The New York Herald Newspaper, July 28, 1874, Page 5

THE BRUSSELS CONGRESS, | Proposed International Code for, ‘(ye Miti- gation of Suffering Dring War. pS MEETING “4f THE ENVOYS poem The Gzar's Invitation to the United States. The Opening Session and Adjournment. BRUSSELS, July 27, 1874. ‘The International Congress convened at noon (to-day and sat one hour, Baron Jomini was chosen president. It was decided that the sittings should be held with closed doors, The Congress adjourned until Thursday. A grand banquet will be given to the delegates to-morrow. Whe Origin and Objects of a Convention in Which the World is Interested.—A Proposition to Treat Civic Levies as Outlaws. The Congress,to which isto be submitted the basis of an international code on the subject of all dimicul- ties and complications likely to arise in a state of war, assembled yesterday, a8 above stated, at Brussels. The entire world is imterested tn | ‘ts proceedings. Ever since the Emperor of Russia specially identified himself with the Project, which has particular reference to the humane treatment of prisoners and the miti- Ration of the sufferings incident to warfare, the statesmen and the press of Europe have discussed with renewed animation the probable course the envoys of the several Powers who are to meet at the Belgian capital are likely to pursue. Dificul- ties which were not at first foreseen have arisen, cbiefly relating to the capture of merchant vessels wt sea and the rights of a people whose country is occupied by an enemy to take up arms against the invader, The series of articles to be considered | were drawn up by the government of the Czar. Many Of them are conceived in an enlightened and merciful spirit towards the conquered, while others would destroy the right of volunteers, hastily summoned to arms in presence of & great emergency, to combat triumphant regular military forces. Experience auring the past lew years has proved that irregular troops, when captured, have not been always treated as prisoners Of war; they have frequently been put to death on the ground that only regulars have a right to fight against reguiars, and it was soon per- ceived that most likely charges ana counter charges would be made by the representatives of countries lately engaged in hostilities. It was ad- mitted that it would be very desirable to agree upon a code touching the exercise of military au- thority in an enemy’s country, the distinction to be made between combatants and non-combatants, the treatment of prisoners of war, the difference between legitimate and illegitimate warfare, the \awfulness of reprisals and the rights and obliga- hions of belligerents towards eacn other and to- wards private persons, The articles prepared by the Russian government which invited other Powers to send envoys to Brussels besides included several propositions that would, if adopted, affect | bperations at sea, which led Great Britain to adopt ® very cautious if not hostile course towards the proposed Congress. It will be seen that the envoy sent by that Power bas instructions to retire the moment any question affecting maritime war Is ‘ntroduced, and that his duty will be confined to reporting upon the discussions that take place. Tbe Czar publicly expressed a wish that the United States should send a representative; but it ap- | T aportant points. The general commanding 1p a foreign country 18 to have power to oblige the Political authorities to remain at their posts and be responsible to him, aud to exact all taxes due tothe government whose authority happens to be Buspe: . ‘This, nO doubt, was suggested by the American instructions. Ip the third chapter, on uniawiul usages of warfare, it is laid eneral rule that no commander has ai aright to declare that he will give no quarter or | to threaten a garrison with extermination because | with which a fortress is defended. | of the obstinac; The use of explosive bullets of a size to penetrate is forbidden, In the chapter on sieges and bom- bardment it is laid down that an entirely open town, which is not defended by the enemy's troops and the inbabitants Of which do not resist, may not be attacked or bombarded after notice is iven to its authorities. The provisions which ar on the treatment of the population of an oc- cupled country, referred to in the beginning, have a severe aspect. They would seem to be framed with @ view O/ suppressing with blood and iron apy and all pennine, movements against an invading force. In the twentieth article it is provided that every iohabitant of a country occupied by the enemy who may give information to the opposite side isto be tried by court martial. By an ad- ditional clause balloons engaged in attempting to effect communication between one portion of an army and another are taken out of THE CATEGORY OF SPIES and invested with the rights of neutrals. Jour- Dalists, correspondents and papers do not find favor with the authors of the proposed code, Ot late the former were treated as neutrals, but it is now suggested to make it law- ful to treat them as prisoners of war—not as crimi- nals, but as legal enemies. ‘the beneficent maxims of the Geneva Conlerence have an excel- lent effect upon that part of the proposed code which treats of the position to be assigned to a | certain class of non-combatants. Surgeons, apothe- | caries and medical assistants, who are attending the wounded on the battle field, as well as bearers and ambulance men, are not to be made prisoners of war, but are to enjoy the rights of neutrality, and the belligerent parties are bound to render them protection and assistance. There are other humune provisions, such as the prohibition of seiz- ure of the effects 01 prisoners as booty ; the exemp- on of captives irom bodily punishment; the pro- hibition of holding hostages and also of reprisals, except when made by order of corps commanders ; the provision of sanitary authorities at every pris- | oners’ depot, and the allowance of the same ra- tions.to prisoners that are served to the victo- | rious army, rank for rank, and the liberation and return of prisoners to their own country without delay after peace is concluded. The clauses last enumerated were not included in Dr. Lieber’s treatise*ior governing United states armies en- gaged In active operations, AN OBJECTIONABLE ARTICLE, The filty-fifth article of the proposed code will, no doubt, provoke considerable discussion. It | means that only regular troops shall carry on wars, and that the masses of the people are to be ex- cluded irom resisting an invader of their counury. It 18 to be permitted that the inhabitants of a lo- cality not yet, occupied by the enemy who may take up arms are to be regarded as belligerents, and if they are made puroners of war they are to be treated as such, But if the inhabitants of a country, in which the enemy’s power 1s already established, rise in arms, they shail not be entitled to the rights of (Peter Ol war, but shall be able to be tried for their lives, AN ENGLISH PROTEST, The London Daily News, commenting on the programme to be submitted to the Congress, re- Marked :—"'We should hope that articles like these will never be accepted by the governments of Europe, It may be they embody no right which a general engaged in a great war would not be ready to claim if he wanted them; but it is one thing to defer to a hard necessity and another the law of the civilized world rutes that strike out conditions which sympathies of mankind, Not only are these pro- visions narsher than any that have been enforced in the regular warfare of the past thirty years, | but many of the articles submitted should be well considered before they should be adopted,’? MISGIVINGS OF GREAT BRITAIN. From the first, a8 has been tntimated, it seemed apparent that English statesmen regarded the meeting of the Congress with some misgiving. The programme originally announced only con- templated the more humane treatment ot prison- ers, but it subsequently appeared, as beiore stated, that the articles prepared dealt with every contingency of war. It was feared