelled, two weeks ago, to dis
charge out of the four hundred and seventy men enga
ged in her construction, one hundred and forty of those
working by the day in the vard at Hoboken.
The appropriation for this iron steam battery, whose
sides are to be six or more inches in thickness, and
whose length on the water line is now four hundred
feet, was two hundred aud fifty thousand dollars.
Mocialism in Texas,
The Austin State Gazette views with disfavor the
prospect of having a socialist colonv in Texas under the
auspices of Victor Considerant. That paper has the
following article on the subject :
“ We are always pleased to have industrious immi
grants come among us. Plenty of work can be found
bv mechanics and laborers, and there is room in all
oitr towns for more enterprising merchants and bus
iness men. There is one class, hotoever, that we are
opposed to, and have no disposition to hold out to them
inducements to settle among us. This class is of that
Propagandist school which in France and in parts of
the United States has and is seeking to sap the founda
tions of society. The socialist desires to destroy in
dividual rights’ in property, and if he is not a very in
telligent and moral man- a rare thing—we may have
in him a neighbor who will rob and plunder us when
ever he can get the chance: for he holds it as a primary
principle in his creed, that no individual has a right to
accumulate property for himself, and all above what is
necessary to sustain him belongs to the rest of society.
Again, the socialist is an abolitionist everywhere. He
would not be less opposed to slavery by living in Texus
than in France or in Ohio. It is part of his creed.
Now we are told that John Allen, of Ohio, and Mons.
Victor Considerant, propose bringing out from France
to western Texas a colony of socialists. This move for
the purjiose of building up a sect opposed to our polit
ical instutions may well be regarded with jealousy,
and the founders may rely upon it that they will not be
suffered to tamper with our institutions. The whole
principle of colonization, where men of a peculiar caste
in religion or politics seek to urray themelves together
in particular sections of the country, both as landhold
ers and fketionists, is at war with all the elements of
society, and cannot be carried on without creating bitter
and unrelenting prejudices and aniinosties among our
native citizens. We note this advent of socialism in
Texas as foreboding us no good ; and we wish them to
have a fair understanding before’lhey reach ourvoil that
as a political sect our whole people are against them.”
It is stated that already some fifteen hundred
applications have been made for bounty lands under
the law passed bv Congress only a week ago. On Mon
day three hundred and fifty such applications were re
ceived. The Star says: ...
“It is estimated at the Pension Bureau that about
three hundred thousand such applications will be made
under the new law requiring 32,000,000 of acres to
salisfv them. The amendments made in the bill by the
House reduced the quantity of lands to be taken up un
der it from more than 100,000,000 acres to about the
quantity we name above.”
MACON, GEOEGIA:
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 21, 1855.
Dedication of the Baptist Church.
On Sunday morning last, the beautiful Church edifice
on Second Street, which has been recently erected by
the Baptist congregation of this city, was dedicated as
a House of God—a large andience of more than 1,000 of
our citizens attending the solemn and impressive ser
vices of the occasion. The dedicatory'sermon—an in
teresting and exceedingly appropriate discourse—was
preached by the Rev. Sylvanua Landrum, the Pastor
of the Church, from the text of Scripture —“But the
Lord is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence
before him”—and the meaning of this beaut iful passage of
Habakkuk, its appositeness and its truth, was very for
cibly illustrated and explained. The Rev. Mr. Ram
beau, ol the Ist Baptist Church of Savannah, and the
Rev. Mr. Hornadav, of Americus, assisted in the exer
cises of the occasion.
At the close of the services, Mr. Landtum, under
whose auspices and by whose persevering efforts the
building has been erected, which is so substantial an
evidence of the unity and of the prosperity ot the
Church over which he presides, gave a short statement
of the cost of the work, and of the amount which had
been raised and expended upon it; disclosing the fact
that the Church still owed on account of it a debt of
84,500, and calling upon those who were present to aid
it to discharge this liability. This appeal like all others
which are made to the liberality of our citizens, was
promptly responded to, and over two thousand dollars
were subscribed, by which the Church is relieved of the
annoyances of debt.
IW We would direct the attention of our readers to
the New Postage Law, which we publish to-day, and
to the notice of the Postmaster of this city in relation to
it, which may be found in our advertising columus.
The Third District.
The Hon. David J. Bailey, our “constitutional vigil,”
having declined to be a candidate for re election to Con
gress, several gentlemen have been suggested as proper
persons to receive the nomination of the Democratic
Party of this District. The Organ published at Hamil
ton, Harris county, declares that the nominee ought to
be taken from the western portion of the District, and
suggests the name of Col. James N. Ramsey, of Harris.
The Telegraph publishes communications urging upon
the attention of the nominating Convention, the claims
of Col. Gilpin J. Green, and of the Hon. and Rev. Wm.
Mosely, both of Spalding county, and doubtless, there
are many others throughout the District who are anxi
ous for the nomination for Congress, whose friends
have not yet made a demonstration. Our advice to the
Democracy, is to give it to the man of whom it is most
necessary that the Party should be rid. It is a most
excellent plan, when the fortunes of a party are des
perate, to dispose of a troublesome and importunate as
pirant for political distinction by gratifying him with a
nomination.
State Democratic Convention.
The Columbus Times dt Sentinel of the 9th inst., sug
gested the 12th of May, as a suitable time for holding
the State Democratic Convention to nominate a candi
date for Governor. The Federal Union thinking that
too early, suggested the sth day of June, and the Demo
cratic papers of the State have very generally adopted
the suggestion, so that it may be considered as settled,
that the Democratic candidate for Governor will be
nominated on the first Tuesday in June. We regret to
see our Democratic friends in such a hurry to bring
out their candidate, and to plunge us into the excite
ments of a political contest. The result will be, that
for four long months the public press will be employed
in canvassing the lives, the character, the qualifications
and the merits of candidates, and have no time or incli
nation to discuss the many important questions of State
policy, to which it is desirable that the attention of our
people should be directed, before the assembling of the
next Legislature.
Col. Tift, a Candidate for Governor.
