Evening Star Newspaper, January 20, 1883, Page 2

: . THE EVENING STAR: For Tar Evextxe Stan. JOHN HOWARD PAYNE. Recollections of John Ty! vate Secretary to Presid: Jr., Pri- ‘Tyler. It has been announced by the press that the vessel placed at the disposal of the distinguished philanthropist, W, W. Corcoran, for the trans- portation of the remains of John Howard Payne from Africa, where he died, to be reinterred in the beautiful cemetery In Georgetown dedicated to the public by Mr. Corcoran, under a befitting monument erected to bis memory at Mr. Cor- coran’s expense, has already left Tunis for the United States. In view of this event, various publications have appeared from time to time, illustrative of the life and character of the author of the immortal song of ‘Home, Sweet Home,” and possibly a few words from anyself, as to my knowledge and recollection of him, may not be unzcceptable in the light of the circuinstances and associations under which he was appointed, and which led to his appointment as consul to Tunis, During the administration of President Tyler men of science and polite letters. were much at- tracted to Washington. had been re A and like that of the best a: gard the The President himself cated in asocietywhich, rsof Rome did not re- » as detracting from the parlors of his fath of Jefferson and iy y." the home ri the patrict, the b Henry, and th of Monroe—the man who ‘uring the long stragcle for Independence uber or speaker of the house ot and who, as such, after r, was the author and owtopt the Con- United + . becoming then | Judges aud governor of the state. and sinally—daring tie war of 18i2-14, | United States Judge of Admiralty, in wi capacity his lite terminated. Here it was that Burke became inspired to write the history of Virginia, receiving from the lips of t n of the matter he patriot sa dere of his y of Henry con- 1 in the ten out from memory. lovers of music and tain and none more warmly than | nt and others among the retucee riots of 1798. No wonder that the of refined eulture and association, polished tastes of his early life, com: | Dined with the intellectual vigor in Te public concerns that marked the companions of his Father awong the Founders of the Re- | | een trom whose lips he learned, as weil as | avine been the pupil direct of Edmund Ran- | doiph. the author of the original draft of the | Constitntion, the Attorney General of Washing- ton, and the Secretary of State under Jefferson, | should have foliowed and been attendant upon him in the Presidential mansion. No wonder he should have shown that high appreciation of men of science, art and let wt induced him to appoint Everett as minister Enzland, Casting to China, Ley to Sweden, to Bache as superintendent of the coast survey, Maury to the charze of the National Observa- tory. Fremont asthe ‘*Pathflnder” across the ss continent, E. K. Kane to the navy with his mental vision fixed on the poles of the zedy of “Cortes; or. ssed in this rother, who wrote the famous Absence Conquers Love,” art at Washinton; the | “The Sketeh Book” as win, and Payne, whose touch- ttuned to the werds of “Home. ut the world, as My brother, Mr. imbibs sbert Tyler, and myself, had ‘d similar tastes and ‘pursuits, and it was i he composed his poems of 1 “Death; or, Medora’s Dream.” which deserve to be regarded as among the foremost productions of American literature, but the editions of which he purchased up and destroyed, finding that his pecuniary circum- cares of a growing family com- Ppelled him to the line of the law, a which the Feputation of a poet was incompatible. Not ouly belles-lettres, but history, guvernment and the sciences, associated with both political and Physical philosophy, chiefly the latter, enzazed ny attention, ayart from my duties as private seervtary. My aidress before the societies of William and Mary, on “* The Life and Character of Benjaiin Franklin.” and my novelettes in the Southern Literary Messenger. had already at- tracted some notice. But now my disquisition on “The Orizinal Principles or Forces of Nature.” delivered in the convention Of the most noted scientists of the nation, held Under the auspices of the ** National Lnstitate,” the precursor of the “Smithsonian Institution,” and presided over by ex-President Jobn Quincy Adams, attracted to me no little regard from Heury. McCulloch. Espy, Draper. Silliman, Bache ‘y las that of inventors, among utter of Taylor, who perfected the diving- bell as introduc in naval works. Gf course, al spirits on e¢ haad, and usuatiy introduced Of the presilent. AUTHOR OF s Tt was thus that we formed the acquaintance of Jobn Howard ? and introduced him in the social drawinz-rooms or the Presidential He was a medi n, always . as gentle asa wodest in his bearinz. ot delicate and tall of wi Was restr’ “tin his means. th, however, it so happened that I ob- | ifrom him an expression that was thor- 1s to fis pecuniary ¢ t his lodvines 1! had aly i to indulze | ‘This led we hout effeare w from him some | n of his 1 it came in Tvier it hi since T have b me more diplomacy jn Washinton te conceal my be necessary to conduct the nee if was not lonz before ‘ioned persua- - While ther was df 1h m as to exteiid to him an at the gubernatorial man- siied company especially President Ty.er was thus ield a willing ear to the r and tyself in nis behalf Mr. Ford } iz to some faint and ill for the . he wrote * Clari. the ye the world within it Asto this Ta ve 1 to state what 1 derived from his own th; ce azainst the British, he in London taat his efforts boards ef Drury Lane,*®o far Jantly successtn!,” were ab- @ pecuniary point of view: ‘and it was af this period, his money havin cole utterly exhausted for the want of patron- aze on the staxe, that he took to hia pen, and gae cixnt, ina state of yreat dejection and despondency. wandering about in the streets of London for the want of @ shilling to pay for a Led, iie finally sat down on the front steps of a nobleiman’s mansion. and beneath the entrance ‘@ibps wrote with pencil on some biank paper carried in his pockets, the orizinal lines of “Home, Sweet Home.” Atterwards, It ix true. he introduces! them in nis drama of “Clari, the Maid of Milan.” and so made them famous. He was ultimately more successful with his peo while in London than he had bess on the nd thenee proceesa2 <0 Ireland. where amner was accorded a whidh Occasion, and in complimen the Irish Read: brated evlozium upon Washinston, He furthermore told of the return of Napoieo Marked his movements. 1 On his departure from Washington. 