. . . , .- • i11int5...... •".," . .. • . . -. .. n S . T; 1-te .. 4 e., . taro - • •A- . ' 4 . • • "%r ',., 6 , 4: / ~: ; A d‘ ♦ . j f :w. o :0 4.131'4-"'"4 'Vr. -,. It . • 4. 4- ,' .1 ~ :,.' t • 't " d• ... e• fr .;,. St 4 : • I .'"' t ..........- . / et , S.r . - ..4 ..' „•.1 . :: k , . P.01:317AT WZIT3 MIZIDLMTOI7..I Office of the Star et. Banner : L7ltaaibersbarg Sired, a fern doors West of the Court... House. CON irl'h )Ns 1. The SEAR iC 11 E Pt' 11 ' 11 1' A lit, 1:11 i< 1 , 111 , lishrd at 'I WO DO LA If , per annum Vol ume of 52 numbers.) pa yahlr 17:ince: or TWO DOl,l, AUS El El' ('ENT's if rim' paid until after Ihr tar', ut iron 'if the yrur. No subscription will be reerived for a shorter period than six month.; nor will the paper be dis continued until ell arrearages are paid, unless at the option of the Editor. A failure to notify a dis continuance will be considered n new engagement, and the paper forwarded accordingly. M. Anv rs-rs not exceeding n square, will he inserted 'MITI ti.nrs fur til, and 25 cents for each subsequent insertion—the number of in sertions to be marked, or they will be published till forbid and charged accordingly; longer ones in the same proportion. A reasonable deduction will be made to those who ildvertise by the year. lAr. An Letters and Commimicatioris addressed to the Editor by mail must be post-paid, or they will tint lie attended to. A DV Etal ENTS ;The Fashionable flats, Caps and Bonnets. Firm. P axton, HAS now on hand a very large assort. went of HATS, CAPS & BONNETS at his old stand in Chambersburs ! Street, two doors from the Court House. CONSISTING AS FOLLOWS Men's Castor HATS, " Roram do. ' " Spanish body do. " Silk do. " Plain Russia do. Youth's Fur do. Old Men's Broad Brims do. •• • Low Crown do. Also Second hand HATS. Ladies FUR BONNETS, " SILK J - Also—A GOOD ASSORTMENT OF Fl) t C kips, of different kinds: Mil IR SEJL C.II'S for .NIEN and BOYS. All of which he will sell at Low Prices wholesale and retail—for Cash and Country Produce—such as Wheat, Corn, Rye, Buck wheat, Oats, Wood, Wool, &c. &c. prCall and judue for yourselves. November 17, 1837. r 1-23 Kct tletvell, Wilson GROCERS & COMMISSION MERCHANTS', Corner of Commerce and Pratt Streets, A3AL'i'l MORE, OFFER to the Country trade for Cash or p.m* payment;' th© renewing aOD S : TO AVIT: . 50 bts. S. IL .111oltesses 20 bhds. West India & N. Orleans ditto 200 bags Rio'COffee, (part strong, scented 1 - 00 " Lagnira do. '.lOO " Has;aim do. 50 ithds. N;Orletins & Porto Rico - S..ga 10 pipes and hair Champagne ant Rochelle !handy Gin • 50 tierces Honev 200 boxes Raisins • 74.00 quarto do. • -'l5O eighth d9. 1 :•-,' .Fresh importation. 50 kegs • TOGETHER WITH Cinnamon, Cloves, Pepper, Teas in chests, half chests anrl.boxes, c c. 4c. Baltimore, N0v.17,, 1837. tr-33 N'OTICE. 'MIDI FIE subscriher, residing in Germany hereby give naticeto all Options indebted to the Eststo of CATHARINE REEVER, • Late of Germany township, Adams County Pa. deceased, to call and make immediate pay ment; nod those having claims against said Es. tate, will present them without delay,' prop. ore', authenticated far settlement. JON ATHAN C. FORRES'f, January 30; 1838. IM-4,1 'NOTICE. Di IHE subscriber wishing to close, his Men. - 11 - made Bitsmess as soon as possiblo, would hereby give notice to all who know themselves indebted to him, by note or book account, to call and settle the same between this and the first of March next, as further indulgence cannot he given. THOMAS STEPHENS. Pe!Prsturg. (Y. S.) Jan. 5, 18,35. tf-40 NOTICE* ROHE subscriber, residing in Liberty town. ship, hereby gives notico to all persons in. debteu to the Estnin of DAVID BEARD, . • Late of Lihorty township, Adams county, Pa. &Ceased, to cull and make immediate payment; nod those having chinos nuaiiist said Estitto, will prosmit them without delay, properly million. timed, fur settlement. SA NI UEL BEARD, Adm'r. January 30,1031 i. ; 61-44 -4 PUBLIC NOTICES. , f trolt 4 001ZM E A PER Tit A N EVER: SAITUEL wiTHTI,Row Il AS JUST iarrunsEn renal Tli (ATI', WITH A SPLENNID ASsORTIIENT OF o.cozz, Suitable to the Season, comprising every variety of DRY GOODS, G OC EEt I ES. £l . l (War Ctutenswayt: which have been selected with great care, and purchased on such terms as will justify him in 011;.ring them to the Public pcpCHEA PER TITAN EV KR „CI lie invites