“A Southern Georgian,” in a communication to the
Thomasville Wetchman, which appears in that paper
of the 14th inst., suggests Col. Nelson Tift, the editor
of the Albany Patriot, as a suitable candidate for Gov
ernor of Georgia, and urges his claims with an earnest
ness, which precludes the idea that he designed to per
petrate a pleasautry. He says:
“Already have the names of many distinguished
men of the party, residing in other sections than our
own, been suggested as possessing claims upon the
party for gubernatorial honors; and while I do not
award to either of them claims upon the democracy of
Georgia, superior to those possessed by the worthy and
staunch democrat whose name heads this article, I am
not insensible to their deservings. My object, howev
er, iu this communication, is not to draw insidious
comparison between the prominent men of the party,
but simply to suggest to the convention the name of
our champion, the vindicator of our rights. Col Nelson
Tift of Albany In the event that our present worthy
incumbent should decline the nomination, justice to
the party—justice to our section of the State—justice
to our interests as a portion of the tax-payers—demands
that Col. Tift should be the nominee. A more worthy
man could not be selected, or one more intimately con
nected with the internal improvement of South and
South-Western Georgia. We have a right, in the event
that Gov. Johnson does not consent to run, to demand
the nominee, and in the convention we shall certainly
assert that right in casting our grateful suffrages for
Col. Tift.”
The New Hampshire Election.
Returns from two hundred and five towns of New
Hampshire, give Metcalf, the Know-Nothing candidate
for Governor, 31,735 votes, Baker, Democratic 25,584,
Bell, Whig 3,206, and Fowler, Free Soiler 1,184 votes.
There are twenty towns to hear from but they will not
materially change the result. Metcalf is certainly elected
by the people. The Administration has lost every
thing—the Governor, the Legislature, the State council,
and the two seats in the Senate of the United States to
be filled by the Legislature at its approaching session,
and the President is in a minority in his own State.—
Sevastopol—the Sevastopol of Democracy is at last ta
ken.
K. N. Nominations in Virginia.
The State Convention of the Know-Nothings of Vir
ginia, met at Winchester, on Tuesday the 13th inst.,
and after organizing, selected bv ballot, the following
gentlemen as their candidates for State offices: for Go
vernor, Thomas Flournoy, for Lieutenant Governor, J.
M. H. Beele, and for Attorney General, John M. Patton.
The first is a Whig, the two others are Democrats, and
all of them have served at different times in the Con
gress of the United States. The ticket altogether is
said to be a good one and a strong one, and will most
certainly triumph in May, if the Whig Party makes no
nominations.
Fires in the Woods.
Our Georgia exchanges are filled with accounts of
the destruction of property occasioned by fires, which
have raged so extensively of late in the pine woods of
the middle and southern portions of the State. From
the following letter which appears iu the Augusta Con
stitutionalist of the 14th’ inst., it would seetn that they
have been more disastrous in Burke than in any other
county :
The county of Burke has been rapidly swept, from
very near the 79 C. R. R. station to Mcßean, burning
fences in every direction, occasionally dwellings, kitch
ena, stables, corn, fodder, and in someone or two in
stances, horses and cotton. Here is a list of some of
the sufferers, from memory, who live near here:
Mr. Ganus —Houses, corn, stables, in fact everything,
except three quilts.
Francis Lyons— Neatly everything, houses, Ac. Ac.
Rev. Joseph Polhill—B,ooo to 9,000 Danels of fence.
William Ilyne—s,ooo to 10,(KM) panels of fencing.
J. D. Cook —4,(MX* panels of fencing.
Dr. B. B. Miller— soo panels of fencing.
Mrs. Greenway—4,ooo panels offenciug.
Fred. Hudson—soo panels,of fencing.
Dr. Milton Antony—Entire fence.
May Poythress—Stables and entire fence at Summer
Place, on Mcßean.
A. Mackenzie—Fencing at Mcßean.
Isaiah Carter—Considerable damage.
Edw. Carter—Considerable damage.
I am to'.d that Ihe destruction of property is wide
spread, and in some cases disastrous.
Some of our farmers already proclaim their inability
to reinstate their premises sufficiently to make a crop.
Others are now trying to hire out iheir hands iutent
in not croptng it at all.
The sun has been hidden from view for three days.
Business of the Central Railroad.
The Savannah papers publish the following state
ment furnished them by the President of the Road of
the earnings of the Central Railroad for the months of
December, 1854, and January and February, 1855, as
compared with the earnings of the same months in pre
ceding years; showing an increase in the three months
of #69,799 42:
1354 Dec #137,039 13 1853 Dec #125,438 78
1855 Jan 131,648 08 1854 Jan 102,749 55
“ Feb 137,724 02 “ Feb 108,523 48
#406,411 23 #336,711 81
Gen. Dodge, the new Minister to Spain, has had
long interviews with Mr. Soule.
The Journal A Courier—Judge Lumpkin and
the Supreme Court.
“ A man must serve his time to ev’rv trade
Save censure—critics all are ready made.”
The appointment of the Hon. Joseph Henry Lump
kin, the distinguished Senior Justice ol the Supreme
I Court ot Georgia, as one of the Commissioners of the
| new Court of Claims, has been very generally and
! freely discussed by our democratic contemporaries of
this State. Some of them endorse it fully and unre
servedly, and recognise, as all impartial men must do,
; the soundness of the policy which the President has
; pursued, in giving to each party, in the organization of
the Court, a representative upon its bench, whilst oth
; ers oppose it; one, upon principle, as he has it, ( lucus
j a non lucendo,) asserting that the minority has no right
| to any office within the control of the party in power;
another upon policy, declaring that it is not only im
! politic, but exceedingly unkind, in the President, to be
liberal towards his political opponents where he has
, been illiberal to his political friends, and that to give
an office to a Georgia Whig, when there are so many
hungry and unfed Georgia Democrats, is like taking
the bread from the children’s mouths to give it to the
dogs; and another because he absurdly imagines that
it was made through the influence of Messrs. Toombs
and Stephens! But all of them, with one solitary ex
ception, admit the fitness of the appointment, considered
apart from its influence upon the fortunes of the Demo
cracy of this State, and with reference only to the qual
ifications of the gentleman upon whom it has been con
ferred. That single exception is the Journal cf* Courier
of Savannah, which, whilst it opposes the appointment
of Judge Lumpkin because he is a Whig, yet rejoices
that it has been made, as it will create a vacancy upon
the Bench of the Supreme Court of this State, which,
it hopes, may be filled by someone whose legal opin
ions will do credit to the judiciary of the State!