2 eoasnt i under which the conven- | € | aceinent anda useless expen:iture of mon | ture or results obtained. iS im awe Reg lone chug 201 rt 1 to him, | popular boarding jaiitting . all such barrister, Phillips, delivered his cete- |,references to George Fox or Willi at Tunis, in pidding me adieu, knowing my fondness for physical science, he presented me @ manuscript containing the description of a method by which water might be analyzed by the me ns of ‘the electric current, and its ele- ments of hydrogen and oxygen be recombined for the purpose of generating both heat and light; but this manuscript, together with all other manuscripts and books, whether legal, historical, scientific, philosophical, or purely literary, even to the letters of my father and mother, that I possessed up to 1861, were taken from me during the recent unhappy eivil war, depriving me, indeed, of many precious-and sa- cred souvenirs, as well as all the paraphernalia of my profession, while, at the same time, anni- hilating the accumulated stores of the best Years of my lite, painfully Impressing me with the wisdom of the old Latin adage in its full torce, which reads in English: ~Lei no man be oe. happy, fortunate, or honest until he is It is entirely befitting that the large-hearted philanthropist, Mr. W. W. Corcoran, who was much esteemed by President Tyler, should re- store to his country the remains of John How- ard Payne, who was also the recipient of the friendship ‘of that generous and beneficent statesman. Joun TYLER, JR. » WworD FOR THE CENSUS BU- RE. What Has Made the Work Costly— The Embarrassment Entailed by the Employment of Incompetent Clerks— A Plea for the Establishment of a Permanent Bureau. To the Editor of Tae Eventné Stan: ‘There isa manifest disposition on the part of a few people to censure the management of the ‘ensus bureau. To those who are ignorant of the magnitude of the work, unacquainted with the peculiar difficulties attending the work," doubtless there appears to have been misinan- The sums expended as they stand arrayed upon Paper appear inordinately large; 80 would the | expenditures of any other department of gov- ernuent if so given without detail of expendi- Any such arraignment of @ bureau would be and is manifestly unjust. In the instance referred to no mention is made of the stupendous work undertaken, obtain— Ing the estimate of the population of this vast country, with {ts thousands of in- dustries scattered over a surface surpassing in extent that of any other dominion on the face of the earth. Referring to the census report, we tind @ population of over fifty million souls— men, women and children. How muen time did itconsume to get these figures? How many thousand dollars was necessarily expended to obtain this information? Then take this fifty million and several hundred thousand odd. catalovue them—white. colored. Indians, Chi- nese, French, German, and on through the differ- ing nationalities that find a home beneath the stars and stripes. Find their age. birth-place, occupation, amount of earnings. etc..—remem- ber, every town, city. village and hamlet, how- ever distant or obscure, was visited. What a herculean task! NEARLY FORTY SSEOUSAND BOOKS filled with this record was received at the Cen- sus office. Eaeh one of these books numbered hundreds of pages. Each book passed through the hands of three clerks. The utmost accu- racy was demanded. When this work was com- pleted nearly or quite a year had passed—the work of the census but just begun and this part of the work, comparatively speaking, ot the least importance. Then followed the eatalog- uing ot the industries of the country. For this work special nts were required. But few establishments, especially of mazni- tude, would undertake the labor of preparing the reports required. These Industries num- bered near-fhree million. For all this work large sums were expended. The work of the census is unlike that of any other governmental de- partment, and demands a higher order of cleri- cal qualifications. These clerks must be more than good copyists. The work demands scholar- ship and competent mathematicians. The census began its work under THE WORST POSSIBLE CONDITIONS. At the outset it employed a large force, num- ing nearly one thousand. This force was en- larged from time to time until the home force numbered fourteen: hundred, beside the offi- cers in various parta of the country. These clerks were necessarily taken from a heteroge- neous mass of humanity clamorous for employ- ment. They came by hundreds from all parts of the country. The bureau, from the moment of its Inception, was besieged by Senatorsand Members of Congress in behalf of their constituents. Many of the employes were totally ignorant of cleri- cal work, and had to be instructed. A large proportion were found incompetent, and after a trial of weeks had to’ be weeded out and others substituted. In many cases these were found to be as thoroughly dis- qualified as those whom they had displaced, and in turn had to give way to others. It was a tong, tedious, and laborious task. Nearly or quite a year was consuined in organizing a com- petent force of clerks. In the meantime ex- Penses went on, competents and incompetenta alike had to be paid. Expenses went on whether the work was well or ill done. The work of the census Is extremely laborious, taxing the brain and the vision severely. An eminent oculist of this city stated that a large majority of his pa- tients were census clerks. Several clerks, in- cluding both sexes, have roken down under the perpetual strain imposed by toil over fig- Just here [ have one word to say relative INJUSTICH’ METED OUT to these clerks. When the first appropriation failed, these clerks—many widows with chil- dren—were forced to sell their certificates at great loss, In some instances losing forty per cent. When the matter was brought to the at- | tention of Congress and an appeal made to re- imburse this loss the bill was defeated. Last summer throuzh all the Intens@heat of this de- bilitating climate these clerks were at their until 4 p m., while other government de- ments closed at 3:30. Now, at this writing, n the midst of winter, with the ex: ense ot living tmereased near fifty per cent, large numbers of these clerks are dismissed, others furloughed | indedin.tely without pay, while Congress hagzles over the mouey needed to complete the work almost finished. This is but a eursory glance at the census and its work. Doubtless: mzuch money has been expended without corresponding ben— rfits. Couid it be otherwise in & work of such vast exteat, under temporary limitations. If time consumed in preparing this-census is dered a fit subject of universal censure, what will it be when the next census Is undertaken? This same experience mast be repeated, with the additional labor sprinuing from a vast increase of pop- ulation and enlarged industri There is tone way to avoid this—riake the bureau not. True economy dictates it, and the ce I Interests of the co If it takes three years to complete the work of this census a much lonzer time must be con- sumed by the next. If the work beintermitted, atry eail for ft. as in th {story of this census must be rtency must be met, tried, dischary impetency must be ine structed. organi: loss of time and expenditure of mon Thus, economy de- mands a permanent bureau with a competent clerical force at uniform and good salaries. EL A. B. ee ‘The Worse than Useless OfficinI Stamps. ‘To the Editor of THe Evento Star: It Is very gratifying to see by the Postmaster General's report that the excess of receipts over expenditures for the ended June 30th, 1882, is stated at $1,394.333.2. But I wish to call attention to the fact (see report, paze 19.) that of said sum €139,991.75 was taken directly from the Treasury to pay for the worse than useless oMcial postage stamps, the manufacture and sale of which should have been prohibited long aco. In fact, the act of 34 March, 1877, author- izing ail mail