Rensselaer Republican, Volume 12, Number 14, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 December 1879 — Page 1

intro wzfrf fxibay ioiiiig, MAJOR BITTERS & SON, PubUsher* aad Proprietor*. Omci-In Makeever's Baildinf. north tide PußHe Square. fMES OF SVKttCMIFTIOJf t Oneyea*afc»*m odrancc $1 50 Bix months, “ “ _ tj Three awßtkt 1 * “ • The Official Paper of Jasper County. All Pbdn •** Ornamental JOB PRINTING promnUr executed.

EPITOME OF THE WEEK.

Current Paragraphs. Prince Alexander has dissolved the Bulgarian Assembly, The- cattle-plague has broken out in the island of Cyprus. • True bills have been found against Davitt, Killen and Daly for sedition. For the first time since Iflfil the River Seine was frozen over at Parti on the Uth. A new Ministry' has been formed in Spain u nder the leadership of Canovas del Castillo, r _ It was stated on the 11th that the great St. Gothard Tunnel, in Switzerland, onlylacked 50j meters of completion. , Over two thousand packages of oleomargarine are said to be daily sold as dairy butter in the New York market. - Ex-Senator Ramset, of Minnesota, was nominated and con finned as Secretary of War, vice McCrary resigned, on the 10th. Congressman Alfred M. Lay, of the Seventh .Missouri District, died at his hotel In Washington, on the morning of the Bth, iff paralysis. ’•The readjusters of the Virginia Legislature have nominated General William Mahone as their candidate for' the United States Senate# - Judge Ketcham, of the United States District Court of the Western District of Pennsylvania, died in Pittsburgh a few days ago, of apoplexy. The French Court <sf Cassation has suspended a Toulouse Judge for toasting Coant de Chambord as 'King of France at a Legitimist banquet. The Pope has again advised the Catholic Bishops of Chili and Peru to exercise their good offices in the direction of peace between the two powers, i Petitions to Congress for the repeal of the act bare recently been circulated and extensively signed in New York, Boston and other Eastern cities. One of the most violent storms in the memory of the oldest inhabitant occurred in Dakota on the 10th. Bnow fell to a great depth, and drifted to. such an extent as to make travel impossible.' The Republican Senatorial Committee, by a vote of eight to one, resolved on the 9th upon a policy of iron-action in regard to any and all legislation affecting the currency during the present session of Congress. On the 12th the New York Board of State Canvassers declared all the Republican candidates elected except ttyj State Engineer and Surveyor. Horatio Seymour, Jr., the Democratic candidate for that office, is declared elected.

Red Rock, a town in Pennsylvania, near Bradford, was completely destroyed by fire on the 12th. The fire started from the accidental ignition of a quantity of petroleum, and the explosion of several tanks of oil completed the work of destruction. Three hundred families are rendered homeless and entirely destitute. _ • A Washington dispatch of the 12th says the Senate Finance Committee had postponed till after the Christmas recess the Warner Silver bill, the Trade<dollar bill, and' Bayard’s resolution concerning greenbacks, on the ground that the subjects require fuller discussion than could be given by a committee before adjournmentThe Commission appointed by President Hayes to investigate the yellow-fever scourge in Cuba have made a preliminary re; port to the National Board of Health, in .which they state that the fever prevails in all places in that island from which reports had been received, provided those places are of any commercial importance and contain any considerable number of unacclimated persons to furnish food for the disease. The State Granges of lowa, Indiana and Ohio bare recently elected their officers for the ensuing year, among whom are: lowa —E. N. Gates, Worthy Master; M. L. Devin, Treasurer; W. L. Carpenter, Secretary. Indiana—Aaron Jones, Grand Master. Ohio— President, J. H. Brigham; Treasurer, R. Stevenson; Executive Committee, 8., H. Ellis, A. P. Axtell, D. Crouse; Business Agent, W. H. Hill. The Commission appointed by the insolvent court of Montreal to investigate the condition of the Consolidated Bank of that city has discovered that everything was swept away by the mismanagement and corruption of the directors and the absconding superintendent. A special of the 10th says the stock had been offered for nothing to those who would assume the liability of the call, the Sjunt of which was still unknown. The ital sunk in this rotten concern was estimated at $6,000,000. '

A Pesth (Hungary) dispatch of the 12th says nearly all the rivers and brooks in Transylvania bad overflowed their banks, laying under water vast tracts of country, and destroying bridges and houses, interrupting communications, and sweeping away farming utensils, cattle and grain. In some cases the inhabitants were for days on trees and the roofs of houses, waiting rescue. Six villages near Arad had been destroyed, and many entire families who had found refuge in neighboring woods were frozen to death. Several hundred persons were missing. On the fsth Judge Virgin, of the Maine Supreme Court, after hearing arguments in favor of and‘against the propriety of granting a writ of mandamus to compel the Governor and Council to throw open the election returns* for inspection, refused to grant the application, deciding, in substance, that the Governor and Council had an official duty to perform, and for that purpose had the of the returns for a reasonable time; that during that time they were acting under oath, and that while thus acting the court had no right to interfere. Hon. G. B. Grinnell, of lowa, delivered an address before the National Agricultural Society in New York on the evening of the 12th in which he stated that in lowa FAOOO,OOO annually are lost by what is known as hog cholera, and more than that sum by the insect which cuts short the wheat crop as the State. ‘ * lowa asks in vain for our men of science and means to discover a remedy for these losses. People complain with reason that the total appropriation of *200,000, which is not more than the value of a cheap • cigar for each of our inhabitants, is niggardly and out of proportion.” The women voted for members of . School Commitlees at the recent election in Bpeton and many other points in Msssachusetta. The reports show that the ladies voted nearly, if not quite, up to their full registration, which, in Boston, was nearly one thousand. A Boston telegram says; “ They generally voted early in the day, and came to the polls prepared—all ready with ballot*, an association favorable to the cause having seat by mall to all registered ladv ▼otara tickets headed with the names of the • eaadtdatas for members of the Echool Com-

Rensselaer Republican.

