Rensselaer Union, Volume 8, Number 48, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 17 August 1876 — General News Summary. [ARTICLE]

General News Summary.

FBOH WASHINGTON. Ex-Solicitor Wilron wu cross-examin-•d M great length before lh9_.Cemßlttos on Whisky Frauds, on the 7th, his testimony being an elaboration and explanation of that formerly given by him. In reply to a question concerning immunity, he said it was a mistake to suppose that those to whom It waa promised eseaped punishment In hie opinion they were severely punished by the ignominy of the confession of their guilt and loss of property, because the loss of property to some persons is more severe than the loss of liberty. As to criminal punishment he could say nothing. Hallett Kilbourne, the real estate pool agent who refused to testily to certain facta before the House Real Estate Pool Investigating Committee, and was kept in duress for such refusal, has entered suit against the Speaker of the House, the Bcrgeant-at. Arms, and members of the Real Estate Pool Committee, claiming |150,000 damages for injuries sustained by reason of his imprisonment. THE EAST. At the Buffalo race-course, on the 3d, Goldsmith Maid won the free-for-all race in three straight heats, making the unprecedented time of 2:1*) 2:15k and 2:15. Fullerton came In second and Bodine third. Tse letters of Messrs. Tilden and Hendricks, Democratic nominees for President and Vice-President, accepting the nominations, were published on the morning of the sth. To New York wholesale and retail clothing firm of Max, Stadler A Co. has suspended, with liabilities of about *500,000. _ Prof. King’s mammoth balloon “Buffalo,” which ascended at Philadelphia on the evening of the 4th, having on board the Professor and eight passengers (mostly representatives of the press), after going some distance in a westerly direction, struck an easterly current and was driven over New Jersey. When at Perth Amboy It began to ■ink, and Prof. King decided that some of the passengers must be landed, which waa done, but the balloon refused to go up again, although all the ballast was thrown out After working with it for some time, the party gave it up, let the remainder of the gas escape, and packed the balloon for shipment A small row boat on Putnam's Pond, near Whitehall, N. Y., was struck by a squall and capsized on the afternoon of the Sth, and of the thirteen persons on board the craft eix men and four women were drowned In eight feet of water about three rods from the shore. The New York State Democratic Convention has been called to meet at Saratoga on the 30th of August. E*dwin Frye has been nominated by the Republicans of the Third Maine District for the unexpired term of Mr. Blaine, elected to the Senate. Mr. Blaine was present at the Convention and made a speech. Tbb Connecticut Independents have called a State Convention to meet in New Haven on the 12th of September, to nominate candidates for Presidential electors and Congressional and State officers. Gold closed in New York on the 9th at 11IX- The following were the closing quotations for produce: No. 2 Chicago Spring Wheat, 9.5c® fl. 05; No. 2 Milwaukee,*9B @1.10; Oats, Western Mixed, 29@88c; Corn, Western Mixed, 53@57c; Pork, Mess, *19.50; Lard, HXc; Flour, good to choice, *4.80@5 35; White Wheat Extra, *[email protected]. Cattle, B%@loXc for good tn extra. Sheep, 4Jj,@sXc. At East Liberty, Pa., on the 9th, cattle brought: Best, *[email protected]; medium, *4.50@ *4.75; common, *[email protected]. Hogs sold— Yorkers, *[email protected]; Philadelphias, *6.75@ 7.00. Sheep brought *[email protected], according to quality.