in England that, to open up @ discussion on international law and particularly in reference to maritime affairs, would be a very critical matter for that country. England has adopted the three rules given below and which form part of the Treaty of Washington. Bismarck holds diferent opinions relative ‘to neutrals at sea, He aemands @ law against the exportation of arms in time of war, and the abolition of the.right of captors of private prop- erty on the Ocean. So far as maritime regulations go, England would be probably voted down at Brussels, Hence her reluctance to have anything to do with the Congress. THE TREATY OF WASHINGTON, pears our government has taken no action In the premises, With these introductory remarks we vagy to THE ORIGIN OF THE CONGRESS. It will be remembered that at the close of our eivil war and before the short war of 1866 between Prussia and Austria an International Sanitary | Convention was held in Geneva, and which was attended by philanthropic citizens from different | parts of Europe and America. The organization bore good truit, and secured from France, Italy, Prussia, Austria and Switzerland a pledge that | the flag and badge of its members—a red cross on @ white ground—should be protected at ali times on the battle field while the wearers were engaged succoring the wounded. The labors of the mem- bers have been instrumental in mitigating the | sufferings of tens of thousands of maimed and crippled soldiers during the last struggle in France. They tave done much to make war more humane ana to introduce measures conducive to great amelioration in its usages, It appears that & meeting was held about a year since, called by M. | Dunant, the originator of the Geneva Convention, to consider what steps shou'd be taken with the view to the adoption of a similar convention for securing certain rights to prisoners of war, whom it was proposed to place under the protection of the diplomatic representatives of neutral Powers. it woud seem that the idea was taken up very earpestly by the Emperor of Russia, and all the governments were invited to send representatives to the Congress, which was to assemble in Brus- sels. During the visit of the Czar to England last May he received a deputation of the Universal Alli- | anve at Buckingham Palace. His Majesty informed them that by nis orders the Cabinet of St. Peters- burg had prepared @ drait of a project to be sub- mitted to the various Vabinets. It was intended to determine the rules to be observed in time of | war, especially in reference to the treatment of prisoners. The Emperor expressed @ wish that THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES ani of other distant countries, to which the early | day fixed for the conference may prevent a fornial Utplomatic invitation being addressed, should ap- point deiegates to represent them on the occasion, As soon as the scope of the uew code was made caown the English government began to find fault, for reasons stated below, and the leading London newspapers joined in a general cry of flarm. Germany was favorable toa project that | oilered an opportunity of introducing into the recognized usages Of War some of the Prussian military men’s ideas, which turn out to be of a most repressive and é¢xtremely harsh nature to- wards the inhabitants of a country in the hands of anenemy. It is only a few days since that France found it was impossible to hold aloof from the Congress, and the government, it is reported, will Insist on the exclusion of naval questions, in ac- | cordance with the example of England. Switzer- land shows a disinclination to join in the conter- ence, but as all the Powers are to ve represented in one sense or another her absence will not be considered important. The United States Minister Resident at Brussels may probably have some in- structions tn reference to the conierence. DR. LIEBER ON THE USAGES OF WAR. The necessity for the more humane treatment of prisoners of war being apparent, a committee, who had taken an interest in the movement from its inception, prepared a series of ‘articles, borrowed Jor the most part from the instructions prepared by Dr. Francis Lieber for the goverument of the armies of the United States In the ficid, These were revised by a board of officers and issued in general orders from the War Department, April 24, 1863. Dr. Lieber laid down rather strict, rules, which were embraced in 157 sections, Chapters were devoted to the following, among other sub- jects :—Public and private property of the enemy; protection of persons, especially of women; pro- tection of religion, the arts and sclences ; prisoners of war; hostages; booty on the battle tleld; parti sans, raiders and guerillas; spies; fags of truce; assassination and armistices. The principie was laid down that the more vigorously wars are prosecuted the better for humanity; sharp wares are brief. Commanding generals may cause Magistrates and civil officers of hostile countries to take oath of temporary allegiance or an oath of fidelity to their own victorious government or rulers, and they may expel every one who declines to do 80. Commanding generals can also in some cases send back non-combatants driven trom a be- sieged city in order to save consumption of rations, Mev or squads of men who by raids commit hostill- ties without continuing in service, but who do so With occasional assumption of semblance o! peace- able pursuits, are not public enemies, and, if cap- tured, are to be treated summarily as highway robbers and pirates, vr. Lieber’s instructions have been, as far us prisoners of war and other subjects are conce:ned, improved upon by the roposed code, drawn up, as stated belore, by the ‘6 advisers, The Russian propositions take in the principles represented by the Geneva red cross, Which were not recognized during our civil | war, THE PROPOSED NEW CLAUSES. The thirty-one new clauses proposed for addi- tion to the existing code, and which are to be cone | sidered by the Brussels Congress, embrace several | | humane, and not for political, purposes. | modern regular warfare ol The following ure the three rules referred to | above embodied in the Treaty of Washington, and which the United states and England agreed by that instrument to bring to the knowledge of other governments ano to invite them to accede there- to:—First—A neutral government is bound to pre- vent the fitting out, arming or equippmg witnin ts jurisdiction of any vessel which it hus reason- able grounds to believe is intended to cruise or carry on & war against @ Power with which it is at peace, and aiso to use diligence to prevent the de- parture from its jurisdiction of any vessel intended to cruise or carry OD @ War as above, such vessel having been adapted in whole or in part within such jurisdiction (0 warlike purposes, second— Not to permit or suffer either belligerent to make use Of its forts or waters as the base of naval ope- | rations against the other, or tor the purpose of the renewal or augmentation of military supplies or arms or the recruiting of men. Third—To exer cise due diligence in tts own ports and waters, and as to all persons within its jurisdiction to prevent | any violation 01 the foregoing obligations and duties, LORD DERBY’S VIEWS. On the 3d of July inst. Lord Derby stated in his place in Parliament that England wanted to be Batistied that tne conference was really one for In other words, Lord Deroy and his colleagues must be as- sured that the conference does noi intend to open | up the whole code of international law with re- | gard to warlike operations. The English govern- ent, he said, wou'd nos entertain any proposi- tion that would tend to cripple its power in the business of maritime wartare, and unless he and his colleagues were assured on these points they would send no representative to the Congress, and even if they should he would not be accredited in the character of a plenipotentiary. A PRESS ENDORSEMENT. The London Standard, a semi-official organ of the present British Ministry, extoi ed Lord Derby’s remarks, apd considered that they are