VOLUME XII.

mlttee. The decorum at the polls, and the eoorteay show* the new element in the voting population was a noticeable feature in the day's events.” (Jenera). A Vienna telegram of the 9th says intelligence .had been received from St. Petersburg that the Czar waa seriously considering the propriety of an early abdication of his throne. Up to the 9th there were 170 arrests in Moscow and its vicinity for supposed connection with the late attempt upon the life of the Czar. In consequence of the educational difficulties in Belgium the Pope has recalled the Papal Nuncio. Heavy snow-storms were reported on the 9th at all the principal European capitals. The city election in Boston on the 9th resulted in the re-election of Mayor Prince (Dem.) by a plurality of 2,763 out of an aggregate total vote of 85,473, of which Prince polled 18,798; Stebbins (Rep.) 16,033; King (Greenback candidate), 357; McDavttt (Butler Democrat), 287. Secretary Schurz sent a telegram to General Hatch, at Los Pinos, on the 9th, directing him to receive the surrender of the Indians designated, with the understanding that they win be guaranteed a fair trial by military commission outside of Colorado and New Mexico. Instructions were also given to take possession of the prisoners with a military guard, and convey them, In the first place, to Fort Leavenworth. Ex-President Grant was pleasantly received at Louisville, Ky., on the 10th, and accorded a hearty welcome by the State and municipal authorities and citizens generally. St. Petersburg dispatches of the 10th say the Czar had decided to abandon for the present his Asian policy, and devote his wisdom and strength to the development of home interests and the introduction of needed reforms. The police force in St. Petersburg had been greatly increased and the streets and passages in the vicinity of the Winter Palace were being incessantly patrolled. The Nihilists were very active and threatened further attempts upon the life of the Czar.

Fiftben Spanish Generals resigned their comfnissions on the 10th. The National Council of the Union League of America met in annual session at Philadelphia on the 10th. Wm. A. Newell, of New Jersey, was re-elected President; Thos. G. Baker, of New York, Corresponding Secretary, and Samuel F. Gwynner, of Pennsylvania, Recording Secretary. A series of resolutions was adopted declaring it the duty of the Nation to execute the laws with force, if necessary; demanding protection by National law of ail citizens in the enjoyment of all their privileges and immunities; denouncing Southern War claims, etc., etc. According to a Los Pinos telegram of the 11th Ouray had brought in one of the Indians demanded by the Commissioners, and had promised to surrender the others as soon as they were captured. It was stated that the Commission had decided to recommend that the White River Agency be abolished, and that the Utes of the agency be distributed between Los Pinos and the Southern Agency; that the loss of property occasioned by the outbreak be paid for out of the Ute fund now at Washington, and that the portion of the reservation formerly occupied by the White River Utes be ceded to the Government. Ex-President Grant arrived at Cincinnati on the 11th. Great preparations bad hecn made for his reception in that city, and the demonstration was on a par with those of other cities on similar occasion* Th* Mayor made a welcoming address, to which the ex-President appropriately responded. A banquet was given in the evening, which is said to have been the grandest affair of the kind in the history of the city. A Fredericksburg (Va.) telegram of the 11th states that leading Democratic citizens of Richmond County, in that State, headed by Charles Pitts, their recentlyelected member of the Legislature, had petitioned Judge Jones to include within the jury list such of the colored citizens of the county as the court shall think well qualified to serve as jurors. Lord Lytton, Viceroy of India, narrowly escaped death on the 12th. He had returned to Calcutta from a tour of the provinces, and while proceeding to bis residence was twice fired upon. The would-be-assassin was captured and found to be a drunken native. * Simla dispatches of the 12th report that the engagement at Kotal was more important than first reported. The Afghans had inflicted heavy loss on the British, and at the date of the last advices each party held its ground. It was feared that the British would be forced to abandon the position. All the Spanish Generals on the Island of Cuba, including General Blanco, the Captain-General, tendered their resignations on the 12th. *'•

On the 12th Secretary Schurz received information that the Utes, in demanding trial at Washington, only meant that they wished to be dealt with by the Gov ernment at any point outside of Colorado. One of the savages remarked that the offenders might as well be hanged to trees at the agency as to be tried at Denver. A Vienna telegram of the 12th says the Bhah of Persia had decided to send an extraordinary mission to European capital to seek recognition by Europe of the Persian Attrek frontier, which is threatened by Russia. On the 12th a petition in chancery was filed in the United States District Court at New Orleans to annql Mrs. Dorsey’s bequest to Jefferson Davis. The document accuses the great Confederate of unduly influencing a generous but weak-mindeddady, and alleges that his intercourse with her from first to last exhibited a design on his part to secure her fortune by working upon her political and religious sympathies. Several large land agitation meetings were held in the west of Ireland on the 14th.

Ox the morning of the 13th the British forces in Cabul, under General Baker, captured the heights of Bala-Hissar. The day before General MacPherson attempted to drive the Afghans from their position, but failed. During the three days’ fighting the British lost forty-three killed and seventy-six wounded. —> The French Chamber of Deputies voted on the 13th to appropriate 600,000 francs to prosecute the survey for a railroad across the Desert of Sahara. A Case Town dispatch, received on the 13th, says the Colonial forces had successfully stormed the stronghold of the rebellious chieftain Moirosi, who was killed with many of his followers. A Party of engineers left New York on the 13th for Mexico to locate and superintend the construction of a railroad across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. The promoters of this enterprise have formed a company, and it is said they hope, by completing their work at an early day, to defeat the canal project During the four months ending on the 13th the amount of gold brought to New York from Europe was *71,673,950. The New re P orted “ aggregate reserve of in cxcsm of the minimum, but a decrease from the previous week of over •3,000,000. Their loans, deposits and circulation ebowed an iMreaae.

RENSSELAER, JASPER COUNTY,INDIANA, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 19, 1879.

General Grant arrived at Pittsburgh, Pa-, on the 13th, and there met with a hearty welcome, the public demonstrations being on a par with those of other cities on like occasions. It was announced on the 14th that the bark Monrovia was about to sail from New York for Monrovia, Liberia, with another cargo of negro emigrants for the Republic of Liberia. They had been picked up by agents of the American Colonization Society in all the principal cities of the South, many of them coming from North Carolina. The Virginia public schools have recently closed for one month for want of funds. The committee appointed to make a sanitary survey of Memphis hss recommended that measures should be taken to secure proper superintendence and subsequent care of the sanitary work to be undertaken by the city; that at an early date every house in the city should be opened, ventilated and chilled; that a lazgc number of houses should be condemned, torn down, and the materials burned; that a system of sewerage be adopted which will carry the subsoil drainage into the Mississippi River, etc., etc.

