TH E GAZE TT E.
LEWISTOWN, PA.
FRIDAY EVENING, APRIL 19, 1850. j
r E It M $ :
<* la DOLLAR ELR AAAI JI,
IN ADVANCE.
For six months, 75 cents.
All NEW subscriptions must be paid in ;
RdVifice. If the paper is continued and not
paid within the first month. 81.25 will be charg
ed ■ if not paid in three months, §150; if not
paid in six months, §1.75; and if not paid in
nine months, §2.00.
Renew your Subscriptions.
The present issue of the Gazette closes
the \ ear for a larije number of subscribers.
Those who wish t<> take advantage of the
advance te:nis, had better send on their
.money, as A DOLLAR will now pay lor a
Tear —a fact worth remembering.
-
!(r Gunpowder.
We have before us a sample of the newly in
vented gunpowder preparation. It is perfectly
white, and is said to possess ten times the strength
of ordinary powder. It ignites very readily, and
in blasting rocks must, we think, be a great ac
cession to operatives. Persons feeling curious
on the subject can see the article at our office.
INFANT SCHOOL. —It may not be generally
known, that Miss MARTHA ALLEN, a young lady
well qualified, by experience and attainments,
lias opened a school for children, from the ages
of three to six years. Persons wishing further
information, will obtain it upon application tc
Mr. EDWIN ALLEN, at hi- store, on Market street.
We might further add, that the terms are low,
nd the qualifications of the young lady for the
business she has assumed undoubted.
Postmaster Butler has added a large
number of new Boxes for the accommodation
of those who do not wish to be continually ask
ing for letters and papers.
The l ark Kepublican saj.s, there i not
a Furnace ;:i oper?'iun in York county. Codu
>.s M > rgeretta, Woodstock, York and Manor
are ail blown out, and no talk of putting them
in blast again, according to our information.
The thing has come to a dead stand. Such ore
the withering effects of the Tariff of ISI6 !
York is not the only county in which the
Iron interest is prostrate. In Mifflin, the Fur
naces are lying idle, with no prospect of being
put in blast so long as the locofoco tariff per
mits British Furn-ces to supply us with what
we ought to manufactuVe ourselves; or if any
of them are put in blast again, it will have to
oe dune by reducing the rales of lauor trom
the woodchopper up to the manager. Locofoco
*> phiatry may extol ihe policy which brings
_buut such a state of affairs in a county abound
ing with valuable ore, but facts are stubborn
things that sometimes in an hour upset a thou
sand theories.
EXPL'SION. —The Locomotive "Chieftain"
burst her boiler on Tuesday last on the Baiti
.oore arid Susquehanna Railroad, about fifteen
mi'es frvm Bi! imn'f, ihr wing Vr. *'i'haw,
tie fireman, aimost perpendicularly into the
e r to the height of about sixty feet, passing
through the top of a large oak tree, the limbs
rf which stripped nearly every thread of cloth
ing from his body Davis, the engineer, who
was standing on the locomotive with the de
ceased, was thrown with violence against a
bank of earth on the side of the toad, and was
considerably brut*ed and scalded, so much eo
that his recovery is considered doubtful. The
; eceased was a young man of excellent char
acter, and was married only last fali. Almost
every bone in his bjdy was broken, and the
Scab terribly scalded about the breast arid face.
TUB GALPHIM CLAIM. —The Democrat make*
•everal erroneous statements in relation to this
matte' - . In the first place, Mr. Polk's Secretary
of the Treasuiy did not reject the interest, but
held it under advisement-, in the next place Mr.
Evving had nothing at ail to do *ah it. These
facts as well as several others, the Democrat
can ascertain for itself by referer.ee to a letter
in the Washington L'nion, from Mr. Mon
tague, a locofoco clerk under Mr. Polk's admin
istration, which conclusively shows that our
neighbor's tirade about the pillaging, want of
common honor, honesty, and character of the
Taylor administration, is all moonshine. We
know little about the matter, but it appears to
tis that the common sense view of such a claim
would be, that if the claim was just, interest
would be equally so. Huch at least would be
the result of a similar transaction between in
dividuals, and it sounds somewhat strangely to
hear professing democratt condemn a government
for doing that which the law declares to oe
right in private aflaire.
PRINCIPLES OP THE HI-MAN MIND, deduced
from physical laws, together with a lecture on
Electro Biology, or the Vol'aic Mechanism of
Man, with illustration*—by Alfred Hnor, F
R. S. Fowlers &. Welb", Publishers, New
York. Price cent-5 —bq:<i abie. We should
think, from a bant/ examination of true work
that it is one worth purchasing by those r.hc
make science their study.
The game publishers continue to put forth
the Phrenological Journal an J Wator-fJwt
Journal , both mo t excellent works, which rnav
he read with profit and instruction by believers
and unbelievers in trie dvctrirua taught, a
there ia much inforuigtHiu of general na'r
contained in them.
