Huntingdon journal. (Huntingdon, Pa.) 1843-1859, February 03, 1847, Image 2

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    THE JD.TYR N AL.
Huntingdon, Wednesday, February 3, 1847.
p- See fourth page for a column of
reading matter.
Fry- A Statement of the Receipts and
Expenditures of Huntingdon County, for
1846, will be found upon our first page.
GEN. TAYLOR'S LETTER.—The letter
of " Old Rough and Ready," which has
produced so great a sensation at Wash
ington, and which is likely to produce
the "most lively impression upon the
public mind," will be found upon our
first page. We hope all will give it a
careful perusal, and then ask themselves
—Does the gallant old General, who has
been enduring the hardships and diffi
culties'therein narrated, deserve the cen
sures which some of the Locofoco mem
bers of Congress have been attempting
to heap upon him I
Worthy the Attention of Postmasters.
A Postmaster in Pennsylvania has re
cently been compelled to pay several
years' subscription to a distant paper, in
consequence of not having given the pub
lisher the notice required by law in dis
continuing it, but continued to receive
the papers and sell them for the post
age.
APPOINTMENTS.—We learn verbally,
that the Canal Commissioners have ap
pointed A. Boyd Cummins, Collector of
Tolls at Philadelphia, John M. Cunning
ham, re-appointed for this port, and John
Ross of Mifflin county, Supervisor for
the upper division of the Juniata Canal.
LATE NEWS !—The Pa. Telegraph of
the 29th ult., has just learned (by Mag
netic Telegraph we presume) that the
Whigs of Cumberland and Franklin have
appointed delegates friendly to Mr.
Cooper ! Said counties held their meet
ings only three weeks since !
GEN. TAYLOR.—The rumor has come
to be a very current one, the Baltimore
American says, that Gen. Taylor will be
recalled. T he partisans of the Admin
istration wish it, and may succeed in
mustering courage equal to the purpose
designed. It cannot have escaped pub
lic notice, that there is a systematic at
tack made and to be made upon old
" Rough and Ready."
0:7 Why does not our neighbor of the
Globe give President Polk " a few" for
sending Santa Anna to Mexico to lead
the army of that nation'! Does he not
think that in so doing, Mr. Polk has ren
dered essential " aid " to the enemy 1
We should like to hear from you on this
subject, neighbor.
017- It is said by the Washington
Fountain that our Government is in pos
session of the ultimate conditions on
which Mexico will consent to make a
peace with the U. States, and that it has
determined to accede to them, if Con
gress will enable the Executive to meet
the views of Mexico, It is also said
that Mr. SEVIER'S movement in the Sen
ate has reference to the same subject.
DAVID BLAIR, ESQ.—This gentleman
appears to be winning golden opinions
at Harrisburg. The following compli
ment is paid him by the correspondent
of the Public Ledger, in speaking of his
remarks on the Bill incorporating the
Penn'a Railroad Iron Company, in reply
to the advocates of " individual liabil
ity:"
Mr. Blair, of Huntingdon, contended
that if too stringent a construction of
the individual liability clause was insis
ted on, it would deter men of capital
from entering into corporations, and thus
much money would be withdrawn from
the industrial channels of our State.—
He insisted that this did, in a preemi
nent degree, secure the interests of the
poor and needy classes in the country,
and retorted with much point upon the
advocates of restriction policy for their
opposition to this measure. Mr. Blair
is a young man, and bids fair to rise in
the party to which he belongs. In de
bate he never forgets he is a gentleman,
and while he deals severely with the po
sitions and arguments of his opponents,
he still wins and secures their respect
from the fairness and candor with which
he treats them."
ID- Gov. Young, of N. Y. has issued
his proclamation for the pardon of the
convicted anti-renters. The document
is twice the length of his message.—
He enters into a long exposition of anti
rentism, and says that more than eleven
thousand citizens petitioned for their re
lease.
NEXT GOVERNOR.