Congress. Monday, December B.—Among the bills introduced In the Senate were the following: To authorize certain improvements in the channel of the Missouri River; providing for the removal of the Indians from Colorado; to encourage and aid the education of the colored race in the several States and Territories. A resolution waa adopted, directing the Secretary of the Interior to give information to the Senate as to the number, and where located, of mining camps which have been es tablished on the Ute Indian reservation in Colorado, and what efforts, if any, have been made to remove such camps, etc. Resolutions were offered by Mr. Voorhees (Indiana), ordered printed and laid on the table, expressing astonishment and regret at the proposition of the President and Secretary of the Treasury “to inaugurate a new and uncalled for financial agitation, with a view to the destruction of the most necessary currencies now in use in the hands of the people,” and declaring that the true interests of the country require free and unlimited gold and silver coinage, and tha. it is part of a wise financia policy to maintain the greenback currency and its legal-tender quality in a volume not less than now exists. A message was received from the House announcing the death of Representative Lay, and the concurrent resolution for a committee to arrange for tbefuneral was agreed to and the committee was appointed, and, as a mark of further respect, the Senate then adjourned....ln the House Mr. Clark announced the death of Mr. Lay (Missouri), and resolutions of regret were adopted and a committee was appointed to arrange for the funeral. Adjourned. Tuesday, December 9.—ln the Senate the bills for the interchange of subsidiary silver coins and to authorize the Secretary of the Treasury to issue 810,000,000 of four-per-cent. bonds for the payment of arrears of pensions were reported from the Committee on Finance and indefinitely postponed. A petition was presented and referred from the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church of the United States, representing 5,000 churches and over 500,000 communicants, asking for a commission of inquiry concerning the alcohol liquor traffic. A memorial whs S resented and referred from certain cx-sol-iers, representing that they were paid in a depreciated currency, and asking Congress to make up the deficiency. The nomination of Secretary McCrary to be United States Circuit Judge for the Eighth Judicial Circuit was confirmed without debate or di vision.... A joint resolution was introduced and referred in the House proposing an amendment to the Constitution providing that, after the 4th of March. 1885. the President and Vice-President shall hold their offices for six years, and shall be ineligible for more than one term consecutively, and that members of Congress shall be elected for three years. Bills were introduced—to amend the laws relating to internal revenue; toretire National Bank circulation and substitute United States Treasury notes therefor; to repeal the Resumption act; declaring that,after the Ist <>f January, nothing but gold and silver coin shall be a legal-tender for debts thereafter contracted, unless otherwise expressly stipulated; for the protection of trade-marks; to prohibit the further removal of Indians to the Indian Territory; to authorize the purchase of foreign-built ships by United States citizens, for use in foreign trade. Joint resolutions were introduced and referred expressing sympathy for “the efforts now being made by patriotic Irishmen to ameliorate the condition of their beloved country,” and requesting the President to “ communicate to her Majesty’s Government our hope that some Just arrangement may be early made by which the Irish peasants may become the owners of the soil they cultivate.” A concurrent resolution for adjournment from the 19th of December to the 6th of January was agreed to.

Wednesday, December 10.—In the Senate consideration was resumed of Mr. Davis’ (W. Va.) resolution calling on the Secretary of the Treasury for a statement of the amount paid out of the Treasury since 1864 on private claims growing out of the late war, and an amendment was accepted extending the time back to March 4, 1861; Mr. Morrill moved to further amend by calling for a like statement of all such claims which have been presented to and rejected by, or mrty be now pending in, the Treasury Department, which amendment was rejected, and the resolution was then adopted by a party vote, the Republicans voting no. The House concurrent resolution to adjourn from December 19 to January 6 was adopted—9B to 21. Mr. Morrill offered a resolution, which was laid over under the rules, similar to the rejected amendment which he had moved to add to Mr. Davie’ resolution of Inquiry as to war claims paid by the Treasury Department ...A joint resolution was introduced and referred in the House proposing an amendment to the Constitution declaring that polygamy shall not exist in the United States, or in any place subject to their jurisdiction....A bill relative to Supreme Court reports was considered and amended in Committee of the Whole, reported to the House and passed. A bill was introduced and referred establishing a government for the District of Columbia. Thursday, December 11.—A joint resolution was adopted in the Senate authorizing the Secretary of the Interior, through a commission of five pereons to be appointed President, to negotiate with the Ute Indians for their removal from Colorado, but expressly stipulating that the Indians shall not be settled in the Indian Territory. A bill was passed appropriating *200,000 for the erection of such military posts on or near the Rio Grande frontier as may be deemed necessary by the Secretary of War for the adequate protection thereof.... Bills were passed in the House—authorizing allowances for loss, by leakage or casualty, of spirits wi rawn from distillery warehouses for exportation; providing that registry fees shall be paid by homesteaders already occupying eighty acres of public land when they select the additional eighty acres to which they are entitled by law. Resolutions were offered and referred—calling on the Secretary of the Treasury to report what fraudulent claims have been paid out of appropriations from June 22,1874, to December, 1877; providing for the appointment of a select committee of five to Investigate the cause of the negro expdus. The Fortification Appropriation (*375,000) and the Invalid Pension Appropriation (*.52,400,000) bills were reported, ordered printed and recommitted. Friday, December 12.—The Senate was not in session, having adjourned the day before to the 15th Bills were introduced in the House—by Mr. Gibson, for the appointment of an Inter-Oceanic Commission to determine the best plan and route for the establishment of a communication for trade and commerce between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans across the Isthmus of Darien; by Mr. Gillette, in opposition to the retirement of greenbacks and In favor of substituting them for National Bank notes, and for the free coinage of silver. The Pension and Fortification Appropriation bills were passed, as was also—l 23 to 76—a bill appropriating *20,0X) as indemnity and compensation to the widow and heirs of Henry Leer, in consequence of the illegal seizure of the bark Mary Theresa by the United States Consul at Brazil. Adjourned to the 15th.