The Turkish Sultan has granted full
toleration to the missionaries throughoui
his vast empire. Seven churches havt
been formed at Trebizond, Constantinople
and other towns, embracing from two h
three hundred members.
Letter front California.
We have been furnished with the following
interesting extracts of a letter from Mr. J. M.
MORROW to JOSETII MILLIKEN, Esq., of this
place, which gives a full and reliable account
of Life in the .Mines, as did that of Mr. KELLY,
published in the Gazette some weeks ago, of
: Life in San Francisco. It is dated
MURPHY'S DIGGINGS, CALIFORNIA, )
January 23th, 1850. j
In leaving San Francisco for this part of the
country, we pass through three beautitul Bays,
but very rough in time of storms. First is San
Francisco, next Peblo, and then Suison, after
which we enter the San Joaquin. The Sacra
mento river empties into the bay near the same
place. A few miles bwlow the mouth of these
1 rivers, on the north side of the bay, is a flour
ishing village called Benetia, and two other
; small villages on the south—all commenced since
i the Gold Fever broke out. After leaving the
bay, the land for miles is beautiful and rolling.
Large herds of cattle are to be seen as far as the
eye w ill carry, grazing on the plains and sides
of hills. There is very little timber, and al
though there are but two seasons in this country,
in many places the pasture is fine the whole year.
There are plenty of wild oats, and a very heavy
grass, somewhat resembling our swamp grass.
The seasons are styled Wet and Dry. When
i the dry season commences the grass matures
and retains its substance, and cattle will keep in
fine case the whole year.
When we arrived in San Francisco we were
at a loss to know which was the better route to
set our compass for gold, as that was what we
were after, and were not within two hundred
miles of it. We finally concluded that we had
better divide and prospect several of the mines.
I was one of three that went up the Sacramento
river. The city of Sacramento is situated on
the bank of the river, about one hundred and
fifty miles above San Francisco. Sutler's Fort
is two miles from the river, with a fine country
about it. If you remember, in Gov. Mason's
report, after gold was discovered in California,
he said farmers had left their farms, and their
! grain was standing uncut; and spoke of Captain
, Sutter following his occupation, and gathering
in his harvest—that he would have forty thou
sand bushels of wheat, &c. When i looked at
the Fort, and the premises round about, and
could see no farming utensils, nor anything, as I
thought, to raise wheat with, 1 concluded it was
a " w heat story but on our journey from
Sacramento to Stockton across the country, one
day we overtook an elderly man, an older man
indeed than 1 thought had any business in Cali
fornia, who had stopped under a large tree and
was letting his mule feed on grass, as they all
do in this country. We stopped and had a con
versation. I asked him how long he had been
in the country. He said since 1845. He was a
native of Kentucky, but emigrated from Mis
souri. I spoke about Gov. Mason's report, and
about Sutler raising so much wheat. He said
it was all truth—that he had seen more than
forty thousand bushels raised at the Fort; arid
on the sauie day I was fully convinced that wheat
would grow in California. We stopped over
night near a Ranche owned by Mr. Murphy, and
in the morning w hen the teamster was harness
ing his mules, I went up to the house, and he
look me into a little warehouse and showed nie i
one thousand bushels as fine white wheat as ever
I seen come from Black Oak Ridge, and two
years old. I asked him what he could get per
bushel for it. He told me $5. They sow their
wheat in February.
We were then on the hunt of the balance of
our Company, as we had been unsuccessful on
the Sacramento, and were anxious to know what
success thev had met with. On our arrival at
Stockton we were informed of their being about t
eighty miles north, (not a bad little walk in the
month of August,) and on the 4th day after leav
ing Stockton we found them, the Company hav- '
ing dissolved, but not altogether by mutual con- j
sent. We are now in the same place, ne.ar the
head of Angel's creek, about two hundred miles
from San Francisco and seventy-five from Stock
ton, right up in the mountains, in a beautiful
little valley surrounded by hills.
We are in what is called the Dry Diggings.—
Part of our Company irrived on the 7th of Au
gust, but I did not get here until the Ist of Sep
tember. Some of them had been successful,
and some left the mines for San Francisco—
among them Beck and Levy. 1 found Scott, j
Salisbury, Campbell and Yandling working to
gether and getting gold. I was admitted into
their Company, and we are now the only mem
bers of the Juniata Company in these mines, and
the only Pennsylvanians.
Mow I will give you a short history of the
laws and regulations, the manner of getting
gold, Ac. In all mines the miners make laws
to prevent any difficulty that might arise with
one man encroaching upon another's place or
lead where he was working. Each man is al
lowed a certain number of feet of ground to
sink a hole, (in these mines eight feet square,)
and when absent from your place of work you
are required to leave a tool in, and if one day
absent from the place, (except in case of sick
ness,) you lose your title. If any one com
mences work he can keep possession. \o man
can have or work more than one piece of ground
at the same time.