matter of the executive depart- ments and their dependencies to be sent under the penalty envelope, was intended also to do away cotirely with the official stamps. It the ost office in to depend on the funds of the rreasury of the United States to make a good showing. would it not be much better tu put in for a good round sum outrizht, which shall in- clude all that the stamps now cost, in manztag ture, handling and keeping account thereof? Ver¥ resceerrnfly, Horatio Kina. “The Quakers” was the ject of an wodenes are customary in ex<ays on. Quakers, tala es- me that he was in Paris }:saylst plunzed into the thick of-hia subject by pn from Elba, avd sew | saying that the Quakers him in the Tuileries, deseribing to me his per- | get into a fizht. never sen, his manner, and the immense encrzies that | never ““Inw back.” never quarrel, never claw each other, and He added. “Pats a Quaker, but [ don’t think ma is.” There is no record of this essay having received a prize. sized boy at a | iam Penn as |i THE “LIGNIFIED SNAKE OF BRA- Zi.” An Explanation of the Phenomenon. At the meeting of the Biological Society of this city, December 22d last, Prof. C. V. Riley reada paper on this curious lusus nature which is now being discussed by scientistsin this coun- try. The following is the substance of his in- teresting remarks: ‘ 2 In La Nature of the 6th of May last, M. Louls Olivier gives an account of ‘Le Reptile lignifié de Matto-Grosso—an object which has attracted more or less attention from the aclentific world of late. The speci- men was found in the province of Matto- Grosso, Northern Brazil, and after ob- taining many contradictory opinions from mem- bers of scientific societies at Rio Janeiro, its present possessor, Senhor Lopes-Netto, envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary trom brazil tothe United States, took it to Paris with him and submitted it to M. Olivier, who afterwards brought his results before the Societé Botanique. The article embodies the results of his examination. The object, in brief, is what appears to be a lignified serpent, formed between the outer bark and the wood, in the cambium layer, in fact, of a native tree known as the Ipe mirim. M. Olivier states that to the eyes of his associates and himself, it ts evident that the object is not due to the in- tervention of the hand of man. The head and neck and other parts of the body are beau- tifully shown. In certain parts of the body the most delicate parts of the animal organism are said to be plainly visible—the nasal apertures, the orbits of the-eyes, and upon a portion of the head the disposition of the scales and cephalic | plates are distinguishable. He even goes so far | as to identify the serpent as the little jararaca of Brazil. In explanation of this wonderful state of affairs he starts with the statement that it is necessary to admit that the live serpent worked its way fnto the position it occupied when found. An anatomical examination showed that the whole animal is completely ligni- fled except at the center, where some constituent animal elements stil re- main, His examination showed that it 1s made up of cellules and fibres similar to the fibres and cellules of the wood which surrounds it. It is impossible, he states, that the appearance could be accounted for on the hypothesis that ti formation had taken place in a channel which had been traversed by the serpent, retaining its form; for upon the piece of wood not only is the contour of the animal recognizable, but also its entire body in reliet. Beyond the head is seen, also in relief. a little cylinder which M. Olivier supposes to_be an insect larva which the reptile had followed into a fissure between the bark and the wood. where, after a number of years, it had been covered by a series of woody layers, and the cellules and fibres of the cam- ; bium layer had been substituted for the con- stituent parts of the animal's periphery, the surrounding zones becoming more or less hy- pertrophied. leaving the body in relief. The members of the botanical soclety present at the meeting of April 9th agreed with M. Ol- ivier in this conclusion; but in closing his article he admits that there is still room for doubt, and. that he will postpone a definite decision until he learns the result of the examinations by the scientific men ot Italy, Sweden and the United es, to whom Senhor Netto proposes to sub- it ‘ce reptile Snizmatique.’ The main points of this article were repeated in the Popuiar Science Monthly for November, 1882, with a letter from M. Olivier to Senhor Netto. giving the additional testimony of MM. Yan Siegher, Edmond Bonnet and D. Adanson. The conclusions are, however, here stated as facts, with less qualification. Senhor Netto de- serves great credit for the efforts ne hasmade to get at a satisfactory explanation of the strange Specimen in_ his possession—efforts which show that he desires to get at the trath, and It Is not surprise that with such testimony and opin- ion as that above given he should himself be a strong believer in the.lignifled snaketheory. I propose to show, however, that there is a far more rational explanation of the phenomenon. ERRONEOUS CONCLUSIONS FROM STRIKING RESEM- BLANCES. There are on record various curious instances of similar erroneous conclusions that have been arrived at in the past from the chance and striking resemblances which galls and fungl at times bear to fruits and animals. I have an oll painting of a fungus formed on @ prostrate log which so remarkably resembles ‘a ti ized. chicken that it was deemed fit for preservation. in this form by a prominent lady member of the Alton ar) horticultural society, who made the faithful painting some fifteen years ago, and I have called attention (5th Mo. Ent. Rep. p. 114, ff) to the frequency with which certain galis are reported as hybrids between different fruita. Tue last instance of this kind that reached me was the following letter addressed to Prof. Baird, the supposed hybrid between a grape vine and pecan being in reality the gall ot Cecidomyia vitis-pomum: Spencer Esq., 8 very unuaui the fruit of a mustang hybridiz~1 by contact with pecan the peat vin) twives for support. I have never ob- eerved th phenomenon before, nor have Iever heard of iis coming uncer the obs rvation of anyone else. ‘The enclosed clipping from th- vine on which the ab- normal growth was found was brought tome by I. V. Davis, esg., wh ise home 4s Just over the river from Austin, and who iately found ‘the parent vy ne crowing on farm. Hesays that the vine had produce t only & Ve ew grape’, aud ail were of the same nature with thatof the spec mens I now enclose to yon. Only two now reinain on he vine. Yours respectfu iy, J. i Hurcums, I also exhibit, In fllustration, a mesquite bouzh which had naturally grown so like a ser- pent that it has hun for sometime in Professor Baird’s office as a curiosity, and which exempli- fies the temptation that exists under such cir- cumstances to exaggerate the likeness on tle part of the discoverer, in some artificial carving at one end, that enhances the likeness to a ser- pent’s head. PROBABLY THK BURROW OF A LARVA. Upon first being shown the original of the ‘lignified snake’ by Senhor Netto, at his resi- dence, I was at once struck with its resemblance to a burrow of some Coleopterous larva of the family Buprestidae, filled, as such burrows cus- tomarily are. with excrement-and reiectament- ary fibers. Subsequent careful examination and consideration convinced me that such an ex- planation is far mare plausible than that hith- erto proposed. I consider that this explana- tion must have forced itself upon the French savans who studied the specimen, had there been any entomologist among them. My views may be summed up as follows: 1. It requires 4 great stretch of the Imagina- tion to consider the object in advance of the so- called reptile’s head an insect larva. To an un- imaginative eye it appears like a simple knot, similar in all respects to two which occur in other parts of the serpent” itself. 