public attention to huts Stock of Goods, assured that it needs but n "peep" at them to convince any one that his Cor i.eriy the place for BARGAINS! Gettysburg, Dec. 1, I Nl7 COA.O2l' LAC.; FR LW; E .I.IVD S ELS. f 1 -1E Subscriber has tiow On hand a large -A- stock Of verlosuperior C~Jca itt 1161 4 p AIN D TANSIELS, OF Illy OWN MANUFACTURE, Which he will dispose of on the most reason able terms. (* — Orders from a diittnnce will he prompt ly attended to. Any Pattern made to order. Address JOHN ODELL, Gettysburg, Pa. N. B. All kinds of MILITARY work done to order. November 17, 1 °37. tf-33 Notice is hereby Given. TO all Legatees and other persons con corned, that the A DMIS ISTR A I'ION ACCOUA TS of the deceased per sons hereinafter rnentioned,will be presentee to the Orphans' Court of Adams County, fin con fir ma t ton and a 110%% awe, on Toesda! lke 2711: day of February next, viz: The Account of Eh Horner, Executor of the E,tate of Alexander Horner, deceased. The Account of Eli Horner, Administra tor of the Estate of John W. McKee, de. ceased. The Amulet of Eli Horner, Administra tor of the Estate of John W. McKee, de ceased, who was Administrator of the Es tate of the Rev. James G. Breckenridge deceased. The Account of Levi Osborne and Wro Vanorsdle, Ex , cutors of the Estate of Sate Osborne, deceased. The Account of John Deardorff, Admin istrator of the Estate of Daniel Diehl, de ceased. The A rcouni ofJoseph Sneeringer jr. and rohn Kuhn, Executois of Joseph Shunead er, deceased, who was one of the Executors if the Estate of Peter Shanefelter, deed. The Account of Philip Bishop, Adminis• rutor of the Estate of Polly Bishop, dec'd. The Account of Jrniatlyin C. Forrest, dministrator of the Estate of Philip Lung, ccuased. JAS. A. THONIPSON, Regiecr. legister's Office, Gettys -Imm, Jan. 30, 183 S. ( tc-44 FOR s too. ralfir, Subscriber is desirous ordisposing lL of Lis Ptoperty in and neat Gett”. burg. nod offers it fur Sale, on very favota hie terms. IT CONSISTS OF A .HOUSE & LOT the borough of Gettysburg., nn est York street,.third Lot livqn the Diamond. The house is a large, weather boarded one; and the situation eligible. -A LSO- BETWEEN • 8 and 9 .acres of Land, within the western limits of the borough, between the Millerstown Road and Nlid dln. street, and south of Middle•street. This land will be sold either by the acre or in Town Lots, to suit purchasers. .--A LSO- A FARM, situate in Cumberland township, about 1 mile from Gettysburg, adjoining lands of Rev. C. G. M'Lean, Jacob Herbst, E. Pitzer and others, containing 140 acres, more or less—on which are A Two U sTony HOSE 9 MMO9 11911 and good Barn. ma Possession of the above Property will be given on the Ist of April nest. 10r For terms of Sale, apply to the sub. scriber, residing in Hancock, Washington county, Md. ROBERT TAYLOR. Decenlber 8, 18' , 37. tf-86 'NOTILCE. 14 t,LIIE subscriber, residing in Mountpleasunt b. 1.4 township,liereby gives notice to all persons indebted to the Estate of MARY C. YENOWINE, Late of Mountpleasant township, Adams Co. Pa. deceased. to call and make immediate payment, and those havini claims against said Estate, will present them • without delay, properly authen. 'icated, for settlement. SAMUEL HOFFMAN, Adner. with the will annexed. 6t-41.2 January 16,1838 AN APPRENTICE TO TO F: PRINTING} BUSINESS I►'Will be taken at this Office, tf applica- Lion is made inimediate!v. "I WISH NO OTHER HERALD, NO OTHER SPEAKER OF MY LIVING ACTIONS, TO KEEP MINE HONOR FROM CORRUPTION. -SHAKS arautwlramwmaaif, vmc. titwam4a2) , actx,, an:ezaagyviLert 9 When I reached Richmond, I took lodg logs at the old and venerable "Swan," under the hope of nkleting my uncle at that place. He had not yet left home; for he still believ. ed that 1 had not embarked at France. I lounged in the porch; and while in that situ- alien, a play•bill,with the usual garniture of ink, atftacted my listless eve. J'he theatre —a crowd—and Ellen Pilton rushed on my flincy,and the idle hope of meeting her there instantly occurred to me. My toilet was soon made, and I walked to the theatre; but did not reach it until the play was nearly performed. The beauty,the intelligence,the chivalry of Virginia,were gathered in a dense mass on that fatal Thursday. Old age, soul. ing youth, and blooming infancy filled the tier of boxes and crowded the rude benches of the pit; and