POLITICAL
MISCELLANY.
MR. BENTON’S
A great deal has been sail in Congress and else
where, of the plausible and unprincipled project of
Col. Ben Ton, to divest the United States of al)
their Western lands, under the popular pretence of
graduating their prices, und ceding to the West,
what should remain on hand, after an attempt to
sell at such nominal prices. The effect of this
measuie, as profligate as it is wasteful, was nover
better expressed than in the following extracts from
Mr. Clayton’s speech lately delivered in the Sen
ate, on Mr. Foot's motn, and distinguished for
its sound, coustitutional doctrines.
“J proceed now sir,to a hré%icxaminn
tion of what I conceive to have been the
origin of protracted & discursive debate.
We have a bill on our files entitled, a
bill “to graduate the price of the public
Jands, to make provision for actual set
tlers, and to cmrc the refuse upon equit
able terms, and for meritorious objects,
to the States in which they lie”—the
same, sir, which has been alluded to by
the Senator from Missouri (Mr. Benton)
under the designation of ““my graduation
DUL™ e ill vaforeed to proposes to
limit the prices of these lands at once, to
one dollar per acre, and gradually to re
duce those prices at the rate of twenty
five per cent. per annum, until the lands
shall be offered, after the expiration of
the third year, at twenty-five cents per
acre. It further proposes to sell lands|
to actual settlers, whether tresspassers or
not, at gradually reduced prices, until,
after the expiration of the third ycar,
they are to reccive them at five cents|
per acre. Ifthat miserable pittance be
not then paid, it proposes to cede eighty
acresto every such settler, “without the
payment of any consideration, and as a
donation”—and finally, by the terms of
it all the lands which shall remain not
disposged of by these. means at the end
of five years, are to be given to the
States in which they lie upon these con
ditions merely—that they shall apply
them to the promotion of education and
internal improvement at home, and refund
to the Government the expenses of the
surveys of the lands so ceded, at the rate
of two hundred and sixteen dollars for
each township of twenty-three thousand
acres. Inconsequence of the enactment
of such a law, probably very little would
be bought until the expiration of the
third year, when, if the interference of
these States with a view to secure the
whole to themselves for nothing, should
not prevent the sales altogether; the
« lands would be purchased at a nominal
price. Such a measure, sir, would not
only be unjust to the citizens of the old
States, but highly injurious to the West
ern settlers who I;nve heretofore bought
lands at a full and fair consideration,—
The value of property is merely relative,
and is either enhanced or diminished by
the estimate placed upon other property
of'the same kind. Ifa hundred millions
of acres be thrown into market at twenty
five cents per acre, and a large quantity
of land be offered to actual settlers at
the same time at five cents per acre,
the value of'that which has been bought
bv far purchasers at two dollars or at
one dolrnr and twenty-five cents per acre,
is at once, other circumstances being
equal, sunk to a level with the sclling
gnce of all the lands around it. We
now the operation upon our real pro
perty, in all parts of the Union, of the
exposure at public sale of any very con
siderable portion of real property adjoin
ing it. “P:know that ifpa great landed
proprietor sells me a tract inthe midst of
of his possessions at fifty dollars per acre,
and then, from pecuniary embarrassment
or from any other cause, exposes the
residue to sale by which he realizes on
?’ five dollars per acre for lands of equal
ertility and a(rfantages, my land, as an
effect of this, is reduced to his last sel
ling price. ~ When he puts a million of
acres around mine into market at a nom
inal sum, he cqually diminishes the sel
ling value of mine by the act, whether
his motive for doing so be to augment
population, and improve the country, or
wantonly to efifect my ruin. And should
this bill become a law, the former pur
chasers who have paid full value would,
in consequence of the depreciation of the
Kroperty occasioned by the enactment,
ave a better equitable right to remuner
ation for losses by the Government, than
many claimants whose demands are an
nually liquidated here without our hear
mE_a. note of remonstrance against them.