—“Lawyers,” observed Daddy Wilson, contemplatively, “is certainly sharp files. They don’t think nothin’ of filin’ the harefest kind of a bill of particulars. ” “Yes,” replied that grandson of his, “but did you ever hear of one filin’ down a bill of costs?” Thus, on the voyage of life, we sometimes find wisdom’s current setting both ways.” —A strange relic has iust been presented to the State of Arkansas. ft is a white leather belt with the imprint across it of a bloody hand. It was worn by Colonel Archibald Yell, who, fighting desperately on the field of Buena Vista, got a fatal wound, and in trying to tear away the belt left red finger mark*.

SENSE AND NONSENSE.

A game leg—A batinch of venison. Nothing so quickly dries a woman’s tear as a kiss. A hot discussion frequently makes a cool friendship. How to acquire short-hand—Fool around a buzz-saw. The best time to gather apples is in the dark of the moon—when ths farmer is in his little bed. “ Now lay in your coal,” says an exchange. The man who would proffer such advice must be a fuel. A Utica bootblack who was driven out of that city claims consideration here as a polish refugee.— Syracuse Sunday Ttmcs. Mb. Seth Green is respectfully re3 nested to see if the oyster cannot be omesticated in church-fair stews, — Oincinruti* Commercial. Thkbb'b a love of beasts and a love of birds, And a love of the love-god’s wiles; But a love that knocks a pocket-book thin Is a love of the latest styles. —Andrew's Bazar. Outside speculators in Wall street were first called “lambs” by the Evening Post, for the reason that they gambol first and get sheared afterward. “We are living at present in the very arms of tyranny,” exclaims a Western scribe. Aha! just been married, have you?— Waterloo Observer. A little boy came to his mother recently and said, “Mamma, I should think that if I was made of dust, I should get muddy inside when I drink.” It is not strange that writers sometimes get puzzled in their choice between “ that,” “ which” and “who.” Relatives are always more or less troublesome.— Boston Transcript. A man at Dutch Flat, Cal., picked up a rock the other day to throw at a cow. The weight of it attracted his attention, and on examination it was found to contain over a hundred dollars in gold. A young woman turned up her nose, and said, with a sneer: “ I won’t marry a farmer.” That is a good arrangement for the farmer. If she had married him, he would be the one to regret it.— lowa State Register.

A Yankee woman recently married a Chinese laundryman, and in three days thereafter the unhappy Celestial appeared at a barber’s shop and ordered his pigtail to be cut off, saying, in explanation: “Too muchee yank/’ A newspaper writer advises poets to “ dive down deep into irrefragable and imperishable facts,” and thereby “ elevate themselves to the loftiest heights of sublime ideas and ennobling sentiment.” To “dive down deep” in order to “ elevate” one’s self is a poetio license.— N. Y. Mail. A THREE-YEAR-old little girl was taught to close her evening prayer, during the temporary absence of her father, with, “ And please watch over my papa.” It sounded very sweet, but the mother's amazement may be imagined when the child added, “ And you’d better keep an eye on mamma, too.” A young lady who had been married a little over a year wrote to her matter-of-fact old father, saying, “We have the dearest little cottage in the world; ornamented with the most charming little creepers you ever saw.” The old man read the letter and exclaimed, “Twins, by thunder.”— Keokuk Constitution. The Supreme Court of the District of Columbia has lately decided that common carriers, including railroads, express companies, etc., cannot release themselves from liability to pay full value for packages or property lost or destroyed by limiting in the receipt given for the goods the amount for which they propose to be liable. “I want to sell you an encyclopedia,” said a book agent to one of our foremost pork men the other day, who, by the way, is better posted on pork than he is on books. “What do I want with your encyclopedia’” snarled the pork man; “ I couldn’t ride one if I had it.” He thought it was a new variety of velocipede. Cincinnati Saturday Night. A Danbury boy was discovered to be “ playing hookey” yesterday by an uncle. He was working a velocipede in the suburbs. It was supposed by the uncle that the boy had taken advantage of his father’s being out of town for the day. But the young man denied the impeachment, and claimed that he stayed from school because of a sore heel—not sore enough to prevent working a velocipede, but too sore for study. —Danbury News. A gentleman who recently returned from an extended sojourn at Constantinople writes a furious letter to a Ban Francisco paper denouncing what are advertised as “ Turkish attendants” at the Hammam as imposters. He save he took a bath there the other day and began conversing with the rubber-down in his native language, which the correspondent speaks fluently. Instead of responding to the familiar accents of the Golden Horn the alleged Mussulman immediately turned the big cold hose on him under the impression that he was having a fit. The last straw that breaks the back of your patience in the apothecanr’s shop, after the polite pharmacist has carefully put your three cents’ worth of medicine into a ten-cent bottle, wrapped it up in two cents’ worth of paper, tied it with a cent’s worth of twine, and used up about five dollars’ worth of your time, is to have him light a small lamp and use up fifteen minutes more in sticking the parcel together with sealing-wax. Then, having, in a half-hour, gradually goaded you to frenzy, he blandly says, “ Only forty centa, sir V—Exchange.'

Tooth and Torture.

It is popularly supposed that torture is a thing of the past. This is not the case. There are chambers of torture in every city in the land. There are instruments of torture therein that would cause the thumb-screws of old to blush at their inefficiency. The rack was a harmless amusement compared with these modern inventions. In this dread chamber of modern times is a comfortable easy-chair, and beside it is a litfle circular table that can swing around in front of the victim, and on that table a row of glittering instruments are placed, the sight of which would make the blood of a hero run cold. These steel instruments are sharp and blunt and pointed and crooked and straight. A spirit lamp of small size throws its sickly flicker over the awful scene. There is any amount of apparatus around with unknown names but whose purpose is torture. The presiding flend wears a sweet smile as he prods in the tooth for the nerve. He generally finds it. When the victim either yells or y remarks, “Ah—a little tender, is this supreme moment that the patent

loses Ms patience and rises in his might, if he ha* strength enough left, and slays his tormentor. Verdict justifiable homicide.— Detroit Free Press.

Internal-Commerce Statisties.

