Sacramento daily record-union. [volume], May 20, 1882, Image 4

About Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891

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THE DAILY RECORD-UNION.
HATCH DAY MAY 20. Mat
Meteorological Observations — Taken at
Each (lon at the tame Moment.
SacxAMß-rro, May 19, 1882—8:02 r. a.
_ .vI ?- *"3 52.=r ___. __ 3-F SUte of
*lace»ofob *S . 2.? 3~E ?? the Of
Place* of Ob »» o 2.~J §~i 2=- , fc
serration. jt. : sij ?*? 3=■ weather
"-_. : ''2-i : g.l : £
Olympla 501J55 S. K. Light. Clear
Portland.... _O._WU» N. W. Unfit Clear
aooebur.'. 30.1 -.76 X 6 Fresh . Fair
Bad Bluff... 1.887 K. It H'r.sh . .03 Wear
Sa.-ran_>--_i--> 20.82173 X.W. 8 Fresh Clear
8. Francis r. H1. 87.63 W. Light Clear
V-Haiia. ... ». 79(78 X.W Light Clear
ins Angeles. -_S.-M|Bo X. __ 9 Fresh Clear
Br.', Diego., gjglg - W. 6 Fresh. r _____
Maximum temperature, 80 ; minimum, 63.
River above '--.water mark, -" ft. 8 in.
JAMES A. BAKWICK,
Sergeant, Signal Ccr r s, 0. aA.
SECOND EDITION.
A second edition of the Baooaa-Umn is issued
orach day at _ r. a. bringing the Eastern and coast
ews up to tha*. hour. By this arrangement the
Raooap- -7mon will present the latest news obtain
•Meats points east and north of Sacramento.
The regular morning edition of the 1;..r. „ UaiOH
is carried by morning trains, and is ahead of all
competitors as far north as Chico, on the California
and Oregon _'.- road; west to l-ciricia, and south to
Stockton, and east to Colfax, Poteom and Placer
rtlle ar.d all intermediate places. The second edition
-natter wili be found each day upon the third pvc.
THE WEEKLY UNION
la a paper of special value. It is isMicd in semi,
weekly parts, each of eight pages, and appears
Wednesdays and Saturdays. It is thus the freshest
weekly paper oo the coast, and the only one Which
goes out to its readers twice a weak. The family,
the farm, the miner's camp, the country home, can
have no more thoroughly valuable journal than the
Wkkklt U.n ion, and for these reasons: It is a c .m
--plete news and home paper ; it is a reliable business
journal ; it is ft fearless and Impartial critic ; it is
thoroughly devoted to the best interests of the State
and the people ; It is constant in its information
upon art, mechanics, agriculture, horticulture, min
ing, viticulture, education, popular science, market
reports, etc., and is unsurpassed for its news facili
ties, availing as it doe* of the best telegraphic and
other news gathering mediums of the world. It is
chaste in character, elevated in tone, scholarly in
diction, and clear, logical and unmistakable in its
criticisms and editorials. It is mailed to any ad
dress for $2 60 |.cr jeir.
THIS MORNING'S NEWS.
Tin New York Government bonds are quoted at
.31; for 4s of 1907; 115} fur 4Js; 101, for 3Js;
- sterling, M -- .', 90} ; silver bars, 114$.
Sliver in London, 62Jd ; consols, 102 1-I6d ; 5 per
cent. United States bonds, extended, 104 ; Is, 123 ;
Us, lie.
In Sa i Francisco half dol'ar* are quoted at _ dis
count to par ; Mexican dollars, .1 \;a'yi cents.
Mining stocks were fairly active in San Francisco
•yesterday morning, and there was a small improv...
meut in prices for some descriptions, especially for
the north-end (.'r.m-tvKks. The middle and some of
- the south-end Comstocks were scarcely as firm as
Thursday. The outside stocks are generally weak.
A residence and barn were destroyed by fire near
Auburn, Placer county, yesterday.
Edward M. Kelly, who was to have been hanged
at SanU Fe, N. M., yesterday, has been respited by
the President until June 23d.
W. W. Kea, sentenced to be hanged, attempted
to commit suicide at Pulaski, Term., yesterday, with
morphine.
At EdwardjvEle, 111., six boys were injured by a
fag fit rope performer falling on them.
In the British 11 -ruse of Commons yesterday the
repression bill passed to a second reading by 353
to 45.
A fire at Leadville. Col., yesterday, destroyed $200,
--000 worth of property, and caused the death of one
person.
V. Lopez, aged 14, was dragged to death by a
horse in San Becito county Thursday.
The will of the late ex-Governor Washburne be
queaths $50,000 tor a public library at La Crosse,
Wis., and {375,000 for an orphan asylum at Minne
apolis, Mi.
The P.-e-byterian General Assembly, in session at
Springfield, 11. , has selected Saratoga as the place
f 5 its next meeting.
During the pajt ten days 124 business failures
occurred in the United States— an increase of
■even over last week.
At Syracuse, N. V., Miss Holmes has been found
■not guilty of murder.
Fourteen hundred emigrants from Bremen ar
rived at Baltimore yesterday, and left for the North
.west.
Serious riots have broken out among the peasants
in southwest Russia. .:■■•:.;
Senator Williams and Representative Blackburn
have settled their differences in a mutually satis
factory manner.
The outlook at the Mescalero Indian Agency con
tinues to grow more serious, and an outbreak is
almost certain to occur.
At Fort Madison, la., yesterday. Poke Wells and
Cook, who kiPed a jail guard, were found guilty of
murder in the first degree.