2. The length of the object—28 cm.—in com- parison with its width—1 5 cm.—is also signifi- cant when the fact is considered that at the point where the relief ends the diameter of the “serpent” Is greatest. This would correspond with the gradually increasing size of a larva! which has entered at the smaller or head end of the “serpent.” It is significant also that the larger end, where the insect would have pre- | pared for its transformations and exit, is broken off, and that the first curve which, on the ser- pent theory, the animal must have made In for- cing Its way under the bark, is so abrapt‘and [the relief so doubled upon itself that any such beud of a snake without breakage of the verte- bre were practically impossible. 8. The cephalic plates and scales exist wholly in the Imagination of the describer, Nothing which can be homologized with either is to be seen in the specimen. 4. The tortuous course which the object takes, while perfectly natural in the burrow of a larva, is unnatural in a reptile forcing itselt into so contlaed a space. The woody formation that has tended to form over the: serpentine rele! aad to conform to its curves on the natural surface of the wood indicates a burrow beneath the liber, and not the forcing of an animal or other object between the bark and Wood, since such forcing would have loosened the bark for some distance on either side of the relief. The sudden foreing of a serpent between the bark and the hard wood ot any tree is-atso a ipbypes) Impossibility except where there is such lvosening of the bark as to ipvolve disease or decay of the tree and prevent subsequent growth. 5. The granular appearance to be seen atong graporine, very. ‘distinct! tiie about whic! would leaye and Olisters nypothesis. 6 The presence of animal matter in the cen- ter of the body ts not at all incompatible with this theory, since the exuviz as also the excre- ment of the larva would exist among the debris and contain animal matter. 1. A critical ex end. 8 The whole question could be “readily settled by acaretut section, for upon the ser- | turned ore the sides of the imen, as well a8 the 4 observable, ad such as pr Dice ta conaot a pent hypothesis not only should traces of the vertebrae appear, but in any event traces of cxiciam ought to be found upon chemical. gnalyajs along the line of the vertebral column. But Senhor Netto has so far ovjected to any mutilation of the specimen. oe ___—§_. The Navy Appropriation Bill. To the Editor of Tare EvEsryo Sram: **As to reward: tion. it is essential to re- me cersice aad at tuo samne time to oped & we “Threc-fourths of the promotions in tothe roster, and the remaining fo for those distinguished for merit snd zeal, On the contrary, in time of war the regular order of promotion should be suspended, or at. least reduced to a third of the promotions, leaving the (trae two-thirefob besllant cacduck."—Jontint. are vo War. While the service is somewhat startled by the radical changes proposed In the committee's appropriation bill, of which we have only meager details, and when any moment farious flery letters of the questionable taste of “Rex” (see Army and Navy Register of a few weeks since) may be looked for, would it not be well to consider the views of the other side, that is to say. the selectionists. There are two views to nearly all questions, and we are likely to enjoy the logic of but one, since the minority will be accused of being too directly interested. and since, too, a false delicacy and a traditional reticence will close their mouths in the uproar. That, with our peculiar institutions, there will be mistakes made, and that political Influence and seryice friendship will play a part in selection, no one denies; but here, as in most cases of contro- veray in this world, it is a choice of evils. It seems fairly logical that ultimate good to the service would result from the adoption of some such measure as is proposed, in that individual effort and original thought will be stimulated, drunkards will be held in check, and discipline will be improved by in- creasing the respect of Juntors ror their seniors, and perhaps, too, it will modify the bad tempers of seniors so afflicted. As- matters are at_pres- ent, we calmly sit down and let the wind blow as it listeth. “It blows us around the world, and we require only that the Copernican system shall persist, and we shall all, good and bad alike, become admirals—some of us fora year or two, others for a month or two. A little re- flection teaches us that ina few years, with the facts presented by the age list, admirals will be promoted in batches of a half dozen each for an exceedingly meteoric career on the active list. The retired list will become a nuisance and the taxpayer become impatient. Congress will then strike one of its periodical blows, and the list will be swept away, good and bad’ fea- tures together. In view of such a contingency, {ts permanency and integrity should make even the youngest cadet eternally vigilant; for if a respectable competence Is not assured the naval officer In his old age, he has little consolation for his years of hardship; of separation from friends and his labor, whatever they may have been. With selective promotion and the feature of special age retirement in each grade, the case will be quite otherwise. It anadmiral is a good thing, it is good to have as much of him as pos- sible. To speak only of one who has gone before—how fortunate it was that a wise legis- lation In a selective way gave us the services of John Rodgers for, so many years! How much the service has cause to gratefully remember him, speaking only of his peace-time record! By selection we will get younger, stronger wen In high places, with the retirement date years ahead, and why should Americans be dit- ferent from everybody else in this particular? Jomini Jearned his lessons nearly a century ago, but he is still quoted as good authority for all that.” Perhaps, too, he considered this subject mére deeply than the opponents of the committee's bill! A Nava Orricex WHo 13 NoT Aware OF Pos- SESSING ANY INFLUENCE. ——— ' Fire’ Escapes Needed. To the Editbr of Tie Evenine Star: Every winter there is a succession of horrors In the way of conflagrations. We have had none of these devil's roasts yet, but we have one nicely laid for the baking. I refer to the new money order building, corner of 8th and E streets. It has One central stairway, in the hol- low square of which there ascends the