This bill has been pending here for the
last four years; and the disposition evinc
cd to entertain it as a subject for future
decision, has cherished expectations
which are sedulously encouraged by ru
mors in the West, that its provisions will
eventually be adopted. If my information
be correct, and Western gentlemen near
me can bear witness that it is so, antici-|
pations have been too generally indulg-]
ed that these lands will, before long, be
offered for nothing., This must tend to
impede our sales, and perhaps to some
extent to suspend the settlement of our,
Western fronticr—a result | suppose 1o |
be deprecated by none more deeply than |
‘l){ the gentlemen from Missouri (M.
enton) himself. In the mean time,
without the final action of Congress on
the subject, the illusion is every year
increasing ; and, to add to the evil, we
haye now a new doctrine which has
been already adverted to in this debate
~that these lands of right belong to the
new States within which they are situat
ed. lam constrained to say that I can
not vote for this bill. According to my
mode of considering it, it is a proposition
to give away the birthright of our people
for a nominal sum; and § am yet to learn
that the citizens of the Middle States
{have indicated any feeling in regard to
it differing from that expressed in the
vote refered to, when, with a single ex
ception, all the Senators representing
States north of Mason’s and Dixon’s line,
opposed the measure. 'l‘beygo not look
to these lands, as has been unjustly stat
ed, with the eye of an unfeeling land
holder who parts with his gold. They
' view the new States as younger sisters
in the same family, upon an equal foot
ing with themselves, and entitled to an
equal share of their pnrtrimon({; but hav-!
'ing children to educate, and numerous
wants to be supplied, they will think -it|
ungenerous, unjust, and op‘)resaive,
should these younger risters take away
the whole. gir, it is the inheritance
|which descendedfrom our forefathers who
wrested a part of it from the British
crown at the expense of their blood and
treasure; and paid for the rest of it by
the earnings of their labor. Tt is not for
me to say what are the (ecelings of the
people of the Middle States on this sub
lju‘t. It is their privilege to speak for
themselves, and they will doubtless, whvn(
Ithny think it necessary, exercise that
’ privilege., But I will say, that if they
lentertain the sentiments of their fathers,
they will never consent to cede away
thundreds of millions of acres of land for’
a nominal consideration, or .-,rruluituquyl
relinquish them to any new State, hu\'.'-‘
ever loudly she may insist on the meas
ure as due to ker rights and her sover
‘l(-ignt_v, or however boldly she may threat
en to defy the Federal Judiciary, and
ldm-i«lo the controversy by her own tribu
nals, in her own favor, ‘
ND BILL.
The suljoined note fiom Gen. Harrison's pam
phlet, drawn up by an intelligent eye witness in
(‘olombia—and an interesting letter from Caraceas,
which has just appeared in the National Gazette,
I’\\'ill go far to explain the dark and unprincipled in
trigues of Dolivar’s party to perpetuate in his hands
lull his ill-gotten power. “The stand assumed by
Paez, seems determined and patriotic, and may e
ventually lead to the entire liberation of our sister
Republie. |
; “On his return from Peru,Gen. Bolivar
arrived at Bogota in November, 1826
’flll(l after huving invested himself with
extraordinary power,according to the Ar
ticle 128 of the Constitution, for tranquil
lizing the disturbances of Venezucela, he
* it General Santander at the head of the
Executive for the other Departments,
which had shewn no sympton of armed
hostility against the Central Government
of Bogota
- By his proclamation, dated Ist Jan-!
uary, 1827, Gen. Bolivar stated that he
had restored peace & tranquility through
out the whole Republic.
The Constitutional Congress assembled
in May, 1827, in Tunga, and the session
was immediately transferred to Bogota,
where, among other legislative acts, both
Houses passed alaw declaring the consti
tution of Cucuta in vigour. They con
ivokvd, likewise, a convention for re
modelling the said constitution, which
convention was to meet at Ocana in
March, 1828; and the clections for said
Convention were to take place at the
latter end of December 1827.