Miss Zoe Watkina has disappeared at St. Louis,
and nothing can be learned of her whereabouts.
Augustus D. Leighton was hanged at New York
yesterday for the murder of Mary Dean, his mis
tioss.
The steamer Manitonlln has been burned on Lake
Superior, and a mac and little girl perished.
The " Black Division" of the Nihilists in Russia
have amalgamated with the "Will of the People "
section.
A Are at Lyons, France, caused a Ices of £.800,000.
Maurice Penilon has been found guilty at Nevada
City of the murder of A. G. Radda, and will be im
prisoned for life.
A little boy was run over by a Mission-street car
in San Francisco yesterday, and was dangerously
-injured.
Senator Farley will soon introduce a bill for a new
- public building at Sacramento.
Mrs. L. B. Elliott, SI yeara old, died suddenly at
-Onco yesterday.
Golden, a Libera l , has been elected to the late
lord Cavendish's seat in Parliament.
A mile and ;. sixteenth was run at Louisville yes
terday in 1:482 — the beat time on record by IJ sec
onds.
G-dteau is out with another " note of warning."
Henry Ramp hanged himself in bis barn yesterday
- near Genoa, Nev.
Efforts are to be made to recover the wreck of the
i steamer Brother Jonathan, lost seventeen years ago
.in Uie Oregon coast.
A woman died at Sandwich, 111., yesterday, after
a voluntary fast of four weeks.
The Mexican National Railway is completed 100
miles beyond Laredo, Texas.
Stephen G. Effiter was executed at Marion, N. C.,
yesterday-, for the murder of his wife.
The cereals of four provinces of Spain threaten to
'be a failure.
Major .loh.i Boedon, the oldest Mason in Michi
gan, died yesterday at Marquette.
Mrs. Sprague has. been allowed to. remove her
valuable wardrobe from Canonchct.
Upon the second page of this morning's Record-
I.SION will be found the nineteen. li " Agricultural
Taper" and tte departments of "The Quiet Hour"
and " The Household." The third page contains an
interesting story, fashion notes, and a portrait of
-George Otto Trevelyan, the new Chief Secretary for
-' i v-land. A letter from our regular New York cor.
.-respondent and other matters are given on the sixth
- pace, while upon the seventh will be found the de
! partment of " Agriculture," poetry, and the weekly
review of the San Francisco market.
Go raox home to hear news. The Boston Globe
says many " Chinamen are going East from San
Francisco, because the latter place is too hot to hold
them." No one here will put any impediment in
the way of any Chinese that wish to go East.
Titbv want cats in New Zealand to catch the rab
bits that are fairly eating up the land. This section
can accommodate the New Zealanders with all the
eat*, needed, and they have the thanks of the public,
also, for their removal.
Ti.krf. is great difficulty in aecuring sailors for the
i United Slates Navy. When the Iroquois left Mare
i Island last week she van short her full complement,
and thoee she bad to take were what is termed " a
. crew'of haymakers."
It would, perhaps, bo just as well (or the man
ahi wrote of the viitucsand beauties and benefits
of the north wind not to put in an appearance in
train Section until after the thing has blown over.
THE ENCOURAGEMENT OF ART.
There is in Sacramento an art society
which, after three years of experiment, is
about to take measures for establishing
itself permanently, and which deserves
mention both for what it is doing and for
what it may do. It is called the Bric-a-
Brae Club, and was organized as an am
ateur association for the facilitation and
encouragement of art culture. The artists
of the city became members of it, and it
numbered a great many really meritorious
and painstaking art-students. At short
intervals this club held reunions, at which
the work done since the last meeting was
exhibited and discussed and criticised, ami
at which general social intercourse was
embellished by the musical and literary
accomplishments cf its members. These
meetings have hitherto been held at the
houses of citizens, and they have been in
strumental in promoting sociability and in
stimulating art enthusiasm. At length,
however, it has been felt that the club
ought to have some definite headquarters,
and so it has been proposed to give two
entertainments at the theater, for the pur
pose of assisting in this arrangement. The
Bric-a-Brac Club has done much good in a
quiet way hitherto, but its most important
work has consisted in the demonstration
made by it of what can be accomplished
through organization and perseverance in
this direction. If, however, it were to
content itself with the position it has al
ready reached, it certainly would not have
lived up to its opportunities, and to the
end that it may not fall short of the possi
bilities within it reach, we propose to offer
a few suggestions for its benefit.
There is in England an association known
as "The Art Union of London." It was
established forty-five years ago, as its an
nual report states, "to promote the knowl
" edge and love of the Fine Arts, and
"their general advancement in the British
"Empire, by a wide diffusion of works of
" native artists ; and to elevate Art and to
" encourage its Professors, by creating an
"increased demand for their works, and
"an improved taste on the part of the
"public." This is a very noble and com
mendable programme, and it is one which
the Bric-a-Brac Club might very well
adopt as their own. The London Art
Union proceeds on the following plan.
Whoever subscribes one guinea (say five
dollars) becomes a member for one year.
Every subscriber is entitled (1) to an im
pression of one or more engravings pre
pared exclusively for the Society ; and (2)
to a chance in a drawing by which a large
number of prizes, consisting of works of
art, are distributed among the members
annually. The prizes include the right to
select some work of art from the value of
fifty dollars to one thousand dollars or
more, from one of the public exhibitions of
the current year ; the said exhibitions con
sisting of paintings, engravings, statuary,
and various kinds of work in marble, por
celain, bronze, iron, etc., all produced ex
pressly for distribution as prizes. The
subscriptions are devoted to the purchase
of these works of art, after reserving two
and a half per cecc. to form a fund for the
purpose of procuring a gallery and other
wise advancing the objects of the Associa
tion.