Judge Lumpkin is a profouud lawyer—a distinguished
advocate—a cultivated scholar —a brilliant and accom
plished orator—and in that combination of qualities
which makes the great and the good mau, in character,
in intellect, and in acquirement, is inferior to no man
whom the State has produced. For ten years he has
presided upon the Bench of the Supreme Court of the
State, and has borne the dignity of that high office easi
ly and gracefully—discharging its duties with an ability
which has commanded the respect of its liar and the
confidence of the people, and giving to the severe scru
tiny of malicious envy to which he has been subjected,
no point of attack, except that he has been too prodigal
of the riches with which his mind is stored, and has not
always conformed, in his written opinions, to that se
verity of style which is appropriate to a legal decision.
The reputation which he has acquired iu this responsi
ble judicial position restsupon a basis too broad and
too firm, even to be jostled by a newspaper paragraph,
and we refer to the gratuitous and ungenerous reflec
tions of the Journal- dt Courier upon his character and
ability os a lawyer, not to defend him, or to impress
our Savannah contempory with a more generous appre
ciation of his genius, his learning and his worth, but to
illustrate the remarkable change which we observe in
the conduct of the Journal dt Courier, as compared
with that of the Georgian when conducted by the same
gentleman. Whilst connected with the Georgian, he
was distinguished for the courtesy and the candor
which he exhibited towards all with whom he came in
contact, whether they were political friends or political
opponents, and was a very model of mildness and of
propriety. We can predicate none of these things of
the editor of the Journal dt Courier. By the transfer
from one office to another he has been suddenly and
completely changed; and whilst we inquire the reason,
we would indicate, as the most notable evidence of this
remarkable change, the policy which he has pursued
towards the Supreme Court, and the language he has
employed in’speaking of its opinions, and of the abilities
of the gentlemen who constitute its Bench.
Lord Jeffrey began his celebrated critique * upon
Wordsworth’s Excursion with the curt remark, “This
will never do”! —fully expressing in that short phrase
his contemptuous estimate of the work. But the dis
tinguished Scotch Reviewer was not content to rest the
case upon his opinion, as the great oracle of letters, but
considering that a decent regard for the opinions ot
others obliged him to establish it, proceeded carefully
and deliberately to dissect that cloudy, wordy and te
dious performance of the poet of Windermere. The
Journal ek Courier does not trouble itself with any such
labor. It disposes of the Supreme Court as curtly as
Jeffrey disposed of the Excursion, asserts that its pub
lished decisions are a disgrace to the State, and refers
to the ten years’ laborious service of one of the most
eminent lawyers jf the State upon its Bench, only to
sneer at his character and capacity; but, as if it spoke
with the sanction of an oracle of the law, from whose
opinions there could be no appeal and no dissent, it
gives no reasons for its assertions ot its sneers. This is
the mode of attack which our contemporary has adopted
in his war upon the Court.
But, why war upon the Court at all?—why at
tack it at all, or attempt to injure it in the
estimation of the people? Cui bono? What ad
vantage can result to the people or to the particular
interests in whose behalf the Journal rs - Courier has
taken up the cudgels, if it succeeds in such an attempt?
The Supreme Court, if we regard its w hole history and
the current of its decisions, has been favorably inclined
to the Railroad interest of the State, and has opposed
the inclination of the people and of juries to burthen
our Railroad corporations with inconveniences and lia
bilities in the exercise of their franchises, and we can
not believe that they or their organs, or any of our pub
lic corporations, are prepared to see the Court abolished
and to be remitted back to the Superior Courts, and
subjected without appeal to the tender mercies of their
juries. If then it is not proposed to abolish the Court,
why play into the hands of those who desire to abolish
it? If the Court must still exist as a part of our judi
cial system, with a Bench constituted, in part at least,
as at present, where is the propriety or the policy in
attempting to injure it in the confidence and the respect
of the people ?
The Middle Ground Railroad.
The Griffin Union of “the 17th inst. contains the pro
ceedings of a convention held in that city on tne 14th
inst., to consider the project ol constructing a railroad
from the village of Covingtou, via McDonough, Griffin,
Greenville, and Hamilton, to the city of Columbus*
The counties of Henrv, Spalding, Pike, Meriwether and
Harris were represented in the convention. The fol
lowing resolutions were adopted ; and the committees,
required by the 3d, 4th and oth of the series, were ap
pointed bj* the chairman:
Ist. Resolved, That we will build this Rond, and that
it shall be known and styled the Middle Ground Rnil
Road.
2d. Resolved, That it is inexpedient to survey exper
imentally the route at present.
3d. Resolveii, That a committee of five be appointed
to draft a charter to be presented for passage to the
next Legislature.
4th. Resolved, That a committee of three in each of
the counties of Pike, Meriwether, Harris and Muscogee,
be appointed to procure the right of way for the con
templated Railroad through their several counties, and
that the committee appointed for the counties ofSpald
ing, Henry and Newton, are hereby requested to retain
their appointments until they have obtained the right
of way through their counties.
sth Resolved, That a Committe of three be appoiuted
each for the counties of Newton, Henry, Pike, Spald
ing, Meriwether Harris and Muscogee, to ascertain the
probable amount ot Stock that will be subscribed for
the building of said Road and that said Committee
make report thereof to the Board of Directors hereafter
to be provided.
The wind,-work upon this road has thus been done
with neatness and dispatch, but a glance at the map
will convince any one that it will be a long time yet,
before the earth, and wood, and iron-work is begun.
Marble in Cass.
We learn from the Cussville Standard of the 15th
inst., that a valuable bed of marble lias been discovered
on the land of Col. John S. Rowland, within two miles
of Cartersville. The Standard says:
“We have before us two specimens—one of a beauti
ful white marble, almost translucent, of very tine grain,
and susceptible we should think of very high polish ;
the other a very tine specimen of variegated marble,
one of the most beautiful we have ever seen. Both ot
these varieties occur in large quantities and give prom
ise of great value. We shall take occasion, before long,
to speuk more fully of this valuable discovery than ive
aie able to do now. In the meantime, we shall be glad
to show the specimens in our possession to those who
cull ou us.
Saw Mills burnt.
The valuable saw’ mills, located near Station No. 7
on the Central Railroad, which were owned by Mr. D.