most satis- factory. It said that certain of the articles in- volved pot only the abandonment by England of the right of capturing merchantmen at sea, but, takeb with others, limitea the right of resisting armed forces by citizen levies and volunteers, “Rememvering the practice,” it continued, “which one great Continental Power in a recent war had | toenforce against the franc-tireurs, we cannot but entertain a lively suspicion of the motives of these plilanthropists, especially when we see it announced in the German National Guzette that the proposition for the Congress emanated from the German government. As to the rignv of cap- turing private property at €ea it is certain that no British government will venture to bind this coun- try toany such rule. It is, in fact, one of those rights which no nation can be expected to give up, whatever may be its declaration-as to the theory. Whenever it 18 essential to the existence of PAE land, and on no grounds less urgent 1s it likely vhat England will go to war, it is certain we will not abandon our chief weapon for national de- fence.” Referring to the appointment of a repre- sentative to the Congress the Standard says:— | “He shall have no power to assent to anything, anda his authority ts limited to the task ol! report- ing what is suggested, This is notail. It is noti- fied that THE ENGLISH ENVOY WILL RETIRE should certain subjects be drawn into debate in te conierence. The usages and rules of maritime Ww. riare are not to be touched if any English rep- resentative isto attend, and if this condition be infringed upon the English representative will at once withdraw.’’ The London Times irankly avows that “we should have been content, and, per: haps, something More than content, to ieave all questions touching the usages and rules of war at rest until a litte more time had passed since the termination of the last great imternational struggle. The passions it roused are not yet sub- sided, and that it would be better to wait until the cmief actors in that tremendous drama have disappeared, But the invitation having been given and conditionally accepted, we have now no choice but to gu on with the conference, on condt- tions which we have previously made clear beyoud the possivility of misconception, We protest in advance against the possibility of our drifting into ap awkward position, and then finding that there is noone to biame for tt, This is the modern fashion, but we preier the old rule unaer which men worked with a consciousness that failure Was almost synonymous with an end of their career,” WHAT IS TO BE THE RESULT? It now remains to be seen how far the original design of the conference will be carried out. Everything that tends to make war less terrible is a gain for civilization. ‘The whole gist of the pro- posal was to obtain iniform and humane treat- Ment” for unlortunate men who at present, ac- cording to the humor of their captors, accordin, also to the character of the hostilities in whic they may have been engaged, are regarded at one time a8 Objects of interest, at another as little better than criminals. In any event there is no danger of the Geneva red cross losing any of the respect with which it has been heretotore treated. The very same people who, at the beginning ol @ war, will receive prisoners with generous coinmis- seration, will, when the war has lasted some time, be inclined to look upon them as responsible for its duration and for any harshness that may be im- parted into the manner of conducting it. In any case the treatment of prisoners of war should not be @ matter of chance, a caprice. The almost uni- versal rule in remote times was and continues to ve with barbarous countries that the princi- al end O! hostile Operations was to inflict every privation on the conquered, Protection was and still 18 with uncivilized people the exception. In Europeans and their descendants in other parts of the globe protection is the rule and inhuman or harsh treatment the exception. However, it would be easy, without reporters for news- | ening to formulate in cold blood and as a part of | FY oners of war have been used with the most unjus- Utiable severity. posing the Revolutionary War Americans confined in the British prison ships in this harbor were treated tn @ manner so intoler- able as to cause @ revolt, in which many of them | were killed, ‘They were snbjected to the most | cruel abus Their food consisted of putrid beef | and pork and WORM-EATEN BREAD which had been condemned on voard the vessels of war. They were deprived of fire for days to- gether and compelled to eat raw meat. The groans, | nignt after might, of the sick and dying apa the wild ravings of the delirious, driven to madpess by barbarous treatment, were terrible to hear. To crown all, attempts were made to compel the Americans to desert the cause of their country and enlist in the service of their enemies and oppres- sors. During the jate war in France, even the | regulations concerning the wounded estab- | lished by the Geneva Conference were not uniformly observed. Since the close of the war, a& Well as during ity progress, bitter reproaches were made by the belligerents regarding the manner in which each nation treated 1ts prisoners. ‘There can be hardly any doubt that the charges of needless severity and neglect were well founded. It seems soarcely possible that the enormous armigg now on foot will be maintained much longer in an cleo. ive condition without their relative strength being the miseries of war will not, perhaps, be very seriously diminisned even by the observance on both sides of a@ universally received code of laws for the guidance of armies in the field. But much has been done by the.Geneva Convention for the | alleviation of the miseries on both sides; | and, apart from the actual field of | battle, war entails an immense deal of sul- fering which, by the general adoption of certain laws regulating the conduct of hostile armies tow- ards one another and towards the people of the | country invaded or occupied, might certainly be | lessened. ‘The object of such laws is to prevent. | recourse being had to reprisals, and generally to | avert such acts of hostility as make the return to | peace unnecessary dificult, INDEPENDENTLY OF MISDEEDS, simple misunderstandings between belligerents | are of constant occurrence. The Pall Mall Gazette, @ lew weeks since, referred to the correspondence Which ook place during the late war between } Prince Bismarck and M. de Chaudordy on the sub- ject of the alleged violation of the undefined “usages of in regard to persons, and | between Prince Bismarck and Lord Granville ae to their violation in regard to property. It could be seen that with respect to many irritating inci- dents, such a8 no war can be without, the ques- ; tion of their legality or illegality cannot be de- | cided, tor the plain reason that the | disputants have no law to appeal to. | Law being wanted they refer to law books more or less esteemed, but carrying no real autnor- ivy, and as each-cites what suite his own case and keeps everything Of the opposite tendency out of view, such’ arguments are necessarily intermina- ble. ‘They are, in lact, incapable of being decided, M, Jules Favre, for example, reproaches the Ger- | mans with having omitted, ‘contrary to the usages of war,’ to give notice of a bombardment, or with having, ‘‘contrary to the usages of war,” executed a volunteer who was entitled, ii captured, to be treated as a soldier. The main facts being admit- | ted by Bismarck the asserted ‘‘usages of war’ are denied; and counter reproaches are addressed to the French concerning the practices said to be in where to be found, or which di! according to the | taste of the author who has written them down, CONCLUSION. As far as the Russian government 18 concerned it is entitled to credit for its action In this import- | ant movement, ‘The Czar has manifested a great | interest in it irom the beginning. It is undersiood that Russia has no special or exclusive end to | serve ana is anxious only to provide for a com- mon