Whatever may have been the opinion
of a portion of the Whig party some
time since, we presume no one will now
consider us " silly" fbr proclaiming the
nomination of Gen. InvlN as morally cer
tain. The recent election of delegates
in the counties of Chester and Lancas
ter, has emphatically and finally ended
all controversy on this question. We
feel rejoiced that it is so. Not that we
rejoice at the elevation of one Whig over
another, but because we feel persuaded
that the selection of the one upon whom
the popular preference has fallen, will
insure beyond all doubt, the success of
Whig principles, and the ultimate over
! throw of the destructive and dangerous
principles of Locofocoism, both in the
State and Nation. In closing a lengthy
and well-written article on this subject,
the Pa. Intelligencer remarks : " Should
Gen. Irvin receive, as we have no doubt
ne will, the votes of the " instructed "
delegates, and of those who are " re
commended" to support him, with such
1 as have avowed their predilection, we
sincerely believe that he will, on the
first balloting, obtain OVER NINETY
VOTES ! Such a unanimity will be as
tounding to our Locofoco opponents—
such a burst of popular mind will crush
them in the outset , and when they lead
up their enfeebled and dismayed victim
to the contest, it will be but to hear the
shouts of the victors, and the moans of
the vanquished."
Since the above was in type, we have
received the Daily Intelligencer of the
29th ult., containing a list of the dele
gates already appointed, and which that
paper sums up as follows :
instructed and recommended for Irvin
Uninstructed, but known to be Irvin men,
Irvin delegates 74
Instructed and recommended for Cooper 14
Uninstructed, but known to be Cooper
men, 4
Cooper delegates, 18
Instructed for Forward
Instructed for Michler 3
Instructed for Stewart 1
Twetaty-eight delegates are yet to be
elected, of which Gen. Irvin will in all
probability carry seventeen—Mr. Cooper
the balance.
I]a- The Globe has expressed a de
sire to see the speech of Mr. Gentry,
of Tennessee, appear in the columns of
our paper. That wish would have been
gratified ere this, had it not been for the
crowded state of our columns in giving
the current news of the day. And not
withstanding the Globe has made ano
ther exhibition of depravity, by pro
nouncing Mr. Gentry a " tory," and his
speech a " tory document," we are free
to say that we heartily endorse every
sentiment expressed by Mr. G. in his
speech. We have yet to learn that pa
triotism and love of country consists in
a sycophantic adulation of all the acts
of the Executive. And our neighbor
will learn, ere another year rolls around,
that the people of Pennsylvania also
concur in the sentiments expressed by
Mr. Gentry, that the War with Mexico
could and should have been avoided.—
But if our neighbor is so anxious to
have this speech go before the public,
in order to convict its author of Tory
ism, why does he not transfer it to the
columns of the Globe 1 Is he afraid to
allow the people an opportunity to judge
of the sentiments for themselves 1
The attack made by the Globe upon
the Hon. JOHN BLANCHARD, will not, we
opine, redound much to its credit. For
the representative of a district in Con
gress, who has twice been triumphantly
sustained by the people, and who has
enjoyed, in a high degree, for the last
thirty-five years, the confidence of the
people, to be stigmatized by one hardly
warm in the district, as a " traitor to his
country," cannot fail to disgust the more
sensible portion of the Locofocos them
selves. Our neighbor should learn to
forget and forgive. If Mr. Blanchard
has been instrumental in preventing his
favorite from taking a seat in Congress,
the fault lies with the people of this dis
trict. If they could not see the supe
rior merits of the Globe's candidate,
surely Mr. B. is not to blame for that.
O - What will Mr. POLK do, now that
Congress refuses him in the Lieutenant
General 1 Some say, let him go to the
field himself, as Captain General, if he
is not satisfied with the Major Generals
now in command, and wishes to have an
officer of higher grade at the head of
all our forces ! Let him take the com
mand in person, and lead on the war!----
Most people think he could be well spa
red from the White House !