R. Wadley, a brother of the Superintendent ot that
Road, were entirely destroyed by tire on ihursuay
night the 15th inst. There was no insurance upon the
property, and the loss is estimated at #IO,OOO.
Ifg- Brownlow’s ls hig of the 17th inst., notices the
arrival in Knoxville, of the distinguished Irish putriot,
John Mitchell. He is accompanied in bis visit to Knox
ville by his family, consisting of a wife and five child
ren, and announces his intention to purchase a farm in
the vicinity of that city and to settle upon it pernia
Mutly.
The Czar Nicholas aud his Successor.
We take from the Baltimore Sun the following short
notice of the Czar of the Russia*, whose death is re
ported by the last arrivals from Europe, and of his son,
who in the regular line of succession is entitled to the
throne:
“ Nicholas I. Paulowitsch, which is :he son of Paul,
was born on the 7th of July, 1798. Consequently he
was within less than four months of his fifty-ninth
birth-du}-. He married Charlotte, a princess of Prussia,
sister of the reigning monarch of Prussia, on the 13th
July, 1817, who was two years younger than himself.
She embruced the Greek religion and took the name of
Alexandra Feodorowna.—Nicholas ascended the throne
on the death of his brother Alexander, in December,
1825, his elder brother, Constantine, having renounced
in his favor. The heir apparent to the throne is Al
exander Nicolaiewitsch, born April 29th, 1818, and now
approaching his 37th birth day. His brother Con
stantine is nine years his junior, having been born in
1827. They are said to have been together in the
Crimea, during the present siege of Sebastopol, and on
the field of Balaklavn. Some difficulty has been ap
prehended with respect to the succession, but we do
not see any probable cause for it.
Upon the death of Alexander, a conspiracy, which
had long been projected, suddenly broke out, but was
immediately suppressed by the energy of Nicholas, who,
in conformity with the decree o:’ liis father, at once
ascended the throne. This conspiracy originated in
the army, but the causes which led to it do not seein
to exist at present. And as the succession is direct and
legitimate, and in all respects popular, there is no
j reason to expect any dissension in regard to it. That
I the current of events may be modified to-an important
extent, is highly probable. At any rate we shall soon
learn whether the war policy is that of Nicholas or of
the Empire.
A Negro Thief caught.
The Tuscaloosa Momitor of the 7th inst. says:
“A few days ago, a negro stealer was very nicely
trapped at Auburn, in this State. Some time last fall
a negro belonging to Col. N. J. Scott absconded, and,
after dodging about the neighborhood for some weeks,
| disappeared about the Ist of December. Nothing was
heard of him until about two weeks ago, when Col.
Scott was shown a [letter received from Macon, Geo.,
enquiring about a negro left neat that place by a man
named Burge, a resilient of Auburn. The Gazette re
lates the conclusion of the affair as follows:
From the letter, and other corroborating circumstan
ces, Col. Scott concluded it w'as his negro, and without
letting any one know w here he was going, left on Sun
day morning for Macon, reached there Sunday night,
escaped the vigilance of a brother of Burge's who was
1 watching continually at the depot, hired a carriage ear
! ly Monday morning, and in company with a brother of
Maj. White, of this place, drove to the residence of
i Burge’s uncle, and by a little manoeuvering got the
negro, who proved to be his, and brought him back, ar
riving hereon Tuesday, having traveled over 400 miles,
.lust before getting to town the cars stopped and let
i Col. Scott get out. He came home, and immediately
| sent, to townjand had Burge arrested before Burge kueiv
any thing about it. On Wednesday morning he was
tried before Magistrates Grayson and Johnson, and the
evidence being so plain, was committed for trial at the
next court, from whencebe will be unavoidably domici
liated in the public receptacle for evil-doers.
Savannah Medical College Commencement.
The commencement exercises of the Savannah Medi
cal College took place last evening, at St. Andrew’s
Hall, in accordance with previous public announce
ment. The audience was one of the largest, if not, in
deed, the largest, we ever saw assembled in that spa
cious Hall, and was composed of the elite and intelli
gence ofour city ; the ladies alike honoring the occa
sion with their presence. The exercises were such as
are usual to College Commencements.
Soon after 8 o’clock, the audience being seated, the
Trustees and Faculty, with the orator and officiating
chaplain, eutered, followed by the students. After as
suming their respective positions, the exercises were
opened with-prayer by Rev. Mr. King, of the First
Presbyterian Church. In the absence of Judge Berrien,
Dr. Richard I). Arnold presided, and delivered the Di
plomas to the respective members of the graduating
class.
lhere were in attendance on the present course of lec
tures 50 students; 34 of whom were from this State;
11 from South Carolina; 3 from Florida; 1 from Ala
bama ; and 1 from Germany. The degree of Doctor of
Medicine was conferred upon the following named gen
tlemen, viz:
Charles H. Colding, South Carolina; thesis: Remit
tent Fever.
David E. Cole, South Carolina; thesis: Gonorrhoea
William B. Folks, Georgia; thesis: Dysentery.
John W. Farmer, Georgia; thesis: Yellow Fever.
ThomasG. Hardison, Florida; thesis: Typhoid Fever.
Edward H. Hart, Georgia; thesis: Pneumonia.
Joseph T. Johnston, Georgia; thesis: Sedentary Oc
cupations.
George N. Jones, Georgia; thesis: Pulmonalis.
Lee A. Jennings, Georgia; thesis: Neuralgia.
John- C. W. Kennerly, Sounth Carolina; thesis:
Homeopathy.
A. T. W. Lytle, Alabama; thesis: Digestion and the
Circulation.
B. R. Minis, Georgia; thesis: Folicular Intentris.
\\ . J. Sanders, Georgia ; thesis: Uterine Heinorhage.
C. H. Smith, Georgia; thesis: Inguinal hernia.
Lucien Q. Tucker, Georgia; thesis: Intermittent
Fever.
John 11. Talbird, South Carolina; thesis: Typhoid
Fever.
William J. Toole, Georgia; thesis: Pneumonia.
After the delivery of the diplomas, Chesterfield H.
Smith, Mt D . was called to the speaker’s stand, and
presented with an elegant silver cup, having engraved
upon it the following inscription, viz:
Presented to
CHESTERFILD H. SMITH, M. D ,
By the Faculty of the Savannah Medical College,
FOR THE BEST THESIS
From the Class of 1 85 5.