ns I gazed on that brilliant assembly of genius and of beauty,l forgot the glare of Parisian society, in the gems nod flowers army own native land. difficulty I forced my way to the centre of the pit; end, turning around,[ saw Ellen Pd. ton, Her face was pate, and sadness had set a funeral seal on that brow where genius was THE GARLAND —"Withnweeteot flower; eurich'd, From various gardens cull'd with care." a POET'S EPITAPH. DV E. ELLIOTT. STOP, mortal! Here thy brother lies, The• Poet of the Poor, his books wen• rivers, woods and skies, The meadow and the moor; Ms teachers were the torn heart's wail, The tyrant and the slave— The street, the factory, the jail, The palace, and the grave! Sin met thy brother every where! And is thy brother blamed? From passion, danger, doubt, and care, Ile no exemption claimed. Tho meanest thing, earth's feeblest worm, lie feared to scorn or hate; Put, honoring in a peasant's form The equal of the great, lie Welled the steward, whose wealth makes The poor man's little more; Yet loaded the haughty wretch that takes From plunder'd labor's store. A hand to do, a head to plan, A heart to leel and dare— Tell man's worst foes, here lies the man Who drew them as they are. ( 1.? j.VA 12 . :1- - ) bi;3 !I ii (!) iit ?I o From the Southern Literory .ifersenger Burning of the Richmond The.aire. '•lllany and many is the house, in which a chasm bus been made which can never be filled np " Richmond Enquirer. In the days of the gay Boccacio. "Paris was a place to know the reasons of things, an d hp en us es o f the sanity's bet:Mlle a gen. tlem ,n." II still freshly bears this label of wit and philosophy; and a Parisian finish at tracts, even in our uttlita 'aim age, the same respect which the fair storv•tellers of the Decameron yielded to it. To its seductive vortex 1 rushed with the crowd of frivolity and fashion; vet 1 was a chilled exotic,droop• trig amid the hollow splendor which blazed around me. The glitter of thronged cities —the rich historic ruin—the speaking mar ble, and the thi illin , canvass, soon glut the appetite of curiosity, and every object which is presented to us becomes darket.ed by our prejudices or discolored by the associations of our education. We travel to find some thing new. Alas! man is the same creature of tear moulded clay in every clime. And in the beautiful land of France,) turned from the blood.stained trophiesof kingly ambition to feel for the maimed soldier; and :nrgot the glory of the Corsican, in the gushing tear which stained the boyish cheek of the sacri• fired conscript. I luolsial not on society a mass----f thought of each unit of character which composed the gilded fabric, and my heart hourly brought befiire me,in busy corn pa rison, the tranquil prosperity of my O%VI lerest-gii t land. 1 reasoned as a republican and therelbre I took re- rank among the lead ers °file:llion; arid should hilve la the trai tor's blush, had I surrendered those militant mariners which, springing from our free in• sotutions, are alike the support arid pride ul our liberty. At Paris I found a letter from my uncle, iniOrming me of Ptlion's unexpe-cted recove• rv, and requesting me to return home. I lost no time in olio) ing the welcome slim. 111r19. and I was soon on the confines of France. A clerical error in my passport gave me some alarm, as I w s informed that it would be rigidly examined at the last town through which I passed. On reaching it, 1 was taken before a youlliful officer fi.r exam teat ion. My passport,fidded like a lawyer's brief, lay in my hat,and when I took it up for the purpose of submitting it to hi many name. with the addition, "of Virginia," was dischis ed. "Pup du Washington!" he exclaimed —at the same moment motioning to me to replace the passport And courteously bowing to my departure. 1 was again in Virginia!