The Congress invited Generalßolivar
who was on his return from Venezuela,
to take the oath to the Constitution of
Cucuta, which he did as soon as he arri
ved; and immediately alterwards, the
Congress closed its session.
The elections, for the Convention,
took place at the end of December;
and the whole of the result was not
|llknown in Bogota before the middle of
February, 1828. .
In the same month of February, Gen
eral'Bolivar, after having been at the
head of the Government, Constitutional
President, since September. 1827, as
sumed extraordinary powers, but merely
for the Departments at Venezuela, where
Cisneros Knd formed a Guerilla, which
was destroyed soon afterwards,
In the first days of March, he extend
ed these powers to the whole ofthe Re
public with the exception of the district of
Ocana, where the Convention was to
{assemble. He declared, likewise, by a
(proclamation, that his prescnce was nec
eszary in Venezuela; and, leaving Bogo
‘la in the first week of March, he proceed
jed North, and took up his residence
‘at Bucaramanga, about one or two days’
Ijnurm-y fivm Ocana—which place had/
”bcen designed for the purpose of b«-ing(
at a distance from the influence of the
HExocmivo, whose presence had been
‘thought dangerous to the freedom of de
{bate; and, in consequence been prohib
ited by the Congress of 1827,
At the latter end of May, 19 members|
‘of the Convention separated thcmsclvesl‘
from that body, and rendered, by this|
step the resolutions of the remaining fifty |
four uscless and invalid, as fifty-five
‘members were required to form a legal
‘quorum, . i e _ ;
H ~ As soon as the news of this degortion of
(the 19 members reached Bogota, the In
(tendant of the department convoked an
::ussvmbly composed of fathers of family,
Junder the plea of consulting them what
(was to be done in such emergency, as
the Convention was dissolved, and the
{country exposed to all the evils of anar
‘chy. Heinvited every body to give his
;lopini«m freely, and without fear. Two
I;l»crsons rose and suggested that the only
‘hope of the country was in Gen. Bolivar.
Of these two persons, one, Sir Torres,
(hasleft the country, fearing the ensuing
‘calamities, and lives now in Paris; the|
’!nthvr, a military man, called Triana, of
L@ notorious ba«{churacu"r,wu implicated
(inthe subsequent conspiracy. A young|
student; Santamana, rose then, and en
‘deavoured to defend the principles of lib-'
eity, but he was immediately interrupted
COLOMUIA,,we==BOLIVAR.
HERALD OF THE TIMES.
by an Italian, Monteloun, who huifien
cashiered for bad conduct, in Angostura,
Iby en. Bolivar, who stated that he, the
y Columbian,was no father of family,
‘}und, in consequence, had no right to
speak. This Italian who made himself’
a short time before Editor of a Paper,
which was entirely devoted to Gen. fifix—
ivar, addressed the Assembly, ard re
commended them to invest Gen. Bolivar
with the dictatorship. He was not in
terrupted by the lntendnnt,’fihhou%h he
was neither a Colombian nor a fatherof
a family himself; and his services were
afterwards rewarded by a new commis
gion in the staff, and he was selected to
accompany Gen. Santander, when the
latter was sent a prisoner to Carthagena,
Another young man, Secretary of the
[Suprcmo Court of Justice, Sr, {’aaque,
addressed, then, the Assembly, and such
was the visible impression which his
speech, in favor of liberty, made on the
auditors, that the Intendant scemed to
dispair of the intended success of the,
meeting. He was again interrupted by
‘the most indecorous behavior,and threats
;lu'ld out by Gen. Cordova. who called
‘the opponents of Bolivar a factious mob—
and wllo, with all the violence of his fe
rocious temper, wiclded his whir in a
manner which would have called forth
‘the indignation of the bystanders in any
part of thg world,
After him, a lawyer of a very bad rep
utation, Sr. Alvarez, ror » and proposed to
invest Bolivar with absolute power, for
which purpose he had drawn up a reso
lution which after having been read and
recommended by the Intendant, was
gigned by about 30 persons who were
lprcscnt—-uthcrs afterwards—and their
names were published in the Cflicial pa
l‘('rr.
