Chicago Daily Tribune Newspaper, May 18, 1875, Page 4

TERMS OF THE TRIBUNE. 0N (PATADLR I ADVAXCE), Postage Prepnid nt thin Ofc 3,00 | Weakly, S1300 )5 Fire cople 3.00 the same rate, t in e2h town and village, Fpeclal arrangements made with suct, Spealmen eopiee seat froe, Tn preveut delay and mistakes, ba mre and give Posts ©OfMee addrem in fal), Including Btete and County, Jlawhitancesinay bemade oither by draft, expross, Post- Of.ceorder, of In regstored lotters, atnur risk. TERMATO CITY SUDACRIDRAS, Dhaily, dolivered, Sunday excapled, 2% vents par week. Duily, delivared, Buniay tacluded, 30 cents por weak. Address THE TRINUNR COMPANY, Corner Madison and Dearbiorn-ats., Chicsgo, L SEMENTS. HOOLRY'S THEATRE—Randoloh strost, between Vask and $a8alle, Ruierson's Minstrels. M'VICRER'S THEATRE—Maiison stroot, hatwoon dentborn and State. Engagoment of Charlos Papa. " Samsen ADELPHITHRATRR—Deatborn sireat, corner Mone ree, Vatloty Lintertalnment. ACADEMY OF 3USIC—Halstod atreet, hatwaon Mad- frso and Monree, Engpapoment of the Fox Pantomime- Teoupo. “* Tumptr Dunpty . The Chiago Tribune, Tuesday Morning, May 18, 1578, Secretary Bnistow is understood to Liave decided upon the appointment of a board of the most experienced army engineers to pro- ceed to Chiccgo and exnmino tho walls and foundations of the Custom.1Touse. The Scc- retary, it is said, hns no donbt that the work must bo torn down, but Le desires first to ob- tain the judgment of the most eminent ex- perls, A petition from Lz Ioxe Ciaxa, the most poworful of tho Chinese Irinces, has been submitted to the Throne in behalf of the in- troduction of European branches of learning into tho schools of the Empire, aud also urg- ing that a kuowledgo of *foreign sciences™ bo hereafter required of eandidates for public offices under tho Chinese sysiem of competi- tive examinations. It is believed that tho Tekin Government will not deny the petition. dhe Supré‘mo‘ boxart of the f}}xited States, in the caso of the Ogdensburg & Lake Chiam- pinin Railrond Campany, recently held that a Hew York corporation hiad the power to con- troet, 8¢ o common carricr, to transport freight to Boston over anotlier milrond oub of tho State and beyond its own terminus, ‘That when the ecarrier fixes the prite for transportation over the whole line, it is fair to infer that he makes the entiro contruct Lis own, e ——— A decision in the State Insurance case has been reached, Judge Dnustsron Lolding that the transnction was froudnlent mnd void whereby tho oficers of the Company bought up policies at 15 cents .6n the dollar, nnd thon paid themselves in fuil out of the Com. pavy funds deposited in bank, In the mean. time, howevar, the Trensurerof the Compnny is insolvent, and the bank Lins failed, so that it is not manifest how tho plucky plaintims in the tedioun litigation are to reap any bene- £t from their victory. Supervisor MuxN's successor las been named, and, it s expected, will assume tho dutics of tho ofico sbout July 1. Mr. Asa C. MarTnews, of Pittsfield, II., Collector of tho Ninth Internal Revenno District of Illi- nois, and one of the oldest nud most efficient snd trustworthy ofiicers in the servico in this Btate, is tho now appointee. e is tho per- nonal friend of Senator Loaay and Solicitor Bruronp Wrzsow, nnd it is belioved that ho will prove himeelf fully oqual to the roquire- cents of the Hecrotary of the Trensury. e — s ————— Gresshopper news of the most unpleasant description comes from the Counties of Clay eud Jackson, in Konsas, Btock iu roported 10 be starving already, At Pacla tho citizens Liardened their henrts in Pruraon-fashion and attempted to give them battle, They aro re- ported o have killed o wagon.doad, but Providenco favored the heaviest battalions, and, ‘os SypNEy Sairm related of Dame TantrveTon nnd the Atlantic Ocean, it is needloss to slate that the grasshoppers beat tho citizens of Taola. A strip of country over o hundred milos wide is being dovaatated. The New York Jlerald publishes a sensa- tional dispatch from London to the offact that it has been discovered in Ingland that Messrs. Moopy and Sanxer, tho celebrated Lvaugolists, arv in the ewmploy of T, ', Baz. Xst, the great showmun, whosa object is to found anew religion. The story runs that Moopy and Savkey are put forward ns g counterpoise {o the novelty ¢ English and American Cardinals, What exactly inspired the ridiculous story it is hard to teil. Thore i neither wit nor hnmor in it, nor bas it oven tho elements of n good sensntion. It is n Dald assertion which has not enough proba- Dbility in it to decoive tho most credulous or least Informed. ‘T'wo rerolutions were passed last night by tho Common Council,—one providing for the appointment of a counnittee, consisting of tlroo Aldermen from each Division, to in. vestigato the frauds porpetrated at the char. ter eleotion, and another pledging tho Council (o submit tho chartor of 1875 to f popular voto whenever n petition to {hut end is presented, with tho requisite number of signers, Noone will bo deceived into tho supporition that efther of theso resolutiony ‘wera passod in o spirit of fairness or Lonesty, ‘I'his netion of (he Council, in tho light of its recent disregard’ of judicial authority in the coninmuaat.on of thie fraudulont clectlon by unduo and unnecessary hasto In canvass. ing the bogus returny, §s the shallowest of Luncombe, meaning nothing, and eoffecting nothing, A guestion of yreat importanca to interior ports of entry, created such under the net of July 14, 1870, {8 under inveatigation by tho Trecsury Department, 'The question s ono of construction of the law—-in Lrief, whether it is practicable, within ten days of thoar. rival of imports at the occan ports, to ascor- tain and fix allowances of damuges sustained by merchandiso during sbipment. Colleotor Jupp, of Chicago, answers in the uegative tho inquiry on this point, at the same time submitting a strong nrgument in Bupport of Lis position that the ten days provided Ly law for the examination of fmports with refgrence to damages should uot be com- Puted until