—and as we as. rended the wizard stream of t he James river, the stillness of its sleeping banks excited the passion, without the repulsive feeling,of soli rude. There it lay before us, an earth•born giant! The midnight moon rode joyously through the sapphire sky. Her massy,cold and silvery light spread itself over the deep. ening chasms of the woods, and her flicker ing beams danced among the shadowy vistas of the leafless fOrest. An eagle pc rched on a towering oak, the diadem of the woods, mingled his wild scream with the freshening breeze, while ever and anon that solitary cry gently died away in the mazy shade of cloud and forest. A holy and subdued still ness brooded over the slumbering earth. In that solemn hour,- I forgot for one moment the treasureJ hate of my life, and the gush ing, syn.pathies of fatherland hushed 'the fierce whisper of revenge. wont to hold his proudest festival of thought. tier wavy hair was bound loosely with a tress of its own, and a sickly flower languished amid het dishevelled locks. The box in !which she sat was full of glee,spirit and joy. !She alone was silent; and though her eye wandered, it yet failed to catch my ardent gaze. The curtain dropped, and the pan• tomime of the "Bleeding Nun" was announ ced as the concluding piece. Placing my• self directly before her, tie curtain had no sooner risen, than her large and lustreless eyes fell on me. A sudden flush athwart her cheek —n tremulous morement of her snowy hand—arid the quivering of her coral lips, declared the stormy memory of her hen rt. She looked on me but for a moment; and in her averted glance, I road a sentence of contempt and abhorrence! The pantomime was now commenced; and in the first act ,t he cottage of Baptist the rob• her was illuminated by a large chandelier, which oscillated fearfully over the stage.— , When the curtain fell, nt the conclusion of ' the first acy his chandelier was Idled rtinong the scenery which was suspended to the ceil ing. The fatal lamp was not exttaguished! and it was carelessly suffered to remain a rnong the canvass paintings and paper scene ry which were deposited in the roof of the house. At the opening of the second act, every impulse of soul and sense conspired to strew with flowers that path of pleasure which was fast leading to the grave! The gloom—the sorrows—the despair the brooding passions of our nature, were hushed in that swelling torrent of joyous mirth. The barque of I ife,its pennons gaily floating in the breeze, disported rself on the sunlight bosom of a summer's sea. Fell of harrniinv and hope, if paused on the verse of the gaping sepulchre which await• ed it—and in a moment,it was dashed head long Into an abyss of irretrievable woe and wretchedness. The second act had now commenced; and, turning my eyes towards the stage,l observ ed several sparks of fire fall on the floor,and each second they increased with friiihtful velocity. A broad, steady and unwavering flame gleamed from the top oft he stage,crist• trig a huge column of inwidy light on the horror-stricken countenances of the multi tilde below. Suddenly, a mass of fire,about the size of a man's hand, fell from the burn mg roof. It caught fur a rnoment,on a part of the disjointed scenerv.which quickly blitz ed up, and, with the rapidity of the serpent, the ball sped its hissing course, until it des cended on the stage, and burst into a thous and fragments of fierce and uncontrollable fire. .A player came forwhrd,earnestly ges. ticulatiti - g; to the audience toleave the house. The flame increased rapidly behind him; and in a voice whose electric tone penetrated the heart ofevery human being in that assembly, he exclaimed, "the theatre is on . fire!" In a moment the whole roof was a sheet of living fl me. It burst with irresistible force through he windows. Fed by the vast columns of air in the hollows and passages of the thea tre—increased by the inflammable pannels of the boxes, by the dome of the pit, and by the canvass ceiling of the lower seats—like tt demon of wrath it converged its hundred arms to the centre of human lile. A wild and heart-rending shriek burst from the de voted multitude. Women, frantic with ter ror, screaming for help, and tossing their arms and dishevelled hair amid the curling lie me—fitthers and mothers shrieking out fin. their children, brothers for their sisters, and husbands for their wives,i,vhile the plain tive scream of childhood rose like the knell of hope above that billowy volume of flame, whose approach was desnair, and whose em• brave was death. All who were in the boxes, and most of those in the pit, immediately rushed for the lobbies. Many escaped through the windows; but the greater por tion had no other retreat than to descend the stairs. Here the pressure became closer ant closer; each retarded the escape of the other and every additionflor nearly all sought that mode ofescape,) itAr-e