want and avert a general inconvenience. it tion of a convention which shall establish just and | humane usages of war ail over the civilized world, | and which are to be in the future acknowledged. The English journals, as has been seen, openly | state that Bismarck is the original author of the | proposal, but the London Kraminer believes that the origination of the Congress is due to a knot of | French diplomatists, with Count Hondetot at their | head. But every one is satisfied that the Emperor | Of Russia should have all the honor resulting trom & mitigation of the suiferings o! war when the plan | adopted jor the purpose iv 118 scope and principle is in accordance with the eplighteneu sentiment of the age in which we live. GENERAL GORDON AND THE THIRD TERM, (From the Augusta Constitutionalist.] Avausta, Ga., July 13, 1874, I feel impelled to correct a misapprehension which some of the press have received from the | report m the HERALD Of a conversation with my- self. Personal considerations would not induce me to speak, but, lest the comments which I have seen in some of the democratic papers should cause damage to the democratic party, I beg to say that than a purely democratic canvass, with a demo- | cratic piatiorm and the truest of democratic can- | didates upon it, or as doubting tne probability of | democratic success, misinterprets ne. It 1s not necessary, 1 hope, for me to say that I ; have not claimed any intima with General Grant, nor to know anything Whatever of his views or purposes from anything that he has ever said to me; jor I have never talked with him upon any party issues or party programme of the past, the present or the future. the reporter entirely misunderstood me. All I now say, or have said, is that General Grant is cordial and courteous to Southern gentiemen, and my ideas of his pur- poses are based entirely upon observation, With my thanks for the justice you have sought to do me, I am, very truly, yours, J. B. GORDON. AN AUSTRIAN POLAR EXPEDITION. {From the Manchester Guardian.) A report 1s current at St. Petersburg, being countenanced by geographers of note, that the been heard fora considerable time, and respecting the safety of which apprehenston is accordingly entertained, is lying off the coast of Nova Zembia, The Russian government has consequently been | petitioned to despatch an expedition to the rescue of the Austrian explorers, and a public subscrip- eon for the purpose is now in progress of collec- ion. MUNICIPAL AFFAIRS, Why the Streets Are Obstructed. The Western Union Telegraph Company re- | quested Mr. Schaffer, Superintendent of the | Bureau of Encumbrances, to remove a banner sign which ts placed in front of No. 6 Broadway in such @ manner that it actually interrupts teie- graph communication. ; to do anything in the matter, as the practical ope- | rations of the bureau, so far as removing encum- i brances from the streets are concerned, have been | suspended for the last four months. This delight- | ful condition of things was brought about by our | honest Comptroller, who refused to advance the | money necessary to pay for the laborers and trucks | which must be employed in these removais, | although he 18 directed to do so by law. Com- | plaints about obstructions of the streets caused by carts, wagons, timber, boxes, &c., are received every day, and Mr. Schaffer is unable to take any action, owing to the obstinacy of the | Comptroiler, Mr. Schaffer, in order to remove any and take the property to one of the Corporation | yards—there are two, one at the foot of Gansevoort | street and North River and the other at Rivington street and.the East River—where they are sold at auction. The Board of Apportionment appropriated $2,500 for the current year for this purpose, but Mr. Green has persistently retused to advance a cent. Moreover, he has asked Mr. Schafter to ad- vance the money himseli, and now that the latter | has paid over $600 out of his own pocket, the Comptroller declines to reimburse lim. | The Extra Water Tax. The members of the German Saloon Keepers’ | Association having petitioned the Board oi Alder- | men to repeal the ordinance requiring them to pay | aspecial water tax for water consumed in their | business, Commissioner Van Nort has communt | cated to the Board in disfavor of the application. He grounds his objections on the following Teasons:—In order to avoid the constant importu- | Dity of saloon Keepers to reduce the rate charged | to them to the lowest amount fixed by the ordinance of April 11, 1869, viz, $3 to $30 extra the Commissioner of Public Works, tn 1870, definitely | established the two rates of $10 and $16 for all sa- brought to a vest, When the collision takes place | | disaccord with the same “usages” which are no- | | desires, ag a result of the deliberations, the adop- | porertuly: appeal to the | Whoever interprets me as advocating any other | | ing the year 1872, Austrian Polar expedition, of which nothing has | Mr. Schaffer was unable . | “temporary debt” trom December 31, | these to be ps loons, according to the amount and nature of the | | business transacted. ‘The quantity of water con- sumed in them is enormous, and if meters could | be applied to them at the usual rates the proprie- tors would have to pay a@ larger tax than now. Other kinds of business, manutactories, stables, &c., are charged extra water rent, and, in the Commissioner's opinion, remission to a particular class would form % bad precedent and be most in- | jurious to the revenues arising from tne Croton Water rents, The City Money. on hand on July 18 was $2,976,640. The receipts during the week were $629,849, and the payments | $026,159, The balance on hand on July 2 was $2,671,330, City Marshal Lippmann’s Defence. Madeleine Koch, the complainant in the case against City Marshal Lippmann, admitted yester- day in her examination by Mr. Beneville, the Mayor’s Secretary, that the $2 which she charged Lippmann to have extorted from her were given by her to his clerk to serve a summons; that the sum- mons was properly served, and that the present delay of ver suit arose solely in the court. Mr. Beneville thereupon exonerated Mr. Lippmann going very far back in history, to show that vris- } froys the charee apd dismissed the complaipt. § The City Chamberlain reports that the balance | | amount of debt outstanding THE ASSISTANT ALDERMEN, Honest Men for Inspectors of Election. The Impeachment of the Mayor Sustained. Mr. Green Is Called Upon to Explain. The Board of Assistant Aldermen met yesterday alternoon at two o’ciock, President Joseph P, Strack in the chair, Present were Messrs. Foley, Murphy, Clancy, Keating, Wisser, Healy, Thornell, Theiss, Strack, Keenan, Wade, Kehoe, Brucks, Kelly, Simonson and Beyea, The minutes of the last meeting were read and approved, A petition {rom the managers of the Nursery and Child’s Hospital was read, asking for per- mission to underiet their grounds.