Washington, December 8. Joseph Kimmo, Jr., Chief of the Bureau of Statistics, has just sent to the printer a report on the internal commerce of the United States, in the preparation of which he has been engaged for more than a year. This report embodies the results of an extensive investigation of commercial and transportation affairs in various parts of the country. The following is a synopsis of the report: JThe growth of the traffic on railroads is indicated by the fact that the total freight movements of three of the most important trunk lines connecting the West with the seaboard Increased from 10,896,989 tons In 1868 to 25.272,185 tons In 1878. The average cost of transpertton on ten of the principal lines of the country fell from 2 3-10 cents per ton per mile in 1868 to 95-100 cents per mile in 1878. Seven-eighths of the surplus productions of the trans-Missfssippi States north of the State of Arkansas now cross the Mississippi on railroads at and between St. Louis and St. Paul, and are transported directly East to markets in the country and in foreign countries. During the year 1878 the eastward shipments from St. Louis by rail exceeded the southern shipments from that Sity by the Mississippi River. The cities of St. Louis and New Orleans wore formerly closely identified in almost all their trade interests, but they are now sbuiply at rivalry with respect to the trade of Southern Missouri, Arkansas, Northern Louisiana and a large portion of the trad* of Texas. The four principal East-and-West trunk lines leading from the Atlantic seaboard, with their Western connections to Chicago, St. Louis, Louisville and Cincinnati, now constitute the most important avenues of commerce in the country, and the trade currents which pass over them largely influence the course of our entire internal commerce, as well as the course of our foreign trade with respect to ports at which foreign goods are imported and domestic products are exported. This great East-and-West current of trade has led to a radical change in the course of the trade of States situated south of the Ohio River and south of the State of Missouri. The cities of St. Louis, Louisville and Cincinnati now control at least two-thirds of the trade of those States in general merchandise, and have therefore become their chief commercial entrepot. For this trade these cities compete actively with Mobile, New Orleans and Galveston. In the aggregate St. Louis, Louisville and Cincinnati greatly surpass Mobile, New Orleans and Galveston in population, in the magnitude of their commerce, and in other elements of commercial power. In the competition for the trade of the States referred to the three interior cities possess an important advantage in their rapidlydeveloping manufacturing industries, the value of products of which during the year 1878 Is estimated at $418,000,000, or. nearly as much as the total value of imports Into the United States from foreign countries. With respect to such manufactures these cities naturally exercise a much larger degree of control over the Southern trade than with respect to their merely distributive commerce. The cities of St. Louis, Louisville and Cincinnati now draw their supplies of domestic merchandise principally from the Atlantic seaports of Boston, New York, Philadelphia and Baltimore, and from the manufactories In the New England States and in the Middle and Western States. Imported goods sold at these three cities of the West are chiefly received from or through the Atlantic seaports, whence they are transported by rail. The city of Cincinnati will probably greatly enlarge her Southern trade as a result of the recent completion of the Cincinnati Southern Railroad to Chattanooga, Tenn., at which point it connects with the railroads of the Atlantic and Gulf States. There has been a rapid growth in the shipment of cotton from the cotton-growing States through St. Louis, Louisville and Cincinnati, and thence over the east and west trunk lines to Atlantic seaports, and to the manufactories in the New England States and other States of the Atlantic seaboard. These facts indicate an Important diversion in course of the trade of the Southern States alluded to. By an extension of the western connection •f the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad to Cincinnati, Louisville and St. Louis, the cities of Baltimore and New Orleans have become active competitors l>oth for the purchase of Western produce, and for supplying to the cities of St.' Louis, Louisville ana Cincinnati imported goods and products of manufacture of the Atlantic-seaboard States. In like manner, the cities of Philadelphia, New York and Boston compete with New Orleans for the trade not only of St. Louis, Louisville and Cincinnati, but also at many points throughout the Southern States. The construction of the competing lines between all the important points of the country led to a fierce struggle for the traffic. For several years wars of rates appeared to constitute the normal relation of the railroads to each other.with respect to competitive traffic. During these contests rates fell below the actual cost of transportation, and at last the pooling ortho apportionment of the traffic or of the proceeds from the traffic was resorted to. This plan has been widely adopted, and it now constitutes one of the most important features of the American railroad system. In what manner and to what extent the pooling arrangements affect the public interest adversely is one of the questions involved in the railroad problem of the present day. Experience in the administration of such pools may, in obedience to the popular demands, lead to the correction of many causes of complaint. The influence exerted over competitive rates by lines engaged In any particular pooling scheme is not absolute, but is more or less restricted by the direct or indirect competition of lines not included In such schemes, and also by the competition of tradeforces. The water-lines formed by the lakes, the Erie Canal and Hudson River, by the lakes, the Canadian canals and St. Lawrence River, and by the Mississippi River and its navigable tributaries, exercise a strong regulating influence not only over the rates which can possibly be secured as a result of any pooling or apportionment of traffic between competing lines, but also over rail rates generally. As a result of the facilities which have been provided for by direct shipments, the railroad system now presents itself to the commercial interests of the country with respect to a large part of our international commerce as a single' organ, the tendency being constantly toward that almost perfect system of transmission, the Postal Service. The general tendency of combinations for oarrj ing on direct trade has Ixsen toward a reduction of transportation charges, and has exerted a very important influence upon the agricultural, manufacturing and mining industries of the country. In certain States and sections these interests have been adversely affected, but the general result has been a large development of the industries and rerouroes of the country. It is impossible to state accurately the total value of the internal commerce of the country. Measured by the value of the commodities transported, it is many times greater than our foreign commerce. The value of commodities transported on the Pennsylvania Railroad alone, between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh during a single year, has exceeded the value of imports into the United States from foreign countries. During the last ten years the subject of Governmental regulation of railroads has been agitated in various parts of the country, and in several of the States Railroad Commissions have been formed. In view of the fact that the railroad systemxif the country has become essentially a unit in all that relates to commerce among the States, and that by far the largest part of our commerce is InterState commerce, it has .been urged that the Government of the United States should exercise its authority for correction of evils and abuses under the Constitutional power of Congress to regulate commerce among the States. A bill having this object in view has twice passed the House of Representatives. The practical question which presents itself is, whether the enormous interests Involved in Inter-State commerce shall be determined solely by those who are engaged in the work of transportation, or whether public judgment shall also be asserted by some intelligent and authoritative agency. The constitution of such an agency, the scope of its powers, and manner in which the powers shall be exercised in harmony with the spirit of our institutions, constitute the difficult and complex question, and one which can be determined only in the light of such Information as may be obtained through an intelligent and careful investigation of the whole subject under authority of Congress.