elevator. It has amgneard root, lined with light, inflamma- ble wood. Every day, trom 9 to 4, it is literally stuffed with human beings. most of them hay- ing exalted intelligence, and all having souls— all too good to be lost anyway, and all quite unwilling to be food for a holocaust. If there is a fire-escape in the building 1 do not know It. This note will have amply accomplished the purpose of the writer if public attention is so called to the’ matter as to compel the pro] authorities to provide means for escape from the destruction thaf is almost sure to befall this structure. JANE ANN. January 18, 1883. — 2+ ____ Associated Charities in the Suburbs Among the Poor. AN APPEAL TO THK STRONG. LeDrorr Park, Jan. 17, 1883. To the Editor‘of Tax Evexrxa Stan. Having noticed several items {n your columns of late concerning the Associated Charities of this city I thought possibly you would insert the following: The very interesting article contrib- ated by Rey. Dr. Sunderland shows very clearly the detail by which the deserving poor obtain relief. There are those who find it in their hearts to contribute of their means and time in aid of this much-needed work, as shown by the article referred to. At the present time many are suffering for food, fuel and clothing, some of whom, of late, have applied for the first time. The fifteenth subdivision is located north of P street, extending into the county, including what is known as ‘‘Howardtown,” and is bounded on the east by Lincoln avenue, or better known as North Capitol street: on the west by 9th street. I know I do not exag- gerate when I say that there are more poor in this location than elsewhere in the city. and very few that are able to help their neighbor. This I know from personal observation. Many appeals made by deserving poor necessarily fail toobtainald because ofthenumberto supply being so much greater than our means. One thing in Dr. Sunderland’s article particularly attracted my attention and sugzested this appeal, that was the collection of $60 from a single square. Why, I think this subdivision bas been able to raise little more than that 1rom the whole of its terri- tory, some sixty squares, and probably very few in that square who need help. What acon- trast. Oh, fora few such squares! In this sub- division (15th) we would consider ourselves well off if we could collect from any one square one-sixth of that amount, and with light hearts would seek out those who are deserving and in distress. I quote from a notice of the secretary of this division (E. B. Barnum), dated Jan- uary 16, 1883, the following: ‘The treas- ury of the - fifteenth subdivision asso- ciated charities is ut exhausted and applications for relief are multiplying.” Instead of seeking them, however, they seek us, no fess than three applying at my residence to-day, while others that have applied before them have not been visited in consequence of a lack of funds. Undoubtedly some of the snb- divisions have better resources and less poor than we have, and consequently a surplus on hand. Could not a portion of this surplus be to thé central board? The central board could then_bonor the card of our visitors by affordin® relief. thas helping our common poor. It may be thouzht by some that we are not as liberal as we might be out this way. To such I wguld say that there are those in our midst who. have for a great many years devoted much time and money to this work and who continue td do 80. T. B.S. Very réepeetfally, Set the Ex- To tho Fditor of Td# Eventxa Stan: Would tt not be well tor the District authori- ties to set a good example in cleaning off snow and ice from the pavements? In front of Dis- trict property thi is sadly neglected. I have a Place in view: The pavements around the East- ern market are covered with ice and snow. I slip and fell yesterday and hurt myself severely,.qud I know ot others that have fell there. ° dangerous to life and limb. This being sucir a public piace I should think that it is the duty of the authorities to clean the snow off immediately after falling, aud, if there be ice, to cover it with sawdust or ashes. January 17, 1888, W.B. -—— nee Snow-Law Violators Who should be Fined. ‘To the Editor of Tas Evzxrxc Stan: Under sh gees Getendasts ‘the Court,” In your paper to-day, read the names of Attorney General a Commissioner and nm. They were charged with neglect! remove the snow from sidewalks. publication will undonl strike terror to the hearts of everybody ne front of a sidewalk, and the geod ied Wee most of the frontings wi reafter ie prom; fall of snow. Bat, Mr. Editor, Lod is to Took alter the owners Of vacant lots who fail to com- ply with the aw? When Judge Sneil fines the owners or agents of the unoccupied lots all over the for not having the snow removed from the walks in front ot their property, order out the Marine band and di: tue in your biggest type. It will be a “distinguished” lot of i defendants I assure you, and ever to be remembered among the oldest inhabitants. Washington, Jan. 18, 1883. b A sitting in their cosy room at the —— house. The topics of the day had been pretty well ex- hausted, when Melwood, a young broker, men- tioned the case, reported in the papers, of a lady who had fallen into a trance, which was mistaken for death, and expressed his belief that it was an unfounded sensational newspaper yarn. “Well, I believe it;” said Mr. Rathburn, @ quiet, gray-headed, keen eyed old lawyer, who was commonly called Judge among the mem- bers of the club, and usually spent his evenings smoking silently in the club room and listening without remark to the chaff and chatter of the other members. “I have known a more won- derfal case than that, and I will tell you about it." The Judge here filled his pipe, puffed it quietly for a few seconds, and the boys, knowing that they were in for a story, drew their chairs toxether in a semi-circle about the fireplace. “It was many years ago,” said the Judge, ‘‘when the events which I speak of happened, still I guess there are many peop’e now living in the northwestern part of the city who re- member old Richard Bailey. In th days the northwestern part of the town was not built upas itis now. Where now there are rows of splen- did residences there used to be commens, and near one particular locality, calied the “Slashes,” stood a large rambling old house. In this hquse, which was the oniy one in the square, Hved Richard Bailey and ud, his adopted daugh- ter. Bailey had_ be a mechanic, and had struggled hard during his earlier years for a livelihood. Maud Stuart was the daughter of one of Bailey's fellow-workmen, who was killed by an accident in the shop when Maud wasa little blue-eyed girl. Bailey then took Maud, and she shared his poor home with him, and brightened his Ife. Bailey was intelligent and studious, and invented some improvements in machinery, which before he was a very old man, gained him a compe- tence. Being- rather eccentric in his ways, he bought the old house I have mentioned, choos- ing it on account of its isolation, as, he said, he would not be troubled with meddiesome neigh- bors. He fitted up In the grounds a sort of lab- oratory or workshop, where he spent most of his time; and the boys who used to go gun- ning tor snipe and other game in