the goods have arrived at their ultimate deslination, The matter will Lo submitted to Attornoy-Geueral Prenmreont for o dacision, The chlc;ga produce lxvmrk:ls genorally took a turn downward yosterday, Moess pork was moderately aotive, and 80@850 por brl lower, closing firmat and 5 for July, Lard was dull and 2 rer 100 1ba. lower, closing nt $15.12} for June, and §16.35 for Inly. Ments were quiet and unchanged at 8je for shoulders, 11ic for ghort riby, and 123@12}o for short clears, Ilighwines wero 2¢ lower, at £1,1G per gallon. Lake freights wore quiet aud firm, Flour wns quict and steady, Whent was moderately active nod je lower, closing at $1.023 cash, and $1,04} for June, Corn wna quict and J@1o lower, closing tame at 71fe cash, and 720 for Juno. Oats were in moderate do- mand and e lower, closing at 63jo cash, and 64je for June. Rye was quict at 81.06@ 1.08}e. Barley wns quiot and Grmer at 1,03, Hogsoponed activo and firm, but closed wonk. Snles chiefly at $7.60@7.85, The cattlo mar. ket wns nctivoand firm, Shoep wero nom. innlly unchanged. The universal teatimony of tho various In- formed parties visited by onr Commissioner to Cincinnati isto tho fact thnt tho Duenn Vistn stone of the Lest quality is n good stono for large buildings, but that there aro many vavieties of it ; and that oven the best requires gkillful operntion to separate tha good from the indifferent. It appenrs, hiow- over, that there Lna been compnrativoly little discrimination in seleoting the stono to ba used in Chicago, and that much of what was sent hiero was wholly unflt for the purposo for which it was intended’and for which it ‘was actunily used Tn abandoning the system of direct pur- chnme and in returning to the old plan of awarding contrncts, the County Commission- ersin effect declara their unwillingness to dovota the time and attention necdssnry for tho honest and cconomical administration of the county’s alfairs. Under the dircct pur. chano system tho members of the Board wero personally and apecifically responsible for the quality and the prico of the supplies pur- chiased by them; while, under the contract system, althongh the articles may be obtained as cheaply, there is, ns is well known, ample opportunity for frand in the matter Loth of quality nnd quantity. The lowost bidder may get the contract, but he is not required to rigidly live up to his ngreement, and the poor of the county, like the Tndinns supposed to bo fod by the Government, never got the supplies nctunlly paid for. The contractor faltens and the pnuper grows thin in equal proportion, but the tax.payer keeps on fur- nishing the regular amonnt of money. Such has been the history of the contract syatom in Cook County, and its readoption is a proof rather of the noglect and indifforence of the Commissioners than of the feilura of the wethod of direet purchnse, THE CUBTOM.HOUEE STONE, Tho investigations that have been made by aspecinl representativo of T ‘U'ninuse into the character of the Cincinnati stone fur nished by the contractor, Mr. MorLien, for {he Chicago Custom-House Building, warrant. ond demand a special official investigation at the handy of the Secretary of the Trensu. ry. There aro reveral points very conspicit. ously brought out by ourprivate iuvestigation tht suggest the direction which the officinl inquiry should take, and which may be stated as follows : a 1. The relations betweon 3Mr, MurrLen, the contractor, and M, Myrurrr, late Super- vising Architect of tho Treasury Department. It is alleged that a Cincinnati contractor had au intimation from BMMr, Murrerr, at the timo of tho letting of the contract, that it would be useless for him to bidon it, nsit was pretty certain that it would go to MuEr- zer. Thero is also gaid to lavo been a lack of specification aa to the sizo of the stone in the ndvertisement for bids which would enablo a bidder favored with private infor. mation to wnko a lower average than any other, and yot rocelve more pay. There isan intimation of renl estate trausnctions, which may meannothing. Thero has likewise been nn intimation, thongh not at all substauti. ated, that Morterr bod on interest with Muriien in the bullding of some Chicngo residences from this Cincinnati stone, sp- posed to have beon brought to Chicago -for the Custom-House, 2. Mukrier's contract requires that the stone dolivered for the Custor.House shall come from u cortain ledge in the Californin quarry, 'Thero ave now strong indicatious that ho hos dolivored other stone, It is stated thot MorLren bought some refuse stono from & quarryman in Cincinnati, after a local con. tractor had picked from tha lot what ho re- gorded ns good stono, It is nlso stated that Muerten has, furnished no stone for any worlk exeept for tho Custom-Houso for two yenrs past, and the natural inforonce is that tho stone which he bLought came to Chicago, It is also snid that the ownerof quarry of inferior stono who wished to disposo of it bonsted, na nn evidence of its good quality, that Mueerer hnd quarried some of it for tho Chicago Crstom-Iouse, 4. It secms that the Maine granite, of which tho Cincinnati Custom.Ifouso is being conatructed, i lnid down in Cincinnati at 89 conts, It is not claimed that thero is much profit in this ; but, as nearly ns can be ascer- tained, Mr, Muerien has been receiving an averago of 1,37 for Cinciunati stone laid down in Chicsgo, The differonce in the cost of {ransportation and handling, to ARy nothing of the quality of the stone, is Inrgely in favor of the Chicago contract, and, it Mr, AMuzrzen bins boon receiving as large on aver. Age 88 S1.I7 for Cincinnati stona delivered in Chicago, while Maino granite has been do. livored in Oincinnati for 89 conts, it Is g question for iuvestigation whother Mr, MurLien's compensation is not grossly ex- cessiva, 4. Murnren s aceredited with the romark to o Cincinnati gentloman that * Lo got floug well enongh with Alvrrert, who nover found fault with anything, but this now man, Porren, is too particular,” If Moriuenmade a remark of that kind, it s, perbaps, a sig. nifienuce wheu taken in