He was addressed in most appropriate terms bv Dr.
Arnold, in which, in behalf of the Faculty of the Insti
tution, was paid a high tribute to the e'ntire class of
graduates, especially naming John W. Farmer, M. D ,
and Edward H. Hart, M. D., of Liberty county, Ga,
George N. Jones, M. D., of Mclntosh county, Ga., Lee
A. Jennings, of Randolph county, Ga., A. T. W. Lytle,
of Henry county, Ala., and Lucien Q. Tucker, of Laurens
county, Ga., as deserving honorable mention for the
ability which distinguished their several thesis before
the Faculty. The address by Henry Williams, Esq.,
fully justified the high position which he has long anti
deservedly enjoyed, us a learned speaker. With no effort
to pander to the vanity of his audience he enters at
once upon the merits of his theme, treating it in all its
bearings, and closing with such reflections as it sug
gests and the propriety of the occasion demands. He
was especially happy in his closing remarks directed to
the gentlemen of the graduating class; urging them to
dilligpnce in their profession, and to honesty and virtue
in all the walks of life. After the invocation of a bles
sing, by Rev. Mr. King, the audience dispersed much
gratified with the exercises they had witnessed.— Sac.
Republican, 14 th inst.
Medical Graduates.— At the Annual Commence
ment of the Medical Department of the University of
New York, on the 7th inst, the degree of M. D. was
conferred on the following gentlemen from Georgia:
J. F. Brown, J. T. Chappell, A. G. Carswell, L. Crews,
C. I). Davis, W. H. Drane, N. L. Galloway, G. P.
Hamilton, T. A. Holloway, W. G. Ilam, D. M. Hall, L.
T. W. Landrum, J. A. Miller, W. H. Pope,
W. J. Reese, C. L. Redwine, M. 0. Stribling, J. H.
Weaver, S. N. Winkler.
Removal ol the Postmaster..
The Papal use has again fallen, and the Postmaster
in this citv, whose only crime was that he was and has
been for upwards of thirty years a worthy member of a
Protestant Chuich. has been sacrificed. It is true, he
has been charged with being connected with the Ame
rican party, but this charge was disproved, by u large
number of the most respectable citizens of Atlanta,
Democrat and Whig, whose petition against the removal
of the late Postmaster was received in Washington
some davs before the removal was consummated. That
he was faithful in the discharge of his duties, courteous
and attentive to all calls upon his attention, is proven
by the fact that he leaves the office with the regret of
the citizens whom he has so faithfully served. Hut he
was a Protestant and his brother belonged to the Ame
rican party —and the Pope’s agent at the head of the
Post-office department, if he could not rekindle the fires
ol Smithfield here, could vent his petty and malignant
spleen upon the American order, by removing a man
from office, whose integrity of character and amiability
of heart, had won for him the confidence and esteem of
all who knew him. It is due to Mr. Boyd‘the present
Postmaster to state that he was not consulted as to his
appointment, and knew nothing of the removal until
intormed that he was appointed to office. As the facts
connected with this outrage upon the citizens of Atlanta,
will soon be laid before them, we forbear for the present.
Atlanta IlepvMii'an.
Hon. W. C. Dawson. —The National Inttllij/encer
says: The presentation of a service of plate, on Tues
day evening, bv a number of the citzens of this city,
to Senator Dawson, ol Georgia, is said to have been a
very agreeable affair. The preseut consisted of a splen
ded silver pitchec, two goblets, and asolid silver salver,
handsomely finished at the establishment of the Messrs.
Galt. The testimonial was made as a small token of
the gratitude felt towards the hottarable Senator for
his attention to the affairs of the District of Columbia,
aud as an evidence of their appreciation of his gentle
manly and courteous bearing in all his intercourse with
our citizens. The sentiment of regret at his leaving
the councils of the nation is universal. Mr. Dawson
received the company with great cordiality, and acknow
ledged the testimonial in neat and appropriate terms,
pleading that he had merely done his duty, and that he
was but the organ of the Committee of the District of
Columbia.
Baker, the murderer of Poole, it is now known
has sailed for the Canaries, in a brig. The authorities
are making arrangements to charter a steamer to give
eliase to her. Harvey Young, a gambler, John Lynn,
undaman named McLaughlin have been arrested on
the charge of uiding in his escape. Mayor Wood says
that Baker is not a member of the police. lie resigned
on the S'lh ol February, to prevent his being turned out.
A meeting of the friends of Poole is called for Thursday
eveuing, to take measures for erecting a monument 10
his memory, and te secure a fund lor the benefit of his
family.
Fiv ox the Savannah and Gclk Road. —Weregret
to learn that Messrs. Holcombe and Millen, contractors
ou the Savannah, Albuuy and Gulf Railroad, had their
shantees and stock of provisions destroyed on Friday
last. The wind blew with such violence in Liberty
county, where they are now at work, that one of their
laborers had to run for his life, and the tire kept up
with him for half a mile. The fire in that neighbor
hood baa done much damage to fences, ete.— &u\ Ji fjp.
The Canvass in Virginia. —The Gubernatorial can
vass in Virginia ia carried on with an ai.im lion and
bitterness of spirit unusual even in that state. Ex-
Governor Smith, better known as Extra Billv, refuses
to follow Wise and the Enquirer in their crusade against
the Know-Nothings. In a recent address to his consti
tuents, he said:
“Know-Nothingism was next touched on. and the
speaker said he would deal frankly with the subject
ilr. Leake, Mr. Wise and liimself had all been written
to, and they bad all resp. ;ded in the same sentiment.
But Mr. Wise bad written a long letter to Judge Ellis
on the subject, and it would not do to suppress this la
bored emanation, and so it was published in the Enqui
rer. Although the throe had responded in very nearly
the same terms, vet, said Gov. S., 1 was charged with
dodging, and no fault found with others. 1 said before,
and I repeat, there is a east ileal of om •/ Democracy in
the Know Xuthnilf creed! Gov. S. then read the plat
form, and proceeded to say wherein he agreed in sen
timent. He was not a Know-Nothing, and had never
sought admission.