WEST AND SOUTH. Mbs. Gbn. Custbb, Mrs. J. Calhoun, Mrs. 6. W. Yates, and Mrs. A. E. Smith, whose husbands were slain in the Little Big Horn fight, and Miss Reid, niece of Gen. Custer, arrived at Chicago, on the 3d, on the way to their homes. Th* Michigan State Republican Convention met at Lansing on the 3d and nominated the following State ticket: Governor, C. M. Croswell; Lieutenant-Governor, Alonso Sessions; Secretary of State, E. G. D. Holden; State Treasurer, W. B. McCreery; AuditorGeneral, Ralph Ely; Land Commissioner, Gen. B. F. Partridge; Attorney-General, Otto Kirchner; Superintendent of Public Instruction, H. 8. Tarbell. Presidential Electors were also nominated. The resolutions indorse the National Republican platform and candidates, and commend the recbrd and policy of the Republican party, and the present State Government was also indorsed. Fowr Labamin dispatches of the 4th announce the arrival of a courier from Red Cloud, who brought intelligence that a scout had just arrived there from in front of Sitting Bull’s command. Large reinforcements had been received from northern tribes, and he then had between 12,000 and 15,000 warriors. He was reported to have said he would make his grand stand where he was then and would either drive the white soldiers back or die. Hon. Bxnjamix Habbibon, of IndianapoH®, has been nominated for Governor by the Republican State Central Committee of Indiana, woe Hon. G. B.orth, declined. It was reported on the sth that Rain-in-the Face, a hostile Indian chief, had arrived at Standing Rock Agency with 122 lodges, having deserted the cause of Sitting Bull. A man by the name of Pitts alio* Wells was captured in Kansas on the 4th on suspicion that he was one of the gang connect- # cd with the recent train robbery in Missouri • A Las Animas (Col.) dispatch of the sth says the grasshoppers had destroyed all the com and vegetables in the vicinity of Denver. large numbers of them were alighting in the Arkansas Valley, and much damage to the crops was feared. Ravages by the same insects are reported in portions of Minneota and Nebraska. Rbtvbns received on the morning of the Bth from the Alabama State election, which occurred the day before, indicated the elec-1 Mon of Houston (Dem.) for Governor by

AND EX* GAUCHER. GWUUDROS* I of Chicago, who wu tried ta connection! with the whisky frauds and . convicted and

sentenced to six months’ Imprisonment and *I,OOO fine, on the charge of neglect of official duty has been pardoned on condition that he pay the fine. lx his report ooncernlng the Custer disaster Maj. Reno holds thqt the massacre waa due to Custer’s mistaking the condition of the Indians. He supposed them tn be flying In retreat, hence the fatal division of the command, which gave the concentrated hordes the opportunity of cutting the three divisions off in detail. Bruce Youroer, who was recently arrested In Missouri on suspicion of haviug been connected with the Otterville train robbery, has been released on a writ of habeas corpus, it being shown that be was not one of the gang perpetrating the crime.

Hknmt Wattbbbon, of the Louisville Courtrr-Jourtifl/, has been elected to Congress from the Fifth Kentucky District, to ill the vacancy caused by the death of Representative Partons. Dispatches were received from Fort Fetterman on the Bth which state that, on the 2d, the Indians in front of Crook’S command, after firing the country and destroying the grass and timber, abandoned their village on the Little Big Horn, and moved in a northeasterly direction toward the mouth of the Tongue River. Crook started in pursuit on the 4th. Hobbs Kebrt, the Missouri train robber, has confessed and given away the rest of the gang on condition of unconditional pardon. He says hie associates were Clel Miller, Chadwell, the three James brothers and the two Youngers. ===*.-«=..■.-- .■ .= An exciting tragedy was enacted in Chicago on the afternoon of the ' 7th, which resulted In the death of Mr. Francis Hanford, Principal of the North Division High School, at the hands of Mr. Alexander Sullivan, Secretary of the Board of Public Works. It seems Mr. Hanford had written a communication to the Chairman of tne Common Council Committee on Public Schools, in which the charge was made that Mr. Sullivan's wife had been the guiding spirit in a ring in the School Board designed to throw the schools under the control of the Roman Catholics. This communication was read at a meeting of the Common Council, at which Mr. Sullivan chanced to be present, and he obtained a copy of the portion relating to his wife, when he proceeded to his residence and, in company with his wife and brother, went to Mr. Hanford's residence, where he accosted Mr. H. and demanded a retraction, which Mr. H. refused to grant. Mr. Sullivan then struck him, and a scuffle ensued. Friends interfered to separate them, and Mr. S. says Mr. H. struck Mrs. 8., whereupon he drew a revolver, and fired at him intending, as he says, to wound him in the arm, but the ball took effect in the bowels, and the wounded man died in about half an hour. Mrs. 8. was formerly a writer for the press in Chicago and has taken quite an active part in educational matters in connection with the rights of women. She and her husband both emphatically deny that there was any truth in Mr. Hanford’s charges against her. A good deal of excitement and feeling in Chicago has grown out of this sad affair. Mr. 8. was formerly a newspaper man, having been connected with the morning newspapers of the city. He was immediately put uuder arrest. A Coroner’s inquest was held, and the Jury recommended that the prisoner be held without bail to await the action of the Grand Jury. The Republican State Convention of Missouri was held at Jefferson City on the 9th. George A. Finklenberg, of St Louis, was nominated by acclamation for Governor; C. C. Allen was nominated for LieutenantGovetnor; Eugene F. Weigel for Secretary of Stqte; Col. John Severance for State Treasurer; G. R. Smith for Auditor-General; A. W. Mullins for Attorney General. The Cincinnati platform and candidates were endorsed.