—Laid over. The protest of German Jager beer sa!oon keepers against the special taxes on Croton water was re- Jerred to the Committee on Ordinances. Aresolution was passed directing the Commis- sioner of Works to immediately repair Dey street, trom Broadway to the river. The sollowing resolution was offered by Mr. Healy, and referred to the Committee on Laws :— Resolved, That the Board of Police Commissioners be and they are respectiully requested to appoint as inspec- tors of élection only citizens well qualified tor the posi- tion, and who can read and write legibly, and of un. questionable character in their districts, and men ot business, in order that good and competent persons way be selected. Mr. HEALY Offered a resolution protesting AGAINST THE MAYOR'S IMPEACHMENT. Mr. CLANCY moved to dispense with the reading of the resolution, but the motion was lost, following were the resolutions :— Whereas the Poard of Aldermen at its meeting held July 7, 1874. passed resolutions calling upon the Governor ot this State to remove from office Hon. William F. Have- meyer, Mayor of the City of New York, and whereas but eight members of the Common Council of this city out of thirty-six voted on the resolutions of impeachment, therefore be it being the y, hereby id by the upon ice the Hon, m ¥. Havemeyer, Mayer, as the sald action of said Board was not taken after consultation with this Board; The | | tween two places, whose shortest distance 1s 180 | miles, and todo which I am atraid to say how | much we marched, I have not been very wrong in | aud that such action, being, in our opinion, uncalled tor, | unjust and for the purpose of subserving partisan object: we hereby request the Governor of the State, the Hon, John A. Dix, to dismiss the said complaint, Mr. CLANCY moved to refer the resolution to the Committee on Arta and Sciences, Laughter.) ‘The motion was lost, Mr. CLancy then moved to lay the document on the table, which was carried by the following vote:— Yeas—Foley, Murphy. Clancy, Keating, Wisser, Theiss, Stracl Rectiin, Hrieks and Rei es Ng mae ays—Healy, Thornell, Coddington, K. , Ke. hoe, Simonson ‘and Beyea, Sth SpPe Ade Ke Mr. CORNELL moved a resolution, which was car- tied, requesting the Fire Commissioners to ex- amine all saw mills and other structures liable TO PRODUCE A GREAT CONFLAGRATION like that of Chicago, and to inform the Board as to whether any additional ordinances were neces- sary to guard the city against such a calamity. Mr. THORNBLL then addressed the Board on the subject of the city finances.. He said there was a (aa Jeeling of uneasiness among the citizens of ew York by reason of the present management of the Finance Department. Toe debt was continu- ally increasing and the statements of the Comp- troller were irequently tmpeached, He, therefore, moved the following preamble and resolutions, which were adopted:— Whereas the continued and rapid increase of the debt of the city of New York, and the une inty as to the nature, extent and cause of such inc; have become justly @ SOUFCE O! genera! UneAsiness, re calculated to lead to the most serious results; therefore, to the end that such measures may be adopted as shalleither arrest such increase « ali make clear to the taxpayers that bo Re aie required for the true weliare of we city, Resolved, That the Comptroller be requested to furnish the desired information on the subject of the debt to this Board at the earliest possible date, and 86 far as possible aD such manner as to answer the sehjoined, questions :— First—As to the “Debt payable from the Sinkimy Fund,” what was the amouut ot such debt outstanding cember 31, 1871? What amount, if any, matured 18727 Was such matured debt sinking fund or by renew: and in either case what amounts! What amount of new debt was created dur- nd tor what purpose? Total amount ber 21, 1872? What amount, if any, u ? Was such matured debt ‘paid out of the sinking fund or by renewal, and in either case what amounts? What amount of new debt was created outstanding Dec matured during during the year 1873, and for what purposey What was the total amount outstanding December 31, 18731 What Amount has matured during the six months to June 30, loi4s’ Was such inatured debt paid out of the ‘sinking fund or by renewal, and in either case what amounts Hus any bew debt been created during the six months of 1874 to June 2), 1874, and tor what purpose? What Was the total amount of debt payable trom the sinking fund outstanding June 30, 18747 Wh: crease of debt payable from the sinking fund trom De. cemnber 31, 1871, to June $0, 1874? SecondAg to tho “debt payable trom taxation,” what was the total amount of such debt outstand ing December 31, 18/11 What amount, if any, matured in 18727 Was such matured debt paid out of moneys the roceeds of taxation for that year, or by renewal, and In either case what amounts? What was the amount of new debt created during the year 18/2, and for what pur- What was the total amount of sucn debt outstaud- ing Deceinber Si, 18727 What amount, if any, matured in 18737 Was such maturea debt paid out of proceeds of taxation (or that vear, or by renewal, and in either case What amounts? Was any debt created during the year 1873, and for what amount and for what purposet_ What was the total amount of such debt outstanding Decem ber 31, 1873? _Has any portion of such debt matured dur- ing the six months of 1874 to June 30? How was such matared debt paid, and what was the amount? Has debt been created during the six months o! 1874 to June 30, bow much and for what parpose? What was tne total amount of such debt gutstanding June Si 18741, What is the total increase of debt payable from taxation trom December 31, 187! 30, 1874 1, to June & Third—Auto the “temporary dei ments, &c.). comber 31. 1871? What amount of such debt maturea in 18721 Was such matured debt paid out of collected as- sessments or by renewal, and In either case how much ? What amount of new debt was created during the year 1872, and for what purpose? What was the amount o standing December 81, 1872? What amount of debt 1 tured in 1873? Was such matured debt paid out of c lected assessments or by renewal, and in either case ow much? What amount of new debt was created uring the vear 1873, and for what What amount was outstanding December JI, 1873? (payable from assess- What | paid ‘out of the | NEW YORK HERALD, TUESDAY, JULY 28, 1874.—TRIPLE SHEET. information which will be of interest emential oan Understanding Of our Dhue alee nee Mr. SIMONSON moved that the Com: Public Works be requested to ‘niorin the Board wy ibe work oF opening Broadway trom Thirtieth y-n' street has not yet Adopted. yet been completed, ne Mayor's veto Of the ordinance of the Board tn relation to the opening of Seventy-tbird cee wa ce pening: Venty-third street he resolution of the Board of Aldermen - ting gentry aa Caila’s Hospital vo Bahra part of thejr ground wag concurred in and se the Mayor Alig I rnin gcd THE NEW PERMIT ORDINANCE, The ordinance Lior J the tax of all showcases, &c,, at $1, Was passed over the Mayor's veto, ‘he Chiet Clerk of the Bureau of Permits was requested to furnish the names of all persons who paid for permits this y Adopted, A mass of unimportant business was then trans- cued. Mr. CLANCY moved that when this Board adjourn it be to the first Monday in September. et, THORNELL moved to adjourn ior two weeks oD! Mr. CLANCY said ithad always been customary to take @ vacation during the summer, He wanted to go to Kurope. (Laughter.) Mr. Clancy’s motion Was adopted and the Board adjourned, EXPLORATIONS OF AFRICA. {From the London Times.) The Rev. J. H, Lovett-Cameron, vicar of Shore- ham, Kent, sends us extracts from a letter re- | ceived from his son, Lieutenant Lovett-Cameron, which tells of his having secured Dr. Livingstone’s map and journal. Mr, Lovett-Cameron sends also a@ few short extracts from his son’s journal, which give some account of the effect of the slave trade on the population of the interior of Africa, EXTRACT FROM A LETTER OF LIEUTENANT LOVET® CAMEKON, R, N. FEBRUARY 28.—Here 1 am at last at Ujiji. I send my pocketbook with the rough notes of my diary, which | now keep in addivion-to my regularjournal. | You will see that avout Ugaga I was in a fuss at being different from Burton and Speke, but using the correct variation and not changing my dis- tances at all bring me right according tomy sights. I found astand of Livingstone’s sextaat here, and used it in taking my iunar, which | am certain is a8 good as a lunarcan be. My latitude by D. R. is 4 deg. 55 min. 30 Ke longitude by D. KR. 29 deg. 59 min. 30 see.; latitude by sight, 4 deg. 58 min. 3 sec.; longitude by | than theaverage diminution in value of th lunar, 30’ deg. 0.4 min, 30 sec.; so for a march be- my courses and differences. My height above the sea I make, by two mercurial barometers, 2,439 Jeet; by lour averoids, 2,740 feet; by seven bolling- | | Pacific Mail Steamship Com| oint thermometers, 2,540 ieet. Wouid you let Sir Bartle Frere know this, as they are the points which the Royal Geographical Society is very anx- | jous to hear about?’ 