“Gov. Smith next referred to the position he had
taken in a speech in Rappahannock county. He hud
spoken of the increasing representation of the North
and West in Congress, in consequence of the flood ol
foreign emigration. The census returns show avast
increase of native population in the .South over that of
the North—as 28 is to 18. It v/as not on account of
the slowness of increase in the South that she was los
ing in her representation, and the North g. iuing, but
it was attributable to the tide of emigration setting
in that quarter.* He had hoped that there was common
ground to unite upon—the Democrat from convictions
of duty, and the Whig from a sense of patriotism.
“The Know-Nothings had been warred on in a spirit
of intolerance—he regretted the war on them—he re
fused to join in that war—he refused to become a par
ty to the crusade. I saw no reason to quarrel with them,
but I oould see every reason why I should not join in
♦he bitter and unscrupulous war upon them. Anil
here I say, before God and in the face of man, I will
not do it! I will not denounce them, nor join in the
cry, because it defeats a great plan—[that already re
ferred to, we presume. 1 Hence, when I was pressed
in Fredericksburg—and pressed so savagely—l would
not. The Speaker said he thought this sufficiently
candid for this time—perhaps for all time. T do not
approve of the secret meetings, but that is a privilege I
will not deny.
“ I say to my friends, go on, but trust to me. Ibe
lieve that 1 have no treason in my heart to the Demo
cratic party. I don’t rely on the statute of limitation
for my record of Democracy. When the reviler ap
proches you, ask what Smith has done? Without de
siring to be understood as at all egotistical, he might
enquire:—Who would have supposed that the Chief of
1840, should be of the same party in 1855, and that this
same party should bo ready to bang, draw, gibbet, cut
and quarter him, for the sake of that leading Whig ?
That boys should now be-cracking whips over his head?
On Saturday last, the lion. Linn Boyd, Speaker
of ttie House of Representatives, accompanied by his
family, and a colored female servant, stopped at the St.
Charies Hotel, in Pitsbtirg, and while they were at
breakfast they were surrounded by a large number ot
uegros, who endeavored to take the servant woman oIF
by force, but were prevented by the interference of a
number of gentlemen. Soon after Mr. Boyd and his
family started to go down to the steamboat for Louis
ville, and were followed by an excited crowd. At the
boat the mob was met by the captain with a revolver,
who threatened to shoot dowu the first one that came
on board. This had a good effect, and Mr. Boyd and
family, and their Set vaut, effected their escape. Pits
burg is becoming famous for these disgraceful exhibi
tions.
The Hon. John M. Botts has written to the Rich
mond Whig that he is not now, und never has been, a
candidate for the nomination of governor of Virginia.
He says he is sick of political life, and shall never seek
to fill another public station. He says that if he has a
loud call to fill public office, he will obey the call, but
the cull must come, as the Kentuekiun said, by “spon
taneous combustion.”
Senator Badger. —Among the events attending the
close of Congress, was the unanimous adoption of a
resolution by the Senate, in a quasi executive session,
expressive of the deep regret of the body at the retire
ment of Senator Badger. Such a legislation, the
Washington Star says, is without precedent on theii
journal, and speaks volumes for the esteem in which
that gentleman is held by his late fellow-Senafors, and
for their deep respect for his character and their ad
iniratoti of his remarkable talents and attainments.
The Nashville Christian Advocate, says:
“ It will be remembered that in the resolutions adop
ted at the ministers’ meeting in Nashville, l'ishop Soule
was requested to delivera funeral discourse, on the 15th
of April, in memory of the lamented Bishop Capers.
Bishop Soule declined, being unwilling, in view of the
uncertainty of his physical ability, to pledge himself to
the task : whereupon it was determined, by all concer
ned, to request Bishop Pierce to perform that dutv.
We are pleased to announce that Bishop Pierce has
kindlv consented to comply with the request. The
hour of service will be made public in due time. It is
to be on the same Sabbath set apart for missionary dis
courses in all the churches in our city. All the Bishops
ate expected to be present, except Bishop Andrew,
who is gone to California, the Missionary Secretary,
and assistant Treasurers, besides many visiting breth
ren.
tW’ Dr. Thomas Hooker, of New Orleans, has dis
covered a chemical preparation, which, mixed with mud
as a bricklayer would mix lime with sand, makes an
excellent coal.'— coal that can be made and sold in the
New Orleans market for thirty cents per barrel, if made
by hand, or fifteen cents, if made by machinery. It
lights easily; there is no offensive smell emitted, but
little smoke, and but very little dust or cinders. What
little cinders are left, is good for cleaning silver, brass
or other similar metals ; and the ashes make tolerable
sand papers, and is also good for scrubbing floors, Ac.
“The patentee also assures us,” says the American Ec
jmnent, “that it will not only burn well in grates (where
we saw it burning,) but in stoves, furnaces for smelting,
and for making steam. In fact it can be put to all the
practical uses of wood or coal, except for the purpose of
generating gas.”
On Thursday of last week Governor Wright, of
Indiana, received as visitors, at his residence in Indi
anapolis, Governors Powell, of Kentucky, Johnson, of
Tennessee, Medill, of Ohio, Matteson, of 111., and
Grimes, oflowa. Such a meeting of the ‘’potentates”
would be regarded in Europe as an event full of mean
ing, and one likely to be followed by the most impor
tant results ; while in our country it is an affair of such
small moment that probably not one-half the citizen*
of the States represented at this meeting of Governors
will ever know that such a meeting took place.
Another Secret Society.— The Pittsburg Gazette
states that there is a regularly organized association of
blacks in that city, bound together, by the most solemn
oaths, and meeting in secret, whose object is the abduc
tion of colored servants, traveling with their masters,
who are suspected to be slaves.
J-y?” Since Col. Kinney’s resignation of the command
of the famous Central American Expedition.it is said
his intention was to take some hundreds of armed men
with him, for the purpose of participating with General
Castillon,-the revolutionary chief in Nicaragua, who is
now at war with that government. Castillon wishes to
establish a white man’s government over Nicaragua,
and in Central America generally, and he has offered
great inducements to volunteers from the United States.
Fires in North Carolina. —The Wilmington Her
ald says : —We are informed that in the neighborhood
of Warsaw over 300,000 turpentine boxes nave been
burned. The woods in portions of Columbus, Bladen
and New Hanover counties have also been on fire, and
much damage has already been sustained. Rain is
greatly needed.
