general news .items. The bridge over the Susquehanna at Owego withstood the freshet, and is about only bridge on that stream that resisted the attack. A three cent copper coin has been’ordered by law to be a legal tender up to sixty cents. The three cent postal .currency is t 6 bs -with drawn. '• ’ ■; ’ There were more people killed aid wounded in the United States by rail road accidents last year than in any proceeding year at least since 1854. Ithaca was severely visited by the fldod, the greatest iq forty years. V. The salt works at Syracuse were much dam aged by the great inundation. . x- 1 v. John Bigelow, our present Charge'! d’ Af fairs, at Paris, has received the appointment of Envoy’Extraordinary and Minishf| .Pleni potentiary to that Court. The faiSifnl and arduous services of Mr. Bigelow in rehalf of the country are thus richly rewarded.' A petroleum millionaire, one of tbjfkerosene aristocracy, wrote the pther day ;o - a well known firm in New York city, to tb t following brillant effect: “ Send me per Express,’ to elev en Barret City, a good set of verm in for my wife, and marked C. O. D. “ The late Isao Funk, the great Illinqis farmer, owned 520.000 acres of the best in that Stats, and was taxed for nearly 52,'0,000. — His wife also- died in a few hoifrgi -fter her husband. Mr. Funk’s will provides that his vast estate shall remain in his family undivi ded. ' —When Gen. Sherman' reachefl Columbia, S. C., it-is estimated by the, rebels; that his infantry and artillery numbered, 70,000. No cavalry was with him. Put force to that, 30,000 men —and it is repotted- that he has effected a junction with Sheehan, and Ife has a force of 100,000 men. ,A stnlg'army that, and thejroops are in the best Condition. Stamping Deeds. —The Supreme Court ol New York, one day last week decide^ that un • less there is a positive stipulation bejtween the parties to the contrary, tho party selling the property and furnishing the deed muSt likewise pay the stamp duty imposed ‘by '; Congress upon the same. This decision establishes the law upon the subject, and it will well for citizens of our State to make a n )to of it.— Erie Dispatch. '' I Northebn Central Raiiwa^w- Trains will | be resumed on this road to day fat ms Ralston, j one daily each way for the departing | from the Junction at BA. M. find Arriving in ! Ralston at 12 M. The train northward will de part from Ralston at 2 P.-M. and preach the Junction at 6 P, M. Probably Oy Friday morning, trains will able to rah from the De pot passing over the break. The trains will be made up of the usual passenger engines and coaches, which arrived here pif* Sunday’.— Elmira Advertiser. ' Bond ,and Assignment of Mortage.—The Commissioner of Internal Revenuh: has made the following decision When 'a parly executes a bond to a bank for a sum of* money and as signs a mortgage to the bank as security for the payment of the bond at its maturity, both, the bond and tbe assignment of the mortgage are subject to stamp duty.- The fact that stamped collateral security is given does nokexempt the principal intrument from stamp duty; neither would the stamp upon tbe principal instrument relieve tbe collateral from stamp'duty. Egyptian Cotton. —Advices from Egypt state that notwithstanding the- reaction in the cotton market the prospects ofjAe country continues steadily to improve, String to tbe judicious exertions of tbe Vicerni Jbr the devel opment of its resources by all -a tydern aid.— Since Nnbor Pasha has been np(, ointed minis ter of public works and commerce, he has also had the railway under bis cgbtrol, and goods are now forwarded with rapidity-a-so much bo, indeed, that the merchants complain that too much' cotton is accumulating at Alexandria, where the large holders for better prices to realize. This' latter circumstance ac counts for the rate of exchange remaining higher than is usual at the present period of the year, the quotation-now being 95 to 95 J so that not so much gold is imported—a state of affairs expected to continue for'some weeks, as tbe de mand for bills will be- considerable on account of large imports of all kinds having to be paid for os well as various debts from 1 Egypt ■to Europe having to be liquidate^ Wholesale Plunge. —A y nog man nam ed Bishop Cozzens was arrestrt ion Friday last at Altoona on suspicion of beipg .concerned in the frequent robberies of the Pennsylvania Central Railroad cars there. bis gnilt, and implicated an entire' family named Burkholder. Their bouse, sitpatid some dis tance below the towg, was visited' and a, large quantity of dry goods, groceries, &c., to the amount of $5,000 to $6,000 ftnin i secreted in the house, barn andother out bnikinga. Burk holder, his four eons and two daughters were arrested and gave bail for their t-ppearaoce. Cozzens is a step-son to a son-in-law of Burk holder, and the robbery has been|quite a fami ly affair, as another son-in-law mimed Hawke was enbsequetly arrested and another lot of goods found in his house. It seems that Coz zens, who bad been in the employ of the rail road . company, ban by some means Obtained possession of s car-key* by which access'was had to freight cars stars standing upon the sid ing, and the most valuable gome removed.— They were first taken to the of the son in-law, in the borough,, and rei'rved thence to Burkholder's by sleds' and oth,ir conveyances. Several wagon load of goods, ol - every descrip tion have been recovered, worth, at leas fifteen thousand dollars. OmcK Seekers.