1 would write to it, put am too busy writing up journals to do so before the men go who take this, and my duplicate map is not | However, | intend sending a mail of my | own in afew days, with Dr. Livingstone’s map | business here than for the resident to ‘remo’ finishea, and journal trom Mikandany, which I fing here, The living is very good here. are cheap. water fish, willsend home a bottie o! lake water to be analyzed. Icannot understand, receiving as it does rivers that flow through a salt soll, why the waters of the Jake sbouid not be salt. L believe that it is gradu- ally being filled up. have tormed shoals at their mouths, and just before reaching the mouth of the Ruche’ we crossed over ground which evidently had not been very long above water, From all I can hear the Lualaba goes imto the Albert Nyanza, ana if it does Dr. Livingstone was right about its being the Nue. 1 find there is no good trying to start on the other side of the lake tor two months, so I am going to employ my ume ina cruize round the lake, The fish are more like sea than fresh EXTRACTS FROM JOURNAL, JANUARY 13,—Passed sites of several deserted Villages, but the people are wiped out, either killed or carried away lor slaves, through this war of Mirainbo. Thick jungle, with occasional inbuga or swamps. ‘The water in some of these was two feet deep, overlaid with sticky mud, The country seems very lertile, and once was well cultivated, as the marks of the ridges and surrows still remain, We saw the burnt remaiued of the huts. It 1s in- describably saduening to pass through places which once were the homes of happy and contented people, who may have been negroes truly, but now are either dead or slaves, and all caused by the upprincipled coast Arabs. The Oman Arabs are far superior to those of Zanzibar, and if they alone had penetrated the interior the state of the country would be very different from what it now 18. § THE CITY'S GROWING WEALTH, Quarterly Report of the Tax Department. ‘ THE EFFECTS OF THE PANIC. Revision of the Assessment Laws. Mr. Wheeler, President of the Tax Department, sent yesterday the following interesting report to the Mayor:— Yo the Hon. a ‘The 1R— Wititam P. Havewever, Mayor :— Bort of this department for the last quarter cessarily 4 statement ot arily « statement of the results of the embrace: men's for the year flzed and determined, ‘The assessments for 1874, made us they wi the period fxed by law (that in, between the heat Mine | day of September, 1873, and the’ second Monday in Jan- uary, 1874). were effected during a period of extrac | orditiary gloom and depression. ‘The fhansal vreaeat the fal! of 1873 was felt in all its bewildering and distract ing severity during the term included in the atoremens Htaw York city felt the shock f New York city fe! ¢ shock first and most. creditor city, her merchants had to provide tor hate | sides of their bil! books, and the outiook during the | whole time the books of assessment were open (that 1s, | based ; and so tar Fish, eggs and milk | The Tanganyika is a veritable sea, I | The Malagarazi and Ruche | In some places | to the 3th of April, 1874), coutinued to be gloomy and disheartening. In view of this state of things the re- Su'ts of the personal assessments tor 1874 are an absolute surprise. On the lst of January. the Commis. | sioners would have been glad to have had an assurance | that the assessments upon personal property would not, " under the process of revision and correction, decline ai least $50,000,000, and yet, under that process, the dimtnn- tion proved ta be only about $20,000,000. ‘The decrease on resident personal estate 1s $14,346,402, or about seven per cent The decrease on non-resident personal estate is 2,867,235, OF about ten per cent. ‘The decrease on the capital of banks is $2,752,825, or about three per cent. | —Itisa remarkable fact that the diminution in the as- | sessments for resident sonal property in 1874, as com- pared with those of 1873 per cent). is acttially les: merchai ments are indices of (seven. dise and securities upon which such ase: these assessments turni ossession the It is gratitying as showing the stabil- ty of the business classes, upon whom they are ing large part imposed. This apparent decrease in assessment is larger than the actual decrease, as it is based upon the nominal as- sessment for 1373, from which the Supreme Court ordered to be stricken the sum of $2.24 assessed ny: the assessme: 1874 being adjusted in accordance with the uecision of the Court upon the question involved, ag set forth in the report of the department of March 31, i. ‘Phe decrease’ sn. the value of non-resident personal estate Is in larger proportion—as ten to seven—than in that of resident personal. It is a much easier matter for the non-resident to. withdraw his capital invested in ve, and this process has been promoted by the general belief that the rate of taxation for 1874 would be higher than ever be- fore Known. ‘The decrease in the assessments apon the shareholders of banks—practically representing the capital of banks— is occasioned by the fuilure of three banks, the reduction ‘of the capital of three banks, and the acquisition of addi- tional real estate by six banks, which transfers thelr assessments to that description of property. It may well be doubted whether the figures tor 1874 adequately represent the actual diminution in the vatae f personal property in thiscity. Many small traders and operators were swept under by the frst wave of the revulsion of last year, and did not appear to correct or cance! their assessments, and others still were too much confused (a very natural result of what 1s commonly called a “panic™) to make any statement of their affairs which they would feel justifled in verifying by oath; and Unless there should _be'a very marked revival in general Dusiness the assessinents of 1875 must be awaited to re- yeul in full the consequences of the commercial disas- ters of 1873-4. + REAL ESTATE. ‘The increase in the valuation of the real estate in 1874 over that of 1873, In the twenty-two old wards of the cit is $21,8657.0. This is @ less percentage of increase than 1 The cause is obvious, 1. The response exhibiced in the assessments upon realestate to the fluctuations in the market Is, and properly should be, tardy. The market is subject to' spasmodic advances or “spurts,” not always evidence of actual permanent increase in value. The ractice of the department is not to set a stake instantly at the mark of the highest water, but to defer action for @ reasonable period, to ascer- tain whether there may not occur # refluence ot the tide. But when values seem to be settled thon this department assuines the basis to be estab- lished and changes its vi ions in proportion. Aan in- convenience attends this practice, prudent and conser. vative as it is; for it may and often does occur that the increase in valuation, not having been made at the moment the market advanced, 1s effected at a period of stagnation, and gives rise to the plausible but un- founded complaint that there been no increase, or, possibly, a shght decrease in market value, in the very < JANUARY 14.—Here we are in for a wander again, | year the assessed value has been advanced. To com- as the usual road is closed by a colony of runaway slaves of the Arabs, who are all reported to hav muskets and to plunder all they can, joing oc ci sionally with Mirambo against their former mas- | ters. JaNUARY 15.