A Young Woman’s Battle with a Bear.

About a month ago Miss Alice Corey, of New York City, came to visit her a German, who owns a small farm in the mountains, six'miles north of this place. Miss Corey is about sixteen years old, and her parents are well-to-do. Her uncle has a daughter Clara, also aged about sixteen years. Her father having but one son, Clara has for years helped to do the work on the farm, and she has become an expert shot with a rifle. She has a mania for hunting, and she frequently goes into the forest in search of game.' A few days ago Clara invited her cousin to accompany her on a hunting expedition. They started from the house shortly after breakfast, Alice with a double-barreled gun and Clara with a rifle. After scouring the woods

for several hours without much success, they visited “ Dark Swamp.” This swamp embraces several hundred acres, is densely wooded, and bears are frequently seen there. The girls reached the edge of the swamp at noon, and started into the thicket. They had gone but a short distance when Miss Corey, -who was walking a few yards behind her cousin, heard a crackling noise in the bushes a short distance back. Looking around she saw a large black bear coming toward her. Clara, who had frequently encountered these shaggy monsters, called to her frightened cousin to come to her. She then drew her rifle to her shoulder and, taking deliberate aim at the-animal, awaited^until it came within easy range, and then fired. The bear uttered a howl of pain and fell bleeding. As Clara’s rifle was a single-barreled one, she seized the double-barreled gun from her cousin and discharged both barrels at the infuriated animal, in the hope of killing* it outright. But, with the disappearance of the smoke from the gun, the bear was seen writhing, but not dead. The brave young woman then approached cautiously to within reaching distance of the wonnded animal, and, taking from a large leather belt encircling her waist a bone-handled deer-knife, plunged it to the hilt into the bear’s neck. At this moment the dying monster gave a sudden lunge and fastened its sharp claws into the girl’s skirts, pulling her down. Her frightened cousin ran about wildly and screamed at the top of her voice; but, as there was no house within two miles, her cries were not heard. She then returned to where Clara was still struggling with the animal. The bear still heldthe girl in its grasp, but was rapidly growing weaker. The girl was all the time using her knife with good effect. She dealt the dying animal blow after blow until it finally released its hold and rolled over dead. Though very much exhausted and considerably scratched by the bear’s claws, Clara, with the assistance of her cousin, was soon able to walk. They marked the spot where the dead bear lay, and then returned home. Clara’s father and brother drove to the swamp and brought the bear in, which, when dressed, weighed 340 pounds. The skin is to be sent to a New York taxidermist to be stuffed, and it will be kept by the yoting woman as a souvenir of ner terrible struggle and fortunate escape.— Hunter's Range (Pa.) Cor. N. Y. Sun.

National Agriculture.

Naw York, December IL Delegates to the Convention called to organize the American Agricultural Society met to-day in the Metropolitan Hotel. David Taggart, of Pennsylvania, presided in the morning, and General Curtis, of Ogdensburg, N. Y., succeeded him. The attendance was large. While the Committee on Organization was deliberating, Dr. A. S. Heath, President of the Farmers’ Club of the American Institute, read a paper entitled “How Shall We Increase the Value of Our Dairy Cows and Beef Stock?” The object, he said, could best be accomplished by care in breeding. If milch cows were desired, farmers snould breed for milk; if butter was required, they should breed together those animals whose special excellence strongly indicated that product in large quantities and also in superior quality. If cheese was the aim of the farmer, then he should strive to secure the best results, and use every effort to secure animals whoso milk is rich in the elements of cheese. The Secretary read a letter from W. K. Rogers, Private Secretary of President Hayes, informing the Society that, in consequence of previous engagements, the President could not accept an invitation to attend the meeting, and expressing his sympathy in the movement.

John Merriman, of Maryland, was chosen permanent President, with several Vice-Presidents, and H. Reall as Secretary. The first paper read in the afternoon was by Professor C. V. Riley, of Washington, on “ Agricultural Advancement in the United States.” After reviewing the proceedings of the Agricultural Departments and Societies in European countries, and their effect on farming industries, Professor Riley freely attacked the Department of Agriculture at Washington. It was a disgrace to the Nation, he remarked, and its scientific researches were far inferior to those of many private societies. Nothing short of a radical change in its character and scope would make it useful. The farming community had had, so far, no voice in the appointment gs its head. Agriculture, being non-sectional and non-political, the Department should be independent of politics. Heads of Department Bureaus should be men competent to act as a National Advisory Board, with sufficient power and means to carry on investigations in connection with the Faculties of Agricultural colleges. Reforms in the Department would result in real saving to the Government. Professor Riley was in favor of the bill now before the House for the establishment of a National Agricultural Board. The establishment of such a Commission would serve to increase the efficiency of the Department of Agriculture, relieve the Commissioner from too much responsibility, and prevent unwise individual action. P. J. Quinn, Secretary of the New Jersey State Board of Agriculture, in seconding the motion to publish Professor Riley’s paper, said, among other things, that the Department of Agriculture was an entirely useless institution. The question of pleuro-pneumonia as a cattle disease was discussed by RoberC J. Dodge, Vice-President of the Farmers’ Club, and Mr. Gentry, of Missouri; and a committee was appointed to draft a memorial to Congress with a view to enlisting the aid oi the Government in preventing the ravages of the disease.

—An interesting case has just been decided under the Civil-Damage law in Massachusetts. It was the first action brought under the law, and resulted in a verdict of two hundred dollars in favor of the plaintiff, a policeman, who was badly hurt by a drunken man whom he was attempting to arrest for drunkenness. Under this law the sa-loon-keeper who sold the liquor, and not the man who drank it and committed the injury, is held responsible for the damage done. —The Cincinnati Star thinks it time to begin hanging train-wreckers. A lady who had her train wrecked by an awkward man treading on it the other night entertained the same opinion for about two hours. —Horse-blankets with sleeves, accompanied by some eight buttons, like saucers in sine, are paraded in the form of overcoats.

