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ALEXANDRIA. VA.
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Police Cases.—Upon the resumption of
the police jurisdiction of the Mayor, the same
nld cases, which have made up the police
docket for years, came up again. They have
had a small turn at the martial law of the
Provost Court, but it does not seem to hurt
them, and they turn up again in the Mayor's
office fresh as ever.
Among them is Jimmy Burke, an excel
lent man when he will lot liquor alone. The
police guard arrested him for drunkenness
yesterday evening, and special officer Edelin
put him in the watch-house, whence he was
discharged last night. Jimmy has a lino turn
for the " blarney," aud the way years ago
he " blarneyed " the Mayor, is given as one
of the racy things of local police. The blar
ney story is told in thiswise:
Jimmy was brought before Mr. Wise for
being drunk. The evidence was conclusive.
The Mayor—Well, Jimmy, this is the
eighth time you have been here.
Jimmy—Sure, yer honor, and it's me that's
sorry for the same.
The Mayor—Didn't you promise the last
time that you'd never drink a drop as long
as you lived?
- Jimmy—Sure, yer honor, but the crathei
is so enticing.
The Mayor—Well, Jimmy, I must put you
on the streets. We want hands, and that*
the only way to cure you.
Jimmy—God's blessing on yerhoror, ye're
the dacenest gintlemon I ever looked at ;yer
wouldn't be alther doing the likes of that to
me that's a wife and ohilder at home ?
The Mayor—Well, that's all I can do.—
Your wife has complained to me several times
about you. You must have the law now.
Jimmy—lndade it's yer honor that knows
the law, a nice, kind-hearted man that ye
are. I know yer honor will have pity on i
well-maining man, that wauts to git away
from temptation.
The Mayor—How are you going to ge
away from temptation?
Jimmy—Sure, yer honor, whenever 1 see
a nice, fine looking gintlemon like you,
know he won't be hard on a poor era' her.—
Now, yer honor, here's a pass to the Extin
sion (Lynchburg Extension), and sure yer i
won't refuse a poor laborin' man a chance to
do betther!
The Mayor (overcome) —Well, Jimmy, if
you promise me to go right to the Extension, :
you can go.
Jimmy—Upon me heart, I promiss the
same.
The Mayor—You can go.
Jimmy—God bless yer honor.
And so Jimmy got off that day, and doubt"
less did many a good day's work on the Ex
tension.
The Watcii House. -The old Watch
House has been in disuse for several months j
—the first time for one hundred and eleven !
years. It was first used as a Jail, and after
the Jail had been removed to a more commo- !
dious location, took position as a sort of Mv- j
nicipal "lock up," for which it has since
been used. Its horns, familiar to the ears
of townspeople since before the Revolution-1
ary struggle, have been silent for some i
mouths, and the eight Night Watchmen j
with horn and "spontoon;" given way to
the hundreds of Police Guards, with musket'
and bayonet. But within the past few days j
the old building has been reopened, cleaned j
out, and is now again used to some extent;
for the purposes of a temporary lock-up. j
Several prisoners have been placed in its
cell within the past tew days, until the hour j
arrived for the examination of their cases.
River Movements.— The arrival of a
small vessel or so each day continues. The
U. S. steamer City of Richmond passed down
this morning, carrying soldiers, and towing
several barges, also carrying soldiers. She
was followed in a short time by the steamers
Mount Washington and Columbia, also car
rying soldiers. Again there was was a ru
mor that the Pensacola was about to proceed
down the river, and again rumor proved
false.
The Mavor'sOfmce. —The morning hours
at the Mayor's office are now full of
of divers kinds, and relating to all manner
[subjects.
This morning the cases were both nnmer
-8 and various, embracing a large number
of applications for ordinary, eating-houses,
concert-rooms and mercantile licenses, which
were granted, and paid for in specie.
James Cole, jailor, also appeared, and sta
ted that he had under his keeping in the
county jail a number of slaves. Ordinarily
the jail expenses of such negroes had baen
charged to their owners, but, some time since,
the Provost Court, Judge Freese, declared
those slaves to be "contraband," and direct
ed that they Bhould be placed at the service
of the U. S. Commissary Department. He
had complied with that order, and the ne
groes had been employed, some days all, and
at other times only a few, to unload hay, &c,
in the service of the United States. He (tho
ailor) had been supplied with rations for
:iem, but he was not compensated for cook
ng the rations or attending to them, aud he
was not willing now to -tpend his own money
o buy coal or wood. Judge Freese had di
rected that he should not charge the board of
he negroes to the owners. The negroes
hemselves bad ° een ver y sulky of bite, and
aid they did not want to work any longer
or nothing.