The gold that is got here in large and coarse.
It is found by sinking holes from three to eigh- ;
teen feet deep—seldom as soon as three feet.— .
When down about six feet we have in some in- j
tartr<s found rock, or a very tough mud, where,
by taking a knife and scraping off three or four |
inches of clay or gravel, the larger pieces can ,
be picked up ; then by taking this dirt and wash
ing it in a tin pan or cradle, the small particle*
w ill settle to the bottom. The. largest piece that
we have found weighed 3i ounces, worth
When we came here we were fortunate. We
sunk three or four holes, and happened to hit it
pretty well, but not so well as we were led to
expect by the glowing accounts in circulation
We occasionally get to see a newspaper from
the States, and 1 am sorry to say that 1 see some
great falsehoods as regards the amount of gold
and the size of pieces obtained by individuals.
Only a few days since I was looking over a Bos- !
tori paper, which stated that a piece had been ;
found on the Mokluma river weighing thirty
pounds. That is not the case. We are within I
about twenty miles of that river, and know that \
no such piece was found, as the gold obtained
there is in fine particles. There may have been
a large stone found with particle* of gold in it.
1 have heard of several pieces weighing four,
eight, and ten pounds. The largest piece I have
sc-en weighed four pounds, and it was not pure I
gold, being mixed with a white quartz rock that
is always about where gold is found. These re- j
ports going to the State* will keep up the ex
citement; but on the whole I don't think that
the amount of gold in California has been over- '
rated. There are new discoveries making every
day, and will be for year* to come ; and I have j
no doubt as rich mines remain hidden as have
yet been discovered.
A steady, industrious man can make more
money in this country than he can in the States ; *
nut then lie is cut oil from all the comforts of
life. I have not told you what our success has
been —After our arrival here we laid oir out
territory according to the laws of the miners,
and sunk holes about five feet, when we discov
ered gold. Two of them proved rich, one of
which we sunk about eighteen feet, and found
gold until we reached water; but we had to give,
it up when the rainy season commenced, (Ist
November.) The most gold we gathered in one
day (52d of October) was sixty-three ounces,
which, valued at £IG per ounce, is SIOOB. Our
next best day's work was &54i2, there being five
of us for it. 1 saw Mr. Vandlirig, (one of our
men,) wash out of one panful of dirt three
pounds of gold, or $576. This was what the
miners call a pocket; but there has been many
day* since the rainy season set in that we have
not made our board. Out of about twenty-four
feet square of ground we got near eight thousand
dollars worth of gold. Thir was the labor e>l
five. Then I will take the other aide This
was done in latter part of August and in i
September and October. In these months at
any one time I don't think there was less than one
hundred and fifty men at work, and sometimes I
presume there was from four to five hundred in
these diggings, small as they are ; yet 1 doubt if
every tenth man made his boarding.
1 have now given you some idea of gold-dig
ging. I must next give you a sketch of how we
live. We put up a comfortable log cabin, which
was soon done, timber being plenty in this part
of country, and in which we eat and sleep. Our I
living consists of pork, pilot or hard bread, cof
fee, tea and sugar, dried apples and peaches, and
occasionally venison, when we go out and kill it
ourselves.
Should you bear any person talking of com- j
ming to California, you can try him how he will
like it by giving him a shovel or spade, a large i
tin pan, and taking him down to the creek any j
place between the bridge and Sterrett's mill; let |
him shovel up his panful of mud or gravel and
then hunt a convenient place to wash it. If lie !
gets I2i or 15 cents out of it, let him go on all !
day. Then if he wants dry diggings, take him ;
up in the square, in front of Moyer's Hotel, and
lay him off say eight or ten feet square, and iet
him sink it twelve or fifteen feet deep, and very j
probably not get as much as he did in the panful i
at the creek ; or if he does get some gold, then
lie must either fill his pan or get a bag with one
and a half or two bushels of dirt, and tote it half
a mile to find water to wash it. He will soon
think there are better diggings than these. Then .
give him two or three blankets, a few flannel or
hickory shirts, a shovel, pick, tin pan,co!i'ce boil
er, tin cup, a rifle, and a little pork and hard
bread, and start him across the seven mountains
to Bald Eagle creek. Don't let him take the road,
for there is no such thing here from one mine to an
other. When night comes on him he can eat
his pork and bread, and lay down under some
tree and sleep till morning. If he don't meet
with success on the Bald Eagle, he can go on to
Clearfield creek. If he can stand all this he is
ready to come to California. I don't know how <
to give you a more correct idea of the labor to I
be done than what 1 have just given you.