To give a clearer idea of the arrange
ments of the Art-Union, we will sum
marize the programme for last year. The
subscriptions for I SSO amounted to about
$00,000. Of this amount $16,000 was to
be expended in prizes, not counting the
presentation work, which was a very costly
one. In ISSI it consisted of engravings of
Mr. Friths celebrated Hogarthian series
entitled The Road to Ruin.' There
were five of these engravings in the series,
and thus every subscriber to the Art-Union
obtained, for five dollars, a series of splen
did engravings, besides the chance of win
ning one of 547 works of art. ranging in
value from a t_°2oo painting to a silver medal,
but each and all real works of art, selected
by a council of renowned artists and connois
seurs. The popularity of this enterprise
is attested by its wonderful vogue. The
London Art-Union has subscribers in the
very ends of the earth. In 18S1 it received
no fewer than 230 subscriptions from South
Australia alone, while a Sydney member
carried off the §750 prize in the same year.
And it has been of incalculable benefit to
art in England and indeed all over the
world. It has in fact fairly created a taste
for art where it had no existence before,
and, as the last report states, "it may be
" asserted, without room for contradiction,
" that amongst the masses of English art
" ists now most esteemed by rightly judging
"people, a very largenumberareindebted, in
" a greater or less degree, to the Art-Union
"of London, for welcome aid, when first
"struggling on the lower rounds of the
" temple of fame — and not by a few this
" fact is often frankly acknowledged."
Now what the Art-Union of London has
done for English Art, it is we think pos
sible for the Bric-a-Brac Club to do for
California Art, by moving on the same
lines. A State Art-Union might with
entire consistency be organized at the capi
tal of the State, and by inviting subscriptions
for the purchase of native art works, to be
distributed annually among the subscribers,
interest in the undertaking would be sus
tained, native art would be encouraged,
and the public taste at the same time be
cultivated. It would doubtless be neces
sary to modify the Art-Union programme
so far as to omit the annual presentation
engraving, but every other detail could
be followed without change. All works of
art could properly be eluded in the prize
hat : Painting, both oil and water colors ;
drawing, in pencil, chalk, sepia, etc.;
plaque and screen painting and China
painting, embroidery and decorative art
work of every description, would
naturally be included. In this way
a distinct and effective encouragement
could be given to native talent,
and a State pride would speedily
be begotten which would ultimately tend
to attract the influence of our wealthy
men more and' more toward local art
enterprise. The scheme which we here
propose affords a nucleus for a California
Art School which will not be provincial,
but which will draw out whatever of real
talent and ability the State can furnish,
and create a home market for the products
of this talent. And this noble and impor
tant enterprise really seems to be made for
the Bric-a-Brac Club to undertake. That
organization has already almost worked
out the somewhat narrow field it originally
proposed to occupy. It has proved stronger
than it at first appeared. It has shown
itself capable of earnest work. We believe
that it can undertake the scheme we have
suggested, and carry it out successfully.
It certainly has a much brighter horizon
before it than the London Art Union had
forty-five years ago. And if the club is
prepared to accept this important and be
neficent mission, we will take an early
opportunity of following up this initial
suggestion with some others which may
tend to extend the influence of the Associ
ation, and also to popularize it.
FREE TRADE "BOURSONISM "
A San Francisco journal which some
times discusses Free Trade without com
prehending it, has made a remarkable dis
covery, namely, that "outside of the
" schools the chief advocacy of Free Trade
" comes from the Bourbons of the press
" and of Congress." Most people probably
did not know before that the New York
Nation, Times, Evening Post, the Chicago
Tribune, the Boston Advertiser, the Cincin
nati Gazette, and many other journals of
supposed liberal and advanced views,
represented the "Bjurbonism" of the press.
Our contemporary, however, has made this
discovery, and at the same time has ascer
tained to its own satisfaction that Adam
Smith, Ricardo, .John Stuart Mill, Profess
or Fawcett, McCulloch, Professor Sumner,
David A. Wells, and company, are old
fogies, and obsolete "doctrinarians," and
that Hen Butler, Henry Carey, and such
distinguished economists, are the only re
liable lights in this connection. Our con
temporary, however, fairly overflows with
wonderful discoveries. Here is another
first-class " find." "In school and at col
" lege nearly everyone who has any posi
tive opinions on the subject is a free
"trader, while in the busy world
" outside almost everyone who has
" acquired a practical knowledge
" bearing on economic questions and is not
personally interested in foreign commerce
" may be set down as a protectionist."
This is singular, if true. But is it
true ': At school and in college it is usually
sought to instill correct principles. These
principles are necessarily based upon ac
tual experience. Neither Adam Smith nor
John Stuart Mill evolved their conclusions
from their imaginations. They first ascer
tained the facts, and then drew their in
ferences from them. Political economy
does not consist of abstract propositions,"
as our contemporary appears to suppose.
If, therefore, free trade principles are of a
character to appeal with irresistible force
to the unbiased mind, it must be because
their demonstration is convincing. And it
would be amazing indeed if the student
whose opinion had been formed by close
observation of actual phenomena should
on going into the world find that these
phenomena were somehow entirely different
from their former appearance. In truth,
however, the student finds no such change.