The Assembly held in open air,
was composed of about 200 to 250 per
sons. The resolution, or Acta, investing
Gen. Bolivar with Dictatorial power,
was sent to the provinces, and the Gov
ernment invited them to imitate the ex
amples of the capital which they in con
sequence, did.
A dcputation from Bogota was imme
diately dispatched to General Bolivar,
who had already left Bucaramanga, on
his return to Bogota, which place he en
tered on the 24th of June 1828. Some
time was required to know the sentiments
of the extremities of the Republic,and,
particularly, of Venezucla; but as soon
as Caraccas had sent in her Acta Boli
var issued a Decree, which he called
Ley Organica, Decreto Organica, and
which wasto rule the Republic tilhm,
I\(vhvn a new Congress was to be convo
ed,
This decrce bears the date of 26th
August, 1826,
From the National Gazette.
Ertract of a Leller, dated Caraca:,‘
March 27th, 1830, ‘
“Our political existence as an indz
pendent Government is no longer pr
blematical, and Venezucla can proudly
boast that the sacrifices she has made
since the year 1810, were not only di
rected towards her emancipation from
the yoke of Spain, but were likewise
levelled against tyranny and despotism,
by whomsoever they may have been ex
ercised. We have made great progress
in support of the sacred cause of liberty,
and we will defend this blessing, even
at the sacriflice of our lives.
“An army of 10,000 men has been
raised, which is now on the Tachira, to
resist any attempt at invasion, on the
part of the Tyrant ; of this force, Gen
eral Marino is commander-in-Chief,
assisted by Generals Menagas and Na
zero. General Gomez has been order
ed to the command of Maracaibo, and
the Battallion Bojaca, which Mon
tillo sent to attack Maracaibo, has passed
over to us without firing a shot.
“During these events Bolivar assem
bled his Congress in Bogota, and for the
sixth time played his admired farce of
resignation, which, of course, was not
accepted. The aflairs of Venezuela
were immediatly discussed, and Bolivar
was authorized, al «all evenls to preserve
the integrity of territory ; but previously
to adopting coercive measures, a com
mittee was appointed, composed of Gen
eral Sucre, the bishop of Santa Martha
and Garcia del Rio* to treat with Pacz
an order was issucd to prohibit the entry
of the commitice into the \'cnozuel:m‘
territory, and General Marino, Martin
Tobar,T- and Andres Narvarte, were
nominated to proceed to the lines and in
form the Committee, that the acknowl
cdgment of the independence of Vene
zuela must be the basis of any treaty,
together with a disavowal of Bolivar’s
authority; and that Congress alone, in
which the sovercign authority resided,
was the only chaunckthrough which any
stipulations or agreement could be eflect
ed.
“Such is the state of this country,—
Public spirit is at its height: .we have a
powerful army, enthusiasm, and the sa
cred cause of liberty on our side, and
we fear nothing.”
This gentleman resided fi+ some time
in Paris, and there commenced the
schemo of monarchy. Shorly afler his
return to Bogota he published a pam
thvt in favor of monarchy and sclected
Jolivar as King. STk 7
I T A geatleman well known for his
firm adherence to the liberty of his
country: prescribed b{: Bolivar for his
efforts in this cause, he has sacrificed
his fortune and was banished from Ven
ezuela ; he is one of the few men who
has not been mistaken in the tyrant’s
character and views,
21+¢. CONGRESS,
FIRST SESSION.
SENATE.
Monday, April 26.
' The bill providing for an exchange o
‘lands with the Indians, and their remov
lal beyond the Mississippi, was read the
'third time and passed. Messrs. Bucha
'nan and Storrs, members of the House
Vof Representatives, appeared at the bnrl
'of the Senate with a message from that
{House, and, in the name ofthe House of ‘
IRepresentatives, and of all the people of'
'the United States, impeached James
'H. Peck, Judge of the United States
;Court for the District of Missouri, of high
‘misdemeanors in office; whereupon Mr.