THE PUBLIC PRINTING
Monday, the 25th ult., was the day
fixed by law for the allotment of the
public printing and binding of the Com
monwealth, for three years ; but the
present Legislature having passed a sup•
plement to the law, the allotment was
postponed in order to give all an oppor
tunity to bid understandingly. In re
gard to the propriety of this movement,
the Pa. Telegraph says :
" The necessity for the adjournment
of the Convention will be apparent and
the motive approved, when it is under
stood that within the last three years
the State has paid upwards of T E N
THOUSAND DOLLARS to the public
printers, through the liberal construc
tion of the printing law, more than the
strict constructionists and friends of re
form think the law contemplated. This
has been done by the allowance of full
price for composition, two, three and four
times, when the printers were only at
the expense of it once. The supplemen
tary law referred to cuts off this method
of obtaining profits, and leaves no dis
cretionary construction to the Auditor
General, let him be Whig or Loco."
The printing for the last tbree years
has been in the hands of Lescure, of the
Harrisburg Union, who took it at so low
a price that printers were at a loss to
know how he managed to save himself
in executing the work. The above,
however, furnishes the explanation; the
Jew has been at his old tricks, and the
Whig Legislature has caught him. We
hope they have now effectually barred
the Treasury against this leech. We
think there should be a special act pass
ed prohibiting French Jews from doing
the work at any price.
Report of the Superintendent of Common
The school year ended on the first
Monday of June last. The State appro
priation for the year was $200,000; this
divided among the accepting districts,
gave to each taxable 49 cents. The ap
propriation for the current school year,
1847, is two hundred thousand dollars.
This divided among the accepting school
districts, will give to each taxable fifty
cents.
The report represents the number of
school districts for the last year, 1,225,
of these, 1,067 accepted of the provis
ions of the common school law, leaving
158 non-accepting districts, being nine
teen less than in the year preceding.
The report has appended to it a table
showing the comparative view of the
system since its establishment in 1845.
It is as follows :
Number of districts. 807
Accepting 536
Number of schools, 762
Length of time the schools were open
-3 months and 12 days,
Teachers, 808
Scholars, 32,514
Average cost of teaching per quarter—
sll2},
1846.
Number of districts, 1,225
Accepting 1067
Schools, 7,096
Time open-5 months and one day.
Teachers, 8,468
Scholars, 338,805
Average costs of teaching per quarter,
$123.
These results are indeed gratifying,
and cannot but gladden the heart of all
true friends of education.
WHIGS AND TORIES.
The Pittsburg American, in speaking
of the vote in the Legislature of this
State on the Tariff resolutions, thus
holds up to light the position of the two
parties on this subject :
"The recent vote in the House of Re
presentatives, draws the line very broad
and clearly between the Whigs and To
ries. The Whigs, to a man, were seen
and heard voting for the American Ta
riff of 1842—and the Tories, without an
exception, voting for the British Tariff of
1846. Among the Whigs of the House,
we may justly and properly include Mr.
Klingensmith, of Armstrong county,who
was elected in opposition to the regular
Tory candidate, and mainly by Whig
votes. By this vote alone, has Mr.
Klingensmith justified the confidence of
those constituents who supported him,
though he will probably be denounced
by the hirelings from Europe and Wash
ington, lie himself having belonged to
the Democratic party so long as it te
mained American."
THE PRESIDENCY.-A very large meet
ing was held in the city of Pittsburg on
the 25th ult., for the purpose of bring
ing the Hon. JOHM M'LEAN, of Ohio,
before the People for the Presidency.—
The Hon. Gabriel Adams, Mayor of the
city, presided. We extract the follow
ing from among the resolutions passed :
Resolved, That JOHN M'LEAN, of
Ohio, be recommended to the people of
the United States as the man distin
guished by such virtues and qualifica
tions, and in the support of whom every
patriot and well wisher of his country
can cheerfully unite.