and more swelled that crowd of devoted victims. The stairways were instantly blocked up, and the throng wasr,o great that many were elevated several feet above the heads of the rest. Hundreds a ere trodden under foot; and over a prostrate multitude I vainly attempted to reach the box in which Ellen Pilton sat. Twice was I thrown down on the floor of the pit, and the iron heel of a boot crushed my cheek into a stream of blood. One moment more, and impious suicide would have relieved my vindictive despair, for I had drawn a loaded pistol, and with a firm hand had placed it a. gainst my heart. Suddenly the throng a. Bove me swept itself away, and artsing,with a violent effort of strength I leaped into the box where I had seen Ellen Pilton. She was lying on the floor, her head supported by the seat from which she had fallen. Her countenance betrayed neither terror nor alarm,and woman's fortitude seemed in that storm of death to have found its only refuge in her placid brow. The conventional rules of etiquette were laid aside in that hour of wretchedness,and without speaking,' grasp ed her waist with my left arm. The warm blood from my cheek WI on her face and hair and stained her palpitating boson. "You are hurt!" she exclaimed; "save yourselfl— go! leave me!—dear Lionel, 1 fbrgive you!" I had no time to reply to the endearing tenderness of her language, nor to wonder at those circumstances of horror which disclos- ed the secret of her heart. Her brother's blood was on my hands, yet she would not bear to a speedy grave the spontaneous for- giveness of a confiding heart. .She was wo• man! and the early bud of affection, whose opening pride represses, ever finds its sea With much son of bloom in the winter of adversity, and bursts into fragrance only on the precipice of the gra . ve. A current of flame now hiss. ed over the box, and redoubling my grasp, I attempted to reach a ‘Yindow in the lobby of . aaaa. the lower boxes. I bore my precious burden over the bodies and heads of a dense crowd between me and the window, and finally reached it, surrounded by the screams and mini/ailing cries of the multitude who were suffocating and dying around. I stepped within the window, and with great exertion raised its lower sash. My feet were thrust into the opening,and I was gradually escap ing, when the sash fell, and my feet were pit ssed down. My grilse on Ellen was not relinquished, and she fell with me on the floor. A hot and scorching vapour swept over my face, and 1 felt its breath coursing through .my hair. I rescued one foot from its fatal prison; the other remained fixed and immoveable. while my body, partially sus. vended from the window, became brue , ed and trodden down by the rushing multitude. Ellen's head sank drooping and convulsed on my bosom, and a plaintive wail issued from her lips. Every limb was wrung with agony, and her labored respiration exhibited the struggle of relentless death. Moving my hand to elevate her head, it passed a rent in the wall, through which streamed a current of cold and untainted air. With great labor I moved our position to this welcome fount (Whit:, and a breeze, ftesher than a meadow gale of spring, slaked our hitter thirst, and whispered hope. The crowd above me had now greatly decreased—wounded, bruised and sufliwated, they had (bopped nay like forest leaves in autumn's frost—and the win dow having' been burst open. my foot fell from its fearful position. The grasp of a strong and powerful hand wound itself in my hair, and a voice whose animated tones bro't bark, even in that terrific hour, the finieless memory of childhood, exclaimed, "You are safe, Mass Lionel!" My preserver leaped into (he window, drawing me with him.— Suspended to the outside of the house by one hand,rest in(' on the easement atilt: window, with the other he received the lifeless form of Ellen. I saw them reach the earth is safety; and ere I leaped beside them, I in voluntarily looked behind. . A few feet from the window the flour had fallen in. An ocean of flame spread its greedy waves as far as the eve could reach. Like a huge serpent, raging for food, the swelling volume of fire gathered its gigantic bulk and wreathed its spiral course in a thousand hideous and ter rific shapes. A low, deep and piercing moan of human suffering arose from the cen• tre of the flames. On, on, rolled the fiery torrent, hissing and gasping in a cloud of sulphureous and scorching vapour. Vain was the arm of valor—impotent the energy of courage—helpless the power of mind!