—We are compelled to halt by the torrents of rain. It came down I think as tleavy as | have ever seen it. It is an awiul bother, as | botu men and donkeys refuse to face the storm. I at is the total in- | What was the amount of such debt on De- | amount of debt matured during the six months of 18/4 to | June 30 ¢ assessments or by renewal, and in either case how Was such matured debt paid out of collected | much? What amount of new debt was created during | the six months of 1874, ending June 9), and for what urpose t What was the total amount of such debt out. standing June 30, 1874? What is the total increase of 1871, to June 30, 1874 Is the whole amount of such “temporary debv? outstanding June 30, 1874, represented by assessments to be collected? It not, what causes the déficit? If assess- ments are uncollectable, whereiore ’ Does any other Pporision exist for, the payment of such unprotected | lemporary dgyt ty) Fourth—As to the “revenue bonds;"'what was the amount of such revenue bonds Decem er 31, 1x71? What amount matared during 18721 out of revenue or by renewal. and in either case what amounts? What new debt was created in 1372, and tor what purbose? What was the amount outstanding De- cember 31, 1872t What amount matured during 1873? Were such matured tonds paid out of the revenue or by renewal, and in either case what amounts? What encumbrances, must employ trucks and laborers | Amount of new debt was created during 1873, and tor what purpose? What was the amount of such debt out- standing December 31, 1873? What amount matured dur- ing the six months of 1874 ending Jun Were such matured bonds paid out of revenue or by renewal, and in either case what amounts? What new debt has'been created during the six months of 1874, to June 5, and for what purpose? What was the total amount of such debt outstanding June 30, 1874? What amount of debt of each of the above classes matures during the remaining six months of 1874 (to December 31, 1574), and from what sources are such debts to ve paid? What amount of each of the above classes of debt mature in 1875 and thencetorward year by year until the maturity of the said debts, and from what sources are id? What amount of bonds is authorized to be issued by acts of the Legislature or otherwise, and for what purposes? What is the total amount of claims now on file in the Finance De: the ci ot New York? januar; jor claims p 1873; second, tor claims for the year i873; ‘third, claims for the year 1874. What 1s the amount of such claims unquestionably valid? Can the payment of such vakid claims be‘made out of resources under the control of the Finance Departinent, or will it require the issue of bonds and in either’ case how he tis the amount of claims, the ny Way questioned, and tuay be possible? ation is the amount the city and source trom nis are to paid? What the Sinking Fund on De- 3 the a cember 31, at amount was placed to the credit'of the Sinking Fund during the year 1872? What payments were made out of the Sinking Fund during 1872 for principal of debt paid of? What amount was paid out for interest? What was ihe amount to the credit of the sinking Fund December 31, 18727 What amount was placed to the credit of the Sinking Fund during 1873? What amount Sinking Fund during 1873 for principal of d What amount was paid out for ini What was the amount to the credit of the Sinkin December 31, 1873? What ainount has been place credit of the Sinking Fund from December 3) June 3), 1874? period for principal of debt? What amount for inter- est? What was the amount of the Sinking Fund June 30, 18747 Was the interest due inthe year tar ‘ou the vari- ous classes of debt paid out of the sources trom which such debts were Was such inter Fund to the |, 1873, to ‘hat Amount was paid out during that € the various classes of debt puid out of the soul which such debts were pi ‘Was such interest, oF any part thereof, provid if 40, how much? Was the interest due from December 51, 1878, to June %, 1874, on the various classes of debt Paid out of the sources'from which suct debts were pay- ablet Was such Interest, or any part thereof, previded for by the is of bonds, and if 80, how mucht What is total amount of interest per annum on the whole une 30, 18747 Is there in the Department of Finance any estimate of the value of Property owned by the city? When and by whom was such estimate made? What is the total amount of such valuation! On the basis of such valuation what propor- tion of such property produces no income to the city? What proportion, an income of three per cent or under? What proportion, an income of tour per cent or ander? What proportion, an income of Ave per cent or ander? What proportion, an income exceeding five per centt Resolved further, That the Comptroller be requested to communicate, in connection witl for by the issue of bonds. and | Were such’ matured bonds paid | heard the sound of the rain before it reacued us, Just like the sound of a heavy waterfall, JANUARY 26.—Could get only one day’s food, 80 we go on again. ‘The village is close to the bottom of the hil', and the recks come down into it, and the villagers have @ way they can close up into the rocks. Mirambo came here to attack the place, and could tnd no one, no plunder, as they had hidden themselves and belongings in caves and holes in the rocks. I don’t know what we should have done without the india rubber boat in cross- ing the streams to-day, or what we should have done at all without the two bell tents, all of which 1 owe to Major E. Siith’s thoughtful kindness, Mr, Clements K, Markbam writes to us on the same subject: ‘The time has, I think, come when I may ask you to bring the Cameron-Livingstone expedition more prominently than has hitherto been done before the notice of your readers, Sixteen months have now passed since Lienten- ant Lovett-Cameron, K. N., under the auspices of the Royal Geographical Society, started with three companions irom Zanzibar for the interior of Alrica, with the object of joining Dr. Livingstone. At Unyanyembe, where the expedition arrived in August last, tidings were received of the death of the great explorer, and it was owing to aid given by Lieutenant Cameron’s party that Dr. Living- stone's body was sent down in Safety to the coast. But of the little band of Englishmen who started from Zanzibar two have fallen victims to the deadly climate, while one has resigned. By the last accounts Lieutenant Cameron had, in obedi- ence to the dying request of Dr. Livingstone, pushed on alone—in spite of aimcuities arising Irom the disturbed state of the country—to Ujiji, and has there found the Doctor’s map, with one of his journals. earing traces of having been once Jertile and prosperous, owing to the depopulation caused by | © He has sent home a valuable the slave trade. set of observations taken at @jiji, and his esti- mate of the height of Lake Tanganyika above the sea agrees closely ye Livingstone’s. Lieuten- ant Cameron beg in March last, preparing to ex- plore and survey Lake Tanganyika, afd when he should have completed this work he intended, in May, to continue to the westward the discoveries cut short by Dr. Livingstone’s untimely death, The expenses of this expedition have veen already very considerably beyond what nad been calculated, owing chiefly to the opposition of the Arab traders, who naturally place every obstacle in the way of a British subject, as it is through the decisive action of our government that a principal source of their profiis—siave trading—nas been cut of, The funds, both those originally collected Jor this expedition and those since voted by the Royal Geographical Society, are now completely exhausted, while the future expenses are likely to be heavy, aud unless the bills which are from time to time drawn on the Consulate at Zanzibar are promptly met Lieutenant Cameron may be placed in the greatest difficulty and danger by the hos tility of the Arab traders, Surely we may look upon this as a national ex- pedition, and lam cunfident that tuere are very many who will sympathize with and be og? to help the young officer who, though more than once almost at death’s door trom repeated attacks of fever, has, with that courage which is a charac. teristic of the gallant service to which he belongs, never faltered in his determination to {ulti the commission intrusted to him. to insure it. A subscription list to meet further expenses has been opened, and donations may be paid to the | Cameron Expeuition Fund at Messrs. Ransom, Bouverie & Co.'s, No. 1 Pall Mall, Bast. A sum of at least £2,000 is needed. A first ilst of subscribers Will be published in your coumnos in @ few days. The African Explorations. {From the Springfield (1l.) Journal.) The New York HERALD and the London Tele- graph have united in organizing an expedition for prosecuting African