• -
Our State Legislature has been occu
pied, principally, during the past week
with private bills. The bill incorpora
ting an Iron Company in Blair county
has passed both Houses, and now awaits
the signature of the Governor. Resolu
tions against the introduction of slavery
into any new territory acquired by the
Uunited States, passed by a unanimous
vote in the House, and in Senate by 28
to 3. The Northern dough-faces are
looking up. A bill to defray the ex
,
penses of the volunteers called out from
fthis State, until mustered into the ser
vice of the United States, passed. The,
money so expended to be refunded by
the National Government. An act to
provide for the payment of the interest
on the public debt of this Common
wealth, falling due on the Ist days of
February and August of the present
year, has passed both Houses, and been
signed by the Governor: The 4th day
of February has been fixed upon for al
lotieg the public printing. Mr. Trego
from the Committee on Ways and Means,
has reported the annual appropriation
bill. Petitions on the License question
from this county have been presented in
both Houses. Mr. Blair presented one
from the new township of Penn, for de
signating a place of holding their gene
ral elections.
The work of the session is progress
ing rapidly, and we look with confidence
for an early adjournment.
"Aid and Comfort to the Enemy."
The attacks made upon Gen. Taylor
and his army, by two active friends of
the Administration in Congress, are al
most as well calculated to afford " aid
and comfort to the enemy," as the ad
mission of Santa Anna and his staff into
Mexico by order of President Polk.—
Through the agency of the administra
tion, General Taylor may be said to be
placed between two fires,—a fire in front
from Mr. Polk's Mexican friend, Santa
Anna, and a fire in the rear from the
supporters of the Executive in Congress.
There is but one thing wanting to make
the " comfort" of the enemy complete,
and that is a remittance of $2,000,000
from Mr. Polk to Santa Anna, to "aid"
the latter in prosecuting the war. We
have not thought it worth while to men
tion the " aid, and comfort" afforded to
the enemy, by the neglect to furnish
General Taylor with a ponton train for
crossing rivers, and the delay in provi
ding steamers, wagons, and other means
for transportation, which would have
enabled him to follow up at once the ad
vantage he gained at Palo Alto and Res
eca de la Palma. If the Executive would
take the trouble to compare the " con-
I structive treason" of the administration
with the alleged treason which he has
attempted to fix upon the Whigs, he
would find the balance awfully against
himself and his official advisers.
Schools
The Pa. Telegraph says :—" The
State Temperance Convention which
convened here on Wednesday last, was
numerousty attended, and its proceed
ings were conducted with much zeal and
ability. The Sons of Temperance had
a procession yesterday, the day being
pleasant, the turnout was large and im
posing, and the streets were thronged
with spectators. Mr. Gough delivered
a lecture on Wednesday evening, in the
Methodist meeting house to a crowded
audience. Addresses were also made
there last evening by members of the
Convention to an overflowing house,
after which the Convention adjourned.
Occupation of the Members of the House
of Representatives.
The following is a correct statement
of the occupation of the Members of the
House of Representatives, from which
it will appear that the Agricultural in
terest is well represented, having not
only a large preponderance over any
other, but an absolute majority over all.
Farmers 51 ; Lawyers 12 ; Merchants
5 ; Carpenters 4 ; Surveyors & Scriv
eners 3 ; Black Smiths 3 ; Doctors 3 ;
Printers 3; Cabinet Makers 2; Inn-
Keepers 2; Shoe Makers 2; Tin-Smith
1 ; Conveyancer 1 ; Saddler 1 ; Miller 1;
Artist 1 ; Tailor 1 ; Teacher 1; Stone-
Mason 1 ; Cooper & Guagerl ; 1 vacant.
—Pa. Telegraph.
[D- Sonic of the Mexicans papers ex
press an apprehension that Santa Anna
meditates using the army for others pur
poses than repelling the invaders, and
he is warned against any such course.—
He is much censured for his severity to
Gen. Garcia Condo, who has been sent
offunder arrest to Zacateasis or Durango.
THE LEGISLATURE
State Temperance Convention.
STATE CONVENTION,
CHESTER COUNTY.—The Whigs of this
county held a county meeting on the
26th ult., at which there were six hun- '
dred Whigs in attendance ; and, by ge
neral consent, in order that the friends
of the two candidates should have fair
play, the question was taken by ballot.
On counting off, Gen. JAMES IRVIN of
Centre county, had a majority or one
hundred and thirty-three. The following
are the delegates :
Senatorial—Charles Brooke.