Every intelligent man who has been well
grounded in economic principles is and re
mains an advocate of free trade. Every
unprejudiced and educated man must
be an advocate of free trade. For what is
the converse of such a position ? Obvi
ously, a belief in hampered and restricted
trade. Is that an " advanced " view . Is
that a view of which an intelligent repub
lican need not be ashamed ? Is the propo
sition that it is better to fetter trade than
to have it free, a rational and an enlight
ened one ? Tbe fact is that Protection is
Bourbon to the core. It is on the same in
tellectual plane with religious intolerance,
with press censorship, with sumptuary
laws, with slavery. And any advocate of
that medieval policy who is simple enough,
like our contemporary, to admit that
'• in school and in college nearly every one
" is a free trader," thereby gives away the
whole of his case. Protection is a system
by which the few are enabled to rob the
many, by first deceiving them. It has no
economic justification and no moral de
fense. It will last no longer than the
period necessary to educate the American
people to a full perception of the manner
in which they are plundered and oppressed
under it.
PENDLETON'S REPORT.
Senator Pendleton's report on the Civi'
Service bill presents the salient facta o'
the case with commendable clearness and
force. And every man who has any ac
quaintance with politics knows that the
impeachment of the existing system is ab
solutely true in every particular. It is
true that the spoils system has had, among
other sinister results, the effect of degrad
ing the Presidential office, and of compell
ing whoever fills it to spend his time in
reviewing the claims of candidates, and in
deciding between rival claimants, and in
hearing the statements of Congressmen
about their friends for whom they want
office. In short, the office has been changed,
and, as Senator Pendleton points out, the
enormous expansion of the Civil Service has
increased and intensified these changes,
until to-day the President is anything but
the officer contemplated under the Consti
tution. It is clear that unless this situa
tion is altered and reformed the whole
Government must become corrupted and
demoralized. In fact it has already suf
fered these evil modifications to a great
extent. The spoils system has, however,
demoralized Congress quite as much as the
Executive, and Mr. Pendleton might have
found arguments close at hand for the
changes which he co ably advocates. It is
unfortunately not at all probable that the
present Congress will pass the Civil Service
reform bilL It will not pass it unless it
has reason to believe that it will remain a
dead letter. For it has been tested on
that issue, and it has already gone over to
the side of the spoils system. Neverthe
less, Mr. Pendleton will not, it is to be
hoped, take his hand from the plow. Pub
lic sentiment on this issue is growing more
definite continually. The American peo
ple will not much longer support or tolerate
politicans who employ platforms only as
"molasses to catch flies." It is even pos
sible that by 18S4 the country will be ripe
for the presentation of Civil Service reform
as a positive isßue, and when the time
comes the spoils system will be abolished
at one blow.
SPAIN AND EUROPEAN AFFAIRS.
It is said that Spain contemplates the
possibility of an active policy in regard to
Northern Africa, in the event of a spread
of the Moslem fanaticism which has been
inflamed by the French course in Tunis.
There is some apprehension that the inter
vention of France in Egypt may be
seized upon by the Mussulmans as an
excuse for a general uprising, in which
event Spain thinks her opportunity will
consist. Three hundred years ago the
ideas and intentions of Spain upon a ques
tion of this kind wonld have been of the
first importance to all Europe, but now it
does not add anything to our belief in
her ability to be told that she has an army
of 130,000 men. For it is a long time
since Spanish armies have done anything
at all remarkable, outside of their speed
record. They have run away scores of
times. They have deserted their allies
with every circumstance of poltroonery and
shame. They have established a notori
ety for preposterous braggadocio and actual
cowardice. All their valor has been ex
pended in tumults and insurrections. In
stead of destroying the enemy they have
generally preferred to murder their own
officers and to plunder their own country
men. It is true that the Moors also have
degenerated, and that they no longer
resemble the martial race that swept
Spain from the sea to the mountains in
former days. But then they had to con
tend with a warlike people, and now they
would have to encounter a nation of
empty boasters and feeble fighters. We
do not think that a modern Spanish army
is greatly to be relied on or greatly to be
feared by any power. If such an army
undertakes active operations in Africa, it
is very likely to be dispersed in the first
battle, no matter who or what its antago
nists are. And neither Bismarck nor the
Pope can put into the superstition-ridden
and emasculated Spanish nation the vigor
and pith which centuries of bigotry and
priestly tyranny have deprived it of.
A NEW EXPERIMENT.
One of the provisions in the new Repres
sion bill authorizes the infliction of heavy
fines, in the shape of compensation, upon
districts in which outrages have occurred,
and the perpetrators are shielded by the
people. This is an experiment which has
sometimes been tried in war times with
particularly good effect, and it seems quite
possible that it may serve the same pur
pose in Ireland. The sympathy of the
people with the most detestable and cow
ardly criminals has just been assumed by
Mr. Dillon, in contradiction ot Mr. Glad
stone's theory that the shielding of these
brutes was due to intimidation. Certainly
Mr. Gladstone's view is very much the
least discreditable to the Irish people, for
whereas if they are terrorized it is
possible to believe them not in sym
pathy with the outrages, on the other
hypothesis they must be supposed to be
as ferocious, cruel and treacherous as the
ruffians they shelter. In either case, how
ever, the fining of a district given over to
outrages is calculated to do good, for if the
whole population are in sympathy with the
criminals they ought to share the penalties of
the outrages; andif they arenot in sympathy
with the outrages they will be moved to
assist justice in laying hold upon the actual
wrongdoers. It is also possible that if as.