Tight Times. —We have never known corn to be so
scarce or so high as at present. The enormous price
of $2 per bushel has been paid for it, and there is none
in market now even at that price! Flour is also very
scarce. Some of the bakers have stopped baking on
account of not being able to get flour, in a country so
well adapted to raising corn and wheat as this is. it is a
shame that we should be dependent on and subject to
the inconveniences incident to the fluctuations in other
maikets. A vessel load of corn, we believe, could be
.disposed of immediately, were it here now.— St. Angus
’ine {Fla.)paper.
A Growing City.— The St. Louis Intellegencer con
siders the failure of the Legislature to pass a City Ex
tension bill as a dead loss to the city of half a million of
dollars. The city proper contains only 97,000 inhabi
tants, whilst the real city has a population of 120,000.
The present city limits, in some places, run across most
popular streets, leaving the largest Dumber of houses
and people outside. The growth of St. Louis has been
one of the marvels of the age.— Nat. Intelligencer.
Important to Hotel Keepers.— Sometime ago,
Count Luboyadere, of Fiance, arrived in this country,
and put up at the St. Nicholas Hotel, along with two
travelling companions, who occupied rooms adjoining
his own. They left their rooms after breakfast in the
morning, and while gone the Count's dressing-cuse was
found open and ribbed of S6OO, for which umount he
brought suit against the proprietors in the Marine
Court. The Judge held that “it is not sufficient merely
to have notices posted in the rooms, that all valuables
must be deposited with the bar-keeper. They must
give, in addition, special notice in each case to parties
putting up at their houses that such is the regulation.
The plaintiff in this case was a native of France, aod
could not read the printed notice that had been stuck
up permanently in his room.” Judgment for plaintiff',
$6oO. — X. V. ADrcury.
('apt. Benjamin McCulloch (renowned as the
Texan ranger,) publishes in the National Intelligencer,
the letter he udilressed to the President, declining the
appointment of Major of Cavalry, which the President
conferred on him under the new hill authorizing an in
ci ease of the army, llis reason for his declining is,
that lie was the only person not in commission in
the regular army, who was appointed to an office un
der the new bill, he Qould not consent to be placed in
that position, as it he were the only person out of the
regular army, who deserved the appointment.
U. S. Sen vtors.— The next session of the U. States
Senate is likely to show less than the usual number of
Senators, unless the State Legislatures shall alter their
modes upon the subject of their election. Pennsylva
nia has virtually postponed the election of a Senator
till Junu&ry next, four weeks ufter the assembling of
Congress. Missouri postponed the election of a Sena
tor from that State till next November, but, as the Le
gislature will be composed of the present members,
there will be the same difficulty to encounter at the
next session. Indiana is under the same difficulty.
One House refuses to meet the other tor the purpose of
electing a Senator. —Savannah News.
ARRIVAL OF THE IJ. S. MAIL
PACIFIC! Aw SR If J
New York, Marti. 1
The U. S Mail Stea nship Pacijtr Csi.t t- 4 J
arrived at thi> port at 9 o’clock this’n.mni, ,Ti U Nv , I
Liverpool on the 27th nil. “ ■
Commercial intelligence.
The T.ivcipool Colton Market is depress .
declined an eighth of a penny, and holders he,n
ous o le-dize. The sales during the ten dav o C ain
ed 51,'iui, hales, of which speculators took 2 0(1., I"’’ 1,
potters i.ooti bales, leaving 49,000 bales of all d n<l *’
tions to the trade. Fair Orleans was quoted
F “ r u ‘ ,l “ d ’ ***■• *•*&
General Intelligence.
The Right Honorable Sidney Herbert, British e
tary of State for the Home Department, ihe Rinh. u ‘
orAble W. E. Gladstone, Chancellor of the Exchi
and Sir James Graham, First Lord of the Aden T’’
had resigned their seats in the Cabinet. “Some ■’
that their resignations were occasioned bv the r, P
of Mr. Roebuck’s motion of enquiry into the .nd
CF* War ’ ° therS b ‘ V internal dissensions in' 3
Report says that Roebuck’s party will not rest sw
fled without the impeachment of Lord Raglan and ‘
or more of the ex-Ministers.
Lord Palmerston had much trouble in reconstruct
the Cabinet and it was not fully completed. Lord R ‘
sell takes the Colonial Secretaryship as a stop t 0
gap, but completes his mission to Vienna R,.,
gives Lord Elgin a seat in the Cabinet, ihe L„!
Carlisle is Viceroy of Ireland. The War Chancellor
the Exchequer is Mr. Lewis, an untried man >
Charles Hood takes the piace of Sir Janies Graharr
first Lord of the Admiralty.
The members of the Government express contidec
hopes that the pending negotiations will lead loan hor,
orable peace, although war measures continue to
actively prosecuted all over Europe.
Louis Napoleon seems determined to proceed to t! e
Crimea. England and Austria advise him to stai ■
home.
The report is that Russia has declared war again*
Sardinia, but it needs confirmation.
Tuscany has joined the Western Powers, but Naples
has not. 1
The Vienna Conference had not been opened, but
would be in a few days. All parties professed a desire
fir peace.
On the 17th ult., the Russians, under General kip.
randi, attacked the Turks under Omar Pasha at
toria. The latter were supported bv a heavy fire fr,i n
the English ships, and ufter an engagement of
hours duration, compelled the Russians to retreat with
a loss of five hundred men. The Turks, however, did
not pursue them.
The weather had moderated at Sebastopol. The snow
had almost disappeared, the health ot the army was
better. The siege operations were progressing with
vigor.
The attack of the combined forces of the armv w aj
shortly expected. The allies in the Crimea numbered
one hundred and fifty thousand, and the condition ot
the armv is improving.
The Russians were actively engaged in fortifying
their positions, especially on the right flank. Sebiisto
pol is now considered more impregnable than it has
been since the commencement of the siege. Thou
sands are still at work strengthening the fortresses and
other points.
Both the Russian Grand Dukes are on the Belbek
with an army of 30,000.
Austria has appointed Baron Prokesch special com
missioner to the V ienna Congress.
Russia has issued a Ukase, decreeing a forced loan,
and immense contributions. Provisions have also been
ordered.
The Russians were fortifying their positions on the
Danube.
Sardinian troops we-e arriving at Constantinople.
The treaty signed by the Allies and Prussia was the
same as that of December 2d, except the omission of
the second Article relating to the Danubian Principali
ties.