—A Woshii-gton letter of therfilh Ventilates the offioe. banters' thus : Swarms of office holders are here from allj parts' of tbe country. The (West has abun dant representations both of the present incum- bents and of aspirants seeking;!? oust them. It may comfort a large class of officials to know that the' Commissioner of Internal Revenue has protested against any general change of col lectors and assessors, and that his’’’protest will be heeded. Postmaster General Dennison has likewise decided against any. genital changes, and none will be made in his department ex cept for. specific local causes. Postmaster Mayer, of Cincinnati, has gone home with the assurance that his place is safe; An effort is being made to induce Mr. Medvll, of tbe Trib une, to take tbe post office at Chicago in place ’ of bis partner, tbe present Incumbent, who is said to retire. Some of the collectors of ports and U, S. Marshals in Ohio and other incum bents und aspirants, are on the ground'looking after chances. v = ' " THE AGITATOR. M, H. COBB, BDITOK AND-PROPEIETOE. WBUSBOBOCCH, PENN’A. WEDNESDAY, ; : : : : ; MAR. 29, 1865, THE XiAW OF BBOGBES3, Notwithstanding the prevalence of social and political depravity in these latter days, we atill remain constant in the faith that the. world of man is growing better from day to day and from year to year. Tbp! progress is slow, doubtless, as, in fact, is the operation of universal law, at all times. Were one to foond bis belief in the revolution of the earth around the sun, by such slight evidences us present, themselves to the unassisted powers of observation from day to day, probably his pro gress iri skepticism would overmatch his growth in faith: Bat science expounds the laws of planetary motion, and" that which would only provoke doubt without its aid, becomes unquestioned fact. In Us strong, far-penetrating light. We regard the progress of the race as being clear ly proved by the evidences of history and the expositions of the law 5f civilization which are very generally acknowledged and accepted. — The exceptions to the rule seem- to be individ ual and limited. As, for example, a man may be more degraded to-day than be was yesterday ; and even a community may recede from its good repute and standing among com munities, and tfbeome more or less debased. These, however, are mere exceptions, and do not affect the universal law of progress. We have been.led to these reflections by the occasional expression of opinion that this re bellion could not have occurred a quarter or half century ago; that at those .periods tbe American people were too virtuous and upright to-fall in with the ambitious plans of their leading men. In a sense, we suppose that a rebellion against law abd order would have 'been impossible fifty years ago; the fact that it did not occur niaj he considered pretty good evidence of that fact. If is certain that some intelligence superior to that of man seems to decree "these social and political upheavals and were the matter freely investigated it would be found proceeding in strict accord ance with some universal decree. The com parative peace which preceded the great civil wars in Britain was not an era of so advan ced a state of civilization as that which existed at the breaking ont of those wars. From this it would appear that war, rebellion, and social convulsion, are not the offspring of barbarism. Therefore, to say that this rebellion oonld not have broken out fifty years ago;; and to conclude, therefore, that the American people are-less virtuous and enlightened, and Christ \a.x»y itan KaJCn. oontory agn. dno* not aDDear quite logical. As well might one say of a winter apple that it could not have ripened in May, or of snow, that it could not exist under a tropical sou. Some things are impossible at all times of which men have experience ; and others are impossible under certain cir; cuinstances, and inevitable under others. In this light we regard the great rebellion now approaching its end. The troth seems to be that the seeds of this convulsion were sowed many years ago and have been germinating for- neatly a century. The rank growth ripened for the reaper in 1861. From that day to this there has been a bloody and devastating harvest. It is not that Jefferson Davis, and bis co-conspirators, South and North, were worse men in 1861, than they were in 1840, that the plot thicken ed and burst upon the land. They were as great criminals twenty years ago asfour years ago. Bat the times and circumstances were £ot favorable to the springing of tlje mine.— Had this rebellion been possible to occnr before the proslavery spirit had put on its full hid epusness, it must have perished in the bud, lacking the vital venom which has sustained it for four years. Fifty years ago there were hardly two opinions in the country as regards slavery. It was universally acknowledged to be an evil of great magnitude, which both sec tions, south and north, hoped to get rid of in good time. And it was not until the dema gogues of the South -found breath to demand new guarantees for the perpetuation of the system, that the spirit of anti-slavery took up on itself organized form and real fonnidability. These'two opposing spirits bad to be strength ened by long years of bloodless warfare before 'the present rebellion was possible. In this connection we desire to make brief mention of another matter bearing