that locality got to calling the place the magician’s castle. Though Bailey pursued a sort of hermit life, he did not deprive Maud of the advantages to be gained by contact witli the world. She grew up to a tal and beautiful girl, having all the accomplishments that money couid aid her In acquiring. She was known all over the city for her charms of mind as well as_ person. Bailey loved her as fondly as if she had been h own daughter, and as she grew into womal hood, his heart saddened, as he felt that sone day a lover would come to claim her from him. But at the time I am speaking, though Mand had a legion of admirers, she was heart and fancy free, and devoted herself to prom ing the happiness of Bailey. I had considerable business to manage for Bailey, In connection with patents and other matters, and was obliged to call upon him now and then in a professiomal way. From making professional calls it was an easy step to drive out that wa summer evenings for an unprofessional chat, and I think the hours I spent after the labors of the day in the company of this guileless, pure- hearted old man and the intelligent, frank, win- ning girl, who was always by his side, are ainong the happlest Ican remember. My old-bachelor ways, I suppose, made me a conzenial compan- jon for Bailey. 1am making my story long, but if you will be patient I will dill my pipe azain and go ahead The Judge having relighted his meerschaum, and taken two or three long whilfs, proceeded narrative. ‘Well, I think I was the itor that old Bailey used to seein a social way. He had some relatives living In another part of the city. They called themselves fashionable peop! aud when Bailey was a hard-working mechante dis- owned him. After he became rich they suddenly discovered that he was a yery excellent man, but Bailey showed no disposition to cultivate their acquaintance, and, in tact. 1 guvss, gave them to understand, in very plainterms, that he did not care to have anythinz to do with them One day anote came to my office from Miss Mand, telling me that her futher—she always called Bailey father—was ill. i rode out to the house that evening and found Buitey suifering withe high fever, accompanied with delirium. The doctor, who was there, tol me that he ex- pected soon to break the fever and he had no doubt the patient woull recover. Maud seeined to be greatly com‘orted by my confidence, and T left her watching patiently by the side of the sick man. At noon the next day I was shocked by a message stating that Bailey wasdead. 1 at once hastened to the old house and found that it was true. The doctor had just left. One of the servants toid me that the old gentleman had had an unusually violent delirious attack, had then recovered consctous- ness long enough to speak Maud’s name and take her hand. Then his eyes closed and he passed away as peacefully as a tired child ainking into slumber. Up in the death chamber Maud was kneeling at the bed side. mute in her great grief, and still clinging to the cold hand. It was no time for me to in- trude, so I returned to the lower floor and gave such directions as were necessary concerning the disposition of the dead. -When I was about to leave, a carriage drove up to the gate, and in trooped, noisily and. | thought at the time, with a triumphant swagger. the relatives of old Bailey, of whom I- have spoken. These were Mrs. Simmons and the three Misses Simmons, her daughters. Mrs. Simmons brushed by me in the hall without any ceremony, and ordered a servant to open the drawing room. She had come evidently to take possession. I thought it best that Maud in her distress should not be forced to meet these brazen women alone and I remained. After the Misses Simmons had made a hasty in- spection of the furnitare, Mrs. Simmons called them and they decided to go up stairs. I pre- ceded them to the room where Maud kept her silent and lonely viuil by the dead. When they entered one of the Misses Simmons, going to the bed:ide, drew down the sheet to expose the old gentleman’s face, with as little concern as a person would push back a window curtain. “I suppose this young woman,” sald Mrs. Simmons, pointing to Maud's crouching form, “can stay here until after the runeral.” T was about to reply with some indignation, but I checked inyself and said, as calmly as I could, ‘1 suppose she can stay here so long as she chooses.” “No,” said Mrs. Simmons. ‘She will have to find a home elzewhere. She lived on old Dick while he was living, long enough, and set him rainst his own blood and kin. You know Dick made no will.” Thouzh it may sound unlawyerlike, I had never, inthe shock given me by the death of the old man,bestowed one thought on the ques- tion as to who should succeed to his estate. As his lawyer, I knew the old gentleman never had made a will. He had some sort of eccentric ob- jection to making a will. He had -confided to ‘me his purpose of settling his property on Maud before he died, but, with that confidence in con- tinued existence that is a part of human nature, be had nexlected to perform what he consid @ sacred duty until it was beyond his power. Mrs. Simmons was right, and Maud was from that day a poor howeless orphan. Maud, who had heard Mrs. Simmons’ heartless words, rose slowly to her feet, gave one agonized look at the dear dead face and then swept scornfully and proudly past the Simmons’ and sought the privacy of her own chamber. Mrs. Simmons and her daughters remained in the room with the dead seme time, chatting quite gaily. The dauchters expressed it as their opinion that it would be awful to live in the. old house without any neighbors. Mamma Simmons comforted them by assuring them that bi what directions I hi funeral Hl ie. mith | trie battery, long: wiped away some moisture from his cheek nocked the ashes * Pahawl be that all?” asked the matter-of- fact broker, who had been spending his time trying to balance a silver dollar on point of his penknife. “No, not quite,” sald the Judge, who had apparentiy overcome his emotion. ** No, that is not all. Old Batley came back home in the next day. The grave gave.up its dead. “Came back!” exclaimed two or three, re- moving thelr pipes from their mouths and show- ing renewed interest. “Yes, he came back,” continued the lawyer, “and I will tell you how it happened. Just at ‘that time there was a gang of grave robbers at work here, who were nightly desecrating ceme- teries in the boldest manner, and somehow or other, through collusion with the police, or in some other way, succeeded always in escaping arrest, though now and then thrilling stories were told of perilous encounters between con- stables and grave robbers in which fhe consta- bles always got the worst of it. Weill, it seems that these depredators visited _——— cemetery the very night following the funeral. One of them had a key that gave them access to the vault. Bailey's coffin was broken open, his body tudely taken out, placed in acoarse sack, thrown Into a wagon in the midst of a lot of straw and old cabbazes—intended to give the vehicle the appearance of a market gardener’s wagon—and then hauied through alleys and back st sto the Medical College. then located on E street He evidently did not like the company he was placed in, so he got up and went home.” “Do you mean