NUMBER 14.

Youths’ Bepartinent. SUFFER LITTLE CHILDREN. Two i.rm.K girls had chanced to meet; Their eyes were blue, and gold their hair. One richly clad, one poor and heat, Ono bright and glad, one sad and sweet— Both pure as angels are. They stopped and looked, as children will, From timid hearts, with glances bold; One saw blue eyes with joy-light thrill— One saw blue eyes with teaedrops fill— And all the tale was told. Plenty and Want stood side by side. Beneath the winter’s oold, gray sky; The child of Plenty gently tried To tell the tale of < h rist, who died For men, on Calvary. The child of want, with bended head. Wept o’er that story, old and rare. And lisped, “ Will He who thousands fed, Give to my mother ‘daily bread,’ V If I but ask in prayer?” With trustful faith both knelt to pray— Unburdened all their childish care To Christ, who, throned above the day, Bade white-robed angels haste away, And bring an answer there. And while the pleading voices trilled To Heaven through the silent air. The giving hand that Christ bad willed. The home of want with comfort tilled, Till no more want was there. ’Twas Christmas—and the chilly light Grew soft with radiance from above. As morning from the summer night. Through crimflon rays grows softly bright. With sunshine of God’s love. —E. P. Thurston, in Advance.

HOW JOE BROUGHT DOWN THE HOUSE.

“Well, girls, there is one way we can help both father and ourselves in these hard times,” said Bessie Foot, while her elder sisters looked up from their occupations with kind, interested faces. “We can give up our birthdays or Christmas,” began Bessie, slowly. “That is a good idea,” broke in Emily the older sister. “These numerous gift-days and pleasure-makings draw too heavily upon all our pockets. “ But what will Joe say ?” This time they nearly all spoke in concert. After fi little pause, Bessie said, with hopeful decision: “ Oh, perhaps he won’t care.” Now Joe was the last, but by no means the least, member in Mr. Foot’s family. He had arrived late, after, this goodly row of girls, and after his parents had given up an earlier and often expressed desire that a boy might be among the number. And if helpful bands and warm hearts make the reception, Joe came —“to the world as a jrentleman comes, To a lodging ready furnished.” He was now twelve years old, but had not “ worn out his welcome.” Of a pliant, pleasant nature, he fully answered, so far, all the demands made upon him. No one had ever heard him speak a rough or unkind word, and in all the little affairs of every day he was easily helpful enough to satisfy his loving family. It is true Mr. Foot, .who had struggled up through a hard and self-denying youth to an honorably position in the law, began to have some uneasiness about his son’s character, and to suffer the first disturbing and perplexing doubt as to the future of a boy to whom life was such a holiday affair, and who would never be able, he feared, to take any other view of it. But these fatherly thoughts and fears Mr. Foot carefully kept to himself. His family was very loving and confiding; and Mr. Foot was not without courage, but I doubt if he would have been willing to contemplate, even in the retirement of his own thoughts, the shock that would have come to al! if this beloved son had been closely criticised. So J6e spent his thoughtless, pleasant days undisturbed by criticism, and when Bessie broached the question of the morning for her brother’s decision— Christmas being nearly a year away and birthdays close at hand—he chose in his easy way to keep the near pleasure, and so it came about that there was to be no Christmas celebration that year in Mr. Foot’s house.

Bessie's plan worked admirably. The birthdays, scattered through the year, had been made much of, and Joe’s, coming late in September, had really been a great affair. Joe himself had enjoyed it wonderfully—even beyond his usual happy way. It was very gratifying to have so many new things in advance of all his playmates; even the latest fashioned sled had been procured by extra trouble and expense, and the balls and the books and the knives and the marbles were of the best, for “ Joe is to have no presents at Christmas,” was the often-expressed re.tson for extra indulgence on this particular birthday. It was all very delightful, and it made Joe quite the hero of the autumn, creating any amount of envy in the minds of other boys who must wait until Christmas. But Christmas was drawing on, and Joe soon found himself face to face with an anticipation which was not pleasurable —an entirely new position in his experience. In fact, the numerous preparations in the world outside began to produce a slightly depressing sensation in other members of Mr. Foot’s family; even Bessie, usually firm in her decisions, cauld not help wishing they had chosen Christmas and ? riven up the birthdays. But it was too ate now, so they all carefully avoided any allusion to the coming, festival, each hoping by silence to create the impression in the others that the whole plan was eminently satisfactory. Mr. Foot, quietly reading, in his easy chair, was really the only one quite at ease, all the minds of the family being more or less ruffled, on Christmas Eve, by some thoughts as to what might be going on in .Joe’s mind; for, contrary to his custom, he had betaken himself to bed aC an unusuallv early hour. Mrs. Foot and her older daughters were busy with their sewing near the table where Mr. Foot was enjoying the cheerful fire and his evening paper, when Bessie suddenly broke into the room with the exclamation: “Joe has hung up his stockings!” Mr. Foot laid his paper on his knees and the busy needles made slight pauses, but no one spoke. f . “He has hung up both; he never hung up but one before!’.’ added Bessie, dropping helplessly into the nearest chair. “That was naughty in Joe,” said Mrs. Foot, in a ton 6 in which despair and apology were oddly mingled. Mr. Foot meditated, apparently unheeding, while the girls went on with their sewing. Some time elapsed, during which. no one ventured a remark, and Mr. Foot still looked into the fire. Strangely vivid re aembrances came to him of a country boy, long-forgotten Christmases, an empty stocking and a disappointed heart. He slowly took down his eye-glasses from their perch and put them in his pocket; he folded up his paper softly, and carefully laid it on the table, ana. with the air of a man who would rather the fact should not be observed, rose quietly from Us

RATES OF ADVERTISING. Sfacb. »m, >■■ |fyear, Onc-eigth c01umn.......... MW >lO Wj >lB 00 One-fourth column , MW* 18 00 30 00 One-half c01umn.....*..... 18 00 30 00 55 00 »wj awIIOOOO Professional Cards, M per annum. Local Notices, 10 cents per line for first insertion; Scents per line for each subsequent insertion. jy Special rates for choice places in the Sier, and for advertisements wider than ono umn. . , HP* Bills <rf regular advertisers payable quarterly; transient to be paid in advance. No communication to promote private interest published without pay. Job Printing.—A large assortment of type and other material for Poster, Pamphlet, Circular and kindred work. Prices low.