discovery, the command of which is to be intrusted to Mr. Henry M. Stanley, the discoverer of Livingstone. The object is to complete the work left unfinished by the untimely death of that great explorer; to investigate tne slave trade, and, if possible, to solve the remaining problems of Central African geography. The ex- pedition is \o have a first class equipment, and auiple resources will be at the dispusal of its com- mander for the successful prosecution of the work. Both of our contemporaries announce this, and the energy and enterprise which both display in opening hew fields of research give promise of abundant success in this, Jn our later Be field of newspaper work has extended beyt mere record of history into the making oF hisi itsell. THE LOUISIANA RICE OROP, [From the New Orleans Times.] ‘The reports from the rice regions continue to come in of the most encouraging character. Esti- mates are now made of the product as high as 140,000 barrels. It appears there never was u sea- 90 favorable for the production of rice as we the foregoing, avy | Dregent one, | ness. The State Assessors, upon whose ex: | partment, an Lieutenant Cameron describes the | 2 country through which he passed between Unyan- | yeuie and Ujiji as desolate in the extreme, though | | from tire | local cout | worth more f Englishmen are | | ever ready to applaud success ; let them now help | | plaints of this sort, in their report of mst year, it was | sai Phe Commissioners are not bound to prove that the advance in value occurred in the very year in which the assessments were increased. It is enough if the Assessment bears a just relation to the value, whether st value wi tained one year or ten vears ago. he increase in the value of real estate does not arise trom any widely diffused advance in valuations, but, for the most part, from the completion of ver~ costly edifices commenced in 1873, and which now for the first find # place upon the assessment rolls. | ” The assessments in the Twelith ward have been, for some of the more accessible and improvable portions, Drought into closer proportion to the ratio prevailing itt those parts of the city more favorably situated. Most of the property in ward has justly been regarded as suburban ani not equitably chargeable with w full pro- portion of benefits which it only shared in a limited de- gree—such as police and fire protection, lighted streets, access to the Croton water and proximity to schools. It is worth noticing in this connection that while the State Assessors admit that rea) estate in the city ot Brooklyn is assessed at sixty per cent, and the ratio tt certainly no higher there than in New York, a deduction was made by the State Board of $37,862,742 upon Kings cqunty, the benefit of which was shared by the rural foWwns in that county, where the Tatio of assessment wat | tar below that of the outer ward of this city. | STATE EQUALIZATION. In their report for 1873 the Commissioners referred to the disparity in the ratio of valuation in the city of New York, as compared with that in nearly all the other counties in the State, and expressed the hope that the State Board of Equalization would, at least in part, ad ust the difference. That hope has not been realized. t cy | This Board, confident of the fact and believing ittobe at apparent to oihers ag to themselves, may have tailed to present the claims of the city with the hecessary clear. mination and re- port the State Board of Equalization base their action. certainly Intended no wrong to the taxpavers here wien they failed to recommend any concession (if that be the proper word) to the city. ie tate Assessors, {n their report to the Legisiature, give in tabular form the percentage of valuation used in Assessing 1eal ogtate In every county in the State except New York. In fegard to the valuations in this city the Board of State Assessors, after referring In terms highly complimentary to the methods and, records of this citing @ valuation, proceed to say :— gather, talking the targe and rapidly, increasing wealth ‘of the city and contrasting it with tne heavy leprecia- tion in many Darts ot the Btate, the immense supe. advantages the cfty has over the country, and com. ing, 80 far as we are able, full values and ‘ratios, we are constrained to the belief that the city and county of New York is assessed at no greater ratio on its full vatue (the basis of valuation being the same, whether cash or sales on time) than the average of the State outside the ‘We, therefore, feel justified in having recommended. to the State Board ‘of Equalization that tor the year 1873 the elty and county of New York be equalized at ite assessed value.” It will be observed that this conclusion is based upon the statement that the wealth ot the city is large, and thatit (the city) has immense and superior advantages. Both these propositions are certainly undeniable, out what then? The large wealth of the city is a sufficient ‘reason for @ large assessment, but not for imposing upon her citizens an undue share of the public burden. ‘the allegation that there has been a heavy depreciation in many parts of the State may even be admitted as true without affecting the claims of this citv to justice, the question remaining whether all the property in the rest of the State bas depreciated and that of New York alone increased. Ttis at once conceded that the city has immense and superior advantages over the country, but assuredly not at the expense of the State. If at her own proper cost the city paves and lights her streets, enjoys protect guards public health, maintains numero has a foot and mounted police, public eee ot ee lence, betta en pte aud delights in us PAFRs aD State has no reason and no right to’panish the city fe | these advantages. It cannot, with any show of justice, ‘@ dollar in one portion of the State is Sorth more ior purposes of taxation than a@ dollar in other portion ol the State. | “hese cohsideragons and some others that follow were | urged upon the attention of the State Assessors at their Seasion in this city. in June, and a number of taxpayers resented important statements showing the enormous Isparity between the ratio of assessment in New York and in other counties. A few instances are of interest — One citizen has sold a tarm in the interior for $18,000, eet aes Tor Sgle8i0;. another bought pro seed for H 4 4 erty) for sb4 00 $12,000, and another he! 000, assensed 1 ' ps Bs Falsed ‘At $25,000, agsessed at $5,000. Many other similar cases might be state: ide Increase of real estate valuation in State (ex- cept New York aud. Kings counties) In thifteen years dae ice ines ses $543 89 "it per cet Tierease ih city ime period... . 418,t01,8 | or 10 per cent Ustraordinary asthe results may seem they are less co'thun those revealed by a comparison, which may be fairly inetieuted, as to the values and sssessinents upoD By the census of 1600, the value of the farming jus of 1860, the mplements and live stock in this State was. 183,022,991. And yy the census Of 1870......++++ «321,880,424 Increase in ten years. . ee $88,857,433 leaves out of view the various and countless other forms of personal property, which, however, are includ: nthe statement of the assessed valuation of all the ie property in the State (except New York and ings) . 130,03 616 in bees: HSA 977 Increase in ten years. $3,819.36 Assessed value of same in 1872, $120,674,061, Decrease in thirteen years.,...... «+++ sevevees $19,465,589 Compare this.with Page od in the city of New York for similar property anu for the saine period. ASSESSED VALUATION OF PERSONAL PROPERTY IN NEW YORK city. Tn 1859, 172,971,191 Tn 1870... 281, 142,608 Increase in ten years. Assessed value of same for 1872. Increase in thirteen years. Decrease in personal assessm: in cept New York and Kings) in 13 ye! Tred per cept, Tnerease in city ot New York same time... cen or 7734 per These’ ures are corer nay concinsive—as to th fact that this city is far in advance of the State at large as to the fidelity with which assessment are made "pot \ both real and personal property