T'azewell moved that a select committcc‘
'l;e appointed to consider and report on
"‘thc subject, when, on balloting, it ap-!
‘peared that Messrs, Tazewell, Bell and
’Wchstcr were chosen, The Secnate
took up the resolution of My, Barton,
'calling upon the President for his rea-!
'sons for removing James Carson from|
‘the office of Register ofthe Land Office.
iin Missouri. = After some remarks from‘
fMossrs. McKinley, Knight, Barton and|
:Kanc, the resolution was, on motion of
,Mr. Kune, laid on the table, ycas ‘.’.‘Z,l
'nays 15,
Twesday, April 27,
Mr. Tazewell, from the Select Com
mittee appointed on the subject, made the
following repert; which was concurred in
by the Senate:
“Whereas the House of Representa-
'tives on the 26th of the present month hyi
'two of their members; Messrs, Buchan
:an, and Storrs, of N. Y. at the bar of thc‘
‘Senate, impeached James H. Peck,
Judge of the District Court of the Uni-l
red States, for the District of Missouri,of |
igh misdemeanors in office, and nc-‘
qugintcd the Senate, that the IHouse of
Ichrescntntivefl will, in due time, exhib-
I&t particular articles of impeachment a
‘gainst him, and make good the same—
'and likewise demanded, that the Senate
‘take order for the appearance of the said
:Jnfhes H. Peck, to answer the said im
peachment. Therefore,,
' Resolved, That the Senate will take
’ipropcr order thereon, of which due no
tice shall be given to the Ilouse of Rc-‘
I' presentatives,
Wednesday, April 28.
I The following resolutions, offered yes
terday by Mr. Holmes, were taken up
for consideration.
. Resolved, That the President of the
rUnited States, by the removal of Offi
cers, (which removal was not required
for the faithful execution®of the law) and
;filling the vacancies thus created in the‘
recess of the Senate, acts against the in
terests of the people, the rights of the‘
iSlutcs, and the spirit of the Constitution.l
' Resolved, That it is the right of the
|Senate to inquire, and the duty of the
| President to inform them, why, and for
'what cause or causes, any officer has
'been removed in the recess.
Resolved, That the removals from of
fice by the President since the last ses
sion of the Senate, seem, with few ex
ceptions, to be without satisfactory rea-
Ismm, against the public interest,the rights
}ol' the States, and the spirit of the Con
stitution. Wherefore,
Resolved, That the President of the
United States be respectfully requested
Ito communicate to the Senate, the num
tbcr, names, and offices, of the ofiicers'
:rcmnvcd by him since the last session of’
|thc Scnate, with the reasons for each re: ‘
‘moval.
: Mr. Holmes rose and addressed the
Scnate upwards of two hours in support
of the resolutions ; after which Mr.
Grundy, without comment, moved to lay
‘thein on the table, which motion was de
ccided in the aflirnative by yeas and nays,
‘as follows;
" Y eas—Messrs. Adams, Barnard,Ben
ten, Bibh, Brown, Dickerson, Dudley,
'Ellis, Grundy, Hayne, Iredell, Kane,
King, Livingston, McKinley, McLean,
Rowan, Saniord, Smith, of 5. C., Taze
lwell, Troup,Tyler, White, Woodbury,24,
Nays—Messrs. Barton, Bell, Burnet,
Chambers, Chase, Clayton, Foot, Fre-
Ilinghuyscn, Hendricks, Holmes, Johns
‘ton, Knight, Naudain, Noble, Robbins,
Ruggles, Seymour, Silsbee, Sprague,
| Webster, Willey—2l,
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
Monday, April 26.
’l Afer the usual presentation of peti
tions, several bills, of both local and gen
-I{erul importance, were reported, or taken
I'into consideration, in the ITouse of Rep
:irenentutivcs. The resolution introduc
‘]cd by Mr. Decha, from the Military
|Committee, ca the subject of reducing
“tlnc number of oflicers of the army ofthe
United States,was taken up & passed,af
ter a modification made on motion of Mr.
Wilde, directing the Secretary of War
to report upon the expedicncy of the
Ipropooed reduction. . On motion of Mr.
Pettis, Judge Peck obtained leave to
withdraw the documcntg and papers
presented by him to thet&louse, in re
lation to the charges against him report
ed by the Committee on the Judiciary.
The Committee, consisting of Messrs.
Buchanan, and Storrs, of New-York,
appointed for that purpose, reported that
they had, in pursuance of the resolution
of the House, impeached Judge Peck
before the Senate.
After the transaction of some further
business, the bill reported by Mr. Mal
lary, from the Committee on Manufac
tures on the subject of duties on imporlsl
was taken up in Committce of the
Whole on the State of the Union, Mr.
Polk in the Chair, Mr, MeDuffie ad
dressed the Committee, in opposition to
the measure, and moved to strike out
the whole of the bill after the Ist sect
ion, which provided for the verification
of invoices of woollen goods imported
into the U. States, in order for the more
effectual prevention of frauds upon thcl
revenue. Ie had not concluded his
remarks upon the subject, when the
committee proceeded to the considera
tion of the bill for a subscription of stock
on the part of the United States, to the
Maysville Canal, (Kentucky,) and after
'wurds tcok up the bill fixing the com
pensation of certain United States Dis
trict Judges. After some further dis
cussion the committee rose, und the
House, at 5 o’clock, adjourned.
JUDGE PECK.
Impeachment of Judge Peck, of .Missou-l
ri. The committee appointed in pursu
ance of the motion of Mr, Storrs, of New-
York, to prepare and report to the House
of Representatives, articles of impeach
ment against Judge Peck, for high mis
demeanors in office, consists of the
Hon. James Buchanan, of Pennsylvania.
Henry R. Storrs, of New-York.
George McDuffie, of South Carolina.
Ambrose Spencer, of New-York.
Charles A. Wick!iffe, of Kentucky.
Thursday April 27.
- Mr. Verplanck, from the committee
of Ways and Mcans, made a report on
the petitions of Jonathan Valton and John
J. De Graff, accompanicd by a bill for
their relief ; which was twice read and
Icommitted.' I
THE REMOVING POWER.
Mr. Chilton moved the following pre
amble and resolution.
- Whereas, suspicions have gone a
broad, that under the present administra
tion many removals of Public Officers
have been made from political consider
ations alone, and not from any particular
devotion to the public interest—and
whereas, there exists considerable ex
citement relative to the sources of said
removals. Now to quiet the public ap
prehension upon this subject, be it
Resolved, That the President of the
United States be respectfully requested
to cause to be reported to this House, as
soon as convenient, the precise number
of removals of officers, from the highest
to the lowest, who held offices under
the general Government on the 4th of|
March, 1829, and belonging to its vuri-l
ous departments ; and that he be also
respectfully requested to have express
ed, the causes for each removal.
. The resolution being read—
Mr. Ramsay moved that it be laid on
the table.
Mr. McDuffie demanded the question
of consideration.
Mr. Chilton asked for the ayes and
nays on this question, and they were or
dered.
’ The question of consideration not be
ing debatable—the question was put,
“Will the House now consider the res
olution ?”” and was decided in the nega
tive, by the following vote: yeas 49, nays
123.
Wednesday, April 28th,
THE TARIFF LAWS,
The House again resolved itself into
Committee of the Whole House, on
the state of the Union, on the bill to
amend “An act in altération of the sev
al acts imposing duties ou imports”—the
amendment offered by Mr. MeDuffie be
ing then under consideration,
Mr. McDaffie rose at half after 2
o’clock in continuation of his argument
against the constitution and policy of the
“protecting system,” and addressed the
Committee two hours, without having
concluded ; he gave way for a motion
for the Committee to rise, It rose ac
cordingly, and
~ The House adjourned,
NEWPORT,
WEDNESDAY, MAY 5, 1830,
ELECTION DAY,
This day the General Assembly of the
State will convene in this town, for the
purpose of organizing the State Govern
ment for the ensuing political year. At
10 o’clock, thg.Govemov,x::.-Gov
ernor, and Senate, and m of the
House, etc. will proceed from Towns
end’s Coffee House to the State louse,
under the escort of the Artillery Compa
:ny‘, Col. Peleg Clarke, and the Indepen
dent Volunteers commanded by Lieut.