We were unfortunate with our baggage.— 1
When we got to the City of Mexico we could
not engage pack mules, and were advised to have
it sent to Aeapulco, and from there shipped to
tsan Francisco last May. We have, however,
not heard from it since. I had two trunks full
of clothes, &c.
1 will close this long epistle by giving you a
list of prices in the Diggings, furnished by one of
our merchants :
Flour per potinJ, £1 00 Dried Apples per pound, i .00
Pork " 125 '• Pearlies " tOO j
fie, f, fresh " 050 Brandy per gallon, 20 00 I
Corn Meal " 1 50 Whiskey " 15.00
Potatoes " 1 50* Kurn " 15 00
flre;i'l " 1 Si; Paper, I2J per Pheet
Coffee " I 00:1 Ilk, #1 per small Bottle,
Sugar " I 'O- such asseilsin Lewistown
Tea '• 3 00- f.r 6| cents.
Kite " 110-hoes frooi#stn Ultlperpair
Butt-r, (not fresh—don't H-.ots iiiucli higher in pro
eat say.) " 3.00 portion.
Unclosed I send a few specimen* of the " root
of all evil," obtained from a ravine about one
mile from our encampment, w here we have been
working since the rainy season commenced.
1 am your most obd't serv't,
J. M. MORROW.
We have also a letter from Mr. WILLIAM
SCOTT to JAWLS MIILIECS, Esq., but as it em
bodies the same information contained in the
above, we have not deemed it necessary to pub
lish it.
The State Treasurer and the I.oeofotos.
We have heretofore given some specimens of
the testimony before the investigating commit
tee, and nothing has thus far been adduced to
substantiate the charges made against Mr. Ball
by the Canal Commissioners. Mr. It. has opened
his defence, and proved by Mr. Bell of llolli
daysburg and the documents offered the follow
ing farts that such money was paid out of the
Depositaries of the State as were received by
the State in pay ment of tolls, and that therefore,
all the clamor, which was raided about the kind
of money was not properly against Mr. Bali,
but against that Treasurer under whose instruc
tions such trash was received by the State, offi
cers. That in less than one month after Mr
Ball went into office, he issued a circular to all
depositaries of the public money, prohibiting
them from receiving on deposite to the credit of
the State anything but notes of specie-paying
Banks of Pennsylvania, " Relief Issues," and
coin, and that w ben we remember that he issued
a circular of a similar character to the collec
tors on the public works prohibiting them from
receiving in payment of tolls any notesexcept
the notes of specie-paying banks of this Stale,
" Relief Issues" and coin, it is clear that Mr.
Ball used all his official authority to purify the
circulation, and place upon the public improve
ments such funds as no one could reject. That
he broke up the very bad practice of paving
public officers their salaries in advance, in order
that he might appropriate the more to the pay
ment of claimants on the public works. 'I hat
the Canal Commissioners broke overall the re
straints which had hitherto controlled their ac
tion, in determining to make a run upon the
Treasury, such as had never before been at
tempted, with a view as is believed, to cripple
the Treasury, prevent the payment of the Au
gust and February interest—for which latter a
loan was until this year made—to injure the
credit of the Slate, in the hope that by so doing,
disgrace would fall upon the Slate Treasurer
who had control of the finances.
Mr. Hail lias also brought forward the various
acts of Assembly relating to revenue, to show
that the proceeds of the greater part of taxation
are specially appropriated to the payment of in
terest on the public debt. That the Canal Com
missioners did not co-operate with hiin in his
efforts to sustain the credit of the State, is con
clusively shown by a comparison of the semi
annual payments made at the Treasury in tho
month previous to the interest becoming due, by
w Inch it appears that Mr. Hall paid in the month
of January, 1850, a larger sum by slO,l I'd 50
than the payments during January in the years
I*4G, '47, '4B and '4'J amount to when united !
and 'that'he paid in July, 184'J, a larger sum by
#41,5!M) 00 than the amount of the July payments
of the years IB4fi, '47 and '4B when united! It
is evident from the whole proceedings that this
scheme was got up for the purpose ol injuring
! Gov. Johnston's administration by preventing
; the payment of interest on the public debt, and
: then withholding the funds in hand from laborers
on the public works, so as to create au idea
' among the workmen that it was the fault of
Guv. Johnston and Mr. Ball. The parties en
| gaged in this low business have gained nothing
but an additional share of w hat they before pos
i eesscd—the scorn and contempt of all honora
ble men.
Sterrett's " Lewistown Mill" is rapidly re
building, a large number of hands being con
i stently at work on the walls, machinery, dtc.
Pennsylvania Legislature.
On Friday last an effort was made in the
House to repeal that part ot the revenue act
reducing the pay of members of the Legisla
ture to $1,50 per day, after being in Besion
100 days, but tailed, though a subsequent vote
indicated that it may yet pass.