connection with the numerous evidences'that much of tho stone which he hias furnluhod the Chicago Custom. House Is of an inferior quality, Hero is ample materinl on which to bose an offlclal juquiry s to whother Mozrrzn hasnot forfcited Lis coutvact, either by collusion with somebody or by a failureto fulfill its ob. ligations, As to the Cincinnati (Buena Vista) freestone, tho testimony of tho Oinclnnati continctors, a3 well s that of numerous buildings constructed from it, both in Cinein. notl and Chicago, is that it is suited to such o building as the Chicago Custom.House if properly treated, As_it comes out of the quarry, however, the good utone is lined on one sido with a layer permented with iron, ond ou thoother by a layer of clay, Hoth theso lnyers must ho stripped off beforo the stone is fit to go into g building, It seoms alsa to b sdmitied that the stone should bo properly ucasoned, and one of the Cinclnnati contractors thinks it should be cxposod tothe air (though not to the rain) for two years bee THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE: TUESDAY, MAY I8, 1875. fora it is put into the wal None of these precantions secom to have been taken with regard to the stono hrought to Chicago for tho Cusiom.lonse. The proponderance of testimony is that not mora than threo.fourths of tho stone which comes out of tho Buena Viatn quarry is fit for use, while it would ap- pear that Mr, Murrren has sent everything that ling been taken ont of his quarry, and perhaps also stono of other quarries after Cincinnnti contractors had mado their pick. Secretary Brustow and Supervising-Architect Porren will probably ascertain all the facts in the case. THE 80H00LS FOR TRIEVES, We yesterday commented upon the discov- ery that a lad employed in the wholesalo dry- goods house of Oinsoy, Pintg & Scorr had been for two years robbing his employers of silks by the picco, Ince and othor shawls, and other goods, and had disposed of them for a more pittance to & number of pawnbrokors, In that articlo we stated that tho pawnbrok~ ing business, as genorally conducted in {his city, was & mero Dblind for the reception of stolen goods, and suggested that there wero probably a hundred others of their victims and slaves employed in robbing other stores in tho city, While that article was writing the police wera arresting a clerk employed in the wholesale establishment of J. V. Farwery & Co., who hind been engaged in preciscly the same class of business, and hind been car- rying on his stealing in dircet connection with certnin pawnbrokers, Iere, thon, wo havotwoenses of boys employed Iy larga estab- lishmonts engnged for a long timo in stealing from thelr omployers,—tho nggregaie of theso robberies amounting to several thou- sandsof dollars. We have the fact also es. tablished thnt these boys had no meaus of disposiug of the goods except to the five or six pawnbrokers named by them; and wo have the boys' statoments that these pawn- brokers not only knew that the goods wero stolen and from whom they were stolen, but indicated tho kind of goods they wanted. Leaving to the Courts and juries tho doter- minntion of the guilt or innocence of theso particular pawnbrokers, wo eall attention again to the notorious fact that, with a fow honorable exceptions, the principal, if not exclusive, business of the pawnbrokets of this city is the recoption of stolen goods. So general is this the case that, upon a robbery being reported to the police, the description of the property is handed to certain officers, who at onco proceed to the pawnshops, and, if the stolen property is recovered by the polics, the great bulk is found in the pawn- shops, Wo inaist that, when pawnbroking is re. dueed to mera system of purchnsing stolen property, the fewer of sueh establish. ments in the city the better it will be for the morals of tho city. Property isnsa goneral thing atolen not for the possession of the property, but for the money which can be obtained forit. It is converted by tho thief instantly into money. Thosa shops are the only places whero this convoersion can be oadily made, and they nover fail {o receivo, no matter how evident it may be that tha property has been stolen. They are, there. fore, n standing invitation to steal; they offor prompt cash payment for all stolen property brought to thom. They aro open and undis- guised schools in which stealing iy taught and rewnrded. Theso schools exist by the con- sent nnd license of tho City Government. It is to bo hoped that the noxt Grand Jury will thoroughly investigate not only these particular cnses brought before them criminal- Iy, but that they will extend their resaarchos to the wholo systom of pawnbroking as car- ricd on in this city, and expose ita crimes and abominations, THE BCIENOE OF CHURCH-BUILDING. Father Rrowvax, of the St. James Oatholie Church, mado some romarks {o his congregn- tion on Sundsy last with regerd to tho mat- tor of church-building which were very timely nnd sensible, and we trust wo may bo nccorded the privilego of commending them to the religious community of Chicago of all denominations, and of wishing thnt they could have beon spoken from overy pulpit in the land without raising tho suspicion in good sensitive Protestants souls that Taz Curosco Tnrouseis o Roman Cathollo organ, Tue ‘Tninue only recognizes in the remarks of Fathier RionbaN sn unusual degroo of hard common genso and rigid propriety, which it does not always find in the policies of tho palpit when applied to business mattors, and a9 guch it feols freo to admire and commond them to Cntholic and Protestant, to Jow and Pagan, alike. The subject-matier of Father Tiompin's romnrks wes the building of anew church on ‘Wabash avenue to take tho place of the pres. ent inconveniont and insufficient one in which his flock worship, In the courso of theso re. marks the revorond gontloman snid : After I hiavo finished, you will ba banded a finsncial statemeut of the condition of the church, Lvery year, Lerenfter, I will givo you a simitar statoment, 80 that you may understand exsctly whiat you bavo