The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1843-02-07
punishment, tend to demoralise the naval and com

Ibis If the only point OF view in which ne can o'
justified OF its sufciency, every person OF common
sense can decide. With all naval officers-w'h al
shippin gmerchants-with all persons connected WIN
the commercial service, such Just hca'ioh Is geher
ally admitted and allowed With the great ouk oil
the community with naval ar1airs, IL Is
not ad mitted-or admitted in very limited degree.
They think that human life should not be so taken
on such grounds
Our own opinion is not yet made 10. We would
not like 10 condemn poor Mckenzie without the
strongest evidence-nether would we justify any
man with any degree of authority, in hanging up at
the yard arm three human beings without full evil
dence OF their Auit. 1t is most difficult and deli
cate affair-which the new evidence to be taken
before the court martial may yet elucidate. We
shall wait for the result OF that tIiaa trial of great
and vital importance not only to Captain McKen-
zie, but to the navy-to the merchant servise-and
to the character of the country.
Captain McKenzie's case, thus far, has been most
injured by his very ridiculous and farfetched narra-
tive and this want of judgment has been aggrava-
ted by the melancholy and insane course of the
" Courier IL Enquirer as his special advocate and
organ. The tone OF arrogance, folly, brutality, and
presumption, which that vapd journal has thrown
over MIR. Mckenzie 8 case, has created prejudice
throughout the country against him of no common
order This tone is still COMMUNICATION we find no
longer ago than yesterday, that in speaking of the
two eminent counsel Messrs. Butler and O'Connor,
who made an application TO assist the Judge Advo-
cate, that journal calls them "wOuld-be associate
counsel, and basey insnuaes that mo pettifoggIng
pleas or speeches ever required by court COM
posed of honest and honorable men, The brutality
of these insinuatiOns against Ben. F. Butler and
Charles O'Connor, are not more disgusting to every
fair and candid mind, than the gross impudence Of
insinuating and accusing the amiable and honor
able Judge Advocate, of ignorance" lacking
independence"-or" feeling that he is not quail
fed to discharge the duties of his station, and
should at once resign his appointment"
Such anguage-such insinuations-such brutality
coming from any respectable press, indicates at
once that their source has neither the feelings the
manners, nor the language of gentleman or an
honorable man-that the editor must be some
brutal creature, half made up by permission of the
Almighty, for some inscrutable purpose, from the
remains of some of those gross animal existences,
which have disappeared from the earth in Of the
geological periods Of past ages With the liberal
teelings-the enlightened sentiments-the generous
temper of the present age-or the present race of
mankind, such creature is utterly unacquainted
the Mephistorheles of Goethe, or the "devilupon
two sticks" of the Spanish romancer was supposed
to be when the Salamanca student released him
from his bottle prison, for the purpose of insulting
humanity by its counterfeit presentment. Faust
and the poor Spanish scholar has reason to regret
the aid and friendship of these devils We hope that
Captain Mckenzie may have better luck with their
brutal descendant, and heir at-law, the "devil
upon two sticks in Wall street;
CRY FNANcEs.-The ordinary taxes of the city
have become very burdensome, and are still further
increased by the interest on the Croton Aqueduct
debt. The present system of taxation, so far as
concerns personal property, is very imperfect. Ac
cordng to the present arrangement, the assessors
books are open during the summer season, and the
assessments which they are authorized to make are
limited to that period, which is the very time when
large portion of our most wealthy citizens abb
sent from the city, rusticang. Thus large amount
Of personal property eludes taxation.
But far greater evil is the escope from taxation
of vast amount Of merchandise and other property
owned by non.residents. BY the present law, every
person must be assessed on his personal property in
the county where he resides. To elude taxation,
therefore, persons doing business in the city have
only to reside out of it, And this is ore reason why
50 IudHy villages III Vicinity are HCHOIeQ ana
built up by New York citizens
BY the act of the Legislature, passed at the last
session in relation to Common Schools,
"The Board of Supervisors required 70 raise by tax
equal to the amount derived from the School Fund of
the State amounting as is estimated to about hrtysx
thousand dollars further sum OF one twentieth Of one
mated at about hundred and twenty thousand dollars
and such other sum as may be necessary in the judgment
of the Board OF Supervisors be raised for the support
common schools In addition to this they required to
raise such SUNS as be incurred by the
and inspectors OF schools for the different wards for the
purchase hire Of buildings therefor and the establish
ment and organization Of schools therein. The amount
which is peremptorily required to be raised exclusive
that which the Board Supervisors may in their dscre
ton raise greatly exceeds probably by sixty thousand
dollars the amount required for the contemplated OBJ
| ject"
most extraordinary feature of this law is the
unlimited power conferred upon the commissioners
and inspectors of schools to go to any extent they
please, be 1t millions of dollars, in purchasing lots,
building school houses at any expense, or hiring
them at their discretion, for the use of schools
The Finance Committee of the Corporation has
prepared very able report these subjects, and
Counsellor Graham has just prepared several drafts
of acts remedying and regulating these matters. to
be forthwith presented to the Legislature for their
action.
CASE OF Brown. This man, who has been i'm.
| prisoned accomplice of Charles F. Miller in
abducting Mrs. Miller, was brought up yesterday
before Judge Kent writ of habeas corpus His
counsel moved either for his discharge or that he
be admitted to bail. The papers were given to
Judge Kent, who will examine them, and hear the
case argued this morning at o'clock. Brown was
remanded.
Snow AND SLEleHTNG.-The snow is now plenty
in the city and neighborhood-but owing TO its un.
equal distribution, the seighng is bad. In the city
particularly in Hudson street, the sleighng is fine
but the high wind has thrown it into drifts in the
avenues. person from twenty miles down Long
Island yesterday, had six or seven overtlrns in
sleighing that distance, in consequence of snow
| drifts.
| YANKEE HILL AGAIN." Oh scizzorsr" Yankee