Representative—Dr. J. B. Brinton, Jas
Penrose, E. J. Dickey.
LANCASTER COUNTY.—The whigs of the
'Old Guard' held their County Conven
tion on the 27th ult. The following
named gentlemen were selected as dele
gates, and unanimously instructed to
support Gen. James Irvin, of Centre co.
for Governor : Messrs. T. E. Franklin,
Kelton, Duffield, Hager, Shaeffer, and
Musselman.
Mr. Benton and the President
The project of out-ranking Gens. Tay
lor and Scott, by the appointment of a
Lieutenant General, being very general
ly and very justly condemned, Mr. Ben
ton has volunteered to step between the
Country and the President, and take the
responsibility of having " set the ball
in motion" himself, for his own promo
tion.
We take the following abstract of his
remarks on the subject, made in the Se
nate on the 25th inst., front the report
in the U. S. Gazette :
"Mr. Benton made a speech in vindi
cation of the President for having pro
posed the creation of the office of Lieu
tenant General. The plan, he said, was
his, not the President's. In September
last the President had offered him the
mission to France, which he has posi
tively declined.
"During the month of November he
had sent for him and asked his opinion
relative to the future conduct of the
war. In responding to the query, Mr.
Benton had proposed a plan, and after
wards reduced it to writing; its features
he would not disclose, but he would say,
however, that his plan required one head
for the whole army, the prosecution of
the war with vigor, living on the ene
my, and levying contributions from
them. Gen. Jackson, lie said, had of
fered him a command in the army in
1830, in case of a war with Mexico. In
1812, he (Mr. Benton) was military su
perior to every general now in the ser
vice, and had only mentioned these
things to vindicate the President."
In regard to this egotistical display of
Col. 8., the editor of the U. S. Gazette
remarks :
There must have been a great deal
of palpable ridicule in the exhibition of
a person who, during the war of 1812,
remained on the Recruiting Serrice,with
out seeing a shot fired, boasting of hav
ing held higher rank once than Gens.
Scott, Taylor, Gaines, and the whole
list of general officers of the army."
A SHAMEFUL PARAGRAPH.—We have
never, (says the North American) read
a more contemptible and sneaking insin
uation than is contained in the follow
ing from the Harrisburg Union :
"THE NEW STATE TREASURER.—We
understand that Mr. JOHN BANKS, the
newly elected State Treasurer, has not
yet entered his security for the faithful
performance of his duty as Treasurer.
The security required is eighty thousand
dollars. After all the efforts of the Fed
eral members of the Legislature to get
rid of " honest John Banks's" Guber
natorial claims, they have not placed
him upon so " soft a bed of roses" as
they had supposed."
It is fortunate that Mr. Banks's char
acter is beyond the reach of such poor
tricksters as would insinuate a falsehood,
where they have not effrontery sufficient
to attack openly. The Whig State Treas
urer could receive any amount of secu
rity requisite, from gentlemen of the
democratic party, who would despise, as
much as we do, the attempt of the hang
ers on of their party to sully his repu
tation.
DJ- An immense iceberg lately float
ed into the harbor of Eastport Me.,
dashing to pieces several vessels lying
at the wharves; it is supposed to have
been blown from the Arctic sea in the
late gales.
G PIERRE SOULE, Esq., (Democrat,)
has been elected to the United States
Senate, by the Louisiana Legislature, in
the place of the late Alexander Barrow.
The vote on the first ballot standing—
Soule, 59—L. Bordelon, 52.
ID - The Washington correspondent
of the Courier writes :-- 4, Gen. Gaines
is in the city, and admits that the private
letter from Gen. Taylor, which has at
tracted so much attention, was address
ed to and published by him."
FROM THE ARMY.
The following letter is from WILLIAM
SMARE, now in the Army, and addressed
to his Father, of this borough :
SALTILLO, Mexico, Dec. 26, 1846.
DEAR —:—There has been consi
derable excitement here since I last
wrote you, caused from reports that the
Mexican Army was advancing on us.