done, aud What you have to do, When, two years ago, we egan tho subscription for bullding & brick church to tako the placa of this old woodon one, I told you that §t was by subscription alono that the new church shonld bo bullt. Tha lot which you doclded fo buy on Wabash svenuo cout $25,00, The entire amount which you Liave sabacribed to pay for it, as you will see,—T give you every namo, and the sum the person pald,—ls $10,008, Tho restT have mada up by & rigid manage ment of iy housaliold expenses, and the rusning sge penses of the parish, whick I havo kopt at a minimum, I willnot wheodlo any one to subseribe, T will not £0 to auy man' door 0 beg for a cent, 1f you do not cure euougl about your church toput R up yourselves, it canuot yo up, I shall do everything oward its hastoniug whicu s priest can do, I will work, and contrive, and save for you; but T will ot have & falr, nor a dence, nor lottery, nor sell liquors nop will T do anything toward it inconals With tha character of & prieat, There are two points in these remarks which are specially to ba noticed. Firat, the mauner of construction, Most churches are built nowadays upon faith nnd fairs, A subscription is started ay the foundation, both in tho church and out of the church, People subscribo ensily onough, and, under ‘the excltement of compelition aud the spur of eleemosynary appeals from tho pulpit and publio boggiug in the charch, very large sub- seriptions aro often made, Evory collector Lkuows, however, tho fallnoy and delusion of subgeriptions asawholo, Some pooplo ro. duce them, somo avoid them altogether, aud, when the church gots built, the debt is often bigger thau the church. By this timo the cash on hand has run out, and there yot remain au organ o be bought, carpets to bo lald down, aud coatly furniture to he procured, for a firet.clasa church now- adayii must have its kitchen, its library, its sitting-inoms, its parlors, its concert-room, and fomotimes a place for the privato theat ricals aud tableanx. Tho fair, the lottery, tho amatour conoert, the tablenus, the dra. matlo entertainmont, the rafie, thostrawberry festival, the down-town dinner, the necktin sociables, and numerous other shows and on. tertainments, some innocent and some not, and nearly oll of them bores, wust be relied upon for tho farnishing of tho church, the crection of the organ, and tho paymont of the singers, They aro a burden in avery senso of the word, 'They do not rolurn an equivalont for tho patron's money; often- times Lo i fleeced for roligion's sake, Tho man who does not patronize thom, buy tickets, and spond money liborally, is st down A3 8 man without publio spirit, and vot inter. ested in tho canso of charity and religion, Somaetimes they develop n mild form of gam- bling ‘which lends to most unfortunato reaults. Tho whole process is of a Aqueozing, wheedling deneription, to resist which re. quires considernblo moral cournge, But hera comes & man eccupying a pulpit ina church which {5 not large enough to accomodnte his worshipers, and tells them ho will hiave nono of this small.show business, Ho snys to them: *If you esk mo why I do not hove a fnir, I toll you, Nover, 1f you aro not willing to give o God n small portion of tho means 1o has given you without taking the amount out in amusement, then you may keop it. If this church could Le built in & mouth by having o fair, I would not have ono.” Thig is plain, terse, blunt talk, but {t will do good, It will result in tho building of the church without any resort to questionable means, nnd when tho church is built it will be paid for. The second point is the public spirit of this priost hitnself, Ha backs up his prinoiples with practics, nud contributes more to tho roquisite sum than his congregation, saved from his salary and perquisites by economy ; in other words, ho pnys back to his people what his poople have given him, and aska from thom only his living expouses. Porhnps this is too much to oxpect from ministers in general, excopt from the poorer class of the profession. Rich ministers, na & rule, give littlo, although their perquisites are Inrge, whilo poor ministers give a great deal, although their porquisites are smoll. ‘The poorer he is, the mora ho must give. Tho richer ho is, the mors promptly and sharply ho collects his handsome salary, which nover s in arzeara. Tho poorer lio is, the less likely ho is to get his pay at all, oxcept in onions or cordwood. Fother Rtonpan's examplo in this respect is refreshing, but we foar that it is not ouo which will be gonerally imitated. 1t is mono the loss admirable on that account, howover, nnd Father Riorpay and his flock, when they gointo their ‘¢ plain, sol. id, comfortablo edifice, with no neodloss or extravagant ndornmont,” will enjoy it with n lnrgo degrea of happincss, especially from the fact that they owe no man a cont for it, and that thoy paid for it out of their pookets by direct contribution, and not by fnirs, lotte. ries, nnd other wheedling devices to raiso money, THE NEW YORK CUSTOM-HOUSE FRAUDS, Tho smuggling of $3,000,000 worth of silks through the New York Custom-Honso within two years is tho direct rosult of ahigh tariff, which puts a premium on dishonesty. Whonovor o nation makes it profitabla to ongago in any sort of business, honest or dis. honest, the chanco is sura to boseized, Tho United States, by levyingn duty of 60 per cont on silks, hns mado tho possiblo gain from defrauding the rovenue much greater than the possible risk. So tho rink Ias been run aud the gain has been got. One of the gaugs concerned in tha work has beon broken up, but n dozen others may bo operating now. Tho spasm of honest netivity among the rovenuo officials of Now York mny tem. poarily cheok tho ovil, but it can do nothing mora, Until human anaturo has been redienlly changed, an onormous tariff and enormouy smnggling will bo cause and offcct, This relation of things las ex- isted in every European country, while high dutics were in vogue, just os it oxists hero to-dny, There was a tima when British emugglers had allios in country