On Saturday 6oine section " Relative to rail
roads and canals in Mifflin county," passed
second and final reading in Ihe Senate.
On Monday the Governor returned an omni
bus bill without his signature, containing a
" general assortment" of monopolies and in
fringements on the rights of the people in all
parts of the Sta'e. The biil supplementary to
an act incorporating the Pennsylvania Rail
road Company, passed several readings. [We
don't know what this hill is intended for, but
we thought at the time that that ride on the
railroad would hatch something in the shape
of an egg.]
In the House, the Bank Committee reported
bills respectively to extend the charters ot the
following bank*: Kensington Bank, Philadel
phia county, with an increase of capital ; Easton
Bank; Vcrk Bank; Farmers' Deposite Bank,
of Pittsburgh ; Wyoming Bank ; Miners' Bank,
at Pottsviile; Farmers' Bank,of Lancaster;
Lancaster County Bank ; Merchants' Bank, of*
Pittsburgh ; to extend and amend the charter
of the Wyoming Bank; also, to incorporate
the Farmers' and Mechanics' Bank at Enston.
The bill to allow the Manufacturers' and
Mechanics' Bank of Philauelphia, to change
its place of business and location, passed final
ly : also, the bill supplementary to the Com
mon School Law.
The bill to prohibit issuing of Relief Notes
of less denomination than five dollars, paesrd
finally, yeas 54, nays 27.
The Forest d vorce case has passed the
House by. i* is supposed, the usuai aidsm such
cases.
A bill supplementary to an act, entitled " an
act to create a sinking fund and to provide for
the gradual and certain extinguishment of the
debt of the Commonwealth," has been reported.
Among other provisions it taxes every billiard
table, bowling alley and ten pin alley, in any
establishment from thirty to fifty dollars.
The school bill is said to make many impor
tant changes in the present system. We hope
no law of this kind will pass, as this continued
tinkering at useful laws does a great deal more
harm than good.
The poor house bill has not yet finally passed
the House, and should the Legislature adjourn
shortly, it may not pass at all.
[We have since learned that it passed the
House with an omnibus load of "other purpo
ses" attached, some of which have been agreed
to by the Senate, and others not. It was ex
pected to come up again yesterday, and if it
does not become entangled too much with other
purpoeee, it may now pass ]
The Governor has signed the Rank bill , an
amtndineiil passed the Senate on Wednesday
by which that clause requiring country hanks
to keep their notes at par in Philadelphia and
Pittsburgh, is repealed.
The bill for the election of Auditor General,
Surveyor General and County Surveyors, haa
been signed by the Governor.
A new apportionment bill w as reported in the
House on Wednesday, and passed finally by a
vote of 72 to 25—locofocos and whigs voting
for and against it.
SEN ATO RIA L I) 1 STRiCTS.
■ENAToa*. SENATORS
Philadelphia f'ity, 'i'Luicrne and Columbia, 1
" County, 3 Bradford. Buqut:hanna,
Montgomery, lj and Wyoming, 1
Chriior and Delaw are, ! Tioga, Poller, M'Kean,Elk
Berk* and Schuylkill, " and JeflVreon, i
Buck*, I Mercer, Venango, Warren, 1
Lancaster, 2 Kiir and Crawford, 1
Lebanon and Dauphin, I .Butler, Beaver and l-'tw
,\ort hump ton am) Lehigh, 1 ■ r.nce, ]
Carbon, Monroe, Pike and Vlb gheny, 2
Wayne, lj Washington and Greene, 1
Ada ma and Franklin, IJ Westmoreland, 1
York, 1 IT dford, Fayette Afc Som-
CumberUnd, Perry ami Ju- \ ercet, 1
iiut.i, 1 (Armstrong, Indiana and
Northumberland, I.ceom- Clarion, 1
mg, Sullivan ami Clin- lluiiiiugdon, Mifflin and
ton, 1 It n ion, 1
Blair,Cambria, Centre ami
Clearfi.-ld, I, 33
REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICTS.
MKVLBEHX MBMDERV.
Adams, 1 .Lycoming, Clinton and
Allegheny, 5 Potter, 2
Bedford and Cambria, 2 Lancaster, 4
Berks, 4'l.naerne, 2
Bucks. 3 Lehigh and Carhrit, 2
Beaver, ( Monroe, I'ike and Wayne, 2
Blair and Huntingdon, 2 Mercer, Venango t War-
Bradford, 2j ren,
Butter and Lawrence, 2Crawford, 2
Chester, 3 Mifflin, I
Cumberland, Perry and [Montgomery, 3
Juniata, 3j Northampton, 2
Centre, I Northumberland, 1
Clearfield, Elk Ac M'Kean, I Philadelphia City, 4
Clarion, Armstrong and " County, 11
Jefferson, 3 Somerset. 1
Columbia and Sullivan, 2 Schuylkill, 2
Dauphin and Lebanon, 3 Susquehanna &\V joining,2
Delaware, I Tioga, 1
Erie, lb Westmoreland, 2
Fayette, '!'■ Washington and Greene, 3
Franklin, 2 Union, 1
Indiana, I York, 3
The kidnapping (use.