General Taylor having marched with
part of our force for Victoria, but now
hastily returning, the Mexican Army
and citizens of this place, according to
reports, were to attack our small force
here; but as the volunteers are coming
in rapidly, and the Mexican army not
having arrived here yet, I think they
will give it up as a bad job. Express
arrived hero yesterday from Gen. Wool's
command, which is now at the "Pass,"
12 miles from here, stating that the ene
my were advancing, which caused us to
get under arms, and act on the defen
sive. It was soon after ascertained,
however, that the enemy's advance guard
I were only scouting through the country
after provisions. The enemy is about
150 miles from here, nearly starved out,
and are compelled to come within sixty
miles of us, to rake up some provisions.
Whether the Mexican army intend at
tacking us here, remain where they are,
or advance slowly for the purpose of
drawing us out of this town, I cannot
say ; but time will tell. If they attack
us, it will be because they are nearly
starved out, and that they have six men
to our one. Twenty thousand Mcxi
cannot break their way into Saltillo
against our force, which is only about
five thousand, but gaining strength daily.
I cannot form an idea of what our next
move will be. I will write again soon.
Yours, &c., Wig. SNARE.
GEN. SCOTT,
A late letter from Matamoras says
" Gen. Scott returned here on the 6th
inst. from Cainargo. He told me that
everything was quiet above, and no prob
ability of any hostile collision at pres
ent. He said, for the next ten or fifteen
days, he should be at the Brazos Santi
ago, and, in this place. He was asked
in my hearing to what point lie would
go when he should leave here, he replied
to the point circumstances should make
it necessary at the time. No one is au
thorized to say on what point he will
move, or when he will go. You are as
well qualified to conjecture his destina
tion as any of those - in this quarter, who
affect to speak ex cathedra. One thing
you may confidently rely on. He will
go to the place where the best chance
for a fight offers, and he will go as soon
as it is possible to get a force sufficient
to fight with success. He feels the im
portance if not the necessity, of making
a prompt and efficient movement. Those
who march under his banner, may be
certain of a fight, if the Mexican force
can be found to oppose him. The va
rious regiments in depot, along the river
for months past, are under orders to
march as soon as the new troops coming
out shall arrive, to relieve them. Gen
erals Taylor and Patterson are marching
on Victoria, and must soon be there, if
not already arrived. The engineers,
with the pioneers and their escort, had
at the last accounts, nearly reached Vic
toria, on the route Gen. Taylor is march
ing, not having met the least opposition.
There is no positive information from
the column of Gen. Patterson since lie
left San Fernando. There is no doubt
of his advancing in safety..
GEN. WOOL'S COMMAND.—The Wash
ington Union is indebted to a gentleman
of the Topographical Bureau for an ex
tract of a letter from an officer of Gen.
Wool's command, dated " Camp at Ague
Nuevo, (Mexico,) Dec. 27th." He states
the extraordinary march which that di
vision of the army had made to join Gen.
Worth—the infantry marching on one
day nearly forty miles. "It is believed
that the enemy meditated an attack
upon our forces in detail, but was deter
red from striking the blow by the rapid
concentration of our troops. Gen. But
ler having, in the meantime, moved up
from Monterey, inaking our army at
Saltillo fully 4000 strong."
A SIGN.—We find the following para
graph in the United States Gazette of
the 26th ult. It is not without its mean-
There is a very remarkable passage
in Oldschool's letter this morning;—
'The administration may move General
Taylor from his present post, and he
them from theirs.'
"So true as the administration makes
a more open demonstration against Gen.
Taylor, so true is their danger that Mr.
Polk's private Secretarywill have to hand
over to Gen. Taylor's private Secretary
an inventory of the property of the White
House in 1849."
It The Pennsylvania Volunteers
were to have sailed for Brazos on the
14th inst., in the ships Russell Glover,
Statesman and Oxnard. The New Or
leans papers express much pleasure at
the approximation of their departure.
"UNDER WHICH KING I"The Jack
sonville (Illinois) Journal says that Wm.
B. Warren, of that place, has been ap,
pointed Governor of Coahuila!