Air. Cole asked for sane instructions on
he subject, and wm informed that the mat
er would be inquired into, lie waa advised
meanwhile to keep an account of the number j
f 3ays each of these negroes were employ |
d by the U. 8. government with a view to '
a final settlement.
The now Superintendent of Gas, Thomas :
)wyer, pave bond, and entered apoq thedu- j
charge of the duties of the office. [
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Snow- anu Ice.—Lain evening we had a
All of snow, lasting several hours, and coat
ng the eurth with its white vesture. This 1
uiorning "it hud a nipping aud a piercing
air," and the ponds in the neighborhood of
own, as well as the shallows of Hunting
]reek, were covered with ice.
Yesterday morning, the pickets of Gen. !
Jlenker's brigade at Annandale were at
tucked suddenly by a parry of Confederate j
cavalry. It is said that "one of the Con- !
ederates was killed, and one or two wound
id and made prisoners. One of the Federal ;
troops was wounded."
On Saturday afternoon, a foraging party j
consisting of tho Major and twenty men of !
the New York 20th regiment, left Newport
Slews, and when near New Market bridge
were attacked by a body of forty Confede
rate cavalry. The skirmish lasted but a i
:ew moments. None of the Federal troops ,
were injured. The Major reports that two
of the Confederates were killed and several
wounded.
It was understood that Beaufort would be
)ccupied ou the 29th by five thousand Fede- :
ral troops. Preparations continue to be
made for an expedition South—supposed to
ie against Fernandina. Five thousand
troops are to go under the escort of the
steamer Wabash. ,
Advices from Missouri are contradictory, i
A few days ago Gen. Price was reported to
)e at Painville, from whence he was expec- .
ted to march to Springfield, for the purpose j
of forming a junction with Rains and Mc- j
Culloch. Later intelligence is to the effect .
that McCulloch's forces were falling back ,
into Arkansas whilst Price was moving .
northward, intending to go into Kansas.
It is reported that the war in Missouri, on
ooth sides, is marked by the greatest devas- ,
tation in the country through which the ar
mies march. ]
The Washington correspondent of the (
Philadelphia Press says:—"Gen. Burnside's ,
brigade, to move from Annapolis, and Gen. i
Sumner's division of the army, now being
organized below Alexandria, are to co-oper
ate, as I am credibly informed, on the Po
tomac and its south banks. The strength,
or rather the weakness, of the Confederate
catteries in that direction is soon to be fully
tested."
GENERAL NEWS.
The number of Pederal soldiers now on
the sick list in the various camps and hospi
tals of the country is estimated at sixty
thousand, which is in itself a great army;
but the per centage is not large, being only
»bout twelve in each hundred. The sanita
ry regulations of the army are pronounced
defective, and the National Sanitary Com
mission, will remodel and reform the system.
Mr. Maynard, elected to Congress from
the 2d District of Tennessee, was eworn in
as a member of the House, on the ground
that he was elected to his seat before Ten
nessee voted herself out of the Union.
Mr. Green, of Missouri, now in Washing
ton, is an e£-Senater —not a Senator as was
erroneously stated yesterday.
Mr. Frederick Stanton, of Kansas, is now
in Washington, claiming the scat of Gen.
Lane in the Senate.
Daniel J. Sutherland, late major in the
United States army, with the appointment
of paymaster, was found dead in his room
at the Metropolitan Hotel, N V., on Satur
day morning.
The municipal election takes place io New
York, to-day. The candidates ior Mayor
are Opdyke, Wood, aud Guuthcr. Much in
terest is felt in the result,
It is stated that about sundown ou Satur
§last, as Prof. Lowe was making a recon
ganota in his bailoun near Budd'tj Ferry,
Confederate battery fired at him, the
screw of a shell striking his car. No dam
age was done.
Mr. Petcigru, an eminent lawyer in South
Carolina, before the Confederate Court, open
ed in Charleston, by Judge Mugrath, made
an able argument against the Confederate
sequestration act, especially that portion of
it, requiring counsel to answer interrogato
ries a* to the busineia affairs of their clients.
A man named Ragan, died in Troy, New
York, on the 29th ult., aged one hundred
aud oue years.
Eleven thousand eight hundred and six
teen barrels of apples sir rived at Boston on
Friday, from.Albany, N. Y.
The Michigan Southern Railroad Compa
ny have made arrangements to do a heavy
business thi • winter in shipping dressed
hogs from Chicago to all Eastern cities. For
this purpose they have built a dressed hog
depot, where they have every faoility for
handling, and where no other business will
be done. It is announced that an express
train for dressed hogs alone will be run over
the Grand Trunk Railroad of Canada, dur
ing the winter, for Portland and Boston.