chair and in a very indifferent voice said: “Bessie, will you hand me my coat?” “Why, are you going out?” exclaimed Mrs. Foot, looking up, excitedly. “ Yes, I think I will take a short walk,” replied Mr. Foot, still- indifferently, though knowing perfectly well a walk was a most unusual performance for him in the evening after a busy day. “ I believe I will go with you/’ said his wife, cheerily, and going at once for her hat and shawl. “ Let us go, too,” said all the girls, with that liveliness which indicates relief from a dilemma. All were soon ready, and, Mr. and Mrs. Foot leading the way, they were soon on the pavement of a well-lighted street, and moving with the crowd or pausing at the shop-windows to see the unusual and final attractions of the season. If people would dream facts, instead of dreaming dreams, Joe Foot might have smiled to himself as he lay asleep in his little bed-room in sole possession of the house, while the whole family had gone off, moved by one impulse, on an errand which not one of them would have told to another. Joe awake and on ‘his feet might have been resisted; but Joe asleep, with those two expectant stockings yawning in the basement, was an impersonation of that faith which moves mountains. It all came about ven' naturally and easily, Mr. Foot himself, first expressing some regret that the knife he gave Joe on his birthday had not been of a better quality, and, now that the boy had lost it, it seemed only fair to get him another. This accomplished at the first cutlery store, his mother followed in the purchase of a new boy’s-book, which she very much regretted she had not beard of in time to get for his birthday. His sisters, too, remembered various little things that Joe liked, or had their memories quickened by the sight of new devices for good boys as they walked along, and so they were each well laden wit h Christmas things when they finally reached their own door.

I cannot doubt that Joe smiled then in his sleep, and, if the faithful stockings ran over with their numerous gifts, the family wisely concluded not to make any remarks that might bring into light the inconsistency of the givers’ purposes and actions. The next morning all but Joe awoke with a slight feeling of uncertainty whether it was Sunday or some other day. Joe knew before he was awake that it wasn’t Sunday, still he did feel a little doubtful if it was Christmas. But stowed away in a seldom-used nook of his closet were some .very, good reminders of Christmas, until he should descend to the basement. Joe’s father would have been pleased enough if he could have looked into his boy’s closet just then, as Joe was taking out from their hiding-place six small packages, all neatly wrapped and tied with long loops, so that they could be hung on door-knobs. These presents he had purchased with some money given, him to spend for himself. With the little bundles arranged on his arm for distribution, he stole softly in his stockingrfeet through the hall, hanging each article on- its respective knob, without disturbing the occupants of the rooms, who were still cozily abed. This done, Joe went on to the basement in easy hopefulness. And he was not doomed to disappointment, the contents of the crowded stockings yielding more than a usual amount of joy anil admiration. And when the family came down to breakfast, how delightful it all was! Every one was so pleased with the pretty present Joe had purchased for them, that it was a long time before the happy family could subside to the formality of the morning meal. Joe himself became conscious of a 'higher pleasure than Christmas had heretofore brought, when his father expressed his hearty satisfaction in the gift his son had, unassisted, given him; and, turning to bis youngest daughter, he said: “Bessie, let us have Christmas next year,” which caused a general smile all around. .—Marion Conant, in St. Nicholas.

—A rich and ingenious mechanician constructed a safe which he declared to be burglar-proof. To convince the incredulous of the fact he placed a SSOO note in his pocket, had himself locked in the safe, with a liberal supply of provisions, and the key cast into the river, declaring that he would give the money to the man who unfastened the door. All the blacksmiths and carpenters in the country have been boring and blasting at that safe for a week with every kind of tool and explosive mixture known to science, and the man is there yet! He has whispered through the key-hole that he wilt double the reward if somebody will only let him out. He has convinced everybody that it is the safest safe ever invented. Fears are entertained that the whole concern will have to be melted down in the blast furnace before he is released, and efforts are to be made to pass in through the key-hole a fire-proof jacket, to protect the inventor while the iron is melting.—N. Y. Evening Post.

THE MARKETS.

Nrw Yobk. December 15, 1873. LIVE STOCK—Cattle $7 00 agio 25 ?. hoe P J 400 Q 600 v;? -AL 450 500 wuD2V t « X>d J < !,2 holce ---- 860 @ 825 WHEAT—No. 2 Chicago.... 1 45 44 1 47 COKN-Wextern Mlxot ... * 64'4® OATS—Western Mixed ;. . . 50 S 5‘A BVE-Western..77_.:::::.: 02 a SB PORK—Mess 13 00 44 13 05 LARD—Steam. ... ... 805 a“ jo CHEESE 13 WOOL—Domestic Fleece.. 42'& 58 CHICAGO. BEBV fc£i tr »“-4 * 85 ® 35 15 <?*** 401® 4: <> Medium. 3 35 3 85 Butchers Stock 335 di 315 Stock Cattle. I ' 240 44 310 c Good 431 ® 485 BGirE^^X n e^ Cholce - I «« EGo£-y^h Cho ! oe . Da,T7 ”; % g £ FLOUR-Winters...,.Z SQO & 775 Springs 5 00 6 75 Patents 700 a 000 GRAlN—Wheat, No, 2 Spring 1 20M© 1 2f’a 4«M«» - • o *•* Red-Tipped Hurts & 514 Inferior.' ?i? Crooked 3 4* 12 50 13 00 LUMBER— f" ® * 0 Common Dressed Siding. 318 00 ©417 50 Common Boards 12 50 a 14 i.O Fencing 11 03 © 15 IM •* 235 ® 260 BALTIMORE. CATTLE—Beet 34 50 ® 35 25 ~ Medium, 800 @ 350 HOGS—Good 500 @ 62> SHEBP 800 © 450 EAST LIBERTY. CATTLE—Best 34 87H® 525 Fair to Good 875 «. 47f HOGS—Yorkers. 430 3 481