The Michigan Democratic State Convention was held at Detroit on the 9th. The following ticket was nominated: For Governor, W. L. Webber, of East Saginaw; Lieutenant-Governor, Julius Housman, of Grand Rapids; Secretary of State, George H. House; Treasurer, J. G. Parkhurst; AuditorGeneral, F. M. Holloway; Commissioner of the Land Office, C. W. Green; Superintendent of Public Instruction, Zelotus Presidential Electors were chosen, and resolutions were adopted declaring for reform and endorsing the platform adopted and ticket nominated by the National Convention at St. Louis.

A Moxtgomeby (Ala.) telegram of the Bth says the Democra's would have twentyseven out of thirty-three State Senators and eighty out of a hundred Representatives. Order and quiet are reported to have prevailed throughout the State during the election. A Fobt Scllt special dispatch of the 9th says couriers from the hostile Indians had just arrived bringing a report that Terry’s command had encountered the hostiles, who were flanked by Gen. Gibbon, and badly beaten. They acknowledged a loss of 100 wounded, and say that Sitting Bull was shot through both thighs. In Chicago, on the 9th, Spring wheat, No. 2, closed at 85@85Xc. cash. Cash corn closed at 45J<c for No. 3. Cash oata No. 3 sold at 29,%@30c; September options were sold at Rye No. 9, 49@50c. Cash mess pork closed at $18.40 @18.50. Lard, [email protected]. Good to choice beeves brought |[email protected]; medium grades, [email protected]; butchers’ stock, $2.40@ 3.00; stock cattle, etc., [email protected]. Hogs brought [email protected] for good to choice. Sheep sold at [email protected] for good to choice.

FOREIGN INTELLIGENCE. Sevkrb gales prevailed along the British coast on the 4th and sth, and over forty fishermen lost their lives. According to Vienna dispatches of the Bth, the Turks were eveiywhere successful in their operations against Senia, and despair prevailed throughout that country. At Gurgusovats, the latter lost 3,000 men, and 2,000 reinforcements arriving too late were also cut to pieces. The town had been burned by the victorious troops. It was re ported that a Russian army was marching to the assistance of Servia. The Porte had intimated that it would make peace if Servia and Montenegro wished it.

London dispatches Of the Bth say that the London Tima iu a leading editorial had de-' nouncedthe Government’s course on the Turkish question, and intimated that there i was either deuce ignorance or unpardonable I Flestminster. It demands that 1 w «*»urea to stop the butchI Mndwcta. U * a * 10 T * rioUM -Turkish de-

pendencies. ■”* ▼•nous'Turkish deB eoUislnn <r> I the fiomenet & BnraX '“’Kht of the 7th, on "weet Baiiway, between a .- .... .

London train and an empty excursion train, twelve persons were killed and thirty injured. A special to the London Standard, published on the Bth, announces the fall of Salt •char. The Servians were throwing up fortifications at Barjla. A telegram waa received in Paris an the same day which stated that secret committees in Crete, Samos and ChL cos bad issued manifestoes calling the Greeks to arm against Turkey. Berlin dispatches of the 9th say a panic prevailed throughout Scrvia in consequence of late Turkish victories. The people were demanding the dismissal of Rlsttcs, the Prime Minister, and that the powers be appealed to to avert the ruin which was imminent Prince Milan had expressed a willingness to negotiate or abdicate.

CONCH ESN lON A L. A report was received in the Senate, on the «d, from the Secretary of the Interior, expressing the opinion that the proposed redaction In the clerical force of his department would impair its usefulness. The bill to limit and fix the Signal Service was amended and passed. A bill was introduced by Mr. Logan for the coinage of a sliver dollar ol 412 8-10 grains of standard silver, and providing that it be a legal-tender at its nominal value for any amount, except for customs, dues and interest on the public debt. The River and Harbor Appropriation bill was further amended and passed A report was presented in the House exonerating Mr. Knott from all culpabilities In the matter of the Caldwell dlspaich. and Mr, Knott made a speech on the charge that he had '-infamously" suppressed such dispatch, in the course of which he reflected severely upon Mr. Blaine. Mr. Frye followed in replv, and a personal controversy arose between him and Mr. Hunton. Messrs. Hale. McCrary, Hoar. Lawrence and Hurd criticised the remarks of Mr. Knott, who replied by reiterating his previous asser ions, when, on motion of Mr. Hurd, the report was recommitted. A new Conference Committee was appointed on the Consular and Diplomatic Appropriation bill. A resolution was adopted providing for an adjournment of Congress on the 7th _ ■'

