The Sun.
London, England, 1870-05-24 00:00:00

NEW YORK GOSSIP.
FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.

NEW Yong, May 3, 1870.
Spring, long wished for, long waited for, and longer still
in coming, is here at last. During the past few days the sun
has dons yeoman's duty in the work of bringing back to life
the straggling trees and bashes, which, scattered here and
there in parks and courtyards, and lining now and then a
street, serve to remind us poor city folk of the days before
we came to coop ourselves up in this great prison, and to
touch our brick and mortar hearts in consequence ; and with
the coming of spring and the return of the birds and flowers
come also hopes of a prosperous period, and prayers that the
green leaves shall not be the only indications that a "dead"
season is over and that new life is stringing up about us.
But enough of the weather, that ever fruitful topic, and of
business with which I have nothing to do, inasmuch as I
write of gossip, and let me rather tell of moving day and its
miseries. But the man is yet unborn who could adequately
describe the terrible turmoil which reigns in the city at this
moment. Yearly rents in New York invariably expire on
the Ist of May, and as the great majority of the various
stores and tenements are held on short leases nearly every
one " moves" on that day. The effect produced can only
be imagined—the vans which crowd the streets, piled to an
incredible height with household goods—the throngs of
pedestrians carrying the more fragile or more valuable arti-
cles—the houses turned topsy-turvey, the incessant smashing
of furniture, and consequent breakage of the third Command-
ment —all these, and many like these, are characteristics of
the first of May—a lilock-letter day, if ever there was one.
This year it happened to fall on a Sunday, and the " celebra-
tion" of it was therefore postponed to Monday, which, to the
delight of every one broke, clear and cloudless, though it is
often the fortune of the inhabitants of this good city to be
compelled to expose their goods and chattels to the tender
mercies of a thuader-storm. That additional agony was
spared, however, and the removing has progressed as plea-
santly as could be expected, and expeditiously enough, for
by sunset to-day the last of the st:agglers will be housed for
another year at least.
The " Arcade Railway Bill," as it is commonly called,
has passed both Houses of the Legislature, and in all proba-
bility will receive the Governor's sanction and become a
law. If the company to whom the charter is to be granted
are successful in their undertaking it will work a revolu-
tion in the building of cities hereafter, greater than any that
has been planned or executed. The project is no less a
one than this—Broadway, from the Battery to Union-
square, and from thence, both Broadway and the Fourth-
avenue to Harlem, are to be dug out to the depth of sixteen
feet, and of the width of the present streets. The trench
thus cut out is to be covered by a massive iron roof on,
which the pavement will be relaid, and the street thus re-
serve its former appearance externally. But internally, or
beneath the pavement, a new street is to be built, the base-
ments of the existing houses to be altered into capacious
stores, the side walks paved and graded, and in the centre
four lines of railway tracks are to be laid, of which the two
inner ones are to be devoted to through trains of cars,
drawn by locomotives, and running from the Battery to
Harlem, with occasional stoppages at important stations
only, and the outer to similar trains destined to accom-
modate the " way travel," or those passengers who desire
to go but a short distance. The new street is to be bril-
liantly lighted by gas, and rendered as attractive for shop-
ping or promenading as the old highway above it. This
you will see is a great undertaking, and one of which the
practicability has not as yet been Droved—though all the
best civil engineers of this city have pronounced it feasible.
If successful, as all trust it may be, it will not only prove a
great convenience to all who " live up town," but will
actually prevent New York from growing smaller, as it
now threatens to do. Manhattan Island, 'being in shape
long and narrow, and the portion of the city being co -
fined to the southernmost end, it is evident that merchants
and their clerks who live at the northern end, as all men
of moderate means needs must do, should have quick
transit from their places of business to their homes, and,
that being attainable, vast numbers have bean steadily
leaving the city during the past few years, and removing
either to Brooklyn or Jersey city: or one of the many
suburbs of New York—from whence a ferry boat of any
of the numerous lines will bring them within easy walking
distances of their offices in fifteen minutes at most. Under
the new order of things, however, this steady emigration
will be stopped, as all will then be able to reach their homes
in a very short space of time, and at a moderate expense. I
do not wish to devote too much
‘space to one topic, or I
should tell of the discomforts and annoyances to which all
who ride in the horse-care are exposed, but will leave that
for another occasion. I must not agleca, however, to explain
how the process of digging out before mentioned is to be
executed. The operations of the company are to be con-
fined to the distance lying between two cross-streets, and over
that surface a substantial bridge is to be erected that travel
may proceed without interruption. When the ro f is on
and the pavement laid: the bridge is to be taken up_ to the
next cross-street, and the work will proceed as before.
Should the Governor sign the bill—as he is expected to do
—the company will commence operations at once, and push
the work as rapidly as possible.
Speculation is rife as to the result of the M'Farland trial,
now drawing to a close. This cause celibre, with accounts
of which the newspapers has teemed; during the past three
weeks, has attracted more attention, and furnished a more
fruitful subject for discussion in all the circles of society
than any which the present generation can remember. For
fear that some of your yeaders may be unacquainted with
-the case, I will give you the salient points. One Daniel
M'Farland, a man of education, but of intemperate habits,
married a lady named Abby Sage, and by her had two
children. They lived together happily enough for a num-
ber of years, until &I'Farland's dissolute ways, growing
worse and worse, caused his undertakings to fail, mid his
friends to abandon him. As is too often the case, he chose
to wreak his vengeance by treating his wife—as the evi-
dence shows—in the most brutal meaner. About this time
she made the acquaintance of Albert D. Richardson, a jour-
nalist by occupation, a brilliant correspondent during the
late war—author of several works, and a man of standing
in the community. He and other friends repre-
sented to Mrs. M'Farland that she was doing her-
self an injustice in remaining with a man who
treated her thus cruelly, and urged her—as her talents fitted
her for the profession—to go upon the stage, and reinforced
their arguments by procuring for her an engagement at the
Winter Garden Theatre. Mrs. ll'Farlanll acted upon their
advice, left her husband, and accepted the engagement
offered her. She maintained herself by her profession, and
by contributing to various periodicals earned an enviable
position as a writer: During this time she was thrown
much in Richardson's company, and he very frequently
escorted her to and from the theatre. On one of these occa-
sions M'Farland, maddened by drink, jealousy, and the loss
of his wife, stole behind the pair as they were leaving the
Winter Garden, and shot Richardson in the back, inflicting
a dangerous but not mortal wound. This brought matters
to a crisis. While Richardson was confined to his bed, Mrs.
M'Farland nursed and tended him, and during this time
she agreed to procure a divorce from her husband, and, as
love had sprung up between them, marry Richardson.
M'Farland, in the meantime, continued to drink to excess,
and pour the sting of his sorrows into every willing ear
To make a long story short, the divorce was obtained last
autumn in the State of Illinois, and the parties were to
have been married shortly after. M'Farland heard of this,
and swore the marriage would never be, armed himself with
a pistol, and went in search of his victim. He met him
many times in the days that followed, but always face to
face, until one day in November last, when he was sitting
in the office of the Tribune, Richardson entered, and, without
seeing M'Farland, walked up to the counter and asked for
his letters. The words were fet on his lips when
land, rising up suddenly, reached across the counter and
fired point blank, the ball entering his victim's breast.
Richardson was carried to the Astor House, where he lay
in great suffering for several days. Shortly before his
death he sent for Mrs. M'Farland ; they were married by the
Rev. Henry Ward Beecher and the Rev. Dr, Switingham,
and son after Richardson died.

That is the story, told from the , evidence, and without
bias of any kind. The fact that the persons engaged
in the tragedy were all well known to the public lent
additional interest to what was already an extraordinary
ease, and little else has been. talked of since the trial began.
The theory of the defence has been insanity, and they have
worked bard to establish the plea, several of the most
eminent criminal lawyers in this city being retained for the
prisoner. The prosecution has been conducted in ano less
able manner, and now that the announcement is made that
the case is drawing to a close, the excite.nent is rising to
fever heat. Both aides have their supporters, and it would
be impossible to say with whom the sympathy of the public
is most enlisted; but Daniel M'Farland is enjoying the
fairest of trials, and to the verdict of the jury, whatever it
may be, the voice of the people will say Amen.
The theatres have done little in the way of change
of programme of late, but several novelties were introduced
on Monday night, of which the most important was the
production, at Niblo's Garden, of a new drama by .Z,lexander
Dumas, entitled "Mosquito," in which Miss Lydia Thomp-
son appeased as the heroine, The play was written expressly
for Miss Thompson by the veteran novelist and dramatist,

Awl is in his most romantic, and therefore his best, Veit;

and it was placed upon the stage in a style of the utmost
xnagniagence by the management, and Miss Lydia Thompson
maimed mush well-deserved applause by her excellent acting.
The drama wee followed by the burlesque of ‘. La son-
.

giambula," in which a,h.e burlesque troupe appeared 7 Both
pieces were received with
,inneh favour by the audience on