squires, mngiatrates, and clergymon, and. when the Govornmont found itsolf utterly unnblo tostop the illicit trado. Thisstato of thingsLins disnp- peared with tho causo that gavoe it birth,—the high tarill, ‘There is scarcely,any smuggling into the British Tsles now. But no ouo can daubt that the old practice wonld revive agin if the old duty wero rovived, Bmugpling waa once a favorito trade in Germany, but it was duo to crashing duties, and disapponred when they did. It is still o favorite trade in Spnin, whero the polioy of the Middle Ages and of'tho United States is faithfully followed. Canadn is mot troubled with it; nor France, savo in the caso of a fow artioles on which absurdly high duties aro lovied; nor Germany, nor England. ‘Tho reason is that tho tariffs of theso countrics aro not suf- ficlently high to make the gain from smug. gling equal to the risk, The smugglor must 8ell his wares below tho solling rates, nnd must shore his profits with hia confedorates in the markots abroad and in the Custom-Houso at home, Tho amount saved by evading tho duty must, thon, bo considernblo, or ‘elso Lis individual profit will bo small, Tho higher the duty, tho greator the proft and the mora smuggling, The lower the duty, tha smaller the profit and the less smuggling, Theso aro vory plain faots, It wonld scarcely ba worth whilo to repeat ther, wers it not that no suspicion of thoir existonco seoms to bo en. tertained In the minds of our lnw-makers. Tho best remedy for the shameful state of things in tho New York Oustom-Ilouse is not moro detectives, moro stringont rules and grenter procautions, but the reduction of the duties to a rovenuo standard. When the du. ty ia adjusted simply in ordor to yield rove- 1nue to the Governmont, it will not be lnrge enough to make the gain for oveding it out- wolgh therisk, Ae soon as this state of things is reached, smuggling will atop, It will not atop beforo this. If tho next Con- greas fails to cut down the duty, smuggling will be as bad o year henco as it wasp year ago, mrm—— "The Railroad and Warchouse Commision. ors have, at the snggestion of Grain-Inapect. or Surrw, adopted two new rules for the government of tho Inspoctor's ofiice in QLj. cago, the object being to obviate any such difficulty in the transfer of tho funds ay hag been experlenced in the. case of Tampen, Undor theso rules the Chief Inspector is to doposit dally in & Chieago baulk desiguatad by the Commiasioners, and ho shall alsg re. port daily to the Board the recoipts, accom. panied by o certificato of doposit from sald bank. The Inspector is also, in ecaso of voluntary or iovoluntary retirement {from office, to turn over all monoys, "books, or other properiy remaining iu his hands, to the oustody of his successor, A monthly report is also required from tho In. spactor, which shall give & full statemont of the regeipts and expenditurcs of tha oftice, togother with the amount of uncollected biils, duly certified; alio, the pay-roll, giviug tho nemes, dates, sud pay of all persons om. ployed in the oftice by the Inspector and Reg- istrars, and, upon tho approval of thess by the Commiasicners, said bills may be pald, Theso rules, in the opinion of the Commis. sloners, will almplily tho nccaunts of the de- partment, and tako from Inspoctor 8xiriz A responsibility which Le is only tao glad to avoid, THE OMAHA RRIDGE OASE, Thoro hns always been n coulroversy whother the enstorn terminus of tha Union Pacifio Rallroad was on the enstern or west. ern sido of the Missouri River, or in Town or Nebraska, ‘This question became of moro fmportance when tho railrond bridge was built, and when tho Union Pnclfic Railroad Company, treating that bridgo ns a separato siructuro and as no part of their romd, in. posed a seale of tolls for tho transportation of froight and pessongors in onrs over that { bridge. This Compnuy inaisted that tho enstorn terminus of its road wasnt Omaha, on the Nobraskn sido of the river, and henco all Eastorn roads, in ordor to doliver freight and passengers {o the Union Pacifie Tond, must do £0 on the westorn eide of thoe river, Tho construction and manngemient of tho railrond bridge wns under thae officers of the Union Pacific Railrond Company, who, s n bridgo company, made loans and exccuted morigages on the bridge. The caso hing recently been decided by Judge Diuroy, of the Unitod States Circuit Court, and thnt dooision is to the effect that the enstern terminus of the Union Pacific Railrondis on the Towa sido of the rivor, and that tho Union Pacific Railrond Company must by Inw operate its road tothe ecastern terminus, and that tho bridge is of necessity portof its rond. Al exactions, theroforo, for transfer of froight from tho Iowa side to the Nebraskn sido, aud all other charges or claims founded on tho assumption that the eastern terminug of tho road is at Omala, nre do- clared void, Bome years ago, when tho bridge was built aud tho rates of toll demanded for its nse, Tae Toinuse urged that such o procoed- iug was not only unjust, but was n violation of tho charter of tho Company, The good pooploof Omaha rssumed that, beeauso wa fusisted upon what nppeared to ustobea vory clear proposition, Tur Thibuve was hostile to Omaha, and wns seeking to depro- cinto that thriving city to build up some city inJown. Toratimo thera was quite an ex- citoment over it, and threats were mado that Omaha would deal with 8t. Louis instend of Chieago, but no person in Omaha was foolish enough to commit such folly s that, Now comes the clear, intelligent, calm, and dignified roviow of the question by Judge Drrroy, one of the ablest and most upright members of the national judiciary. Holding the scales ovenly, ho finds that the Union Pacific Roilroad beging on the east sido of the river, and that the bridge is an cssentinl part of its rondway. ‘Wa think now, o4 we thonght years ago, that this decision will really benefit Omaba, It cannot change the fact that Omabs niust bo thie practical terminus of thorond. Pas- sengers and froight will now go through to Omaha as n mattor of course. Thta bridge being no