Bassination and mutilation and the other
atrocities which are so frequent in Ireland,
are made very expensive to all concerned,
they will be looked upon less complacently
by the Irish people generally. The experi
ment seems well worth trying, in any
event, and if Dillon is right it cannot be
complained of as unjust in principle.
THE MESCALERO APACHES.
The Agent of the Mescalero Apaches
writes to the Department of the Interior
that since Congress has failed to make
appropriations for subsisting them it will be
prudent to transfer them to the War
Department, inasmuch as their provisions
will be exhausted by July Ist, and as they
have no means of supporting themselves
it will then be impossible to keep them
on the reservation. Starvation being their
only prospect under the existing circum
stances, the Agent thinks that troops
should be detailed to make them starve
quietly, for as he sensibly remarks " noth
"ing short of fear can compel them to
"remain on the reservation and starve."
And now if Congress, as usual, fails to do
anything in the premises, and these In
dians, finding themselves doomed to star
vation, break out of the reservation and
go to plundering to subsist themselves,
we have no doubt it will be said that their
conduct is a fresh proof of the incorrigible
nature of the "red devils," and that it
shows the necessity of shooting them all.
If Congress means to kill them it would be
much more " practical" to have them shot
down while they are on the reservation.
In that case they would have taken no
lives and destroyed no property. As it
is, however, the Agent's sarcastic appeal
will probably produce no effect, and when
the provisions are exhausted the Mesca
lero Apaches will go on the warpath in
accordance with immemorial custom.
That is the way we govern the Indians.
It is surprising that we should ever have
any trouble with them.
SACRIFICING SUBSTANCE FOR SHADOW.
Bismarck appears to have been sacrificing
substance for shadow of late years in a
very surprising and indeed lamentable
way. In order to obtain the means of
forcing upon Germany a number of bad and
mischievous domestic measures he has
abandoned all his gains in the struggle
with the Vatican, and has allowed the
Pope to secure an attitude of dominance
over the State. His submission to Rome
has been complete and unconditional. He
has surrendered everything, and he has
received nothing in return. And all this
enormous and dangerous sacrifice to the
end that the internal condition of the
Empire might be made very much worse
than before. Never in fact did a really
great man labor so hard to undo the best
work of his own most useful years. Had
Bismarck died in 1671 he would have been
his country's greatest hero for centuries to
to come. But ever since the consolidation
of the Empire was achieved he seems to
have been laboring to produce a state of
affairs actually incompatible with its cohe
sion after his death. lis mania for paternal
government, in fact, is very plainly sowing
the seeds of a revolutionary spirit whose
ultimate explosion may reduce Germany
once more into fragments.
MELVILLE AND THE SENATE.
The Senate has indefinitely postponed a
resolution of thanks proposed for Melville,
late Chief Engineer of the Jeannette. Of
course this action is under the circum
stances almost equivalent to an impeach
ment of Melville, and it is therefore the
more necessary to inquire upon what
grounds it was taken. The presumption is
that the Senate has done this thing on the
etrength of a rumor to the effect that
Melville did not show sufficient energy in
prosecuting the search for De Long and his
party. Such a charge has been made, but
so far as we are aware it rests upon no
sufficient foundation. Melville, it appears
from his letters, was satisfied that De Long
and his companions had perished soon
after the two messengers from the De Long
party came in. It is a fair presumption
that in coming to this conclusion he was
guided by knowledge which fully justified
him in it. Certainly the facts themselves
prove that his belief was well founded, for
it is now certain that De Long and his
party must have been dead when the two
messengers arrived, or very soon thereafter.
Melville was on the ground, and knew
what could and what could not be done.
There is no reason to suspect him of faint
heartedness or lack of energy, in fact, and
the action of the United States Senate in
thus casting public reproach upon a brave
officer who has just gone through great
hardships in the service of his country, is
ill calculated to increase the efficiency or
the enthusiasm of the navy, or to make
posts of danger welcome to the members
of that branch of the service.
THE IRISH EVICTIONS.
The Parnellites are complaining that
evictions are still proceeding, and that they
are hardening the hearts of the Irish
people against the Government, and mak*
ing them cease to regret the Dublin assas
sinations. Of course the Parnellites would
be very sorry if their countrymen should
cease to regret those crimes ; but if they
are sincere in their desire to prevent this,
why do they so act in Parliament as to
hinder the passage of the measure which
would put a stop to the evictions ? The
Arrears of Rent bill is the measure to which
we refer. It cannot be approached until
the Repression bill has been acted upon.
The Repression bill is not aimed at law
abiding citizens, but at criminals. Its
avowed and undoubted purpose is to re
store order and protection for life and
property, to Ireland. Why should the
Parnellites attack and oppose such a law,
and speak of it as though it were in some
way an outrage upon the Irish people?
They must see, with the rest of the
world, that the present state of affairs in
that country is intolerable. The statistics
of outrages published a few days ago were
enough to appal any one. No country
which permits such a flood of crime to
sweep over it can hope to prosper, and
the most astonishing feature of the
case is that whatever measures are
proposed to put a stop to this anarchy are
instantly denounced as injuries. It might
be thought that the Parnellites wished to
maintain the existing condition of things,
if they did not declare that they deplore
it. But since they deplore it, why do they
not help the Government to put down
crime with the strong hand? Why do
they take the part of obstructionists, and
thus really keep up the agitation which
issues in these murders and outrages !