The Senate, on the 4th, insisted upon its amendments to the River and Harbor Appropriation bill, and-to the bill to provide for the sale of the Osage ceded lands in Kansas to actual settlers, and new Conference Committees were appointed. Bills were passed—authorizing the employment of Indian scouts: to allow a pension of thirty-seven dollars a month to soldiers who have lost both an arm and a leg, in Hen Of twenty-tour dollars, as now allowed. The House bill establishing post-roads throughout the country was taken up, and various amendments were agreed t0.....1n the House, a report was made from the Committee on Civil Service Reform in regard to the Chicago Pension Agency evidence, the committee recommending the passage of resolutions condemnatory of the acceptance or demanding of money as a consideration for real or pretended influence in the procuring of appointments, and declaring that such misconduct is good cause for removal. A report was also made from the Committee on Military Affairs relating to contracts for soldiers' headstones: the report reflects somewhat severely on cx-Secy. Belknap, but recommends no action. A new Conference Committee was appointed on the River and Harbor Appropriation bill. In Committee of the Whole, Mr. Garfield spoke on political subjects, in reply to the recent speech of Mr. Lamar.

In the Senate, on the sth, the bill passed last March, bat the vote on which was subsequently reconsidered, proriding for and regulat ing the counting of votes for President and VicePresident, and the decision of questions arising thereon, was called up. and a motion was agreed to that the bill be further amended before being sent to the Rouse. The report of the Conference Committee on the bill to provide for the sale of the Osage ceded lands in Kansas was agreed to. Tbe resolu ion to print 10,00) extra copies of the President's message and accompanying documents in reference to the Hamburg troubles was taken up, and a spirited debate ensued on tbe subject of disturbances at the South, the discussion bein/’ participated in by Messrs. Morton, Thurman Patterson, Cameron, Gordon and others....ln the House, majority and minority reports were made from the Committee on Expenditures in the War Department. A bill was reported from the Committee on Banking and Currency to repeal the sections of the Resumption act of July 15,1875, which direct the Secretary of the Treasury to redeem the legal-tender notes in coin, and after considerable debate the bill was passed—lo 6to 88. A bill was then reported, debated and passed providing fdr a Commission of three Senators, three Representatives and three experts, to inquire, first, into the cause aud effect of the change in the relative value of gold and silver; second, into the policy of the restoration of the double standard in this country; third, into the policy of continuing legal-tender notes concurrently with a metallic standard; and, fourth, into the best manner of providing for the resumption of specie payments—the Commission to report on or before January 15,1877. The Conference report on the bill to provide lor the sale to actual settlers of the Osage ceded lands in Kansas w as agreed to.

In the Senate, on the 7th, the House amendments to the bill extending the time for the redemption of lands sold by the United States for direct taxes were agreed to. and the bill was passed. The House bill making an appropriation for the payment of claims reported as allowed by the Southern Claims Commission was passed, with amendments. The House joint resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution, prohibiting the appropriation of any school fund for the support of sectarian schools, etc., and several substitutes, offeted therefor, were referred to the Judiciary Committee. Majority and minority reports of the special committee to inquire into the late election in Mississippi were submitted. A report was made that the Conference Committee on the River and Harbor Appropriation bill had agreed upon the bill. A Conference Committee was appointed on the bill to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to deposit certain funds in the Treasury, in lieu of investing them. The debate ou the Piesident s message relative to the Hamburg affair was continued by Messrs. Edmunds, Logan and Eaton . ...In the bouse, a resolution was adopted that the investigating committees have leave to report during the remainder of the session at any time after two days from the time that a commiitee has agreed io its report and submitted the same to a minority, who shall have leave at the same time to submit i heir views to the House. Leave of absence was refused to about seveifty members who had applied for it.

A bill was passed in the Senate on the Bth to establish the 'Territory of- Pembina, to be formed of the northern portion of the Territory of Dakota, and a motion was subsequently made to ret ousider the vote on the passage of the bill, wiih a view to changing the name to Algonqu n. The resolution to print 10,000 copies of the President's message re ative to the Hamburg troubles was tuither considered, and remarks relative to affairs at the South were made by Messrs. Baton. Spencer and Patterson... .In the House, a bill was introduced and referred to secure the prompt resumption of specie payments. A bill was passed to print 100,00 > copies of the report of the Commissioner of Agriculture for 1874, and 20'.000 copies of the report for 1875, and appropriating $l3O, '0 therefor. Mr. Hale made a speech on general politics, mainly devoted to affairs at the South, and he was replied to by Mr. Cox. A proposed amendment to the Constitution was introduced by Mr. Lawrence. for that known as the Blaine School amendment, and provides that no State shall make any law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, and that no public property or money raised by taxation, or from any public fund or property subject to the legislative power of Congress, shall ever be given to or be under the control of any religions sect or denomination.