longer a toll-bridgs, tlie convenionce of all thoroads will bo to havo a common terminus, nnd whether that shalibo on the western or enstern sldo of tho rivor is to be determined by tho Union Pacifle Rnilrond Company. If it persists in having its trains mado up on tho Iown side, then Omaha's com- plaint must bo ngainst that rond, and thnt sgoinst the other companies, who, undoubt. edly, will gladly make any mrangement most conducive to the general convenience, The grent point, howaver, is the extinction of the claim of the Compnny to charge tolls for the delivery of freight to the Union Pa- cific Railroad Company over ita own rond, In that question Omaha has no interest save that a toll-gate on & publio highway leading to that city lias beon romoved, and for this Omalia should be thankful, UTHE GRASSHOPPER PLAGUE. Will the grasshopper bo a burden to tho Enst a8 it hasbeen o cursoand s pest to the ‘West? Aftor floods, tornadacs, blizzards, and tha rigors of & winter projected far futo the spring, are wo now to look forward to a summor whose greon promises nre to bo blighted and nipped down to the very roots by those lively travelers who woro Sr, Jomv's favorite article of diot, washed down with wild honey? Tho solution of the Breonen case, the third-term possibilities, the quali- tios of Buena Vista stone, the relations of rnilronds to the judiciary, and of Bsstancx to the Roman Pontiff, are all important questions, but for the present, at lenst, thoy oro insignificant ns compared with tho distressing prospects that these clouds of grasshoppers, having alrendy consumed everything worth eating west of the Missouri River, have crossed it, and are seoking now flolds to conquer. It sooms to be the universal testimony of grasshopper exports that these millions and billions of eads are all pointed this way, and that in a month or two nt the Iatest they will settle down upon the prairla farms of Enstern Town and Missouri, aud cross the Dississippi into Niinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Ohio, 08 the flies covored Egypt, The fine theorien of the entomologiats, that the severo cold of last winter would destroy the cggs, seom to Lave been thoroughly oxploded. They havo risen from their winter's burial with im. mensoly incronsed numbers and tho most vigorous appetites, There scemn to bono raason to doubt thnt tho crops which have been sown are dostined only to be food for the grasshopper, p Our roports of the present localities of the grosshoppers show thnt Missouri i com- plotely overrnn with themn, 'I'liey havo left the whent-flelds bare, have stripped tho fruit treos of lenves, buds, nnd blossoms, and swept even tho grass from tho pastures, as if an ormy of mowers had been through thom, Tho farmors are panlc-stricken, Tho eatilo ara dying. Fven the earth in flowor-pots hos resurrected clouds of thom. “And yet no power cometh to help us" The eprouting flolds of grain in Nobroaks have already been stripped baro to tho earth. Millions of grass. hoppers heve mnde their appearance, and millions yot romain in tho ground to come out oventually, Kousas is in {le some plight sy Nebraskn, and what. over tho grasshoppers may happen to loave tho chinch-bugs ave waiting for, which isnot o vory hopotnl ontlook for the corn, From Northwestern Towa comus the same story ; nlso from various portions of Minne- sota. The prospeet, theroforo, is simply piti. {ul, and full of distress und discouragement for the farmer, It is an element of dostruc. tion against which ho can make no provision, Ho cannot destroy the pests in sufiiclent number to materially roduce their ravages. He cannat reliovo the situation by changing the crops, for nothing yot of a vogetahla character hos been discovered that tho grass. hoppor will ot eat, He is condomned, after ysing all bis energy and invention to destroy them, to stand idly by and see millions upon millioas of thom lay wiste hi¥ scrve aud de- stroy his cerenls, his grass aud his fruf, leaving nothing in the fall for himself or hin stock. The farmers have hithorto contestod the situation wlth renclute conrage, Thoy have fought theso insects with firo and water, Thoy havo gnthered thom into trenchos, and crushed them by thousands with rollers. Thoy Lave plowed in the cggs o deep ag to make resurrection seem Lopeless, 'Lhoy havo turned in hogs and ponltry to foed upon thom ; but ol their offorts have been idle, Whero ono wns killed, n hundred eame to the fuvernl, While tho farmer fights themn in oug apot, the air becomes clouded wwith mill. fons of new nrrivals soltling down in other spota. Thoro ia n small gloam of hope which comes from Nebraska in the announcoment that & suall red bng has mado its Aappearanco thore which feeds upon grasshoppersin bulk, and {s more than a mateh for ovory grass. Loppor ho tackles, Wo are not inclined, howover, to placo over-much confidenco in tha bug story; nt least until we lear further dotails from him, As thers aro millions upon millions of grasshoppers to bo enten, thers “must Lo millions upon millions of red bugs to eat them, Evon granting that the red Lug may succoed in devouring the grasshopper, bow can wo tell that ko may not tirn about and go to work on the crops next, for o bug that will eat n grasshopper is pos- sossed of nn appotite equal to devouring and digosting anything vegotable, animal, or min. eral? Again, wo nro not informed as to the locomotive powers of this red bug. Your grasshopper i n good traveler, and does not stop long at his way-stations for refreshmont, If it should happen, therefore, that the rod bug is not & 'lively traveler, of courso tho grasshopper will not remain to bo enten, but pack up nod leave his antagonist far in the roar. All things considored, wo Pplace but lit- tlo confidenco In the red bug as en annibilator of grasshoppers, ‘What is to be done is o quention more ensi- Iy nsked than answered, Cannot the Gran. gerd find its solution? Thoy are the - prinei- pal ones to be affected whon this lively in. seet gota fairly across the Mississippi and commences his march of destruction and dis- tress neross our fertilo prairies, with nothing to stay his onward course, They have little clsa to think about, Having made n muss of politics, they neod not troublo thomselves about campaigns. They can givo their whola tima to the grasshoppors and bring to bear upon them all their exporienco and ingennity, Among sll these thousands of sons and daugh- tors of Ceres, somebody should have wit enough to contrive some mothod of destroy- ing them., What is to be done, however, must bo done quickly., The vast army is hended this way. It eats quickly and travels fast. Tho buzzing of ita wings will soon bo heard all nbout us, and then in very truth ho will bo a burden, which must bo borna with such equanimity and philosophy s can bo summoned. 