WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 4, 18S5.
XORTH CAROLINA COALFIELDS.
Dr. fJHANCE's report (just . published)
of the exploration of the North Caro
linn coalfields, made bv order of the
Board of Agriculture, under the super
vision of the Commissioner of Agricul
turc, will be warmly welcomed by those
who have sought to k&ow something cer
tain as to their extent and value. As was
anticipated by all who are acquainted with
his labors in connection with the Pcnnsyl
vania Geological Survey, and the high rep
utation which he established by his work
on " Coal," contributed to that survey, the
report is a model of its kind. It is proba
ble that his conclusions upon the points
above indicated will be accepted with lit
tie question in any quarter, though with
somewhat of disappointment on the part of
some. - . $
" The existence of coal in Chatham coun
ty," says Mitchell in his Geology, which
was published in 184'3, "has been known
for upwards of sixty years," now over a
hundred vears aero. Little use was made
of it in any way except that within three
or four years of the date of the publication
of his book it was employed in the black
smith shops df-one neighborhood. In the
progress of the State, these coal deposits
became more and more the subject of pub
lic notice, and Dr. Emmoxs, in his first-report,
in 1852, gave much space to the coal
of Chatham and Rockingham. Some ad
ditional matter was contained in his report
of 1856. The view expressed by him of
the Deep River coalfield was altogether
hopeful; in his own language, "The most
important interest of the State was cen
tred in Deep River." His opinion of the
Dan River coalfield was favorable, though
far less positive in tone. Dr. Kerr esti
mated the present area of the Triassic form
ation at about 1,000 square miles, about
one-third of which is underlaid with coal;
but owing to the outcrop of black shales
beyond the limits usually assigned to coal,
he inferred it would be found over a much
larger territory.
These successive reports established be--yond
doubt the existence of good coal in
both fields, but left grave doubts as fVthe
quantity. The occurrence of trapdykes at
the only point (Egypt) to which workings
had been carried to any considerable depth
tended to increase these doubts. Did coal
exist in theset beds in workable quantity,
and if so, to what extent ? To solve these
questions as far as possible, Mr. McGeiiee,
in his report to the Board of Agriculture,
as Commissioner, at its meeting in May,
1883,
earnestly urged upon the- Board the
expediency of having an exploration made
to determine at least proximately this point.
He was directed to secure the services of a
competent person, and accordingly Dr.
Chakce, recommended by Prof. Lesley,
the Chief of the Pennsylvania Geological
Survey, was employed, and entered upon
and completed the work, the results of
which arc embodied in the report re
ferred to.
In his report Dr. Chance gives no space
to the much-mooted question to which
epoch the coal beds of our State belong.
He accepts the conclusion of geologists Gen
erally, and refers them to the Triassic Sys
tem and to the Mesozoic age. The ques
tion presents itself at the outset, then, how
far the Triassic is to be regarded as a coal
bearing system?
Upon a general survey of this system in
other countries, the prospect for finding
an extensive coalfield here is not encour
aging. It is largely developed in Europe,
but no mention of coal is made in it. Nor,
though our geological knowledge of Af
rica, China or Japan is quite defective,
does it appear that coal has been there
found in rocks of this age. In Asia, coal
of this age is unknown except in India.
In that portion of the United States cast
of the Mississippi the Triassic formation
occurs only in the States bordering on the
Atlantic from Maine to Georgia, and coal
is found in narrow belts in but two, North
Carolina and Virginia. The conclusion,
then, seems to be irresistible that, in the
words of Dr. Chaxce, "the conditions
were not favorable to the growth of coal
producing vegetation, and to the accumula
tion and preservation of carbonaceous
matter," to the formation of coal "but
did exist over isolated areas of limited ex
tent." To determine its extent was the question
in hand. Mitchell thought that "through
nearly the whole of the northern side of
the sandstone formation, in the counties of
Chatham, Moore and Montgomery, a dis
tance of fifty miles, the black shales which
appear at the surface render it probable
that coal may be discovered." Emmons
estimated that of the geographical extent
of the sandstone the series containing coal
was about thirty miles. Kerr sim
ply repeats Emmons. Mitchell merely
hazarded a conjecture based upon a super
ficial survey of the country. The. mine
had been but slightly worked in his day.
Emmons' opinion was based mainly upon
an examination made at two points but a
short distance from each other. Kerr
could speak only from external indica
tions, for in his report he says "the coal
mines are not wrought, and-have not been
reopened, except for a few months, since
the resumption of the survey."
The opinions above expressed were very
favorable, yet very littlc'had been done for
the development of either of these coal
fields. Indeed, it was but too palpable that
luu miormation conveyed in all these re
ports was wanting iu those elements which
are required to guide capital in invest
ments. The capitalists could form no ac
curate judgment, did not know what
they would be buying; hence, however flat
tering the prospect for. profit might be
they were passed by for something more
certain in its returns. It was time that a
scientific exploration should be made, the
real facts be known, and certainty given
trt'T18' Thc development of these
deposits, Prof. Kerb thought, was of suf-
an exploration so a, to' trace out the boun
daries and ascertain accurately the depth
thickness and aU the conditions which wUl
determine their value. "I do not think,'
said he, " that a few thousand dollars could
be more profitably expended."
Such an exploration has now been made,
and its results have been both negative
and positive : Negative, in that facts have
been obtained showing that large areas
supposed bv Prof. Emmons and other
writers to contain valuable coal are com
paratively worthless in a commercial sense ;
positive, in that the area containing good
coal has been approximately defined. The
positive results may be stated in Dr.
Chance's btn words, thus :
" This formation is divided into an up
per and lower series by the addition of i
middle member composed of dark slates
and gray sandstones carrying beds of coal,
black-band, fire-clay, layers and balls of
carbonate of iron, impure limestone, and
beds of highly bituminous or carbonaceous
slate and shale."
workable area.
"The most promising area is that ex
tending from Farmville on the east to the
Tysor (adjoining the Gulf) place on the
west.
" The length of the outcrop included be
tween these limits is between four and five
miles. Under the most favorable condi
tions we are not warranted in assuming the
thickness of workable coal at more than
five feet three feet for the upper and two
feet for the lower bed. If the dip of the
coal continues as found at Egypt (423 feet
in 1,500 feet), over the whole area, the
coal could probably be worked to a verti
cal depth of, say 1,100 feet, which pla,ces
the limit along a line parallel to the out
crop and about three-quarters of a mile
distant from it. Assuming the length of
the outcrop at four and a naif miles, the
area is then 2,160 acres. If 2,500 tons per
acre could be mined from the lower bed
and 4,000 tons from the upper bed, we
have for thc available tonnage :
Upper, or " Big" bed 8,640,000 tons.