-- The suff_icating groan, the faintly uttered prayer, and the shriek of horror mingled themselves in the sweeping surge of fire! Heaved from their flimsy foundations, the walls tottered, staggered, and fell into an. ocean of molten flame! A crushing sound —a hideous crash—a wild and agonizing cry—and all was over! SLEEPING IN a matter of record that about ono hundred years ago, an Indian wus conducted by a discreet burgesa to witness the service of the sanctuary on the Lord's day. When their services were ended, the citizen on their way homewards, in order to impress upon his tawny friend the superiority of Christianity over heath. enistn, entered in detail of the money appro priated by the conaregation of which he was a member for the support of public worship, the erection of the house, the salary of the minister, &c. To all this the son of the forest, who had observed the drowsy dig position which pervaded the assembly, re- Plied, "Ugh! Indian sleep just as sound under a tree, and not pay any thing!" Clerk's office of Frederick County.—ln consequence of the dilapidated and danger. Oils appearance of the walls of the building heretofore occupied as the office of the Clerk of Frederick County court,that officer,acting upon the advico of the Judges and attorneys, and other citizens, has removed to the room in the Court House, wh;ch was formerly occupied as the Clerk's Office. A BRILLIANT WEDDINCL-A Roston cor• respondent of the New York Whig writes —"There was quite a splendid scene at the Trinity Church or. Thursday last. Miss S. S. Perkins, daughter of the late James Per kins, one of the most wealthy and lovely of her sex, having 500,000 charms,was united to Mr. Cleveland, a Latin grammarian of celebrity. The ceremony was witnessed by an array of female beauty seldom assembled together on such or any other occasion." RETRIBUTION.—We learn that John Ran dolph,Esq. formerly of this city (we believe) who murdered Dr. Watts at the Vicksburg hotel,snme seventeen mouths ago,was lately murdered by his own slave , ' in the lands, near Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on the 2t3►h ult.,A man and woman had been tried. found guilty, and sentenced to be hung for the murder. The 10th inst. was appointed as the day of execution— Vicksbuig Sen. WALTztivo.—A correspondent of the N. York American haS fired a heavy broadside against the fashionable German cotillon alias waltz, so extensively exhibited just now in "good society," and the editor has put a shot additional in each gun. Right enough,and we are glad to see it. These German modi• fications of "the poetry of motion" are no better than so many inventions of Satan, and should be ostracized by all women of pure hearts and uncontathinated feelings. With a brother it is allowable for a young girl to waltz--and with another girl it is graceful and pretty; but this promiscous embracing in public, to our notion, puts the one who does it on a level with the public dancer of the stage.-- Y. Coin. [VOL.- 8--NO. 48. :, GItTTYSBURG RAII ROAD Ole. - .11c Eltvee7s ,Report. Mr MeEt.wer,freire the select committee, appoitr; tell by a resOlution of this House to exarniue the Gets iridium rail read,and other matters.subruitted to their consideration,-begs leave respectfully to report:- •••:- That in theolischargeof their duties,they left Heiberg on the Oils of January last for Gettysburg,and proceeded ou the Ilth,along the track of the work,in every pla^e where it was practicable,until they awls vcd at the iiiirmuitof the South Moitetain at or near e place called Ripple's tavern, near which place the' road terminates. 'The inquiries of the 'committee were chiefly direct"d to the followit g subjects, vjz: First,the utility attic work as aState improvement when completed: . A nileeeondly,the cost of the work. to the Commonwealth. • .... The first head embraitee several matters of general. interest, among which may . he ranked, as of primary importance, its connection with other public works of • this State, and its connection with works not of tilt, state.its relative position to the resource' f themes° by means of which it may become a productive and useful improvement in the transportation of - pawn.'