1t is ovidont that somo antidoto must be found, or else tho vielim must Jook out upon Lis broad scres stripped bare, and console himself with that thinnest of all consolations, that overything is creatod for some good purpose, e —— LEGAL STATUB OF AMERICAN BAILROADY, Thero i no longer any question that, in o gonoral way, the railronds of this country aro subordinato to logislative supervision and control in the interasts of the public. This status has been fixed by tho decision of both the State Courts nnd tho United States Conrts, including the Supromo Court of tha United States, which, in two or three decisions, hag troatod the railroads as public® highways, The recent opinion of Judgo Dr.roy, ono of tho ablgst and clenrest-headed Jjurists on the Bench, on the application of the Towa Iaw fixing rates, is the most intelligent utterauco on the question that has yot been dolivered. ‘Tho Towa law divides tho railronds of the Slato into throo classes, according to their onrnings por mile, and limits tho chorgos of oncl in a fair proportion to theso earnings, The Chicago, Buriington & Quincy Railrond, ns thelessca of the Burlington & Missouri (the Intter an Town corporation), contested the con- stitutionality of the not, and donied the right of the Stato to put nny limitation upon tho charges. It was not charged that tho limita. tions of tho Stato wero in any sonso unrenson- able, This was the case that camo bofore Judge DruxoN. Hohold that tho Chicago, Burlington & Quincy corporation, ns the lessoo of the rond, was vested with all the rights and immunities of tho Towa corpora~ tion and no mors, ko that tho caso was docid- od on its merits. ¢ As regords the Burlington & Missonri Rail- road, the right of the State to fix the rates was established by a spocial covenint. In 1856 the Btato made a graut of public lands to this corporntion, which wns nccopted on the following express condition ; Thot the company accepting Ithe provisions of the #ot ahall at ali times be subject to such rules and requ- lations aa may from timo fo time bo enhcted and pro- vided by tho Goneral Assembly of Towa—not incon- sistent with tho provisions of thisact and the actof Congross making the grant, Judgoe Diezow held that the resorved right of “rogulnting™ includes tho right of fixing rates, and cited a docision of the Supreme Court of the United States to sustain this construction, Mo held it to bo evident, more. over, that it was the oxpress purpose of this condition to reserve this right m considers. tion of the grant of publia lans, 8o far as tho Burlington & Missorr Rail- rond was concorned, therefore, the right of the Btateto fix rates wonld not affect the genornl quostion, ButJudge DiztoN want back of this apeoifle condition, and austained thie con- stitutionality of the Yowa law in genoral, In that Btate tho railroada wore organized, like all other corporations excopt those of a mu. nicipn] and political chnracter, undor a gen- eral ucorporation act, which confurs tho right of making contracts, aequiring and tronafer- ring proporty, and making rules and regula- tions for mauaging the affairs of the com. pony under its corporate nama and capacity, Thesa privilogesaro granted besidea all others posscssed by natural porsons, It was under this genoral act that the railronds claimod the exeluaive privilego of fixing thelr own rates, ThisJudge Drrron denies, adheringtotheweil. established rule thatacorporata body ean claim nothing not clearly and speoifically granted in tho act creating it, aud denying that the power to mako contracts carries with it tho excluaive right of fixing rates. Judge Drvroy 1s of opinion that a railwny possesses a two. fold charactor, in part public and in part private. 'With ita privato character tho State hasnothing to do, and it is invested with the sanctity of other privato properly, In ite publio character, Judge Drrox halds the rallroad to be ‘‘an improved highway or means of more rapid and commodious com- munication,” and that the Blate in this re. gard has o suparvisory control not affected by its privato ownonship, Concerning this view of the case, Judga Divron H8y8; 1n all clvillzod countries the dutyof providing and prosorviug safe and convenlent highways to facilifats trade and communioation between different partsof the tato or community, 1s considered a gavernmental duty, ‘Chismay be dene by the Govetomeut Gleschly S e or ihrough the ageney of corporations croated for tht Juepose, The Fiht of publlo muperristun su e {rol aver highwayn rosulta feom the power aud sy of providing sud preacrving thom. Ax to ordinary high. ways, thees propositions are anquestioned, To this ho adds $hat both National g Stato Courts hava now fixed tho sintus of railronds ns publio highways in the Bengo (g, fined above, Incidontal to this decision Tudgs Dirroy had oceasion to expross an opinion on u," classification of citics, ratlronds, angd othep public corporations in States whoro thera isy constitutional prohibition of specinl legigly, tlon, aa it woa objected that the limitation op rafes was mot uniform. Mo holds that the law {suniform in each class, and thot thg validity of classification is now very wall gg, tablished by the decisions of the Variony courts, Altogether, the opinion is one of the most interesting nnd important that hag been rondored on the issue botwoon the