Lower, or "Little" bed 5,400,000 "
Total 14,040,000 tons
"This is the most favorable showing
that can be made, and is doubtless far in
excess of the actual workable contents of
this area, for no allowances have been made
for those areas ruined by trapdykes, and
for areas in .which the coal is thin or even
absent, nor for areas over which the coal is
faulted or is too impure to ship. I believe
that these irregularities will reduce the
area by at least one half, or say 1,100 acres.
It will also be safer to estimate the yield of
the lower bed at 2,000 tons and the upper
bed at 3,500 tons per acre. The available
tonnage so calculated would then be:
Upper, or "Big" bed 3,850,000 tons.
Lower, or" Little" bed 2,300,000 "
Total 6,050,000 tons.
"Even if thjs calculation is still too
large, and we cut it down to one-half
(3,000,000 tons), the amount is sufficient
to sustain a daily output of 500 tons for
twenty years. If this coal cost the con
sumer only fifty cents per ton less than
other coal the resulting economy would
amount to one and a half million dollars
(1,500,000) saved to manufacturers and
other consumers throughout the State.
In addition to this, probably a much
larger amount would be saved by reason
of the reduction in price of other coals,
resulting from competition. In addition
to these benefits, the profits made by the
operators, the railroads transporting it and
the employment afforded a large number
of miners and laborers, should not be un
derestimated. "Again, three million tons of coal at an
average price of $3.50 per ton cost over
ten million dollars ($10,500,000). If this
amount of money can thus be kept in the
State instead of being paid out to the
owners of mines in other States, thc com
mercial value of this coalfield to the State
can hardly be overestimated."
THE DAN RIVER COALFIELD.
"It should be stated at the outset that
this district cannot truthfully be termed a
"coalfield," as the coal occurs merelv as
sporadic deposits of quite limited extent
and is too thin, irregular and uncertain to
be of any commercial value.
"The district is similar in nearly every
respect to the Deep River country except
that the middle slate series is much better
developed as to thickness and extent, but
.the slates here often more resemble shales,
and are of a lighter grayish color. This
slate formation contains many bands of
black, bituminous and carbonaceous fissile
slates which are frequently mistaken for
the outcroppings of coal beds."
An examination of this coalfield was
made at several points Stokesburg, the
Wade place, and the Sharpe plantation
to determine the thickness of the seam
and the quality of the coal. Analyses of
specimens from each arc given in the re
port. Dr. Chance sums up his conclusions
in the following words:
"From all the facts gathered in this ex
amination of the Dan River district it
seems certain that it will be entirely use
less to expect to find workable coal beds.
The small seams of coal that do exist arc
local deposits, without thickness, purity
or continuity. It is, therefore, idle to
pursue the subject further."
A feeling of disappointment at this con
clusion in regard to the Dan River district
is inevitable, since its supposed coal re
sources have so long been looked to as a
source of great future prosperity to that
section. It is not, however, without com
pensation. We have passed from a field
of absolute conjecture to one of proximate
certainty. It will prevent disappointment
and disaster in thc future. Dr. Chance
estimates that in the working done there
not less than fifteen thousand dollars have
been expended in search of what did not
exist.
Besides much valuable matter in regard
to useful minerals other than coal. Dr.
Chance shows by estimates of the cost of
mining, of transportation, &c, presented
in careful tables, that thc Deep River coal
field would have the advantage over all
competitors in supplying thc markets of
Central and Eastern North Carolina and
South Carolina, with thc exception of the
Atlantic coast markets. The following
table deduced from these facts and figure's
shows what he estimates the advantage in
favor of this coalfield to be at some of our
principal towns:
"At Weldon the Deep River coal would
apparently have a margin of 70 cents to
$1.00 in its favor.
I'of' RaleiSh. margin of $1.51 to
At ureensboro, a margin of $1.47 to
$1.77.
"At Salisbury, a margin of $0.74 to
$1-04.
"At Charlotte, Spartanburg, and Colum
bia, of $0.77 to $1.07.
$2 06 Durham' a margin of $1.70 to
$2'54"FnyetteVille' Umargin f 12 24 to
Such a margin ought to give a monopo
ly when the supply is constant and the
trade well-organized.
The report contains suggestions and di
rections for prosecuting coal mining with
reference to thc peculiar difficulties pre
sented in this particular district, which,
coming from an almitted expert in this
branch of science, cannot fail to secure
greater economy and profit in future operations.
By this exploration the Board of Agricul
ture, at a cost of $1,800 exclusive of compen
sation paid to Dr. Chakce, has demonstra
ted, as far as questions of this nature are
capable of demonstration, a source of un
developed wealth of not less than ten mil
lion dollars. V
i .. i
A SOCIETY MATTER.
When General Grant spun his yarn to
Mr. DEFEW,he had to give a reason for the
alleged existence of the yarn he spun. He
did it thus, according to Mr. Depew, and
whatever one may think of Gbjlnt there
is no reason to doubt Depew's truthfulness
"In the General's opinion. Johnson's loy
alty was subordinate to, if not entirely de
pendent upon, his intense hatred of the
slave-holding oligarchy. Ho was a poor
white, had been a journeyman tailor, and
notwithstanding the distinguished public
positions he had held, he could not break
through the class barrier, and was treated
socially with contempt by this proud arts
tocracy. When they plunged into rebel
lion he saw his opportunity. He believed
in the power of the Government, and
thought that the time had come when he
could defeat his enemies, confiscate their
property, humiliate their pride, and possi
bly destroy them. Thc absorbing ambi
tion and passion of his life had been to be
received and treated as one of them by the
oligarchy. Having failed in that, and suf
fered insult and indignity in the effort, he
became one of the most vindictive of men.
He saw them foiled in their rebellion, de7
feated and impoverished, and now he want
ed to kill them. While he was devising
means to overcome Gen. Grant's resistance
to this last purpose, the leaders of the old
feudalism called upon him. They admit
ted their former treatment of him and jus
tified it. They said that in all ages and
countries where caste distinctions existed,
conditions were always possible which pro
moted men who had achieved success from
the lower into the noble order. As Presi
dent of the United States, he became, re
gardless of birth or ancestry, not only a
member of their order, but its leader.
Johnson was wild with delight; ambition
and pride were both satisfied. He became
as anxious to sustain and perpetuate in
some form a system which had given the
highest social and political distinction to
a few great families as he had been to de
story it."
General Grant, in seeking a reason for
his inventions fell
into a very common
error. Ihere are Southern people now-a-days
silly enough to think that in what is
called thc "Old South," labor' was re
garded with contempt and the working
man despised, or at best "pationized ; "
and it has long been the habit of the
Northern newspapers to tell their readers
that the Southern people looked upon all
sorts of labor as degrading. Of course
there is no truth in the allegation. Few.
very few people labor for labor's sake, and
most men work, and work hard, mainly in
the hope of at last reaching that state of
life when they may be free of the curse;
that curse from on High which entailed
on the sons and daughters of man the
necessity of sweat on the face that there
might be bread for the belly. But at all
times, thc Southern man and woman have
done as much honest work as the Northern
man and woman. The labor here perhaps
did not take the same direction as there
all of us here did not do the same kind of
work but it was good, honest, hard work,
all the same. The census tables every ten
years established the fact in the past be
yond dispute. The same tables make the
same fact very plain now
The gist of the allegation, or the notion,
is that in the South there has always been
an ingrained prejudice against mechanics.
That is to say, that a mechanic, in all re
spects thc moral and intellectual equal to
merchant, public or private official, or pro
fessional man, is regarded in the South as
thc social inferior and sent to Coventry.
The Register thinks this is a great mis
take. Without calling its Raleigh readers'
attention to thc facts under daily observa
tion; without citing instances to the con
trary that have come under the writer's ob
servation and into his experience in vari
ous parts of North Carolina; without call
ing names of noted men in North Caro
lina whose lives contradict the idea now,
as other such and more distinguished
lives have contradicted it at all periods of
the State's history, the Register would
suggest not only that there is error, but
also the probable source of error.
In a certain kind of Sunday-school books,
and other wretched novels of the same
sort, we used to read most distressing
stories of thc way in which the world
turned the cold shoulder to the prosperous
man suddenly by some reverse become a
poor man. Friends turned their backs
upon the man, women cut his wife, and
children turned up their noses at his off
spring. Some observation and some ex
perience long since satisfied us that this
was all bosh. In ninety-nine cases out of
a hundred, the rich man, ruined, drops out
of the society of his friends and equals
solely of his own will, and against all the
kindly efforts of those who had been
friends in prosperity and wished to be so
in adversity. The reason is plain. Men
and women do not care to accept civilities
which they know they cannot return, nor
to mix in society so clad as to attract at
tention, even if the attention be kindly or
regretful. They drop out, and by degrees
they cease to be sought. In the South, it
was and is about the same thing with
the nllcged ostracism of those mechanics
who are tho moral and mental equals of
their neighbors in other callings. Cer
tainly that is the observation of one of
them.
In fact, it is generally a matter of time
for social intercourse and clothes whirpin
to enjoy it it is the old story of the wed
ding garment. And there was always less
"class distinction" if one may so speak
of distinctions in this free country in the
South than in the North. Instance: Mr.
A. T. Stewart. He was a man of sense,
of character, well-informed and wealthy.
He looked well, talked well, dressed well
lived well. Yet the doors of upperten
domin New York were for years closed
against him because of his business. There
was no objection to his buying and selling,
to his being a tradesman -for buvinn- anri
selling and trading-was the business of the
people among whom he lived but the line
had to be drawn somewhere, and it was
drawn on Mr. Stewart's method of sell
ing. Whether from inborn honesty, or be
cause honesty was the best policy, Mr.
Stewart Was the honestest seller of them
all; but he sold cloth by the yard as well
as by the piece; he did not require three
women to club together so as to get a frock
that one of them wished to wear. It was
an unpardonable offence in the community
in which General Grant dwelt and ia
which Mr. Depkw dwells. pHT
As to President Johnson, tho whole story
is the merest nonsense. He was a tailor's ap
prentice in this city, and naturally did not
seek "society" any moro than tailors,' ap
prentices seek it in New York, though he
had the advantage of most tailors' appren
tices in that he was a well-known scion of
"the slave-holding oligarchy." He ran
away to Tennessee, his apprenticeship not
served out, married there a sensible woman
who taught him to read and write and
cipher, and rose to distinction. There was
no office in thc gift of the people of Ten
nessee which he did not fill. There was
no society in Tennessee to which Mr,
Johnson would not have been welcomed
indeed, which did not seek the man whose
struggles with poverty had won respect
and distinction. He kept out of it of his
own will, and offensively kept out of it.
His stock in trade to catch the floating
vote was just the same as the stock in
trade of demagogues in New York and in
all other States he made war upon de
cent people, and would have nothing to do
with them. He lived and died a derna
gogue, perhaps the ablest that this country
has known.
THE PEN OF fO.tl.nODOHK HAIRI
mightier Than Alexander Sword.
The pen is mightier than the sword, and
it has been wielded by mightier generals.
The pen of William Shakespeare was the
grandest weapon of the ages. Two hun
dred years after the hand that guided it has
lain as dust under the marble slab of the
Avon church, it is still at the head of a larger
ana more invinciDie army than ever follow
ed the sword of an Alexander, cvenwhen at
the acme of his splendor.
Great generals and commanders are men
of great thoughts thoughts Ihat may be
formulated into deeds and thus be made to
lead and govern thc world.
We live in a day when the sword waits
upon the pen. The greatest general is now
the greatest writer The public press with
us daily discussions upon all the elements
and forces of social life and public affairs,
and the more weighty tomes upon history,
religion, philosophy, science and literature.
is a power comparable only to the tides of
the ocean.
The pen leads thc sword. The intelli
gence and moral sentiment of the great
nations make or unmake their armies. Men
are now escaping from the tyranny of mil
itary force through the liberating agency
of the arts and sciences. Every dis
covery in science is an advance towards
permanent peace. Every mystery solved,
every new principle demonstrated and
given to the world is a new bond in the
brotherhood of humanity. AH honor to
the men who have borne a part in con
quering nature, in revealing her secrets, in
turning human ambition from the sub
jugation of men to the discovery and con
quest of those hidden highways and ener
gies toat dwell in the earth or play in the
air and ocean, i hese things, spread by
the pen and the press among the mill
ions of the globe, are doing more for the
development and uplifting of our race
than the greatest victories of the sword.
Thc boy, who, with noble purpose
and sacrificing devotion, gives himself to
the study of science, and who in after life
is able to give the mariner and the agri
culturist facts and laws that make their
labors less and their lives safer, who has
created a literature of science more char
ming than the legends of Arabia, is wor
thy a place not only in the temple of fame
but also in the grateful remembrance of
mankind. And such a man was that gen
eral of the pen Matthew Fontaine Maury.
This man, a native of Virginia, spent
most of his boyhood in Tennessee, and
there received a greater part of his educa
tion. When on the eve of his majority he
became a midshipman, and from this time,
for some 17 years, he was in constant ser
vice upon the sea, or in the different coun
tries of the globe as an officer of the Uni
ted States Navy. Then he was placed in
charge of a depot for charts and instru
ments which under his able direction be
came eventually the celebrated National
Observatory at Washington.
It was while occupying this prominent
position that he gave to mariners those,
sailing charts that shortened voyages and
made them less dangerous, and which to
day are esteemed among the best
achievements of physical science. He al
so originated a maritine convention of na
tions and organized a complete system of
research upon the seas. The value of prop
erty alone saved by the results of his inves
tigations has been considered incalculable
It was at this time, too, that he began his
writings on the Physical Geography of the
oea. inucea nc was the founder of this
science and was so declared by Humboldt
.mo wur&s were i ran si a tea into various
languages and were circulated in both
hemispheres. His services were recognized
and he was honored by the principal eov-
ernmenfs of the globe to a degree that has
perhaps never been equalled in the histo
ry of a scientist. At home he was held in
such estimation by all administrations that
he actually controlled in his quiet way the
naval policy of the government. Of his
many other labors and accomplishments
while in charge of tho Observatory it is
hardly necessary to speak.
Upon the breaking out of thc great
civil war, Commodore Maury was sent
abroad in the interest of the Confederate
States and remained for some six years.
During this period he saw much of the
different governments of Europe and gath
ed from libraries and scientific sources
much material for the work of his pen. It
was at this time that he began the work by
which he is now best known to the mill
ions of the youth of America his School
Geographies. This work which he com
pleted after his return home was the last
work of his life and a most congenial la
bor. He was full of his subject and in
love with it, and had the rare faculty of
conveying it in its plainest and pleasantest
terms to the comprehension of otheres
What many had accomplished as compi
lers he created as author. He wrote and
taught that which he himself had seen
and investigated. Having done his life's
work and by it having directly or indirect
ly benefited a greater part of the world's
population, he laid down his pen and met
his death with great composure and
bright hope. In his brief and busy years
he had been the Columbus of the seas.
Though he did not discover a continent, he
did unlock some of its best treasuries, and
and he did discover the great ocean plateau,
found a road bed for the electric cable
over which two continents now hold in
stant and constant intercourse. He did
find out the pathways of the seas, and has
told their story in such style as to bring him
listeners and admirers from the ends of the
earth.
Commodore Maury was an ardent observ
er and student whether on land or sea
in the East or West Indies, upon the less
er or greater oceans, in the forests or upon
.-vu,UUiaiU ui America, or amid thc
semi-civilization of the Orient, he was .
erywhere laying up material for the use of
his pen. His rare faculty of grouping and
picturing his ideas and presenting them to
his readers in their most lifelike form has
enabled the multitude of Ws student-readers
to enjoy the fruits of his labors. By
his pen he still lives and leads , an army of
learners. At another time the ;Reqi8tiib
e hopes to refer to his works. .....
WASHINGTON NOTES.
A Halclgu Printer's Observations.
Ifofth Carolina has one distinguished
son here in public life, who, though he has
thc reputation of being one of the most
hard-working men inWashington, still finds
time to turn aside from the "pomp of offi
cial glory" now and then and lend his
talents to the pleasing and noblo "work ef
trying to lift up fallen humanity and
pointing out the right road to those of
God's creatures who are weak and erring.
The manly form and kindly feature of the
Hon. Robert B. Vance, graced the ros
trum of the North Capitol Street Metho
dist Church a few evenings since, and a
vast crowd assembled to hear him tell of
the evils of intemperance. He made the
speech of the evening, and I found thc
hour which I passed listening to him one
of the most pleasant of my life. If ho
speaks as well and effectively on politics
as he does on temperance, it is no wonder
that he always "buries his opponents
under great majorities." His fund of sta
tistical information on this subject is truly
wonderful, and it is hard to imagine how
John B. Gough, Neal Dow or St. John,
could give an audience more convincing
E roofs of the damage and desolation
rougbt about by rum.
"fdeny," he said, "that alcohol, in
any form, is essential to the comfort, the
pleasure, or the well-being of any healthy
creature; but I assert ou the other hand,
that it is a most positive and fearful in
jury to any man, woman or child who uses
it.'y Then he proved the assertion to the
satisfaction of the most skeptical. Some
of his illustrations were touchingly beau
tiful, while at times his great earnestness
and fervid eloquence were almost startling.
Through it all, though, as one would natur
ally expect, ran that resistless wit and sub
tle humor which has made the name of
Vance famous in our State, and, in fact, all
over the Union. More than once his voice
had a clearer ring, and his eye a brighter
fire, as he spoke of thc " dear old State
of North Carolina," and dwelt with ten
der emphasis on the beauty of her "snow
capped peaks, which kiss the skies." The
audience enjoyed the speech thoroughly.
but I hardly think any one enjoyed it more
than thc speaker, for his heart is surely in
me work, ihe speech was not delivered
to a "cultured audience," but to humble
working people those who can truly be
called the "least of His little ones." This
world would be brichter, and humanity
nooier anu stronger n it contained more
such men as Robert B. Vance.
Thc very "old Harry" lsbeins raised bv
some of the friends of the Signal Service
boys who are stationed at Fort Meyer, Va.
a lew days since, while the cadets were
being drilled, the officer in charge ordered
some manoeuvre the performance of which
was almost impossible; and, as a conse
quence, the young men were thrown into
great confusion. The officer then dropped
tactics, and proceeded to give the squad
ron a most astounding lesson in profanity.
His lauguage was brutal in the extreme.
and thc boys became so indignant that
they drew up a protest . against his scan
dalous abuse of authority and presented it
to the cemmandant and also to General
Hazen, who is at the head of the Sicnal
Service Bureau of the nation. The young
men were brought to trial before a court
martial at the fort, and when the lawyers
appeared as their counsel they were treated
almost as badly as the "rebellious" young
men. Favoritism tinges almost every pro
motion that is made in this branch of the
service, and if anything did need reform
ing, it is rJazen's bureau. These young
men were treated as nothing more than
brutes, if all reports (or even half of them)
are true ; and the bigoted and brutal crea
ture who was president of the miserable
court should be " bounced " at once, and
uazen snouia meet a like fate. General
nazen is one of those small men whom
the Bard of Avon had in view when he
spoke of people "clothed in a little brief
authority." Washington City teems with
many prototypes of this conceited and
haughty "weather engineer." Of all the
creatures that inhabit this earth, deliver
me from that man who is so steeped in his
own greatness that he "knows it all," and
who, from his own narrow vision is in
capable of going astray in anything. This
is just the kind of man that General Ha
zen is. It is a notorious fact that he has,
time and time again, promoted incompe
tent and corrupt "bootticks" who should
have been kicked from the service instead ;
while honest, bright and aspiring young
men have been kept in the lowest grade.
Lieutenant Greene, who presided over the
court-martial, is one of Hazen's favorites. J
3 v: ... ... I
uuu uis reputation is most leanuily and
wonderfully unsavory. In the class which
entered Fort Meyer in February last was a
delicate youth from South Carolina named
Eecnan, who, shortly after his enlistment,
contracted pneumonia. He was not sent
to the hospital until a day or two before
his death ; and the record of his treatment
by this same lieutenant is simply horrible.
Talk about "purity of the civil service! "
Why not have a little purity, or at least
decency, in the department of ' My Lord "
Hazen? Out with Hazen (if such a thing
is possible) and all his truckling pets.
The President has put his foot down
again. This time he has issued an order
that he will see no more people on the sub
ject of appointments. This is a stunner to
office-seekers. The office-hunters consoled
themselves with the thought that this or
der was only issued so as to give the Pres
ident time to prepare his message to the
coming Congress; but the latest reports
from the scat of war say that it is for all
timo. The President considers it a public
necessity,from the fact that almost every
hour of his time, up to this date, has been
occupied by office-seekers and "delega
tions." The effect of this mandate is cer
tainly amusing in some quarters, and the
" last day of grace " found hundreds of the
truly anxious besieging the White House.
Last evening I met a Western man who is
here for the purpose of "getting his re
wards," as he puts it. He's as full of ear
nestness as his native prairies are of grass
hoppers and cowboys, and as soon as that
order was promulgated he put on his war-
Caint and feathers in great shape. He has
lood in his eye for every one who dares
derend the much-abused Chief Magistrate.
I was disposed to laugh at him at first, but
I discovered that I would have a first-class
row on my hands if I "tried it on."
"What Lord Grover wants," he sneered,
"is a nice little crown to place on his
empty head, so as he'll fully resemble a
real king. He's thc most haughty, stuck
up man that ever profaned the Chair of
Washington. I hope to heaven," he con
tinued, hotly, " that when Congress meets,
both parties will combine to impeach the high
and mightg know-all." It is absurd that
any man should be so foolish as to talk in
this way ; but I give you my word that this
ia an exact reproduction of a conversation
which actually occurred. Thc President,
notwithstanding tho ravings of this un
tamed child of thc wild West, has th e con
solation of knowing that nearly every news
paper in the Union applauds hi m in thus
summarily shutting off the office-seekers.
congressmen and Senators are not to be
exceptions to this rule. All applications
for appointment to office tnilSfc fro tn hrnrla
of departments, and Mr C. vtAanA will
thus be allowed to devote some timo n
things looking to the benefit of the whole
people, and not the place-hunters only.
B.
THE INTERNAL BBVENUE LAW.
A Letion From the Druggists.
New York Journal of Commerce.
Thc wholesale druggists of thc TJnjtcd
States have set an example to all others
who are oppressed by internal taxes. They
have organized a column of attack on the
next Congress. They made abortive at-
tempts at Washington last fall and winter,
but nothing better-than a denial of their
just demands could have been expected
from the fag end of an incompetent Con
gress. They have learned experience from
their contact with legislators. They have
discovered the advantages of union, ener
gy and persistence.? Thereforo they pro
pose to renew the fight against those taxes
m'the hope that a, new Congress, many of.
whose members are fresh from the people,
will at last succumb. Their platform adopt
ed at the recent great annual meeting of the
wholesale druggists at Philadelphia is
short and to the point; " Resolved, That
this Convention favors the repeal of all in
ternal taxes." If they cannot secure their
general object they will gladly ac
cept . any specific and partial con
cession favorable to the interests of
their business alone. But they have taken
the field for the abolition of all internal
revenue, taxes whatever classes of the com
munity are now injuriously affected by the
continuance of those old war measures.
Now here is a standard set up about
which all the victims of internal taxes may
rally. The protected interests of this
country have repeatedly shown how true
it is that in union there is strength. They
act on the principle of " one for all and all
for one. " Whenever one item in the tar
iff list is assailed by reform all thc asso
ciations which are specially concerned in
the defence of other items rally to the sup
port of their endangered ally. And so a
united front is always presented at Wash
ington against any attack on any part of
the long protected line. This alert, com
pact and resolute resistance to change
which has been so successful on the part of
our protection friends, must be made tho
model of an aggressive policy by all per
sons, who, like the American druggists,
feel the heavy band of the revenue tax
collector. If one powerful lobby can pre
vent legislation for the revision of our tar
iff system, another lobby, equally power
ful, need not despair of obtaining a repeal
of all the internal revenue laws. The time
is favorable for such action, because there
is a growing belief that tariff reform is
shelved for the present. Some who have
strenuously advocated tariff reform are
now speaking of it in the accents of de
spair. They are tired and discouraged. If
that question must rest temporarily, till a
more auspicious season, then the field is
clear for a vigorous agitation of internal
revenue reform. The country wants relief
from taxes of one kind or another. If the
movement of the wholesale druggists is fol
lowed up and heartily supported, as it
ought to be by all who are equally con
cerned with them in the removal of a great
and needless burden, we think that the
prospect of a repeal or important reduction
of internal revenue taxes by the Forty
ninth Congress would be decidedly en
couraging. WAIS OP THE POLITICIAN
As
Cuderstood by the
Barber.
Snn's German
"Ican'd sbeak bolidics mit you," said
the German barber to the reporter yester
day. "A parbcr has got to careful peen
apowd such dings like bolidics und relitch
ion, und must firsd find owd vot his gusti
mer vants pefore he lets himselluf loose, all
der vhile. Dot's vot makes a parber yoost
apowd dwenty dimes soshmurd as der resd
der folks. My brifate obi nion is dot an
honest man is negst to dernoplest vork py
God der noplest peen der parbers. (I
am der peezness inside, und I ought to
know).
"A parbcr cannot merely his own obin
ion haf on any subchect, but he's got
dwendy deeferent obinions to haf, to suit
der deeferent sdyles ui his gusdimers on
each subject vich comes up, alretty. It
vill not done to dry und con wince a Muck
wumb uf der wirtues und merits uf Chim
Plaine. Dot makes commercial stackna
tion uf a parber shop. It vos mit all der
resd der subchects yoost der same; each
gustimer vants his own bardickler obinion
mixed up mit his own lather und mit his
own brush laid on. Und dot's yoost righd.
Py chiminy hooky! a parber has got him
selluf no righd to sharge a man den cents
for information vich he don't vant, or feef
deen cents mit pay rum.
" Some beoplcs got a saying to effery
ding dere vos, alretty, two sites. Crade
Chulius Zeeser 1 it vos a mighdy small dings
vot I don't dake sexdeen, eighdeen sites on
in der course uf a veek.
"But bolidics I vill not sbeak. Dot
don't bay. My brifate obinion is dot der
Rcbublicans been dwenty-fife year in office
und neet rest. Efcn uf it vos only on
ackound der lifely sdcaling dem kebt der
whole dime up, dem should a rest get.
But more as dot I vill not dalk. A parber
shop vos not for bolidics any sord uf a
blace.
When the reporter was beinsr brushed bv
the Monkey Barber, that lively young man
whispered to him that the boss wis " off
his feed," or else he would have told his
latest story, which he narrates at Gen.
Carrs expense. Tho boss, it seems, had
the idea that Carr works the Protestant
and Catholic churches on alternate weeks.
uses tho Grand Army in a political way,
.u a pvui.uttt way,
tnnes wun tne secret l
rish organizations,
drinks with the boys, and
nd makes temper-
ance speeches, and in one way or another.
manages to cover a great deal of ground in
politics. This is the boss's anecdote:
"Four chendlemen, a doctor, a lawyer,
a breacher, und a soldier, all used toged
der to sit und ead dinner py a restaurant,
vonce, in Chermany. So, von day dere
comes a sdrange young man in und dakes
der same dable a blace alongsite. Der
doctor he vould abowd meticine und zick
ness dalk, but dot young man gwite bo
litely gontradicts him und dolt him ho
also vos a doctor und knows der whole
dings. Negst sbeak 3 up dot lawyer veller
apowd some lawsuids und such dings, but
dot young man he in gupple minutes dot
lawyer shuts up, saying he vos a lawyer
yet, una aer wnoie peezness knows
" Sadly sboke der breacher py der sub-
uucui ui uer unoaraonaoie sin,' vich no
veller can found owd vot it is, yet but
der sdranger bolitely dolt dot glerchyman
bedder he vent und choincd some Suntay
schools a lecdle. He vos also a breacher,
und got der insite information. Dot dime
der dinner vos yoost apowd done, und der
.t...i t L J 1 1 ,1 . . .
soldier, mat like a house afire, prinsrs der
mime ui aer aaoie his hstdown und
savs:
'See here, you son uf a gunsl You are Bo
shmard, I dolt you vat I do. Uf you don't
dell me somctings vot I know bedder as
you do, I vill bunch bote uf your ears on
von site your head, und fling you der vin
der oud.' 'Oxkoose me,' dot stranger
sayt; ' I go by der desk und write down
yoost vot you vant.' He sent to der sol
dier sHch a note like dot:
" I dink you know bedder how to bay for my
dinner as I do.
" So soon he wrote dot, he shkipped der
house outsite. Yoost der same vay mi
Carr. Some uf dem vellcrs vich peen so
shmart are all humpucks yoost der same."
The Biter Bit.
New York Journal of Commerce.
The phrase "the biter bit" is used to
uescnoe me retriDUtion visited upon one
who attempts to cheat and is according to
another proverb "served with his own
sauce, " that is cheated by his intended
victim. It is nearly equivalent to thc fate
of one who "goes out wool gathering and
comes back shorn. " That is, a sharper in
trying to shear another loses his own fleece.
There have been many explanations of the
origin of the proverb "the biter bit,"
but the best we have seen attributes it to
the folk-lore very common in Sussex county
and other parts of England, and for all
we know based on actual experience. If
a child is given to biting its fellows, the
cure is for the parent or nurse to inflict a
bite on the child. This, it is held, will
cure it of the habit.
PRINCIPAL AND AGENT.
Which Responsible for a CoIlectetTDebt
New York Journal of Commerce.
Charleston, S. C, October 16. 1885.
A collection on an interior town (no bank
or banker being there) is sent to a banker
of high standing in a neighboring town,
as by usual custom, who collects and fails
soon after, making no return. Ou whom
should the loss fall? A. 8.
Reply. The uniformity of the law mer
chant is broken in thi3 country at various
points by conflicting adjudications in dif
ferent States.and the question here present
ed is one on which opposite positions have
been thus taken. In some States the col
lecting bank is held liable for all defaults
of sub-agents employed; in others, its du
ty is held to be discharged by due dili
gence in the selection of such agents and
in performing its own part of the work. In
still other States thc question has not been
passed upon, and it would be vain to at
tempt a prediction which line of decision
they will follow. South Carolina appears
to be in the latter category, as we
have not been able to find a decision on
the point by the Courts of that State.
The Register finds that the question
was before the Supreme Court of North
Carolina at June Term, 1876, in the case of
The Planters' and Farmer? National Bankof
Baltimore v. the First National Bankt of
Wilmington, N. C, 75 N. C. R., p. 534,
and it was held that " If a principal con
stitutes an agent to do a business which ob
viously or reasonably cannot be done by
the agent except through a sub-agent; or
if there is, in relation to that business, a
known and established usage of substitu
tion, in either case the principle would be
held to have expected and authorized such
substitution."
The following is the statement
case 6cnt up with the record to
of the
the Su-
preme Court;
On or about the 20th September, 1873,
the plaintiff sent to defendant for collec
tion a draft in plaintiff's favor on one Ad
ams, then residing in Washington, N. C,
for $87.58. The defendant transmitted it
to the banking house of Burbank & Galla
gher, in Washington, N. C, for collection,
who collected the draft and failed before
turning the money over to defendant. At
the time the draft was sent to Burbank &
Gallagher they were in good standing and
credit, and regarded as entirely solvent.
The defendant was to receive no com
pensation for collecting the draft.
Upon these facts his Honor gave judg
ment ior tne defendant. Appeal by plain
tiff.
Btnum,J. The right of the plaintiff to
recover depends upon the right of defend
ant to delc&rate his authority. Thi rcn
eral principle is that delegatus non potest
delegans. But it is certain that the prin
cipal may, if he chooses, give this power
oi suostituuon to ms agent Dy express
grant. It is equally certain that the prin
cipal may confer this power otherwise; not
only by other language, but without any
express words to that effect. If a prin
cipal constitutes an agent to do a business
which obviously or reasonably cannot be
done by an agent otherwise than through
a sub-agent; or if there is, in relation to
that business, a known and established
usage of substitution, in either case thc
principal would be held to have expected
ji it i , r
anu nave auinonzca sucn substitution. 1
Parsons on Contracts, 83.
Here from the very nature of the agency,
a sub agent must necessarily be employed.
In such case the assent of the principal is
implied. The draft was transmitted for
collection to the defendant, a corporation
located and doing business in Wilmington.
ine ueDtor resiaea in tne town of Wash
ington, over two hundred miles distant
1 he defendant could not send one of its
officers to Washington to present and col
lect tho draft; and that must have been
well known to the plaintiff. The defend
ant forwarded the draft for collection to
Burbank & Gallagher, a firm in Washing
ton, reliable and in good credit. Prudence
and good faith were exercised in the selec
tion or thc sub-agent. The true principle
is well stated in Fabens v. Mercantile Bank,
23 Rik., 330: "It is well settled that when
a note is deposited with a bank for collec
tion which is payable at another place, the
whole duty of the bank so receiving the
note in the first instance is seasonably to
transmit the same to a suitable bank or
other agent at tho place of payment. And
as a part of the same doctrine, it is well
settled that if the acceptor of a bill or
promissor of a note has his residence in
another place, it shall be presumed to have
Deen intended and understood between the
depositor for collection and the bank that
it was to be transmitted to the place of
residence oi tne promissor. " This decis
ion is consonant with notions of iustice.
If thc bank acted in good faith in selecting
a proper agent wnere tne draft was pay
able, there is no principle of public policy
or justice by which the defendant, who
was to receive no compensation, should be
maue naoio ior tne aeiauit oi the sub-agent,
I here are some decisions opposed to this.
. . Mno4 ... ' , t, . '
rf" . th" X. V"8 "!,S'
. , , " ,
imtuuu, jjvrcitesier ana juuzon 1MMC
v. New England Bank, 1 Cush.. 177: Morse
oh Banking. 34450: Wilson v. Smith. 3
tiow, iQii. mere is no error. Jud?
ment affirmed.
A VALUABLE WORK.
By a Valued North Carolinian.
Wilmington Star.J
The History of tho English Language,
from the Teutonic invasion of Britain to
the close of the Georgian Era, By Hen
ry E. Shepherd, M. A. LL. D., President
of the Collego of Charleston, S. C, New
Edition, Revised and Corrected, New
York ; E. J. Hale & Son, publishers, 66
Keaae street, Here is
a work bv a
North Carolina scholar that we can point
to with pride and satisfaction. It is by a
specialist in tne departments of Eng
lish Language and English Litera
A. Ti J .
iure. ii aoes nor, nowever, em
brace within its scope the glorious litera
ture oi the past, but confines itself to
a clear, succinct and philosophical ac
count of the growth of our language from
its formation through its entire develop-
mcnt until il finds its crown and glory in
the perfection and.bcauty of Alf reef Tenny
son's wondrous contribution to thc lite
rature of this country. Just such a work
is needed. In thc South this is especially
iue case, as tne critical study of the lan
guage has been much neglected and suita
ble tet books have been wanted. But
the south is awakeninr to the need of a
more philosophical and scientific acquaint
ance wun tne expanding science of Eng
lish Philology, and hence the colleges are
Deginning to (taite hold or the scientific
study of thc English language and excel
lent results may be expected.
ur. oucpnerd has conferred a positive
Denent upon ine cause of educationnot on
ly in the South hut throughout the En
hsh speaking world. He has prepared a
work that has constant reference to thtfed-
ucational: demands of our erafc He
hasexaHfaed every available source and
has carefully considered every point that is
presented, i he oook is neatly printed and
upunu and is sold lor f 1.15. Any teach
er can get one copy for examination by for
warding $1.00. It contains 227 pages
and has been thoroughly revised. The
first edition met with high praise from the
highest American and English authorities.
The learned Dr. Murray, editor of the stu
pendous English Dictionary in course of
preparation for the last twenty years, con
siders it "an excellent work. Prof.
Whitney, of Yale Collegia specialist, says
that it is "carefully constructed, with
good taste and judgment, and competent
scholarship." Thc eminent Greek scholar,
! Prof.j Gildersleeve, of Johns II..i)kin r,
I versity, says that Dr. Shepherd' "i,8l8 ,:,!
! sented his views with mm nrc,;,...:... 1
ciscness and elegance." f
! -
WORE DEAD MEN'S TALES.
This One Very Likely to be True. V
St Locis, Oct. 31. The Globe-Jjt
crat prints editorially this inorniii" the f
lowing facts regarding Presiden,.,.'.;
and the late war: A number of per.s,,,,.,,
fnenas were discussing sonic incidents ,,'r
the vtar. One of them spoke of Mr J j
coin" aversion to bloodshed, and in ill,,"
tratirtn of this, said that he had it frur,
member of the Cabinet of the war K, j,,,
that jMr. Lincoln on his return from t'ir
Hampton Roads conference in Febru-irv'
1865,? proposed to his cabinet lo sulu-ii-"
rncssige to Congress giving to the Si.utliun
Statep an amount of money cqu id toil,,
probable cost of the war from that time t,
its close, on condition of their layin.r ,,,''
their jnrms and returning to their loyalty
the Union. - '
The editor of the Globe-Democrat aar
lag ojf thc conversation, sent a memoran
dum jof Tt to the Hon. John P. Usher who
was at that time Mr. Lincoln's Secretary
of thc Interior, and is now a resident of
Lawrence, Kan., requesting him to rV(1
his recollection as to its correctness. Fr0m
Mr. Usher's reply, which was received
yesterday, the Globe-Democrat makes the
following extract:
"Soon after his (Lincoln's) return fmm
the James River the Cabinet was'convened
and he read to it for approval a mev-e
which he had prepared to be submitted to
Congress, in which he recommended th-it
Congress appropriate $300,000,000 to he
apportioned among the several States in
proportion to slave population, to be dis
tributed to the holders of slaves in those
States, upon condition 4hat they would
consent to thc abolition of slave"!"J and the
disbanding of the insurgent army and
would acknowledge and submit "to the
laws bf the United States. The members
of this Cabinet wero all opposed to it. He
seemed somewhat surprised at that and
asked: 'How long will the war last?''
"No one answered, but he soon said
hundred days. Well, we are spending
now,,in carrying on the war, $3,000,000 t
day, fwhich will amount to all this money
besides all the lives.' With a deep .sM,"
ne added : 'Uut you are all opposed to i
i Die.
uu win not scna the message.
ABOUT HUMAN NATl'B."
As It Shows In a Lawyer's Office.
i New York Sun.i
He; wanted justice. You Wuld see that
in his eyes afar off. He didn't want a lit
tle bit of justice weighed out in a gingerly
manner and done up in coarse brown pa",
per, but he wanted justice by the car load
and aft wholesale rates. He hitched his old
white, horse and dilapidated butrrV jn fr,)Ilt
uiug nwit, imiunueu ine stairs run
ning up outside to the second story, and
his eyes brightened as they rested on the
tin sign on the door; "G'eorge Boxem
Attorney at law." The lawyer was in!
So were a two-dollar desk, two fifteen
cent hairs, a huge cuspidor, and a ru.-ty
8tOVC;
"Morning."
'"Morningi,."
" Pm Jim White, sir. Live out by Gray s
Corners. Bought the Tompkins farm, you
knows."
"Ah!"
"Skinner jincs farms with me. His
steera get into my corn. I want damages,
but hp laughs at me. I turn my ho;:s fnto
his 'tater patch."
" Good ! I like a man of spunk."
"And he kills one of 'cm."
" What !"
"He kills a hog worth two dollars."
"You don't say ! Well, that man ought
to beimade to understand that he doesn't
own jthis county. What' an outrage !
Have -you demanded pay ?"
"Cfh, yes, and he said he'd like to shoot
me." i
" Is it possible f Why, he's a danger
ous man, very dangerous."
"Ilcame to ask you if if "
""Vfhy, of course you have the best kind
of a chse against him, and it is your duty
to push it."
"Yes, I want justice, but how how
mucW will "
"Qh, the cost will be nothing. Just
leave ;me $5 as a retainer and wetl make
Skinner sweat. I haven't heard of such
an outrage for years. He probably reasons
that you are chicken-hearted and afraid of
him.'f
"Well, he'll find that the Whites have
as much grit as thc Skinners."
" Aiid as much money to law with ?'"
"You bet!"
"Tihat'sthc talkl We'll make him a
very sick man. Your case aDDeals to me
as a citizen as well as a lawyer. Now,
we'll secure a warrant as a starter." .
Skinner visits thc other lawyer in the
same tillage, and the conversation is about
the same. White gets a warrant for Skin
ner, and bkinncr gets a warrant for White.
j". iu uujuuruiucuts, a uisa
rir$t year Two adjournments,
8nt, twenty-four days lost time, and
a casn, expense of $58 to each far
; expense of $58 to each farmer.
Second year Three trials, one disagree
ment, tfour adjournments, one appeal, and
a cash expense of $150 to each farmer.
Time lost, thirty-five days.
Ihird year Two tnals.twoaDDeals.two
decisions, and two farms pass into the
hands of two lawyers.
THE MISSISSIPPI PLAN"
Of Determining the World's Ace.
I fDetrolt Free Press.
At ione of the towns in Mississippi
where; we stayed over Sundav a counle
of stringers got into a dispute about the
age of the earth. They were the sons of
planters, and neither of them over twenty
two years of age. Thc dispute started in
a good-natured way, but ended in one of
them springing up, pulling out a bowie
knife, and threatening to carve thc other
up if his word was disputed again. The(
other tvas defenceless, and wisely held his
peace.f The man with the knife sat down,
and conversation turned to other channels.
By and by the defenceless man got up and
lounged away, and next wc saw of him,
hnif n
muzzle of at
r later, he was resting the
double-barrel shot-gun against
one of the porch pillars of the hotel, and
had ub all covered. The hammers were
up, his fingers eti the triggers, nd his
eyes blazed like a tiger as he said to the
man with the knife:
" Jim, it's ray turn now! "
"Ys."
" I've got you covered."
"I see."
"I Said the earth was a million years
old ; you stuck to 6,000 years. Jim, come
up to toy figures, or I'll blow the top of
your head over that fence ! "
"Say I" replied the other, as be crossed
his legs in the coolest manner, "I'll tell
you what I'm willing to do. As both of
us might be wrong, 1 11 leavo it to mc
crowdj"
Well, that's fair4 What's you.- figures,
gents??'
We consulted tojrether, menaced all tne
time by tw6 charges of buck-shot, and thc
Colonel was authorized to call out:
"Wp reckon on about 700,000 years,
stranger, but shouldn't be surprised if it
went tip to a million."
"Nor 1, either!" said thc man, as w
lowered the gun and leaned on the barrel.
"1 don t say as I fit in the war, or tnat i
was bdrn ud Fiehtinjr Creek, but when it
comes down to the age of the earth I'm to
home and the latch-string is out 1 Come
and see mel"
f 4
The President has named Thursday, the
26th inst, as a day of Thanksgiving and
Prayer.6