upon the question of progress. It is stated, in evidence of the degeneracy of the race, that the tem perance cause is languishing and weak. There is much truth iu this, of course. Every man sees that for himself; and ykt it is not univer sal. In some localities tbe various organiza tions of the cause are to-day more flourishing than ever before. Saoh is tbe fact as regards 'Washington, and several other cities where the cause has dragged for years.' That indi viduals, and communities even, have retrogres sed cannot be denied; but if the statistics of the various orders connected with the tempe rance movement should show no foiling off in membership, in the country at large, the decay 0/ the enterprise will then appear to be only local and temporary. The most shocking ebook of the age is that sustained by the semi-rebels of the North, through the intoxication of Andrew John- Von. The semi-rebel papers are convulsed with horror and disgust. It is singular. We have examined the Constitution in vain to find the penalty attached to such dereliction. But a single crime is recognized and provided for in tfiat instrument. 1 That crime ie treason. It is named a capital crime under the law. Through THE TIOG A , COUNTY AGITATOR., the troason of the party whose organs these journals are, the land is to-day steeped in blood, and half of the republic laid waste.— Yet, in nil these four years of war, these zeal ous conservators of public morality have not, altogether indulged, in the denunciation of trea son one tenth .part, in turn or degree, of that now heaped upon a single error of Mr.. John son. So it is with hypocrites and pretenders always. They are horrified at some isolated 'venial sin, yet wink at, and encourage capita) crime. < New York papers of Aridity bring the semi occasional bulletin of a rebel victory near Ben tonville, N. C. ' Jo. Johnson telegraphs the rebel Sec. of War, that he attacked Sherman on the !9th inst., and rooted him, taking three guns. The rebel papers now express a hope that Sherman has met his match. Rut Jhe “ rebel victory" will turn out a rebel skedaddle, and Jo. Johnson will next be beard from run nin>.' away, with Sherman at bis heels. This “rebel victory” will get ventilated in tbSsemi rebel prints north, of'course. It shows their venom. Their editors would do well Ur imi tate some of their humbler brethren in prepar ing to fling up their hats when the rebellion goes down. The truth probably is that John son's bad a fracas with the skir mishers of one of Sherman’s columns. The telegraph news published last week proves to have been rumor electrified. We bad supposed that lightning, like figures, would noVlie. That was a mistake. The people of Wilmington have had what is called “ a grand rail; for the Union." The meeting was called by Mayor Dawson. The meeting was postponed until the Union troops bad mostly left the oity, so that no carping reb el should have it to say that its proceedings were controlled by bayonets. After a full and free conference, s series of loyal resolutions was adopted with great unanimity and siasm. They call upon' the people of North Carolina to submit to the national authority, protest against the madness of the authorities in prosecuting the war against the Union, and declare that the people have lost all confidence in the rebel government. Only one clergyman came forward to participate in the meeting.— His speech was a dignified appeal to the peo ple to retnm to their allegiance, and very able. This minister was the Rev. Mr. Hepburn, of the Presbyterian ofaurcb. - - WAR NEWS. We present herewith a summary of the war news from the 17th iust. It will ha found both interesting and encouraging. Prom the Tribune of March 17 i A dispatch from Qen. Grant to the War De partment gives positive and most cheering news from Gen. Sherman. He bad reached Favetteville without eeriouaoppoaition, and bis army ID tiOti titmUli nod spirits. Horded wan in his front but kept at a respectful distance, which ha will, doubtless, continue to do so long as he has the power. At Colombia Qen. Sherman destroyed forty-three cannon and the immense arsenal and railroad establishment at that place; at Cberaw he captured twenty five cannon and six hundred barrels of gun powder, and at Fayetteville twenty pieces of artillery with much other war material. The -officer who brought the letter to Gen. Grant reports that Kilpatrick’s headquarters bad been surprised by two brigades of Hampton’s get ting in his rear, who captured bis whole staff; bat Kilpatrick, escaping, rallied his men, drove the enemy with great loss, and recaptured nearly all be had lost. The public was pre pared for this good news, but will rejoice none the less emphatically now that it comes in au thentic shape. That faith that now believes in Lee and his strategy will remove moontaina. Sherman’s success is beyond a question, and the days of the Rebellion are numbered. War Department, 1 Washington, March 17— 3 p. in. J Major-Gen. Sheridan reports on the Rich mond and Fredericksburg Railroad across the South Anna River, that, having destroyed the James River Canal as far to the east as Gooch land, he marched up to the "Virginia Central Railroad at Tollsville and destroyed -it dowq to Beaver Dam station, totally destroying 15 miles of the road. Qen. Caster was then sent to Ashland, and Gen. Devin to the South Anna bridges, all of which have been destroyed. Qen. Sheridan says the amount of