railropgdy aad State Legislatures. pi() OM HAYTT, It is gome timo sinco thero waa n ravoly, tion in Hayti. The supply of Genernls ang possible Presidents has therefora become ox tromely large, and nn outbreak was inevitably, Mny-day in Hayti is an annual “* Agriculturs] Festival.” It was colobratod this year by planting two prominent citizens and o fow wntollitos of ench of them. “ Gon." Doup. ¥1que, who is Prosidont just now, lentneq on the ove of thoFestival that ¢ Gon,” MoxerAtszn Przore snd “Gon.” Bryor nnd “Gen, OaNAn meant to kill him noxt day and Teign in his stend. The Fostival began, ang Dounitque went to church, doubtless with g serono conviction that no nasassin ‘wonld dremn of finding himin sucha Pplace, ang that ho was therafore anfo, ob any rato, Jusy to give a zest to his prayers, ho sent out thros bodies of troops that morning with instructions to soizo the threo cODSpira. tors. Threo matince performances followed, Baroe was caught first. o mado n boeling for tho British Conaulate, casually Lilling four officers on the way. The Haytien army is supposod to be composed exclusively of officers, go that the completo immunity of tho privates is roadily undorstood. After shooting Bnyce's sorvant, the army slot Bayor, Then it shot o servant of tho Bri. ish Consul, but has since oxplained that it did s0 ** by mistake.” Tho next victim was Moxntruames Pnne, Ho kept the detach. ment at bay for somo timo, but ere long g ball broko his jaw. Deprived of that useful ‘wenpon, ho burst into tenrs, trotted up-stairy info tho aitic, and killed himslf, By this time, tha third conspirator, Cavaz, had taken the fleld with n body of soldiers. When two “armies” meot in Hayti, the one which first seos tha other is sure to run. Unfortunately for CaNAL, his ndhorents caught sight of the Government troops, and bolted. The nearest Consulata was that of the United States, Now, Cousul. ates are oases in tho desert of life to the un. successtul rovolutionist in Hayti, and Cawar, betook himself to this ono with a swiftness that far outsped the rifle-bullets sent after him. At last accounts, our colorod Ambassa. dor, Basserr, was waving tho Stars and Stripes in front of his house, and Oavan was hid in n closet up.stairs. Whon tho nows of the discomfituro of the threo traitors was conveyed to Prosidont Doxinique, tho latter thanked the Lord and wont home. He has sinco beon arrosting nbout half the popula. tion, and his enthusigstio frionda have im. proved the opportunity to satisfy Any nume ber of privato grudges. The refloctive reader eannot but admire tho comploteness and neatness of this ravolu. tion. While not as unique ss tho recont ona in Bouth Americn, in which ono President was made into jolly by being dropped from a high tower upon a stono pavemont below, and the other President was made into sonp by being boiled alive in oil,—whilo destitute, wo Bny, of these culinary fontures, tho squab. ble in Hayti waa nevertheloss bloody enough and short enough to satisfy tho most exacting amateur of tropieal politics, ¥ pren S-S Cabie . THX TARIFF ON DEESS-GOODS, An American merchant writes to the Now Yorl Evening Post from Manchoster, Em gland, dotailing some facts which aro of in terest to women and to anybody who Pyt bills run wp by women. It is genorally Inown that a buyor of foreign sillcis finad GO0 per cent of tha value of his purchaso by « paternal Government for his disloyalty to the present rolers of Amorica,—the manufactur. ing classos. The only ‘way to cscape the fing is to buy Amorican silk, in which caso thepur. chaser pays aboat G0 por cont moro than the worll of the goods, because the manuface turers of Amoriea have the logal right to practico extortion, This particular steal i1 usually condoned, howover, by the plea that silk {a n luxury, used only by tho rich, and should therefors bo heavily taxed. The plea ia defootive, innamuch as nearly every woman boys nnd uges moro or less silk, nnd ot any rato it affords no justifioition for the bonus granted to home manufactarers, Bub the Post's correspondent points out the fact, cunningly convealed under a juggle of words in the Tariff not, that the common dress- goods worn by every poor woman in the United States aro more heavily taxed than silk. Black alpaca and all the worsted fabe riea called ‘““women's dress-goods” pay a duty either of *6 cents a square yard and 35 per cont ad oalorom" or of “8 cents a square yord and 40 per cont ad calorem.” By thus combining specific and ad-calorem duties, the ronl extent of the {ax is concealed, + When it ia rockoned, it is shown to amoant to 75 and 80 por cant in gold, or from 87 to 93 per cent in curroncy, at the present ruling rates. Thuag tho price of these fabrics of univeral use among tho poor is very nearly, if not quite, doubled by tho tax which American manufacturers have laid upon the American people. A poor ‘woman, therefore, pays two prices for evory dross sho buys, A working wotan who earns a dollar a doy has to work ten daya in order to get the dross which she could obtain by five or six dnys' work if the makers of American dress goods wero not omnipotontat Washington, Tho dress of the wifo of a day-loborer, too, represents nearly twico as many hours and days of exhausting toil for her husband as it should, And the logalized extortion which thus adds to the oxpenses of the laborer, the ariisan, tho mechaaie, the shopkeeper, and the farmer, extonds not only to dress-goods, but to un doralothing, shoes, stockings, ribbons, bon nots, and all sorts of feminino gear, Thisis felt in overy grade of life, Probably the most romarkable order {that was ever given to & rallrond ofticial was went last weel to the station-agent at Tarrylown, on the Hudson River Raflroad, The telograph measage waa: “Open the switch and turow ¢89° into tho river.” Tho sgent was amazed. Ho kuew that “80% was an extra freight-traln bound south, ‘Yo throw it into the river acemed to Lim & crime. Yot there was no mistake abous tho ordor, The message was plain and unmis takable, Bo the switon was tured, :a-m thidg wis prépired e give “§9% o