. gcrs, produce and merchandize. The Gettysburg rail, road is an isolated work,heing detached from any othe Cr State work at least forty-three miles. The Grover-, nor and Canal Commissioners have termed it a conneo tii,g link of the Pennsylvania improvements. The work on the York and Wriehtsville section of twelve miles is nearly graded It is estimated by the engi neer,that $40,000 will complete the grading—nooth er part of the work has been done—all operations have been suspended, and the property of the compa ny sold for its debts On the section from York to Gettysburg, no work has been done, except the mere location of a part of the road on paper; its completion in any reasonable time is a matter to he questioned, and therefore the value of the Gettysburg rail road as au extension of the great chain of public improve ments is rendered problematical. As a public work, having reference to its connection with the great sys tem of public improvements, it is totally useless. If the road from Wriebtsville to Gettysburg was com pleted and in operation,still a hiatus of the State im provements 43 miles intery • Iles between the termina tion of the Gettysburg railroad and the Columbia rail road, which is in the hands of individna's; and the company owning the %V ightsville, York end _Get tysburg road can impose any condition compatible with their charter,on the transit of passengers or mer chandize between the two points,and thus at any timo abstract or impede the general system of transporta tion. On the other hand,tbe road in order to be tray; • died at all must be connected with some great public work leading to the western.country; & in the exam ination of this subject, a matter of grave deliberation has been presented to the committee. In order that the House may be enabled to appreci ate the conclusion of the comruittee,the following facts are presented to its consideration. The commence meut of the road,if we begin as the sections are num bered,is on the summit of the South Mountain, near a' place called Ripple's tavern— without fertility popu. lation or general intercourse,it is a barren waste,pre smiting the general features of an American Siberia, and the road literally commences In the woods,where not a recognized track of man marks the origin. of such stupeuduous folly. The nearest town from which passengers,merchandize or the produce of the country concentrated for transportation, Is a village in Frank Inn county, called Waynesboro', about twelve miles , from the summit level or the head of Section 1.• It cannot be pretended that a sufficient commerce exists in this town to authorize the construction of a depot there, or to sauctioo the fabrication of a road costing millions of dollars, to commence in Waynesburg and to end in Gettysburg. If it is contemplated by the Legislature of Pennsylvania to cxtcud the route from the summit level thro' our sister state of Maryland, the following 'considerations preseut• themselves From the commencement of the Gettysburg rail road on the summit of the South Mountain, if the Smith town route is taken,the distance to the Marylaud line is about three miles. From the same point,the Penn sylvania litte,to Hagerstown,on the Smithtown route is about 19 miles to Hagerstown. From Hagerstown to Harpers-Ferry,at least 30 miles. It folloirs,tbere fore,that Pennsylvania must make railroad of about bp • miles.aiad expend her resources in a foreign state,be fore the Gettysburg railroad can connect with the Ma ryland works; provided, the Baltimore and Ohio rail road -adopt the route through Virginia. The resources • of the state, in the opinion of the committee, ought to be expended within her mu bounds,in order to give employment to her own citizens, and to confine the tre .sure of the Commonwealth as far as practicable among the men who produced it by the taxes which they have paid on their personal property and their lands. Such a scheme is madness ' and will not, be sanctioned by the judicious men whom have an interest in the Commonwealth. If the road is located tbrougn IVaynesLoro' it will run 16 miles through Peunsyl-' vania from the summit level, before it strikes the Maryland line,being a difference of 13 miles iu favor of the Waynesboro' route through Pennsylvania. A dopting, this route,from the Pennsylvania termination to Hagerstown Is about 8 miles,redUcing the distance