The ca Be of the Commonwealth vs. Jonathan
Little ami others, wan settled by the counsel
upon both sides; and as the case has excited
Home interest, we give the facts, as we have
learned them to the public.
The Hon. ALBERT t 'UNSTABLE, appointed as
Counsel for Little, by the Governor of Mary
land, having learned on his arrival hero, that an
indictment tor Kidnapping was pending against
him in Centre county, upon which a Bench war
rant had been issued, and was in the hards of
the .Sheriff at Huntingdon county ; and that
another warrant for the apprehension of Little
had been issued in Mifflin county, upon a simi
lar charge, both of which were ready to be
sol ved on him whenever he app ared in this
county,and ulso thut other cacs would be com
menced against him, if ho were arrested and
taken to Bellefonte; it wa9 an object of the
tirat importance to avoid, if possible, the trial
here, by which his appearance in Court would
be dispensed with, and thus his arrest on the
other process u voided. This was accomplished
on terms entirely satisfactory. The recordsof
Maryland were here to prove Kinley (the negro)
a slave; the sons of his mistress were here
who knew him, and had authorized Little to
take him; every thing requisite to prove the
n egr a slave, and comrryue/'f/y Little inno
cent upon the indictment. Upon these grounds
the prosecution was abandoned.
'I hid settlement not only acqui'B Little,
which was the only object of the mission of
Mr Constuble, but avcids the nee- ssity of pro
curing bail in both Centre end Mifflin counties,
upon "similar charges, which of course would
have involved the same attention on the part
of the State ot Maryland, one of ll.em having
already been tried there and disposed of, and
likewise have multiplied expenses to a heavy
amount. " .
The county was indemnified from costs by
the settlement, which would have corne out of
the Treasury, whether Little had been convict
ed or acquitted. Little was virtually acquit
ted, and avoided arrest and imprisonment upon
process from adjoining counties, and returns to
his family, winch we are assured is large, and
entirely dependent on his labor for support.—
Huntingdon Journal.
It may have been well enough to settle this
'• vexed question" at Huntingdon in the manner
stated above, but it seems to us there must have
been a considerable stretch of pewer and law
in doing so. Little may have been innocent
so far as the case in Huntingdon county was
concerned, but was he so in those in Mifflin and
Centre 1 We have strong doubts whether he
was, and hence we cannot but regard the
course of the Huntingdon authorities, in en
tering a nolle prosequi foi the express purpose
of saving him from arrest for high crimes
committed in other counties as highly injudi
cious.
Another Shameful Scene In the I'. S. Senate#
Oil Wednesday the Seriate proceeded to the
consideration of Mr. Foote's motion to refer
Mr. Cell's resolutions on Slavery to a Select
Committee of Thirteen—the pending question
being upon Mr. Benton's instructions to the
Committee declaring that Congress has no pow
er over slavery in the States or the internal
slave trade, and that Congress ought not to abol
ish slavery in the District of Columbia, or in
the forts, arsenals or dock yards of the United
States.
Mr. Benton's motion, as well as a subsequent
one being voted down, lie proposed a series of
amendments covering fourteen different points,
which were opposed by Mr. Clay.
Mr. Foote then rose and made some remarks,
during which he spoke of John C. Calhoun as
being the author of the Southern Slavery Ad
dress, and then indulged in some remarks aimed
at Mr. Benton.
Mr. Benton rose, much agitated, and throwing
his chair from him, proceeded by the narrow
passage outside of the bar, towards Mr. Foote s
seat, which is on the outside row of seats, near
the main entrance to the Senate.
Mr. Dodge of lowa, and Mr. Dodge of Wis
consin, arid others, apprehending a collision be
tween Mr. Benton and Mr. Foote, endeavored
to detain the former from removing from his
seat. Overcoming all resistance, he continued
towards Mr. Foote, who, leaving his place,
stepped down the main aisle, and took a position
in the arena just in front of the Sergeant-at-
Armv seat, at the right of the Vice President,
at the same time drawing a pistol from his
bosom and cocking it.
The scene which ensued is indescribable.
Loud calls for the Sergeant-at-Arms were
made, and cries of 44 order!" resounded from
ali sides of the chamber.
Many persons rushed from the galleries, and
out of the chamber, in apprehension of a gen
eral melee.
Several Senators surrounded Mr. Foote,
among whom was Mr. Dickinson, who, securing
the pistol, locked it up in his desk.