that after being ta the vault several hours and being taken to a medical co lege he came back to life?” asked the incredu- lous broker. “The long and short of It fs," said the Judge, “he wasinatrance. It was, the doctor said afterwards, a sort of epileptic tra’ ‘ike death in appearance that th medical practitioner might have easily ceived by it. The curious old friend was perfectly conscious of everything that was occurring about bit, and his sense even seemed more acute than usual during hi trance, though he was powerless to move @ muscle. He told me that thouzh his eves were closed and he could not see, he seemed to have new sense that partially compensated tor this, and that was a stranze consciousness of things about him He could feel the presence of a person near him. He was aware of the grief of Mand. He over- heard the conversation of the Simmonses, but he was powerless to express his indiznation. His heart sank within him when he was finally placed In his coffin. He could hear the rambling of the carriage wheels on the rond to the ceme- tery, and wien at last he heard the heary iron gate of the vault grate upon its hinges he felt that he was locked out of the world forever- more. The hours of mental ay that suc- ceeded while he was waiting and praying for death ean be more easily imagined than de- scribed: Then he heard the hinges grate azain, the coffin which he occupied was bursted rudely open, ang he was dragged out. He heard the mufiled tones of the grave-robbers as they con- versed among themselves and congratulated themselves upon having secured so good a ‘stiff. He suffered untold agony aa the wagon rumbled and rattled over the uneven roads. At last he was hurriedly carried up a steep flight of staira, ant placed on a long plat- form, where a spray of water was turned upon him. Then he heard the men whisper a little while with others who met them, and after that he was left alone. Weil, the next morning some youug medical students came to the place and eXamined old Bailey very critically. The demonstrator came and got out an instrument for the purpose of making an incision into his chest. Well, he started and the knife Just made ascratch—a little cut—whea the demonstrator sprang back as If shocked by a strong elec- The reason was that the blood welled out of that cut Just as it will out of a live man and will not out of a dead one. ‘He's alive!" exclaimed the demonstrator, more fright- ened at one live man than he would be at a dozen genuine corpses. At that all the students gathered about; all sorts of apparatus and restoratives were applied and pretty soon my old friend was sitting up sneezing as vigor- sly us you please. Well, the students got him a suit of clothes. He apologized to them very courteously for having caused them any disappointment, and took his leave. Well, you may easily imagine the consternation he created in the Simmons famlly when he stalked into his old home, where they hadalreadysafely ensconced themselves. They declared that he was a zhost, | aad seemed inclined to contest his rights, but if he was a chost he was a very substantial one, und he used some very vigorous lan; . The Simmonses de] Of course Maud rejoined the old man, He lived many years after that, and his riches greatly increased by the rise in the value of real estate. He overcame his ob- ree to making a will and I drew up the instrument myself. He wanted to leave every- thing, without reservation, to Maud, but she insisted on his making some provision for his relatives. So the old man lett a comfortable an- nuity to Mra. Simmons. Maud finally married, and before the old gentfemen died Iit- tle rosy-cheeked —_grand-children — he always called them \d-children — played about his arm chair. I always had a place in the chimney corner, and am god-father to one of the grand-children. The old gentleman often reverted to the time when he was dead. He said that he recognized, by their voices, two of the grave-robbers—one of whom happened to be a rather prominent physician aud the other one of the chief officers of the police or constab- ulary—but he considered it his duty to encour- age the business, rather than to break it up by an exposure.” The Judge here arose and put on his overcoat and _ gloves. “You don’t mean to tell us,” sald the broker, “that a man lived for hours with his coffin li screwed down and no air?” “Iam not @ medical expert,” said the Judge, and bret next instant he had disappeared through the door. The Future the Negro im This Country. ‘We must againask the question, What, from this stand-point, will the upshot be when the blacke numerically will so far exceed the whites as to overcome the vantage that the superior wealth and tntelligence of the latter now give them? The outlook here is no less serious. Whatever civic capability the blacks may have, it is now in germ; whatever governing aptitude the race may possess, it is at present dormant. In the history of nations it has nowhere, as yet, been exhibited. If this race in the United States 1s improving, Ite improvement, as was to have been expected, is slow; and in every politi- cal virtue it will still be vastly below the whites, when in voting strength its fecundity will have put it vastly beyond them—so far beyond as to overcome every counter-influence, and give the political reins entirely into its hands. Who can doubt that, when this day comes, the blacks will obey a race-instinct which ali their surroundings will have powerfully tended to develop, and vote blacks alone into office ? Thus have" they done wherever, the b ptoti existed. Kept, as they are. a distinct and alien race, no other issue is reasonably conceivable. And who can doubt that, under this sthte of affairs—an inferior and incompetent race com- pletely dominating, by mere numbers, a superior one—the worst disorders would ensue? The whites would not submit. and a violent and disastrous conflict of races must follow. The whites would hold (1) that, while America is a nation governed by majorities, yet by those who framed the Constitution it was never Intended that a race broucht here as slaves, an inferior race, one kept distinct by this very inferiority, should, merely through a superior fecundity, become politically supreme. and lord it over the land. They we cal lordship would be ruinous to every interest ; that for a short ot the war it hi the tens: aa eee iv |, and wit! ee that, should this ae missioners about | in red tape. FARMERS IN CONVENTION. & Large Gathering at Snndy Spring= Amteresting Tepice. From the Baltimore American. Saxpr Srervo, January 16.