They say the Repression Act is severe and
stringent. Well, is it not about time for
the Government to introduce severe and
stringent measures when the law is set at
niught, when a list of between fourteen
and fifteen hundred outrages in less than a
twelvemonth has just been capped by a
double assassination almost without a
parallel for atrocity ? The fact is that the
complaints against Coercion and Repres
sion Acts are becoming preposterous in
view of the actual condition of Ireland,
and the position of Parnell and his follow
ers is rendered anomalous and irrational
by the glaring contrast between their pro
fessions and their practice.
PROCEEDING MORE CAUTIOUSLY.
Secretary Teller now states that .he does
not propose a general and simultaneous dis
armament of the Indians, but that he
intends to get their arms from them little
by little, as opportunity presents. This is
a much more prudent resolve than his first
one, for there are not enough troops in the
United States to disarm all the Indians at
once, and the only effect of such an experi
ment would probably be to create a demand
for a new army. If, however, the Indians
can be talked into surrendering their arms,
so that they do it cheerfully, that is quite
another question. It is true that there
may be some doubts as to the persuasive
powers of the Indian Agents in such a
cause, but no harm can come from making
the attempt. And if the Secretary has
fresh occupations of a peaceful nature ready
for the disarmed Indians, as he suggests,
the experiment can be carried a step
further. We confess we have little confi
dence in its results, partly because we
think the Indians are not at all likely to
see the point of the new policy, and partly
because even if they could be induced to
give up the arms they have now, no guar
antee could be had that they would not
procure other weapons as soon as they
wanted them. In fact the disarming
project appears to us to indicate on the
part of Mr. Teller a very vague and un
trustworthy view of Indian character ; a
view suggestive rather of Secretary Hunt's
ideas on nautical matters than the well
considered conclusions of a Secretary hav
ing personal experience of such matters.
«>—
THE GREENBACKERS.
It seems that there are still some Green
backers in Pennsylvania, and that they
think themselves strong enough to put up
a State ticket. One sign of their weak
ness, however, consists in their introduc
tion of a number of other issues of a hetero
geneous character, partly anti-monopolist
and partly protectionist. It is possible
that they may muster enough votes to add
another element of uncertainty to the
coming campaign, which is already trian
gular, and which they wish to make quad
rangular. That their numbers will be
smaller than at the last election is to be
presumed, since the spread of knowledge
is continually extinguishing in some minds
the fallacies upon which such parties sub
sist. It is not to be expected that the kind
of people who naturally take to Green
backism will become extinct for a long
time, however. There will always be a
certain small percentage of perverse and
half-opened mentalities which are inca
pable of seeing things straight, and which
can be relied upon to take the wrong side
of every issue. The fact tbat there has
ceased to be any excuse for the survival
of Greenbackism is not sufficient
to send these people back to the ranks of
commonsenße. The truth is that they have
no affinity for what Carlyle used to call
"the Eternal Verities. They are intel
lectual "cranks," and snch they will re
main to the end, in all probability. They
will go on supporting obsolete delusions
and wornout fallacies with a certain grim
enthusiasm, and when all the world has left
them far behind they will continue to hold
meetings and pass resolutions, and believe
that they alone have the truth with them,
and that the masses of men are wed
ded to error. It ia not worth while to
try to enlighten this class of people, for
they are of those who, according to the
scriptures, cannot be separated from their
folly even by grinding them in a mortar ; a
process, it is scarcely necessary to say, far
too harsh and uncompromising ever to be
seriously thought of in the land of the free
and the home of the brave.
» » - —^—^— —
AN INSTRUCTIVE EXAMPLE
All history teaches that power is sure to
be abused if unchecked, and that weakness
is sure to be oppressed, if not protected.
Nor does the acceptance of democratic doc
trines by a people predispose them any
more to magnanimity or equity. Republi
can institutions are not more effective than
1 monarchical in modifying the natural
tendency to crush the feeble which is a
manifestation of those primordial laws on
the inexorable working of which depends
the survival of the fittest. A case in point
has recently occurred. The Senate Rail
road Committee has reported on a bill to
incorporate the Cherokee Central Railroad
and Telegraph Company, and it appears
from the report that it is not proposed to
ask the permission of the Indians, through
whose lands the projected road is to be
carried. If it were contemplated to put a
road through land owned by white citi
zens, as a matter of course arbitration and
compensation would be provided for where
condemnation was necessary. But with
Indians the case is different. It is
not thought necessary to treat them
as if they had any rights. The
bill referred to merely authorizes
the Indian local authorities "to have ju
risdiction for the proper protection of
" their nations or citizens from loss or
" damage sustained by them in consequence
of any unauthorized actions or doings of
"the company," and the report thinks
that in view of this provision the Indian
authorities "cannot reasonably withhold
" their approval of the right of way grant
"cd by the bill to said company." But
if the Indians should regard the
matter from a different standpoint, then,
say the committee, " their action would
"be regarded in no other light than an
"unreasonable obstruction to the imperative
" demands of the co-nmerce of the coun
" try ;" which is to say, that in that case
the road will be built in spite of the oppo
sition of the Indians. Now what is par
ticularly interesting about this whole
matter is, that nothing is said of offering
to compensate the Indians for the proposed
invasion of their territory. It is beyond
question that such an invasion will be a
flagrant violation of treaty rights, and in
fact an outrage such as Congress would not
dare to offer to a foreign power. But the
Indians are treated precisely as though
they bad no rights which a white man was
bound to respect ; as if, in short, it were
preferable to insult and rob and injure
them than to treat them fairly. There is
no reason to suppose that they would offer
any resistance to the projected railroad if
they were approached properly, and given
a fair compensation, but it appears deter
mined that they shall not be compensated,
and that their rights shall be trampled
under foot in the most wanton way. It
is really a difficult thing to believe that a
Congressional Committee capable of making
so nefarious a proposition as this can be
composed of honest men.