Mr. Benton in the meantime was struggling in
the hands of his friends who were endeavoring
to prevent him from reaching Mr. Foote.
While thus pinioned, as it were, and yet almost
unsuccessfully resisting the cifurts of those who
held him, Mr. Benton boldly denounced Mr.
Foote as an assassin, who had thus dared to
bring a pistol in the Senate to murder him. He
said 44 1 have no arms—examine me—l carry
nothing of the kind—stand out of bis way, and
let the scoundrel and assassin fire !"
In uttering this sentence, Mr. Benton threw
olf from either side those who had held him—
tore open his vest, and invited the fire of his an
tagonist.
Sir. Foote, in the meantime, was restrained
from advancing toward Mr. Benton.
The Vice President, after repeated and vigor
ous efforts, succeeded in restoring a compara
tive state of quiet.
Mr. Benton and Mr. Foote having resumed
their respective seats.
Mr. Foote rose and inquired if he could pro
ceed in order
Mr. Benton, (in a very loud tone and much
excited,) demanded that the Ser ate shall take
cognizance of the fact that a pistol had been
brought here to assassinate him.
Mr. Foote explained, he had no intention to
attack any body. His w hole course had been
that of the defensive. He had been informed
that an attack upon him had been intimated.
Supposing, when the Senator from Missouri ad
vanced towards him, that he was armed and de
signed to attack him, he had himself advanced
to the centre, of the chamber, in order to be in
a position where he could meet Mi. Benton, in
the main aisle, upon equal terms.
Mr. Benton protested against an intimation
that he had carried arms. He never did so.
The Vice President requested Mr. Foote to
take his seat until it could be ascertained what
course was proper for the Ghair to pursue.
Various propositions were then made as to the
course to be pursued
Mr. (May expressed the hope that Mr. Benton
arid Mr. Foote would go before a Magistrate, or
else in the presence of the Senate, pledge them
selves not to commit a breach of the peace, in
the further prosecution of this affair.
Mr. Benton—l have done nothing to authorize
a charge of intention to commit a breach of
the peace, and I will rot in jail before I give a
promise by which 1 admit such a thing—(even
by implication.) I carry no arms, and it is ly
ing and cowardly to insinuate anything of the
kind against me.
Mr. Clay said his suggestions had no reference
to the past, but to the future.
Mr. Foote said he was a constitution loving
and lawabiding man. He only wore arms when
he had reason to believe he was in danger of
being attacked. He preferred another method
of settling difficulties, and had always left the
door inside, open, in order to avoid the necessity
for any other mode of settlement than referred
to He declared that he had no design of pro
! ceeding further in the immediate controversy
which had occurred, but intimated that as a
man of honor, he felt bound to take the pro
ceedings elsewhere.
Mr. Benton greeted the last remark with a
contemptuous laugh—loud enough to be heard
throughout the chamber.
After some further debate, a motion to ap
point a committee, was agreed to, and before
any further action, the Senate adjourned.
It would be no more than right—no more than
justice to both these braggadocios, were the
Senate first to expel Koote, and then send Ben
ton after him. Both hare of late disgraced the
body of which they are members.
Wm. J. Beattyr, son of the Hon. Wm. Beatty,
of Butler, died in California on the IstFebruary.
GOVERNOR'S HESSIGE,
Returning the Apportionment Bill icith
his objections.
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the
Commonwealth, of Pennsylvania.
GENTLEMEN; —The necessity for the present
message ie most sincerely regretted. The ex
ercise of the negative power, vested in me by
the Constitution, has been hitherto carefully
avoided, under the impression that its frequent
and constant UaC was well calculated to impair
the Republican simplicity of a Representative
Government. To unite with cordiality in
measures sanctioned by the Legislature, af.
fecting the welfare of the people, would at ai)
times afford me more pleasure than the adop
tion of a different policy.
When, however, it becomes necessary, in my
judgement to preserve the integrity of the
Constitution, and to protect the lights of my
fellow citizens, I should feel that the trust re
posed in me, by the sovereign people, was un
fa thfully discharged, were I under any cir
curnstances lo shrink froin just responsibility,
or by any action of the Executive Department,
to permit the well established ami revered
principles of a Representative Republican
Government to be endangered, outraged or d-
Btroyed.
In a government founded on the popular
will it is scarcely neces-ary to remark that tn
very basis of its superstructure is the right of
the citizen to an equal voice and influence at
the ballot box. The purity and equality of the
elective fianchise, and the equitable distribu
tion of the favors and burthens of the StatP,
constitute the life-giving principles—the spirit
and strength of such government. The de
struction of either may well be deemed an act
of hostility to the bpst intereetsof society, and
to the permanency of our institutions
In all ages and governments among civilized
men, the infringement of the right of repre
sentation has caused the sturdiest and most
justifiable opposition. Republican government
ceases lo exist whenever these cherished nghtß
are disregarded. In recognition of these ad
mitted principles, the Constitution of this
Commonwealth has pledged the conitituted
authorities to their defence and preservation.