through 3larylaud to 6 miles by the Waynesboro' route. If any preference can be given to either route it is in favor of Waynesboro'. This adyantage,howe ver,is qualified by :he extra cost of the Waynesboro route, which is stated in John P. Bailey's report, of Nov. 20, 1836, who located the route at $82.022 02 more than the Smithtown route; besides this, there is another advantage which is stated in the same re port, that the Waynesboro' route is five and a half miles locieer than the Smithtown route. Should the Legislature determine to prosecute the original work to completion,she adoption of either route will become the subject of legislative action. Connected with this part of the subject is the probability of the completion of the Ohio and Baltimore railroad in a reasonable time; because the connection of this work with the Ohio river,and its speedy completion Can at all justify the projection of the Gettysburg railroad. The infor mation obtained by the committee,authorizes them to state the following facts: The Baltimore and Ohio rail road Is completed to Harpers Ferry,in.the State of Virginia. Fourpartica of engineers have been employed the last year iis sur veying routes from Harpers-Ferry to the Ohio river. Those serve. a have resulted in the engineers' recom mending three principal routes to the adoption of the • board of directors, netther of which has been 'wally adopted. Nevertheless, such a demonstration of the opinion of the board has been made that no doubt ex- • ists of their preference for the southern route. This preference is sustained by the opinion of the engineer of location and construction, Lathrobe. Judging from many concurring circumstances,the committee are un der the impression that the southern route will be fi nally adopted. We are sustained in this impression by the following facts: The board of the road have in a report to the city councils of Baltimore, desired to be relieved from "the onerous and injurious condi tions" imposed on it by the act of the Maryland le gislature of Juno 4, 1636, by which act $3,000,000 of stock was subscribed on condition the read was loeit- ted through Boonsboro', Hagerstown, &c. and in de fault of the observance of said condition 81,000,000 of stock is to be withheld by the state of Maryland. Those are the "onerous and injurious" cond:tions of which the directors complain„and from the operation of which they desire to be relieved. If they had in tended to pursue the route as designated by the act of Assembly, and locate it through Hagerstown, the application would, be unnecessary. Besides an une quivocal intimation was given that the southern route was the only advantageous one to the company. The - engineer. Latrobe, after occupying twos:ta mers and several brigades of surveyors and engineers, is of opinion that the route near Wheeling, in Yir giniaos the most advantageous. This route does not touch Pennsylvania, therefore it cannot be a Pennsyl vania work, or one in vrhich she has an interest. If the Baltimore and Ohio rail road is to run through Somerset county and down the Youghiogheny and Monong hula valleys to Pittsburg, it would present a rival work to the great State works of Pennsylvania, which, commencing at Philadelphia, crossing the mountains & terminating at Pittsburg, forms the main channel through which the inland commerce of thy country is directed to Philadelphia. Should this work be completed, the inevitable consequence is to direct a portion at least of the trade from Philadel phia, thus inflicting a serious calamity on its citizens, and diminishing in an equal proportion Bpi revenue* of the commonwealth derived from tolls on our publin worksmiected at great cost and intended for the ben efit dour own citizen*. if it were practicably to bring tbo Cettyaberg railroad into successful operation, tho_ result would br destruction to the southern counties, such as Bedford. Somerset cord-Westmoreland. Dn. vied the advantages of the public work•, lying boo , tween them and the state of Prlarvlaryl, their clad market is the turnpike leading from Philadelphia 1.0 Pittsburg, and this market is confined althast rade. - sively to the winter soma. When frost has akiesd our canals, traveller* throng our easehecand tha cans I oktied with nii , ii.-isawtite frtan the sive, 44 46,
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers