THE NORTH CAROLINIAN, FAYETTEVILLE, N . C.
HARBOR.
3IAFF1TT, U. S. N.
Thn flnl.-l shorn' flenublican,
from which we
copr, says that it is indebted to Hod. Thomas
HuLi f. x manuscript copy of the following
Report. It will be found valuable & interesting:
Report oin i
the Snroy of Benuton uarowr, . .
ENTRANCE.
The extrance to Beaufort Harbor, X. C., is
7 miles W. X. W. from Cape Lookout light
house and easv of access in all winds excepting
those from the" west and north-west. The Bar
'has at present 15,5 feet at m. an low water. The
anchorage from abreast of Fort Macon wharf,
to a point a mile and three-quarters westward
is safe, and completely protected from all winds.
The direction of the channel has changed ma
terially from time to time. According to an
old chart (no authority) it was S. S. W., with
16 feet.
la lt20 according to Kearney, it was N. and 13 feet.
l:it) " Aimv. IS "
" 16.J9 " St. Glynn, S. 21 deg. 30 min.
E. 15 spring.
" 1650 " Coast Survey, S. 52 cleg. 15
min. E. 17 m is west.
" 1854 " " " S. 52 deg. 15 min. E.
15,5 m'ls. W.
The Bar of Beaufort is composed of coarse
and line marine saud, mixed with dead shells,
and like all Southern sand b?r?, it is subject to
the extraneous influences of sea and current
During the last thirty years this has varied
slightly in depth, but materially in direction.
From the best evidence which could be obtain
ed, both positive and traditionary, I have con
cluded that the normal depth upon the Bar at
mean low w.i rls 10 feet. This deduction is
based ujioi. n:: following evidence :
Wimble's Chart, published in 1137 (one hun
dred aud seventeen years ago) gives 18 feet as
the depth on the bar at low tide.
It is also stated on good authority that Law
son's Chart published in 1718 coincides with
Wimble's in the depth at low water. In evi
dence of the continued excellent depth of water
on this bar, it may not be out of place to state,
that in tiie year 17G0, the colonial Legislature
granted to a company, a charter, authorizing
the connection of Beaufort Harbor with Xeuse
River by means of a ship canal and as Oera
coke Bar (the natural outlet of the Xeuse
River) had then 12 feet at low water, that the
inference is that the channel had not deviated
in depth since the survey of Wimble.
It is a well attested fact that during the war
of t he Revolution an English Cruiser drawing
o2 feet entered the Harbor of Beaufort and was5
conducted out again by a resident Pilot who
stated that "she crossed the bar with an ordin-
ary high tide, but struck lightly several times."
In the years 181 1, 1813, and 1815, serious
changes as to depth and direction occurred upon
this bar, which were attributed to the heavy S.
W. gales of those years that of 1815 being
one of the most violent and disastrous ever
known upon the coast. Sackleford's Point was
much effected by the sea, and the sight of old
Fort Hampton entirely destroyed. The Bar
was injured so that but 12 feet could be brought
over it at low water.
After the year 1815 the channel way gra
dually changed its direction more to the South
ward, the depth of water also steadily increased
until 1830, when a depth of 18 feet at low
water wa' reported by officers of the Army.
In the year 1838 the ship Xapoleon, bound
for Liverpool, with Naval Stores, crossed the
bar with a draft 17 1-2 feet. In 1839 the bar
was survejeQ uy urrtcr ut iUc iitmvt.u., j. t
Paulding, Secretary of the .Navy, and "15 ft.
water at the lowest observed tides," reported
by St. Glynn, the officer in charge of the Survey.
In 1850 the Bar was sounded out under my
direction, and 17 ft. found upon it at mean low !
water. My present survey gives 15,5 ft. at J
mean low water. The differences noticed in the
depth a re attributable to local causes of a
transient character not permanently affecting
the general capacity of the Bar.
Point Macon has been successfully protected
from the encroachment of the sea by a system
of Jettees, and Shackle ford's Point requires a
like expedient, as, in every gale from the South
ward, portions of it are washed away. The
Coast Surrey shore Iir.es of 1851 and 1854 differ
materially, showing a large decrease of the Point,
the effect of which is undoubtedly injurious, not
only upon the direction of the channel, but also,
as effecting the depth of water on the Bar.
If tills salient point which governs so materi
ally the Ebb and Flood, were protected from
abrasion by the sea, the channel would probably
be more fixed in its character.
A marked evidence of the value of this Har
bor is derived from information furnished by
the Treasury Department, to the effect that
though in 1810 the gross revenue accruing to
the government through the Custom House at
Beaufort was but $522; in 1813 it suddenly
increased to $105,214, and throughout the war,
it continued the like large returns to the
Treasury.
The Geographical position of Beaufort is fa
vorable not only for purposes of commerce but
as affording protection during X. E. and Easter
ly Storms. Cape Lookout affords a natural
breakwater in gales from those points with ex
cellent and w protected auchorage under the
land the Llgut house bearing East.
THE HARBOR.
The Harbor of Beaufort may be
regarded as
extending from Macon
Point westward to the
entrance of Bogue's
Sound, abreast of Shep-
pard's Point. It is bounded on the South by
marsh lands belonging to the Fort Macon pro
perty and the Literary Society of the State;
on the North by sand banks, bare at low water,
aud marsh land, also the property of the Liter
ary Society. The average width of the Harbor
is three hundred yards, exclusive of the mouth
of Newport River, which also affords excellent
anchorage as far as the flats. The channel
here is 280 yards wide.
The marsh land traversed by Fishing Creek,
bordering upon the government property, lias
deep water along its margin, on which wharves
could be built at small expense. There are
several good localities adjacent to Sheppard's
Point for wharves which would not involve ex
traordinary outlay.
In the event of the contemplated Railroad
terminating at this point, all the marsh lands
mentioned must become important for the
necessities of commerce. My opinion strongly
inclines to their selection for government pur
poses, as the water is bold from Fishing Creek
westward, and the sand-hills by the sea shore
offer the most healthy sites for dwelling houses.
This selection is based upon the presumption
that Government designs to establish at this
Port only a Depot of collection of naval Stores
and fuel for the second class steamers, which
would always find this a convenient harbor for
a resupply of coal when cruising off the coast.
The actual Bar is but 307 yards wide passing
rapidly from 3 1-4 to 3 1-2 fathom (over 15,5
feet at M. L. W.)
The normal depth of water on the Bar, I ha ve
assumed as 16 feet at mean low water, which
at hih water will allow sloops of war and
second class steamers to enter without difficul
ty; while Brigs and Schooners and third class
Steamers could come in at any stage of the
tide.
BE11FOUT
RETORT OF WKUT.
Harbors with such facilities on this part of
the coast are too valuable to be neglected by
the Government. Many of our coasting schooners
use this Port constantly as a harbor of refuge,
and the establishment of Lights and Buoys by
the general government to afford additional
facilities for ingress and egress would be fully
warranted by the importance of this coasting
trade.
On several occasions during the month of
March 1854, I have seen from 17 to 20 vessels
with valuable cargoes auchored in this Port for
safety from the gales.
The establishment of a Kail Koad JJepot at
this place as an outlet for the mineral wealth
and agricultural resources of the interior and
Western parts of the State, would no doubt
cause the Port to grow rapidly m commercial
importance.
The facilities are great for inland navigation,
with Pamlico by means of Cove Sound, and
also with the rich County of Onslow by the way
of Bogue Sound, the navigation of which could
be improved without very great expenditure of
means; naval Stores in abundance could be
shipped here. Coal and Copper obtained by
Railroad from Chatham County, live-oak from
Onslow and white-oak and other timber from
the adjacent Country. It is certain that en-
couragement and increased iacuiiies wouia very
soon make this an important Southern port.
The salubrity of the place is such as to render
it a rendezvous during the summer months.
I incline strongly to the opinion that jettees
would save Point Sbackleford and if extended
(as the land formed) would have a tendency to
improve the depth of water on the bar. This
point well secured or prolonged would change
the current, and no doubt the Bar channel more
to the Southward, or at right angles to the
Coast. The result would be to force the Bar
promptly seaward into deep water, instead of
following the coast in shoal.
Where artificial means are to be resorted to
with reference to sand bar improvements, I am
impressed with the convictiou that if the current
can be governed, means should be applied to
force the bar seaward into deep water at right
angles to the coast. Charleston main ship channel
loses all benefit of the Ebb current by its general
diffusion before it reaches the desired point. If
all the ebb could be forced out East, that Bar
would have twice its present capacity. The
opinion is, of course based upon the theory, that
the more contracted the outlet for a body of
water, the greater will be the velocity of the
current or scouring influence by which the Bal
is deepened, or at least kept at its uniform depth.
The channels connecting Beaufort and Lennox-
ville with the main Harbor are intricate, that
leading into the former has bu; 6 feet at mean
low water. The channel arouud Shackleford's
point, leaving up to the latter, has 11 feet at
mean lowwater. It is narrow and subject to
constant changes. Passing Shepherds Point
the channel has four fathoms.
Eleven feet at mean low water can be carried
up to Gallant Point, 10 feet at mean low wa
ter, abreast of Carolina City. The channel by
Bird Island though more permanent, is tortuous
and affords but G feet at low water.
Respectfully, vouvs,
J. X. MAFF1TT, U. S. X.,
Assistant Coast Survey.
A. D. Bache, Superintendent.
Deckery on Poor Debtors
The whig papers have been makiug a great
parade over the fact that Mr Bragg, as chair
man Of tfie Judiciary committee, eporttrJ
against a bill to abolish imprisonment for debt.
Fortunately "old books" show a much worse
record for Gen. Dockerv. 31 r Brajrsr. as
chairman of the committee, was bound to report j
a..rr. r. ill :r to the will of the maioritv of the i
committee, whether iu accordance with his own i
views or not: out ijen. uocKerv was notoongeu i
to give the vote we now proceed to show he
did give.
On page 113 of Senate Journal, 1844, we
find that Mr Waddil, from the committee on
the Judiciary, reported a bill "more effectually
to prevent the imprisonment of Honest Debtors,'
and that Gen. Dockery VOTED AGAINST
IT. The bill, however, passed, and is now the
law. See page 142 for the vote, Ibis bill
provides that no capias ad, satisfaciendum shall
issue unless the plaintiff, his agent or attorney,
shall make affidavit before the Clerk of the
Court or some Justice of the Peace, that he
has cause to believe and does believe, that the
defendant has property, money or effects which
cannot be reached by fieri facias, or has fraudu
lently concealed his property, money or effects,
or is about to remove from the State. It fur
ther provides that no Court shall permit an issue
of fraud to be made up and tried, under the pro
visions of the aet for the relief of insolvent debt
ors, Rev. Statues, Chap. 58 sec. 10th, unless
the creditor, his agent or attorney suggesting
the fraud or concealment, shall take out an af
fidavit in writing, of his belief of the truth of
such suggestion, and also designate the proper
ty money or effects he believes to be couceal
ed And against this bill Gen. Dockery voted.
A nice record, indeed, for the "poor man's
friend." The General was no doubt thinking
about collecting those ledger store accounts of
his squeezing them out under fear of the jail.
Salisbury Bonner.
The Prospect throughout the State. The
precise name of the next Governor is proverbial
ly difficult of pronunciation until after the
election, upon the principle that " doubtful
things are uncertain;" but assuredly, if there
beany dependence to be placed on the signs
of the times, and in the accounts received,
Mr Bragg's chances for an election amount
almost, if not quite, to a certainty. It is a
noticeable fact, that in many of the Western
Couuties, the Whig candidates for the Legisla
ture make not the'slightest reference to General
Dockery. The Charlotte Western Democrat,
iu an account of a recent visit made by the
Editor to Concord, the County seat of the
neighboring County of Cabarrus, states that
Col. John M. Long, of Cabarrus, and Freeman,
of Stanly both Whigs are candidates for the
Senate in the District composed of Stanly and
Cabarrus, and Col. D. M. Barringer (late Min
ister to Spain) candidate for the Commons in
Cabarrus. The Democrat adds: " What was
a remarkable fact, neither of the candidates
made an- reference to Dockery, and, so far as
their speeches were concerned, the hearers could
not have told that a canvass for Governor was
going on." Wilmington Journal.
The Baltimore Patriot says: "We have been
informed that arrangements have been entered
into by the Susquehanna Railroad Company
with several of those who were wounded by the
late calamity on that road, by which their claims
for damages will be compromised. The com
pany, in these cases, to pay all the expenses
and to pay a certain weekly salary equal to the
amount obtained before the injury, durin- the
whole time the parties, by their injuries, are un
able to attend to their vocation. This proposi
tion has proved very satisfactory to those who
have acceded to it, but there are others we
understand, who will prosecute for heavy dam
ages, and leave the result to the judgment of a
COSYEXTIOX.
A very larsce number of
Delegates from the
couuties of Onslow, Duplin, Sampson and Cum
berland, assembled in the Court House in the
town of Kenansville, in pursuance of previous
notice, on Saturday last, 22d inst.
On motion of Maj. Owen R. Kenan, the Con
vention was called to order, and Edward L.
Winsiow, Esq. of Cumberland, was selected to
preside as President
On motion of David Reid, Esq., Patrick Mur
phy, Esq. of Sampson, Jasper Etheridge, Esq.
of Onslow, James Pearsall, Esq. of Duplin, and
Jas. G. Cook, Esq. of Cumberland, were re
quested to officiate as Vice Presidents.
On motion of William E Hill, Esq Josiah
Johnsou of Sampson, and Stephen Graham of
Duplin, were requested to act as Secretaries. 1
The Convention being thus organized, the
President, in a very able and eloquent manner,
addressed the Convention at length, on the im
portance of constructing a main trunk line of
Rail Road from Beaufort Harbor to the lenncs
see line, via Fayetteville and Salisbury, and en
forced the idea that in doing &o, capital would
concentrate at the terminus in the East, a large
city be built up, and the commercial indepen
dence of the State achieved. Xorth Carolina
would then be enabled to ship through her own
ports her own mineral and agricultural produc
tions, to the markets of the world.
On motion of Owen R. Kenan, that the Presi
dent appoint a Committee consisting of two per
sons from each Delegation to prepare resolutions
for the action of this Convention whereupon
the following gentlemen were named : D G
McRae, Robert K Bryan, Thos R Underwood,
Patrick Murphy, William S Devane, J II Foy,
Harvey Cox, James Dickson, and Owen R
Kenan.
On motion of David Reid, Esq., the Conven
tion took a recess until 2 o'clock.
At 2 o'clock the Convention re-assembled,
when the Committee reported the following
preamble and resolutions, which were unani
mously adopted :
Whereas, the interests of the State of Xorth
Carolina imperatively demand the full developc
ment of her commercial, agricultural and min
eral resources; and whereas, this can only be
effected by a liberal system of Internal Im
provement; and whereas, in the common design
of the citizens of the State to advance her iu
tevest no project has been, or can be, presented
to their consideration, more earnestly called for
by present necessity, or the future welfare of
her people, flian a direct and central line of
Rail Road from Beaufort Harbor via Fayette
ville to Salisbury, and thence west to the' Ten
nessee line. Therefore be it
Resolved, That this Convention recommend
a liberal system of Internal Improvement on
the part of the State ot'Xorth Carolina, having
in view the interest of the whole Stale.
Resolved, That Beaufort Harbor, from the
healthiness of its location, its central position
on the coast of the State, the depth of its water;
and its security from storms, presents the most
nattering inducement to the commerce of the
world, as the natural outlet to the agricultural,
manufacturing and mineral wealth of the State;
aud that it is the duty of the Legislature to
foster and encourage every scheme, tending to
increase the great advantages of its position,
aud that by so doing, in the language of the
late Rev. Joseph Caldwell, she may evince her
diligence and care, to have "this gem of the Stale
polished and enchased,' that in years to come,
it may "shine with increasing lustre upon the
fjrow t her lipanty
Ivesolvcti, That this Convention heartily" ap
prove the suggestion of a general Internal Im
provement Convention to be holden in the
town of Salisbury on the last Wednesday in
October next, and while expressing their will-
ingness to co-operate with
other sections
other schemes.
in ef
most luuiiuhwh ji
especially commend, as emphatically a Stale
project, a great central line of Rail Road from
Beaufort harbor, via Jacksonville, Kenansville,
Clinton, Fayetteville, Salisbury, and thence
West to the attention of the Salisbury Con
vention, the earnest considcratien of the people
along the line, and to the patronage aud aid of
the Legislature.
Resolved, That the line of road from Beau
fort harbor to Fayetteville. being a line in the
I great chain of Rail Road in which we of this
) Convention are directly interested, demands all
! our energies, and that it ca n, must, and shall
I he built.
Resolved, That this Convention recommend
to the Legislature, the importance of a full and
complete development of the mineral wealth of
the State, and especially commend to its foster
ing care, the speedy opening of the Coal fields
of Deep River, which, from scientific explora
tions, have been ascertained to contain mines of
inexhaustible wealth, which it would be folly in
the State to overlook, and criminal to disregard.
Resolved, TL:at this Convention respectfully
suggest to those interested iu this, and all other
projects tending to advance the interest and
welfare of Xorth Carolina, the propriety of
meeting in the town of Salisbury on the last
Wednesday in October next, where the Xorth
and the South, the East and the West in good
fellowship and with common designs, may
mutually agree and mutually determine upon a
General Plan of Improvement, which will re
dound to the credit of the State, and the future
welfare and prosperity of her people.
Resolved, That this Convention believe that
the work of deepening the Bar at the mouth of
Cape k ear River is a work in which every lover of
the State should take a deep interest- that thev
iiiiuiv iuu ucneiai vo eminent snouia accoffi
plish that work; they hail with satisfaction
the late appropriation as indicating success,
and they bid God-speed to their fellow-citizens
of Wilmington, whose enterprise, energy
and liberality is a bright example to the State.
Resolved, That a Committee of three from
each of the counties of Carteret, Onslow, Du
plin, Sampson and Cumberland, be appointed
to procure a charter from the next Legislature
on as favorable terms as practicable to carry
out the views of this Convention.
The following were appointed the committee
under the last resolution.
Sampson- A Monk, Jno R Beainan, Pat
Murphy.
Onslow. John A Averitt, Jr., J II Foy,
Jasper Etheridge.
Carteret. Dr M F Arendell, Capt Thomas
Duncan, Wm F Bell.
Duplin. Owen R Kenan, David Reid, Gen
Wm L Hill.
Cumberland. E L Winsiow, A A McKe
than, Jas G Cook.
On motion it was resolved that the proceed
ings of this Convention be published in the Fay
etteville and Salisbury papers.
Convention addressed bv II. K. Bryan, D. G.
McRae, AVr. E. Hill, Esq.,' Thos. Fuller, Thos.
It. Underwood, Jas. II. Foy, W. S. Devane.
Since the first discovery of gold in California,
the yield has averaged about $60,000,000 a
year, or $5,000,000 a month, $1,250,000 a week,
$178,571 a day, $7,440 an hour, or $124 a
minute.
The house of Clarke, Watson & (?o., Broad
way, X. Y., silk dealers, has failed for $450,000.
l- 4i, trs i ?' . a i . ,-
RAILROAD
Synoposta of the Homestead BUI,
Now pending in Congress.
The 1st section provides that the minimum
price of the public lands of the United States
shall be reduced after the 1st of July, 1855,
and, sold according to the following scale. For
lands which shall have been offered at public
sale and remain unsold five years, $1 per acre:
for lands which shall have been offered at pub
lic sale and remain unsold ten years, 75 cents
an acre; for lands which shall have been offer
ed at public sale and remain unsold fifteen years,
50 cents an acre; for lands which shall have
been offered at public sale and remain unsold
twenty years, 25 cents an acre; and for lands
which' shall have been offered at public sale and
remain unsold thirty years, 12 J cents an acre;
provided that the graduating process, from 50
cents to 25 cents an acre, shall not take place
until the lands in the 50 cent class shall been
exposed to sale for a period of at least two
years, at the price of 50 cents per acre, after
which the price of the said lands shall be re
duced to 25 cents per acre.
The 2d section urovides that whenever a
that whenever
State shall desire to acquire a pre-emption right
to all the lands, or to all the lands of any cer
tain class and price, within its borders:, for other
purposes than a railroad or canal, and signifies
the same to the President of the United States
by. an act of its Legislature, they shall be
granted on the following terras: That said State
mair fix the price of said lands above that pre-;
r7ed in the 1st section of this act, reserving,
the excess to itself; provided that the title'
shall,; lipt pass to the purchaser until he has
paid the price fixed in the said 1st section to the
United States, and that the lands shall be sub
ject to the same legal subdivisions iu the sale
and survey as are now provided by law; and
provided further, that any State which shall
accept the provisions of this act, and shall pre
empt any lands under it, shall take them in
full of the five per cent, fuud thereafter to be
come due from the proceeds of said lands. But
any State accepting the provisions of this and
the preceding section shall take the lands at the
price fixed for each particular class,- and no
lands shall be sold by them for 25 cents an acre
until they shall have been previously subject to
entry through a period of two years at the
price of 50 ceuts per acre, to be paid to the
United States,
The 3d section provides that whenever a
State shall charter a railroad or canal to run
through the lands of the United States, and
such State shall accept the benefit of the pro
visions hereinafter prescribed by an act to be
passed at a general session of its Legislature,
upon due notice being given of the fact to the
Secretary of the Interior, it shall be his duty
to set apart, of the public lands, seven thousand
six hundred and eighty acres per mile of rail
road or canal, within twelve miles on each side,
and as near the route of such railroad or canal
as possible, and the same shall be withdrawn
from sale or entry by public. advertisenmit of
the Secretary of the Interior, except m the
manner and form hereinafter prescribed. The
price of these lands shall be $1 per acre for
those which have not yet been offered at pub
lic sale, or for those which have been subject
to private entry less than five years; 75 cents
for those which have been so subject to entry j
more than five years and less than ten years;
50 cents for those which have been so subject
to entry more than ten years and less than
twenty years; and 25 cents per acre for those
which have been so subject to entry more than
.pi'TUo ti nrnvidos that whenever a.
State through whictb such ranroaa or canal
passes, and iu which the said lauds lie, shall de
sire to do so, it may select as pre-emptor, all
the lands so reserved at the minimum, prices
designated in the 3d section of this act; but the
State must take up and pay in cash for said
land within ten years from the time when set
apart by the Secretary of the Interior, or other
wise its right to such of them as remain unsold
shall be forfeited. But before the expiration
of this period the State may sell the lands thus
reserved to individuals or corporations, provi
ded that no title shall vest in the purchaser
until he pays to the receiver of the proper land
office of the United States, for the use of the
United States, the price herein fixed as the
price per acre for which the lands shall be
sold.
The 5th section provides that, in the event
of a difference between the Postmaster General
and the railroad company as to the compensa
tion for carrying the mails, the matter shall be
settled by mutual agreement between the Post
master General and the Governor of the State
in which such railroad lies.
The Gth section provides that the lands pur
chased by any State, under the provision of the
3d section of this act, shall be applied by said
State for construction of the railroad or canal
for which they were reserved; and that no
lands shall be included within the operation of
this act to which the Indian title has not been
extinguished.
The 7th section provides that this act shall
in no way apply to town or village property,
either in-lots or out-lots, nor be construed as to
interfere with any pre-emption claim, or to
any lauds reserved for schools, or other pur
poses, under any existing laws of the United
States, nor to any of the mineral lands of the
United States.
The 8th section provides that any free white
person, who is the head of a family, or who has
arrived at the age of 21 years, and is capable
of holainS ,ands nnder the laws of the State in
which the lands lie, or if thev lie in a Territory.
then any person who is capable of acquiring a
pre-emption under the laws of the U. S., shall,
from and after the passage of this act, be en
titled to enter one-quarter section of vacant
and unappropriated public lands, and no more,
which may at the time the application is made
be subject to private entry, or a quantity equal
thereto, to be located in a body, in conformity
with the legal subdivision of the public lands:
provided that lands ceded by any Indian treaty
stipulating for the payment to such Indians of
the nett proceeds of the sales of the ceded lands
shall not be subject to the operations of this
act, except at the graduated prices fixed there
for. The 0th section provides that the person ap
plying for the benefit of the foregoing 8th sec
tion shall, upon application to the register of
the land office in which he or she is about to
make such entry, make affidavit before the said
register that he or she is the head of a family,
or is 21 years of age, and that such application
is made for his or her exclusive use aud benefit,
and those specially mentioned herein, and not
either directly or indirectly for the use or bene
fit of any person or persons whomsoever; aud
upon making the affidavit as herein required,
and filing it with the register, he or she shall
thereupon be permitted to enter the quantity of
land specified: provided, that no certificate
shall be given or patent issued therefor until
the expiration of five years from the date of
such entry, and until the person or persons en
titled to the land so entered shall have paid for
the same 25 cents per acre or, if the lands have
been in market more than twenty years, 12
cents per acre; and if, at the expiration of
such time the person making such entry shall
prove by two credible witnesses that he or she I
have continued to reside upon and cultivate
said land, and still reside upon the same then,
m such case, he or she shall be entitled to a
patent as in other cases provided for by law
and all such persons as are specified in the 8th'
section, and who are now settled upon lands
subject to entry by this act, shall be entitled to
its benefits, upon the expiration of five vears
from the date of such settlement. The benefits
of this and the preceding section of this act
shall be extended to the settlers upon the pul
lic lands iu California, upon payment ofl
per acre. "
The 10th sect ion provides that the register of
the land office shall keep a register of all entries,
and make return thereof to the General Land
Office.
The 1 1th section provides that any person
who may have filed his or her affidavit of an in
tention to settle a quarter section of land under
tiie provisions of this act may at any time ac
quire title thereto by paying the full graduated
price for the same. But no person or person
shall be allowed to file a declaration of intention
to settle, for the purpose of claiming the bene-
fit of the provision of this act, in regard to five
years actual settlement, after the State shall
have purchased, or taken as pre-emptor, the
class in which said lands lie.
Snake Fascination.
The St. Lovis Herald of the 12th inst. re
lates a case of snake fascination which resulted
fatally. The Herald vouches for the truth of
the statement, the particulars of which are
given as follows:
A man by the name of O'Mara had a small
child, a little girl about thirteen years of aare.
who came to her death through the influence of
a snake, one day last week, under the follow
ing circumstances : O'Mara resides on Cop
peras Creek, in Franklin county, and but a
short distance from the Pacific Railroad depot.
Some nine months ago, early last Fall, his fam
ily noticed the little girl to be pining away,
and becoming very weak and pale, although
she had been very fleshy and heavy, and appar
ently without any cause or complaint of sick
ness. By the time wiuter had fairly set in, she was
wasted away to a mere skeleton, but as soon
as the weather became cold she again seemed to
revive. She never complained of being unwell,
and in reply to all their inquiries in regard to
her health, she invariably said she lelt very well,
only a little weak. As as soon as spring arrived,
she could not be prevailed upon to eat any vic
tuals in her father's house, but would take a
piece of bread and butter, or a piece of meat,
and go out to the edge of the creek to eat it
The family noticed her regularit always going
precisely to the same place, and invariably com
plaining of being hungry alter her return, when
if more victuals would be given her, she would
again return to the creek, as they thought, to
eat.
Finally, some of the neighbors having heard
of the circumstances of the child s extraordi
nary conduct, and also her wasted appearance,
suggested to her father to watch her movements,
which he did last Friday. Ihe child had been
sitting on the bank of the creek nearly all the
forenoon, until near dinner time, when she jjrot
up and went to her father's house, asked for a
piece of bread and butter, and again returned
to the same place she had been. Her father
kept behind her without making any noise.
As soon as the child was seated, the father
saw a huge black snake slowly raise its head
into her lap and recieve the bread aud butter from
Her tiantl nnJi vrlicu til o woi.i aitotntt. to take
a bite of the bread, the snake would commence
hissing and become apparently very angry,
wheu the child, trembling like a leaf, would
promptly return the bread to the monster.
The father completely paralyzed, not being
able to move hand or foot; entertaining, as
most Irish persons do, a great dread for snakes,
he felt alarmed for the safety of his child, not
knowing the nature of the snake or the extent
of the influence on his child. His blood be
came almost clogged in his veins, and he
groaned in perfect agony, which caused the
snake to become alarmed and glide away into
the creek. The child then immediately sprang
to her feet aud ran home, apparently much
frightened. Her father followed her, but she
refused to answer any questions, and he then
resolved to detain his child at home, but he
was advised to permit her to go again next day
to the creek, and follow her and kill the snake.
Xext morning she took a piece of bread and
again went out to the creek; her father follow
ed her with his gun in his hand, and as soon as
the snake made his appearance shot him through
the head. The child swooned; the snake squirm
ed and worked himself around awhile and
died; the child in the meantime recovered from
her swoon, but was immediately seized with
spasms, acting in a manner resembling the
writhing of the snake, and finally died the same
time the snake did, apparently in the greatest
agony."
The new Xorthern Party. Following close
upon the Vermont conventions of men of everv
shade of opinion, that ended in the adoption of a
new platform and a new party designation,
having for au object and end the formation of a
sectioual party, on the basis of opposition to
the constitutional rights of the people of one
section of the country, yesterday the Massachu
setts Anti-Xebraska State Convention assembled
at Worcester. The telegraphic report informs
cs that it was largely attended by men of all
shades of parties from every part of the State;
but we do -not find among the names of persons
taking part in the proceedings those that have
hitherto been prominent iu the politics of
Massachusetts, except certain individuals noto
rious for their active and fanatical abolitionism.
A committee was appointed to call a State
Convention, at which nominations for State
officers are to be made. The platform perhaps
it is a temporary one, subject to the decision of
a State Convention is, in brief, opposition to
slavery iu every shape, save where it is permitted
by State laws. The name assumecl by the
Vermonters "Republican Party" was adopt
ed, and a resolution recommening the assembling
of aXational Convention, with a view to carry
ing out the object of this new organization, was
agreed to. There were twenty-five hundred
persons present, and the meeting was held iu
the open air. JV. Y. Herald.
State or North CarollnaMCnmkerlaad County,
Court of Pleat and Quarter Settion June Term
1854.
Stark and Pearce vs. William F. Salter and Ben
jamin Salter
Original Attachment levied one one lot of Land in
the town ot Fayetteville.
It appearing to the satisfaction of the Court that the
Defendants. William F. Salter and Benjamin Salter,
reside beyond the limits of this Slate, it is there-fore
ordered by the Court that publication be made iu the
North Carolinian for six weeks for the cuid Wiu. F. &
Benj. Salter to appear at tbe next Term of our Court
of Pleas and Quarter Sessions, for Cumberland County,
to be held at the Court House in Fayetteville o the
first Monday in September next, and "plead or replevy,
otherwise judgment will be taken by default and the
land condemned to the Plaintiff's use.
Witnefis John McLaurin, Clerk of our said Court at
Office in Fayetteville, the 1st Monday in June A. D.
1854. and 78th of American Independence;
804-6t JOHN McLAURIN, Clerk.
Splendid Swindling and Brilliant Larcenies
"The solid, respectable and leading citizens
of New. York," we regret to observe, have re
cently directed their attention to the various
departments of swindling. These operations
are wholesale, and none of the refined and
accomplished scamps have dirtied their gloved .
hands with less than a hundred thousand dol
lars. Free society seems to be giving way,
from garrett to cellar, and incendiaries, larceii
ers and swindlers, having been swept, with
philanthropic brooms, from Five Points and
Cow Bay, have taken up their abodes in the
gilded palaces of Fifth Avenue, and the temples
of the money changers in Wall-street. Vice
has crept up from the extremities to the body
of Xew York society, and we expect every day
to hear of the pillars of aristocratic Grace and
substantial Trinity Churches, being locked up
in the tombs. Xew York has recently broken
out in a violent erysipelas of crime; and bulls
and bears vie with each other in the extent of
their larcenies. A new class of chevaliers dc
Industrie have forced the Peter Funks to hide
their diminished heads.
Several of the leading men of Xew York,
capital specimens of our "indigenous De Med
ici," and mushroom "Merchant Princes;" men
who subscribe ten thousand dollars to build
churches, and sit near the altar in New- York
tabernacles, have recently been robbing widows
and orphans, in a manlier that has excited the
unqualified admiration of the pic k-pockets and
retail swiudlers of t he free States. Mr Kyle,
"a noble man and upright citizen," as flunkies
always toast successful scamps, has made way
with perhaps half a million of dollars, but that
munificent and exemplary gentleman, Robert
Schuyler, has appropriated the sum of $2,305,-
000 and is. of course, the bon ot the iinaneial
circles of Xew York. His claims to glory are
disputed by a young gentleman of high social
position and strict principles, who a lew days
a'so. faithfully discharired his dutie s to Mr Bel-
monte, by abstracting the sum of $14,000 from
that gentleman's strong box.
Scarcely had that gentleman won the merit
ed applause which enterprise and skill always
secure in a prosperous city like Xew York,
when the noble attempt of Mr Charles. A. Pev
erelly to win a name among the great men of
his proud city is disclosed. The last named
gentleman owns a splendid house on Long Is
land, was surrounded by all the magnificence
that wealth could give, chartered steamboats to
give the elite of codfisherdom pie-nics and sailing
excursions, was presented with gold watches
by grateful volunteer companies, and emulated
Dives in the splendors of his town residence.
A few nights since that model of a man was
caught by the police of New York attempting
to fire one of his enormous store-houses, having
anointed it with pitch, turpentine and other in
flamable substances. His gentlemanly and no
ble object was, to cheat the insurance offices,
and certain merchants whose goods he had
stolen from the warehouse.
Xo blame in the principle circles of Xew
York attaches to any of these estimable but
unfortunate gentlemen. They merely failed in
great enterprises, which, if consummated, would
have placed them still higher in the social
circles which they adorned by the effulgence of
their moral worth, and eminent piety.
The leading capitalists of the Xorth will, no
doubt, make every effort to restore these gent fe
nien to the sphere of financial usefulness from
which they had falleu without any fault of their
own.
The bulls and bears, no doubt, propose pre
senting to the eminent Mr Schuyler a service
of gofd plate, for bis disinterested, patriotic,
and noble efforts to improve the condition of
the Xew Haven and the Harlem railroads.
They do such things in a far more prineelv
manner in the free States than they do iu the
"beggarly slave States."
We have so little appreciation for great men
as not unfrequcntly to lock up for a long term
of years such men as Kyle, Schuyler, and Pev-
erelly. But we are "iuad barbarians."- liich
viond Examiner.
Railroad Convention-. We have been re
quested by the Milton Spectator, to stnte, that
a Rail Road Convention composed of the
counties of Stokes, Rockingham, Caswell, Per
son, and Granville ; the towns of Clarkesvillc,
Wilmington, Weldon, Raleigh, Portsmouth,
Petersburg, and Xorfolb, to further the proposed
extension of the Roanoke Valley Railroad
through the counties of Granville, Person, and
Caswell, to "Leakesville, in Rockingham county,
is appointed to meet in Yancey ville, X. C, on
Wednesday, the 8th of Xovember next. The
Raleigh and Gaston Railroad, the Wilmington
and Raleigh Railroad, the Seaboard and Roan
oke Railroad, the Petersburg and Roanoke
Railroad, the Greenville and Roanoke Rail
road, and the Roanoke Valley Railroad Com
panies, are all expected to be represented in
this convention, for they are all deeply interested
in its objects. This convention was called by
a large and respectable meeting of the citizens
of Caswell held on Tuesday the 4th instant.
Wilmington Herald.
A Short Story-. Dickens tells the follow
ing story of an American sea-captain:
In his last voyage home, the captain had on
board a young lady of remarkable personal at
tractions a phrase I use as being one entirely
new, and one you never meet with iu the news
papers. This young lady was beloved intensely
by five young gentlemen, passengers, and in
turn she was in love with them all very ardently,
btt without any particular preference for either.
Xot knowing how to make up her determination
in this dilemma, she consulted, my friend, the
captain. The captain being a man of original
turn of mind, says to the young lady, "jump
overboard and marry the man who jumps after
you." The young lady, struck with the idea,
and being fond of bathing, especially in worm
weather, as it then whk, took the advice of
the captain, who had a boat ready and manned,
in case of accident.
Accordingly, next morning, the five lovers
being on deck, and looking very devotedly at
the young lady, she plunged into the sea head
foremost. Four of the lovers immediately
jumped in after her. When the young lady
and her four lovers got out again, she says lo
the captain, " What am I to do now, they are
so wet ?" Says the captain, "Take the dry
one !" And the young lady did, and married
him.
Tiie Liver Kill.
The Liver Tills of Dr. M'Lane were first used by him
exclusively in his own practice. So ellicacious were
they in all cases of Liver complaint, that tliey became;
famous!, and . attracting the attention of the medical
faculty j passed into general use. They act with great
certainty and regularity; the patient almost imme
diately feel.- the dispersion of his disease, and is grad
ually restored to health. With some the elfect is al
most miraculous, frequently experiencing immediate
relief, after having for months resorted to drugs and
medicines of another description, in vain. Diseases ot
the Liver are very common in this country, and are
often frightful in character. Those who experience
any of the premonitory symptoms of this dangerous
and complicated disease, should at once procure a nc.
of Dr. M'Lane's Pills, and perhaps, thereby, be eavcU
a world of misery.
For sale by S. J. Jlinsdale, Fayetteville N. C.