‘Wm. Lyon, captain eleet. After the re
turns from the several townsare received,
!u Committee will be appointed to count
the proxes, and the Assembly will then
ladjourn to meet at some time in the after
noon to hear their report.—This duty we
are somewhat apprehensive the Commit
tee will find difficult to accomplish as
\cnrly as usual, owing to the greeut varie
ty of proxes. The uncertainty in which
Ithe result of the election of Senators re-
Ilmuins will probably bring around us a
great number of expectants;—and we
'lshall be thronged with would be Judges—
. Sheriffs——Clerks—Justices— Notaries ,--
Generals—Colonels,—&ec. &c. If the
friends of the present administration are
really elected, it can be by a very small
majority, although sufficient to bring re
‘prouch upon the friends of the past ad
‘miuistration for their reckless indiffer
ence and negligence. Ifevery man had
been punctual, and promptly performed
his duty, we should not at this time, been
under any apprehensions that Rhode-Is
land had deserted her principles If the
Jackson Senate is clected, as we before
{observed, it must be by a small majority
| only—and we shall perhaps escape any
{very severe degree of reform for one
year;buthaving ascertained their strength
by the end ofthe year, we may afler the
next election, calculate that the search
ing operation will commence, and what
'ever is valuable in our present system be
Hovcrthrown, if not destroyed—our Su
preme Court—our free school system—
I!&c. &e.
| There have been some changes in the
members of the House of Representa
:ti\'cs—nonc, however, we thfnk, more to
'be regretted than that which occasions
ithe loss of N. F. Dixon, Esq. to that
'body.—l-le has for many years been an
able and faithful representative of the
town of Westerly, and truly for our own
'pnrt, we had not supposed that the town
’afl'ordcd men of more experience in legis
lation—greater soundness in politics—
’morc uprightness of conduct, or weight of
character, than Mr. Dixon,
) From the manner in which Election
week is generally consumed, we pre
sume but little business other than the
clection of civil and military officers will
be acted on during the session, and in
connexion with this subject, we beg leave
to express a hope, that other towns, our
own in particular, profiting by the expe
rience of the town of Providence, will
appoint no more Justices than are actu
ally necessary to a discharge of all the
business that falls within their jurisdic
tion. The universal satisfaction felt in
the present Justices Court of Providence,
assurcs us that an improved Court might
be appointed here, and would in the end,
il not immediately, give cqual satisfac
tion,
‘ DB e
The Mammoth Ox, raised by M.
|‘Vm. Bateman on his farm in the neck,
at the South-end of this Island, was ki'-
'ch on Saturday afternoon last, by Chas.
& Wanton T. Sherman, the purchasers,
The neat weight of him was as follows,
viz : fore quarters 550, 561—hind quar
ters, 450, 470—tallow 241—hide 150,
~—total 2430 Ibs. The ox was seven
years old and weighed when alive 3,000
Ibs. He is said to have been the largest
ox ever raised in Rhode Island. We
are glad to find that the beef has found
aready sale among our citizens, although
’at a pretty advanced price ; and we hopo
the industgious young gentlemen by
whom the ox was purchased, will be
amply compensated for their praise
worthy endeavors to please the public,
and that the public will always be equal
ily alive to ‘encourage domestic industry,’
and laudable enterprize. Mr. Bateman
is entitled to great credit for the digpo
sition he has evinced with regard to the
sale of this ox. We understand that he
had several opportunities to dispose of
him out of the town, but declined solcly
from a desire to gratify the taste of our
own town’s people,