—The annual com vention of the Montgomery county farmers com- posing the Sandy Spring Farmers’ Clab, the Enterprise Club and the Montgomery Chub assembied here to-day in the Sandy Spring Ly- ceum building. Mr. Henry C. Hallowell, pre- dent, occupied the chair, with Mesars. Allama Farquhar and Charles F. Kirk, secretaries. Mr. Hallowell in calling the meeting to order Te ferred to the recent floods tn Europe, attribnt- ing them to the clearing of the lands from tim ber. The first business in order was a concerning the railroad crossing on the | Mul road,near Rockville,where a Indy was Kilted recently. Mr. Wm. John Thomas reported that the Baltimore and Otjo railroad authorities Would in a few days conter with the county come lacing rafety gates at the vas said he thought the reat mistake In perm! ‘is to cross county roads at grade. crossing. Mr. Th ture made it was re | also a hard matter, he sald, to get the county commissioners at work, as they were £0 tied Mr. Richard Kirk, who was cal upon to report in relation to the cre stated that he thought it only dangerous im winter time. Col. Washington Rowle, secretary of the Union Turnpike Company, read a corre- “noe between the company and the Baltl- and Ohio railread company concerning the Placl of safety gates at the crossing at Silver Spr The cates will be erected within a few as the Baltimore and Ohio authorities will nm Tuesday next Mr. Asa M. Stabler, of the ning a law to protect from dogs. orted that the committee been unable to have the law passed by the leg- isinture. He thought the farmers were loning large sums of money annually by the non-pro- tection ot sheep. Wm. H. Farquhar thongnt it might.be effective to write a letter to candidates for the legislature Just before election to ascer- tain thei this subject. + ." which gppears to be a standing joke in the convention, as well as a standing nuisance in the fields, came up for discussion, As usual, there were @ number of interesting and humorous experiences recited concerning the plant. It appears that the best known rem- edy for hog thistle ix to cut It trequently, keep cutting until it disappears. Mr. Allan Bowle Davis also subinitted a letter on the same sub- Ject. A TALK ON ENSILAGE. The next question was the most interesting one of ensilage, on which there appeared to be but one opinion from those who had tried the plan. Mr. Robert F. Roberts, of Fairfax, Va, who had been using ensilage for three yeara, said he bad put away three hundred tons last year, was feeding from fifty to sixty cows, and could pronounce it a decided success. Mr. Bd. P. Thomas also pronounced ensilage @ success, but thought corn was better t Tye to put fa the silo. He had heard no complaint on account: of flavor, and thought It a decided advantage to hold (2) that this politi- }- dry feed. Philip T. Stabler, George L. Liewellyn Massey (eon of ‘Auditor Massey, “ot Virginia) and others endorsed ensilage highly, Mr. Charles Stabler saying he thought the biggest thing out; and Sr. Massey that he never had anything better. Mr. Samuel Hopkins thought flaxseed meal was excellent for fattening cattle in winter, and Mr. Robert F. Roberta, who had ted cotton-seed meal for two years,but never separately,thought it kept cattle in condition, and improved both the quality and quantity of milk. Barbed wire fences, in the experience of Mr. Charles F. Kirk, Wm. W. Moore and others,were 4 cood protection against the invasion of horsea, cattle aad other animals. On the question of whether self-binders haa proved a success there was no voice in the nega- tive, and they were, therefore, pronounced aat- isfactory. Colonel Dorsey and others spoke most favorably ot binders In general. Mr. John M. Smith, of the committee on und of ground limestone, reported that be had tried some of the stene, but had failed to find ang Tesults from its use. REPORTS OF CLURS. . The Sandy Spring Farmers’ Club—the oldest club in the country, organized in 1844—was rep- resented by Mr. Wm. H. Farquhar, who, in the outset, referred to the organization of the con- vention, ten yeara ago. from the four farmers’ clubs of the country; and tte-continued useful- ness since that date. From twelve farms man- aged by members of the club, wheat was re- ported as averaging 26 bushels to the acre, and cora 11.6 barrels. The Enterprise Club. orzanized in 1865, was Tepresented by Mr. Arthur Stabler. In the re port, ensilage was said to be no longer an ex- periment. Local option or the failure of the apple crop had affected the manufacture of cider. The average of wheat to the acre on farms man- aged by members of the club was placed at 26.9 bushels, 83¢ barrels of corn, 135 bushels of tatoes, od Coanels of oats and 255; bushels of rye. The Mont ‘Club was represented by Mr. Robert, Hiner who reported the average yield of the farms manaved by the members of the club, which were about the same es those of the Enterprise club. Mr. Edward P.Thomas nted a special report on ensilage, in which it was stated that five new silos bad been built in the county during the past vear. A report was presented by Mr Allen Parqubar on the weighing of hay in Washington, and Messrs. Benjamin H. Miller, Allan Farquhar and Colonel Dorsey were apipointed a committee to look iuto the matter and report at the next con- vention. CHICAGO DRESSED BEFP. A question ax to whether the Chicago dressed beef now sold in Baltimore would affect the raising of beef cattle in Montgomery county was unanimously answered in the negative, om the ground that frst-cluss beef would always be in demand. Mr Edward Gilpin said he found the whole matter of competition was in freight rates. When the Chicazo beef was first intro- duced in Baltimore, car of dressed beef, hold- ing thirty-five carcasses, was ron through at the same rate us live-stock, €125 per car; but the railroad saw its mistake, and had now advanced to #220 per car tor dressed beef. Messrs. Ana M. Stabler, Mr. Aga. of Prince George's county; B. A. Farquhar, Geo. M. Tatum. H.C. Hallowell, and F. Pue also apoke on the question. the latter being of the opinion it was a question affecting the now two zreat profits of the butchers, rather than the stock-raisers of Montycmery county. Mr. Ava stated that the first grade of beef shipped from the west went to foreizn marketa, the second grade came east on hoof and the third grade dressed. it was claimed the dressed, , beef was Texas or Cherokee cattle. which looked nice, but was of inferior grade. Various other questions of interest to farmers were discussed, atter which the couveation adjourved until Jam uary, 1884. Among others present were Messrs. Fletcher Magruder, Frederick Gaither, Amos Holland, George E Brooks,Alban Gilpin, Samuel Thomaa, Wm. John Thomas, Edw. Lea, Geo. Tatum, Richard Lansdale, Roger B. Farquhar, Granville Farquhar, Benj. B. Palmer, Wm. W. Moore, Edw. C. Ms 4p Sam) Hopkins, Dawson Lau- renee, Thok.J. Lea, Gramith, Jos. Hutton, Joshua Warfield, Robert Mackall, Stabler, Captain Strain, Wm. Lea, Charles Grit- , Tsanc Hartehorse, W. W. Brown, Harry Biunt. Griffith Seareh, Arthur Stabler, Stabler. : Stabler, Wm, E Muncaster, Robert HL. Milier, Charles G. Pore ter, Thomas Lausdale, Columbus Bi John C. Bentley. Jona Kinsey, Gus, Jones, jacruder, Fp, Gilpin Stabler, jue Mi » Walter Brooke, Cias. Hutton, J.C. Ho ‘H.C. Hak | Jowell, Will am Allnut, Edward P. ohm J-Hall of Montzomery county, and B-F Roberta, ate Joun Barringer, Walter Walton, of Fairfax county, Va; >amael L. Pizeon, Clarke county. Vi sioned touconvey the mesrage. mittee was os follows: Mra Sarab Edward C . Mra. W. Thomas, Mra. Lea, Mrs. John om ae ‘Miss Lizzie F. Gilpia. ‘The convention was larcely attended, one hundred or mete of tae ame ee tarmers of Montgomery county being besides those from Vireinta apd ether named. The farmers claim. and question that 't eo, thet these: ons are prdactive of mach good, ficen but also wn eencal way. The ideas, but ue way. of to-day was the teath annual j |