IGNATIEFF AND THE JEWS.
Why General lgnatieff should have set
bis diplomatic heart so strongly upon the
| expulsion of the Jews from Russia is a
< question not easily answered. Clearly,
! however, he considered that measure neces
i sary to the success of his domestic policy,
< and having been defeated by the Ministry
upon it he has become sulky, and it is now
said contemplates resignation. The Min
isters who refused to agree to the expulsion
of the Jews based their action upon the
loss involved to tbe State in the enforce
ment of such a policy. They say that
Russia has already incurred damages
amounting to over §100,000,000 through
the persecution of the Jews, and that to
drive them all out of the country would
come near to bankrupting the latter. It is
possible that this is one of the results
lgnatieff desires to bring about. Or
perhaps his main object is to flatter
] the peasants by seeming to concede
their prejudiced demands. lgnatieff
has been charged with the evo
lution of a domestic policy which
should produce peace and safety from the
Nihilists, and he appears to have thought
from the first that it was prudent to de
liver the Jews up to the populace as scape
goats for th: Court and the Czar. As,
however, the persecution of the Jews has
not had the effect of quieting the Nihilists
or making the coronation of the Czar a
i safe proceeding, the new programme is in
a great measure discredited, and the Min
istry probably, not believing greatly in
lgnatieff, were glad of an opportunity to
check him. Certainly he has not been at
all successful thus far, and want of success
at such a crisis must soon lead to disgrace,
so that his proposed resignation may be
little more than an attempt to anticipate
dismissal. The Russian statesman who
can restore order to the empire, and put
down Nihilism, has not yet been found.
COMPULSORY RETIREMENTS.
The veteran army officers are greatly
disturbed by the bill to compel them to
retire from the service after a certain age,
but sufficient attention has hardly been
given to the ludicrous feature of this busi
ness. General Sherman was at first
strongly in favor of the bill, which he re
garded as calculated to brighten up the
army wonderfully by clearing it of fossils.
But after he had arranged at Washington
to support it with all the influence he could
bring to bear, and when he had started on
a Western tour, the startling intelligence
reached him that if it was passed he him
self would have to retire under its pro
visions, and also General Sheridan. Sher
man lost no time in dispatching orders to
have the bill "hungup" until he could
get back to Washington, and now it is
understood that he is exerting himself to
have it modified so as to exempt himself
and Sheridan from its operation. The
younger officers are of course in favor of
it, and as it would apply only to men who
have long since ceased to be fit for active
service, and are consequently only ob
strutting the path of the active officers) it
is probably in the interest of army effi
ciency, and should pass.
WAITING FOR THE END.
It is said that there is great curiosity to
see the execution of Guiteau. Perhaps
the curiosity-seekers had better restrain
themselves until the Supreme Court of
the District of Columbia has decided
whether or not the assassin shall have a
new trial. But supposing that the posi
tions of his counsel are not indorsed by
the Court, it will still be desirable thatGuit
eau's execution should partake as little as
possible of the character of a spectacle.
We are glad to know that the laws of the
District prohibit all display on snch occa
sions, and that visitors cannot be admitted
to the jail to witness the execution. . He
should be hanged as quietly as possible,
that his detestable vanity may derive no
consolation from the last scene, and also
that the fools who seek such morbid grati
fication may for once be disappointed.
THE TARIFF COMMISSION.
The President is greatly worried by ap
plications for appointment on the Tariff
Commission. Every great protected inter
est wants representation upon it. and none
of them are willing to have any economist
of reputation appointed. The Massachu
setts protectionists object to Edward At
kinson, of Boston, whose name has been
suggested. Mr. Atkinson is a Free Trader,
ami one of thu best informed statisticians
and political economists in the country.
That is not the class of men wanted on the
Commission. Such men cannot be cajoled
nor bullied into making reports in favor of
protection. If the President listens to his
present advisers he will have a Commission
which will not even do the protectionists
any good ; it will be so palpably their own
creature.
A PROPER FINDING.
We are glad that the mean Marseillaise
who tried to take from the ex-Empress
Eugenic a chateau which they had pre
sented to her have been signally defeated
in the Courts, and that they have also
been condemned to pay all the costs of
the proceedings. It was a base and
shameful act on their part, and a cutting
satire on French chivalry. A community
capable of trying to rob a widow who has
suffered such afflictions as have befallen
that poor lady, deserves the execration and
contempt of the civilized world, and this
the municipality of Marseilles has earned,
in addition to the bill of costs, which we
hope will be a heavy one.
PASSENGER LISTS.
Carlin, May 19th. — Passed here to-day, to
arrive in Sacramento to-morrow : W. J.
Sutherland. Oakland ; H. C. Humphrey,
.laud, Or : H. M. Hollscher, Chicago ;
Mr. and Mrs. Edward Beers, Miss Beers, O.
H. Husted, Brooklyn, N. V.; Lloyd Tevis,
Mrs. J. H. Worthington, Mark T. Miller.
Mrs. D. Gillmore, San Francisco ; Gustave
Billing, Denver, Col ; A. E. Averett, wife
and daughter, Soledad, Cal.; H. J. Derby
and wife. East Oakland ; Mrs. W. H. Kee
land and child, Milwaukee ; S. B. Smith,
John Abendroth, Mrs. A. E. Haydock, Mel
ville De Landon and wife, W. J. Moore and
wife, W. A. Peckham and wife, H. W.