Impressed with the correctness of these
truths, 1 have felt it my duly to withhold my
approval of bill No. 330 of the General As
sembly, entitled 44 An Act to fix the number of
Senators and Representatives, and form the
State into districts, in pursuance ot the provi
sions of the Constitution." 1
It is due to the legislature and the people,
that I should briefly state some of the reasons
that have influenced me in this detetminstion. i
The bill is, in my judgment, unconstitu
tional, unjust and defective in its details.
The Constitution requires that in each "term
of seven years an enumeration of the taxsbies
inhabitants shall be made in such a manner as
shall be directed by law. That the number ct
Representatives shall at the several periods of
making such enumerations; be fixed by the
Legislature, and apportioned among the city
of Philadelphia and the several counties, ac
cording to the number of taxable inhabitants
in each —and shall never be less than sixty, nor
greater than one hundred. Each county shall
have at least one representative, but no county
hereafter erected shall be entitled to a sepa-ate
representation, until & sufficient number of tax
able inhabitants shall be contained within it,
to entitle them to one representative, agreea
bly to the ratio which shall then be established."
It further provides "that the number of Sen
ators shall, at the periods of making the enu
meration before mentioned, be fixed by the Le
gislature. and apportioned among the districts
formed as hereinafter directed, according to
(he number of taxable inhabitants of each, and
shall never be less than cne fourth, nor greater
than one third the number of Representatives."
In its fu.-iher provisions are found limitationa
of the power of the Legislature in the forma
tion of Senatorial districts.
These provisions of the Constitution plainly
indicate toe manner in which the apportion
ment shail be made, and in direct terms de
clarers the basis of representat on, the taxable
inhabitants of each county —they require the
Legislature to fix the number of the members
of the House of Reoresentatives, and to deter
mine the ratio or number of taxable inhabi
tants for each member, according to the t-ep
tennial enumeration. Any departure from this
standard or ratio must be a breach of the or
ganic law which guarantees to each county
an equal representation, according to the num
ber ot taxable inhabitants therein.
The ratio fixed in the bill is 4.865 taxable
inhabitants for one member of the House of
Representatives, and 11.7A3 taxable inhabi
tants for one Senator.
In the bill under consideration are found the
following palpable objections, and violations of
the rano fixed upon by its own provisions
Ist. The county ot Fayette contains 7,fi1l
taxable inhabitants, and is allowed twn mem
bers, being 2,119 taxables less than the num
ber required by the ratio fixed by the Legisla
ture.
The county of Dauphin, with 7,693 taxable
inhabitants, is allowed one member, with an
unrepresented surplus of 2,819. Thus Dau
phin coumy, wiih a larger population, more
taxable inhabitants, and whose citizens bear a
much larger proportion of the public burthens
than the county ot Fayette, has only one-half
the influence and weight in the House of Rep
resentatives.
'2d. Allegheny county, the great commer
cial and manufacturing district ot Western
PenndVlvania, with 28,547 taxable inhabitant?,
is allowed five members, being one member to
every 5.71)9 taxable inhabitants, ad
j lining county of Westmoreland, with less va
riety of interests to protect, is allowed three
member? on a tax list of 11.618 —being one
member to every 3,872 taxab'es. In other
words, to 5,769 taxables in Allegheny county,
in given the right to elect a member of the
House of Representatives, while in est more
land county 3,872 taxables have the same po
litical influence. The unrepresented excess
in Allegheny county, by the provisions of this
bill, is 4,222 taxables, being 350 more taxables
than the ratio fixed for Westmoreland county.
I cannot believe that the honest yeomanry of
Westmoreland county would desire this undue
influence, in the assessment of taxes, over
their fellow citizens of an adjoining county.
3d. Schuylkill county, whose citizens are
largely engaged in mining, manufacturing and
agricultural pursuits, has 12,867 taxables, and
is allowed two members, being 6,133 taxables
to a member, while to the adjacent county of
Berks, with 16,262 taxables, is given four
members, being 4,065 taxables ton member.
Upon what principle ot equity this discrimina
tion is made, I cannot perceive. Here we
find 4,065 taxables in one county possessing
the same authority to electa memb r that u
given to 6,433 taxables in an adjoining county
4th. The county of Westmoreland has,
stated, three members, with ll,61r taxable®-
Schuylkill, with 12,067, has two members—and
Idiyvrence arid Butler, with U915, have two
members. Here is exhibited the astounding
fact that in two districts containing each a lar
ger number of taxables than Westmoreland
there is gtveu to each a I tt r of reprv