property des troyed in his march is enormous. The enemy attempted to prevent the burning of the Central Railroad bridge over the South Anna, but the sth United States Cavalry charged up to the bridge, and about thirty men dashed across on foot, driving off the enemy and capturing three pieces of artillery— twenty-pounder Parrotts. C. A. Dana, Assistant Secretary of War. Washington, Saturday, March 13,1865. We learn -of the army of the Potomac that our troops ore in the best possible condi tion, and are ready to move at any time occas ion may require. Rumors continue to prevail in camp tfaatthe Rebels contemplate the evacuation of Peters burg. On Thursday and > Friday the enemy along the center of the line'were very busy throwing troops from point to point, at one time mass ing nt one place, and in a short time thereafter at another, thus necessitating the utmost watch fulness along our entire line. Another account says that all day Wednes day and Thursday the Rebels were in active motion in front of the Ninth Corps. The camps were struck within their lines, and large bodies of troops could be seen from our signal stations to bo moving to and fro. They kept up an nnnsally bold front, at times completely swarming Cemetery Hill with men, and frequently opening upon our troops with cannon, which was promptly replied to. It was believed they were endeavoring to hide the evacuation of Petersburg,. from which all the people have been qrdered away, for the purpose of falling back to their now line of works on the North side of the Appomattox River, with their right resting on the Lynchburg Railroad. On Thursday night, a storm of wind and snow prevailed at the front. Tents were blown down and trees uprooted. A number of men of the 87th Wisconsin were killed and crushed by the falling trees. A heavy explosion took" plAoe on Thursday, which shook- the boats of the James and Appp mattox Rivers. It appeared to be in the direc tion of Petersburg, and it was reported at City Point that it was occasioned by an attempt of the Rebels to blow up Fort Hell, wbicb bad been previously evacuated by our troops, know ing that the Rebels had previously undermin ed it. . - March 22, 1865. The Republican extra say the Goverment has received intelligence that on Sunday last Geo. Sherman’s arrayentered Goldebourough, North Carolina. His march was unopposed. The two armies of Sherman and Schofield have formed 'a junction. ■ * The Republican extra further says: Sherman’s present command ia sufficiently formidable to confront Lee’s whole army in the open field without the assistance of Grant, and no force that the Rebels may raise can im ■pode Sherman's triumphant march northward. The story in The Richmond Sentinel which we published yesterday that fear of Sherman’s divisions were repulsed near Fayetteville turns ■ ouf to be a Rebel lie, as we stated. SECOND DISPATCH. •Philadelphia, March 22,1865. A special dispatch from Washington to The Evening Telegraph says a messenger arrived -with news from Gen. Sherman to Monday, via City Point. Goidshourough’wns occupied by’our forces on Friday and tbearmy moved immediately in pursuit of the enemy. Refugees all report that Jtbnston is moving to Richmond to join Lee, and that his army ia really unfit for heavy fighting, and that Hoke’s troops are the only men that can be relied upon. Raleigh wiil be captured with but little,’ if any, fighting. Glen. Sheridan is off on another raid. It is said that ho will intercept Johnston in bis re treat. . The Army of the Potomac is believed to be advancing west. A great battle is expected soon. Washington, Mar. 22. 1865 A gentleman who arrived here yesterday from Richmond, which place he left on the,l7th inst., states that preparations have been made by the Rebels to evacuate both Richmond and Petersburg, aud he gives it as his opinion that this event will take place the expiration oi ten days. The damage caused by Sheridan’s raid thro’ the counties north of the Rebel capital was ac knowledged by everybody to be irreparable. — The property destroyed was estimated by Gov ernment officials at upward of $50,000,000. Within the last three weeks several divisions of Lee’s army had been sent to re-enforce John ston’e army, and Lee himself went to Raleigh to look after matters in that quarter. He estimates the strength of Lee’s army in the entrenchments of Richmond and Peters burg! at about sixty thousand men, exclusive of ten thousand borne guards and emergency men in Richmond. Johnston’s force in North Carolina be does not believe will number more than from forty five to fifty thousand men, including the re-en forcements that Lee has dispatched to bis assist ance. A large portion of the North Carolina army is composed of militia and undrilled ooooripts, who will not fight if they can possibly get a chance to to run away. A deep gloom pervades the City of Richmond, and everybody seems to feel that the day of reckoning has come at last. «► J A Man who has not ilept for overronr teen Vsars. bx WILLIAM H. GREGG, M. D , Graduate of the College of Physician* and Surgeoni, Neu York, formerly Assistant Physician in the Blackwell* Island Hospitals, lata Medical Inspector of the New loft State Volunteer Depots, under Qov. Edwin D. Morgaa. CONSTITUTION LIFE STROP HAS PRODUCED A REV OLUTION IN MEDICINE, What may mem almost incredible, 1« that many disease hitherto considered hopelessly incurable, are frequently cured in a few days or weeks; an