The Secretary of the Treasury announces
his readiness to redeem the treasury notes
authorized by the act of Congress approved
December 17, 18G0. The interest on these
notes will, according to law, cease on the Ist
of February next.
The United States Mai' steamer Arago,
for which some anxiety is felt on account of
the presence of the privateer Nashville in
British waters, carries four rifled cannon of
long range, has a large number tf small
arms, and can be defended by a crew of one
hundred men. Gen. Scott is a passenger on
the Arago.
A letter from London says:—"Nautical
men hero express very discouraging opinions
in regard to the Great Eastern. They think
it doubtful whether she will ever make an
other sea trip, and think that after remaining
a while at Milford Haven, she will be con
verted into a bath-house or a floating hos
pital."
Among the residences burned in Fairfax
are: Lewis', near Sangster's Cross Roads;
Brotten's house and barn, and two houses
near Pohick Church. So devastated is the
country that troops will find nothing but
desolate houses, barren and unstocked farms,
empty barns, an impoverished and suffering
people,
Gen. William A. Richardson has deter
mined to resign his position as a member of
Congress from Illinois to enable him to con
tinue a Brigadier General in the volunteer
service, to which be was appointed some
motnhs since.
Several police cases also claimed attention.
One party, for insulting a guard and inciting
a disturbance, was fined, and compelled to
give bond to keep the peace. Another par
ty, charged with maltreating his wife, was
dismissed with a reprimand. A soldier also
appeared, claiming that he had been swin
dled by a watch seller, and asking interposi
tion. He was informed that bis case would
be attended to.
It is stated that the post office at Leonard*
town, Maryland, on the lower Potomac, was
visited by a detective on Saturday, who bag
ged half a bushel of letters to and from
Richmond.
At New Orleans some uneasiness had been
created among merchants in consequence of
the reply of Earl Russell to a committee of
merchants in Liverpool, in which he gave no
countenance to the idea that the blockade
would nut be for the present respected.
A correspondent of the New York Times,
writing from Washington, expresses the
opinion that the season for any important
movement on the south of the Potomac has
passed.
The sufferings and privations of the Con
federate army, iv Western Virginia, during
the pa»t fall, are said to have been very
great. Much sickness prevailed, and the
medical department was badly managed.
Some of the surgeons arc much compluin
ed of.
The monthly table of marine loses for the
past month shows an aggregate of thirty-five
vesse's. This number includes one steam
ship, one steamer, five ships, seven barks,
six brigs, fourteen schooners, aud one sloop.
The total value of property lost was one
million two hundred and niiiety-iiiue thou
sand nine hundred dollars.
The report of the committee upon iraudu
lent contracts is not yet closed, but in print
already numbers 073 pages. It treats of
| the steamer Cataline, hides, tallow, and cat
tle, purchase of horses anil wagons, purcha.-e
of arms, purchase of vessels, and navy sup
plies and swindling entitled '•miscellaneous."
FOREIGN NEWS.
A speech was delivered at Bristol by Mr.
Berkley, M. P., expressing the opinion that
the English Government had adopted a ju
dicious policy in leaving this country to set
tle its own affairs, lie could not undertake
to determine how soon the war would end,
i but he thought that a fatal blow h-.d been
given to slavery. He declared that from
personal observation of the treatment of tho
negro North aud South he "would rather
Ibe a slave in the South under a kind master,
I than a free black in the North."
The London Herald discusses the elements
of success possessed by the Confederate
States; and while admitting that the South
ern States are inferior in numbers and ma
terial, short of arras and ammunition, and
in want of ready money, comes to the con
clusion that they are capable of making up
for these deficiencies by terrible earnest
ness,
The Paris correspondent of the New York
World says:—"lf the English in England
may be judged by those of their country
men whom I meet in Paris, I think there is
no doubt on which side their sympathies lie.
With one exception, every Englishman I
have conversed with in Paris upon the sub
ject has plainly exhibited that his feeling
was in favor of seeing our Government de-
I stroyed and the South successful."
j From an intelligent source it seems thero
is some foundation for the report that
Queen Isabella has made a secret treaty
with the Emperor Napoleon, ceding to him
the Balearic Islands, provided he will assist
her in her designs against Mexico.
The marriage of Liszt, the pianist, with
Princess Wittgenstein, has been prohibited
by the Roman authorities, on the ground
that the Princess has a husband living.
The English papers contain accounts of
the effect of the mildness of tha weather— a
prolongation of the summer—on vegetation.
In the south of England new leaves and
new fruit are forming on trees whioh have
! already borne good orops this season.