Knight, Mertz Barlech, J. A. Gorrea, Frank
King, Mr. and Mrs. G. G. Bernard and
child. New York ; Alfred Lafargue, Palis ;
Captain and Mis. F. G. Blair, England; A.
0. F.arle, Philadelphia ; I. Cockshutr, On
tario ; Mrs. E. J. Robioson, Salt Lake ;
Mrs. D. E. Wedd._ll, Chicago ; Mrs. Mont
gomery, Laramie ; Harry Daltoo, England ;
W. S. Greene and wife, Miss A. E. H.
Greene, Michigan ; E. C. Swett, Portland,
Me.; Mrs. H. E. Pratt, Indiana ; L. A.
Goldberg, Nashville, Term. ; Miss Rosa
Smith, and the Posen Company, consisting
of M. B. Curtis and wife, J. N. Long, Miss
Carrie Wyatt, San Francisco ; E. C. Swett,
Portland, Me.; H. Dalton, :H. Ey tinge,
Charles Rof-ene, W. H. Kiddell, Miss Josie
Wilmere, Mrs. T. Drenhacn Rouse, Albena
Da M«r. New York ; John Armstrong, Bos
ton ; 80 emigrant passengers, including 65
males, to arrive in Sacramento May 21st.
Newhall, May lf>th.— Passed here to-day
to arrive in San Francisco to-morrow : Miss
Ruby Tilton, dan Luis Obispo ; Miss May
Bennett, San Bernardino ; H B. Lamotte,
El Paso ; Mrs. T. M Young. Mrs. A. F.
Nye, San Francisco ; Mra. £>. E. Bnell,
Phoenix. A. T ; O. U. Stafford, Cleveland,
O ; Dr. L. J. Towusend, San Francisco ; M.
C. H. Peters and wife, Lancaster, U.; I).
J. Hodge and wife, Cleveland, O : D. R.
Paine, Milwaukee, Wis.; J. W. Ramsey,
Chicago; W. R. Bernhart, St. Louia; W.
L. Perkins and wife, Mabel D. Perkins, St.
Paul, Minn ; Mrs. O. D Gibba, Miss Mary
P. Gibbs. Miss Mattie P. Gibbs, Dr. Charles
Blackburn, San Franciaco ; C. D. Lane,'
Idaho ; J. J. Paine, San Bernardino; T. C.
.Indd, Oven Williams, F. Wisher, W. Harn
ley, C. Dongrey, Oakland ; G. S. lliller. San
Francisco ; A. Livermore, Concord ; Miss
Julia Holden, Los Angelas ; I. R. Bard and
wife, Hueneme.
Omaha, May 19.0.— Left here to-day, to
arrive in Sacramento May '.'3d : J. T. Ann
ley and wife, A. Booth, Chicago ; D. W.
Hitchcock. W. H. McLaughlin, San Fran
cisco ; J, D. Power, James B. Ryer and wife,
T. Scillman and wife, New York ; William
H. Barnard and wife, Washington ; Mrs.
George F. Perry and daughter, Waterbuiy,
Conn Mrs. Frederick Gardiner, Middle
town, Conn.; Mrs L Knster, Frieda Koster,
Tillie Koster, San Francisco ; Misa Nellie
Pierce. St. Paul ; Mrs. S. M. Rogers, Hono
lulu ; Peter Harvey, wife and two children,
Baltimore ; John W. Ooe, New York.
Kansas Citt (Mo.), May 19 -.h.- Passed
Topeka to-day. to arrive in San Francisco
May 25th : Mrs. Dr. Worn lard, Chicago ;
Mrs. D L. Biiggs. Davis Creek, la.; A. W.
Mass, Hamburg, Germany ; M. C. Seymour,
It. Seymour, Kansas City,
The Flute, Ancient and Modern. —
A very interesting lecture on the above
named subject was given recently at the
London Institution, by John Radcliff, be
fore a4arge and interested audience. The
lecture pointed out that the flute was per
haps the oldest musical instrument in the
world, leaving out of account instruments
of percussion, which are really nothing
more than noise-making machines. The
earliest form of the pipe, the precursor of
the flute, was the hollow reed, which when
stopped by the finger of th? blower gave
forth a single sound. Then came the col
lection of such reeds kno*n as the "Pan
dean pipes," which were probably the same
as the " organ "of the Bible. The utility
of holes pierced in the side of the reed was
next discovered, and thus a considerable
advance in the art of llute-making was
brought ab«ut. Mr. Radcliff exhibited
and played upon some of these elementary
instruments. An Egyptian pipe, called the
Aighool, which the lecturer said was still
used by boatmen on the Nile, has two
reeds, one with holes for the production of
something resembling a tune, the other
acting merely as a drone. The leg-bones
of large birds or animals were sometimes
made into flutes ; hence the use of the
name " tibia " for instruments of this char
acter. The lecturer then went on to show
how improvements had, one by one, been
effected, illustrating his remarks by won
derfully skillful exhibitions of the powers
of the various instruments described. A
brilliant performance by Mr. Itadcliff and
his pupil, Mr. Mollis, on modern flutes,
brought this most interesting and instruct
ive lecture to a conclusion.
In the time of William the Conqueror,
an English pound was an actual pound's
weight of silver and coined into twenty
shillings. Now a pound is worth less than
four ounces of silver and is coined into
sixty-six shilling*.
.____-_--_______— — -»-_•
j Professor rtcoti says that a wxdpecker
naver runs down a tree- trunk.