Orders had been received at Constantinople to pre
pare hospital beds for live thousand men, from which
it is inferred that an assault was to be made on Sebas
topol.
The new Baltic fleet is to consist of 55 war steamers,
carrying 2,dot) guns; five floating batteries of eight
guns each: eight mortar ships; twenty-eight steam
gun boats of 60 guns, making a total of 100 ships, and
2,27S guns.
Lord Raglan’s resignation to avoid a recall, has been
reported, and is generally credited.
On the 20th lilt., the Duke of Cambridge took his
seat in ihe House of Lords.
Lord Palmerston announced that Earl l.ncai; had
been recalled in consequence ot his differences with Lord
Raglan.
In the House of Commons a discussion arose in re
gard to commerce with Russia since the commeuc*--
ment of the war. It was stated in debate, that under
the present system of blockade, the interior trade of
Russia had suffered no injury, and that £lo,(h),iiko
sterling had gone from England to that country. The
right of search was urged as necessary in order to pre
vent the introduction of Russian goods in England.
- It was not deemed advisable to lav before the House
the correspondence between Great Britain and the Uni
ted States, on international arrangements, during a
time ot war. It was, however, stated that the two coun
tries are on the most friendly terms.
Lord Russell published an address to his constitu
ents, defining his position. He places himself in their
hands as the candidate for the renewal of their confi
dence.
On the 19th ult., the Royal assent was given to the
North American Fisheries bill.
A convention between the Porte and Great Britain,
for the enlistment of the Turkish contingent has been
signed.
An interesting debate arose iu Parliament upon the
question of going into committee on the army estimates.
Lord Palmerston contended that the sufferings of the
armv in the Crimea arose from physical cause in the
power of no man to control. The sufferings were not
confined lo the Br itish army. The Russian list of sick
and wounded amounted to 35,000 men.
Notwithstanding the reports that affairs in the Crinea
are improving, some accounts received in England sav
that the weather has been intensely cold and several
thousand Russians have been frozen to death. The al
lies, especially the English troops, were suffering dread
fully from the element, and many were dying daily,
whilst others were being frozen, losing arms, hands,
legs, Ac. Their condition was deplorable in the ex
treme, and tven officers were without the common com
forts or necessaries of life.
Joseph Hume, the great English Radical Reformer,
is dead. He was born at Montrose, Scotland, in 1777.
Destitution in England had about reached its height,
and from the combined causes of an unusually severe
winter, unusually dear prices of all descriptions of pro
visons, ana the total stagnation of trade, the poor were
in a deplorable condition. Many thousands ot laborers
have been weeks without food, except the supplies of
charity. A riot of two or three days’ duration look
place in Liverpool, and in London a disturbance had
occurred among the unemployed.
• The weather, however, having changed, shipping
was arriving, which would furnish employment end
prevent further disturbances.
Affairs in Spain were somewhat threatening.
Whetherjthe Emperor ofFrance will go to the Crimea,
is a tnatter still oil question. It is said that he has
drawn up a plan for a vast military strategy, which lie
wishes to superintend, but England and Austria thick
that he had better leave it to the generals.
The Americans in Baris gave a grand hall on the22d
ult., in commemoration ot Washington’s birthday.—
Nearly all the Diplomatic corps, as well as the members
of the French Government were present.
The re-construction ot the English Cabinet is not, iu
some quarters, viewed as favorable to peace.
There seems, it is said, to be a desire for peace on the
part of England, but no indications to the effect with
Russia, except upon bet own terms.
The French papers r ention that the city of Cutaria
in Italy, has beeu almost destroyed bv an earthquake.
The'committee on the Second Chamber at Berlin, had
resolved to propose a note ot a want of confidence in
the Ministerial policy.
The Vienna semi-official journals contradict positive
ly that Austria intended to negotiate a fifteen million
loan in England.
The Imperial palace at Prague, the residence of the
ex-Emperor of Austria, has been destroyed by tire.
Four Days Later From Europe.
ARRIVAL OF THE AFRICA.
The imports for the week were 200,000 bales. Pri
ces easier, Middling 1-16 lower; FairOrltans 5 5-S;
Middling Uplands 4 7-8. Sales on Friday reached
6,000 bales—closing unchanged.—Stock on hand 52v
000 including 310,000 American. Money eaiser.
The Vienna correspondent of the Times says a draft
of a general treaty has been prepared, securing the in
tegrity of Turkey, preventing future encroachments
and guaranteeing rights to the Christians in Turkey.
This will be presented at the Conference.
Russia is still immense war like preparations.
The Banks w. re to reduce their rates of in
terest immediately.
There was no reason to doubt the death of the Czar.
It was known on Friday that the physician* had giveu
him up, which caused the funds to advance.
Lora Clarendon announced his death to the House of
Lords, and Lord Palmerston to the House of Commons.
No details relative to his death have yet transpired.
It is thought he was poisoned, but most probably died
of pulmonary appoplexy.
Prussia seerues more favorably inclined towards the
allied iuterest.
Composition ot the Next Baltic Fleet.
Sir J. Graham, in the House of Contmous, stated it
was determined this year to send out to the Baliic
nothing hut steam vessels, as they had learned fiotn
experience that sail and steam vessels could not he
manoeuvred together—the commander, having to con
sider both, was baffled in his arrangements. Twen
ty sail of the line would go to the Baltic, propelled
by steam, and there would be an addition of twenty
gun-bouts and ten floating batteries. Considering the
circumstances under which our fleets had been placed,
they had not been neglectful of th ir duty, in the
Black Sea they were without harbors, aud in the
Baltic a blockade had beeu kept up with energy and
gallantry without the loss of a single ship.
The Command of the Baltic Fleet. — Rear Ad
miarl, the Honorable Richard Saunders Dundas, C. 8.,
has been appointed to the com maud of the Baitic fleet,
lie is the youngest of his standing ou the flag list.
He is in the titty-fourth year of his age; and whilst
there is not a man in the navy an enemy to his good
fortune, or one who will be jealous ot his position,
we may safely say that he has the highestrespect and
esteem of all classes connected with that service ot
which he is one of its most dignified and respected,
if not one of its most distinguished members.
Curious Contrasts. —Virginia Negroes, Massachu
setts Lions. Barnum w anted Burns lor his Museum m
New York. The Church appropriates him in Boston.
Admission to each 25 cents. — Jf- L Axpre**,