7- Among the bills passed in the Senate on the 9th was the Bouse bill to allow homestead set tiers to make proof of settlement before the courts as well as before the Receiver. The House amend ments to the bill to provide for the sale of the reservation of the Confederated Otoe and Missouri Indians in Kansas and Nebraska were agreed to. The Hamburg affair was further discussed by Messrs. Patterson, Wallace and Sherman ...In the House, majority and minority reports were made from the Podtoffice Committee on investigation into straw-bids, etc., as were also like reports from the Judiciary Committee on the case of Messrs. Schumaker and King as connected with the Pacific Mail Subsidy. A report was read from the Conference Committee on the Executive Legislative and Judicial Appropriation MH, that the committee had come to no conclusion, and that the Senate was unyielding in its determination to adhere to its positron on the bill; a resolution was agreed to that the Senate recede from Its peition regarding the salaries of the President and Congressmen, and the same Conference Committee 'Was reappointed. P litical subjects were discussed, Mr. Hoar, commenting on MiLamar’s recent speech, and he was replied to by Mr Hooker. Counsel was authorised to defend the Speaker and officers of the House in the Hallett-Kilbourne suit. „ r —A gentleman in Cambridge, Mass., has received a letter from Winslow, the forger, in which the latter says that his health is very poor and that he is looking for a situation.

The Home of Wellington Irving. There is an indescribable looking modesty and respectability about the whole place, and, I regret to add, of decay. The interior of the house ia as plain as its exterior. The rooms are small and low, but have an air of comfort. The library is by far the largest part of tlie hotise. Until within a few years everything in this room was kept intact; the veiy pen last used by the distinguished author lying Just aa he had used it. For some years past the cottage has been rented in the summer, and the reverence which should be paid to the memory of genius has not been shown by the occupants. It was in this library, isolated from the rest of the house, that Irving wrote his last book, “ The Life of G. Washington.” After it was finished he remarked to his secretary that his labors as an author were at an end. It was in this poetic, quiet room that his best works were written. Its associations must fill the minds of the visitor with pleasure, however prosaic he or she maybe. How came it that this house is so small, so very unpretentious, when Mr. Irving’s books were sold by the hundreds of thousands and his name so familiar to the whole reading world. The answer is a rare one. He loved his family better than himself. He was a bachelor, but had nine nieces left to his care, and other relatives whom he supported. Three of these nieces resided with him, of whom but one is now living. He was wifeless and childless, but to those dependent on him he was a father. Here in this humble abode he received distinguished company, not only our own best known authors, artists, musicians and po. litical men, but those who came here from the Old World. “Washington Irving was the first ambassador whom the new world of letters sent to the old,” wrote Thackeray. He was bom in the beginning of Our republic; the pater patriae had laid his hand on the child’s head, and he bore Washington’s name. He had a national welcome in Europe, and worthily represented the American people there. With •11 his honors, he was the quietest and plainest of men, living in this cottage in humble style, keeping but one old lazy horse which he often drove himself, somewhat to the terror of his family, as he was trot an expert horseman. The endearing features of his character, were his goodness and gentleness. After many quiet, pleasant years, and some feebleness and pain, while living beside the ancient; noble Hudson River, and amid the scenes he loved so well and has made so famous by his pen, one evening in the latter part of November, 1856, Mr. Irving on going to his bed-chamber fell to the floor. He was picked up insensible, and died quickly after. Only a few days previously he had taken a drive to the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery—and had pointed out the spot where he wished to lie. The old residents of Tarrytown are never weary of telling of the funeral honors paid to tlieir distinguished townsman; how thousands of people came here from city and country; how the stores and houses were draped in mourning; how the bells tolled mournfully in the soft autumn air; how the public school children stood with uncovered heads as the procession passed on its way to the cemetry; how glorious and beautiful the foliage looked in its tints of scarlet and brown; and how sad each person seemed in the long cortege which slowly wound over hill and dale to give back to earth one whom all classes of people loved N. Y.C&r. St. Louis Republican.