The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1854-04-18

.nt Sin at d eception by ur government Of the de-
a OF /! convention entered into by Mr.. Buchanan
9TH Groa D IA II, by which tIe comm roe of this
country b. & aIantied all those pral rights
that have been 20 eng AID noby cen eaded for, the
proposition was deemed 10 be pr y ar and con-
sequently rejected. The Senat i II increasing the
pay of clerks, messengers and Others, was ordered
to be engrossed fer third rea ling, and upon mo-
ton to ICONS der the vote a discussion arose in
which the effect OF Office seeking and Office holding
were freely commented on. Per ling the question,
the House adjourned
The Boa 4 Of Aldermen dwir died away three NOR.
tai hours DEBATING the payment Of small bills and
the subject o. rading ST Gets I'll greatest excite
pent prevailed in he Borrd of Councilmen last
evening, owing to thirteen members and the Presi-
dent being he in contempt for Having the Board
on Friday night last before it ad % rnel. The de-
inquents ordered outside Of the door, and each
of them brought in rotation before the bar Of the
house 20 answer for their misconduct All we're
excused except two who, being little refractory,
were seprimanded by the Presid n pro ton. For
full report of the interesting Gene and other impor
tant matters, we would refer the attention Of our
readers to another column.
An engineer named Jacob Hadley was killed. and
several others injured by the explosion of the boiler
of steam te1yboat at Pittsburg yesterday morning.
The conspiracy known rs the small note case"
for attempting to eXtort hundred aud ten thou
sand dollars from the Pennsylvania Railroad Com
pany, concluded yesterday at Pittsburg and re-
suited in verdict of guilty.
The official count of the vote in the recent cleo
ton in Connecticut is announced, by which it APP
pears that the majority against Ingham, the demo-
cratic candidate for Governor, is 1900.
The snow storm which had been driving down
upon since Friday afternoon almost increasingly,
held up about one O'Clock this morning, although
there was at that hour no indication OF positive
clearing up. The cold northeast wind has slightly
moderated, and the snow is melting away. The
storm extended in all directions. In Boston and vi
cnity it was very severe, and much damage has re-
suited to the shipping on the bleak coast Of New
England. To the South it has ragged violently, as
our telegraphic dispatches will show. Such unsea-
sonable weather is apt to be regarded an excep-
tion to the general rule; but a consultation of the
meteorological tables will show that, although not
often accompanied by such high winds, more snow
has not unfrequenty fallen in April and even in the
month of May. The most severe snow storm ut this
season of the year within the recollection of the
coolest inhabitant," occurred in 1921, and ex-
tended throughout New England. 1t is descril.
ed in the journals of that day as an "uncon:
mon' circumstance. The snow in many places
was drfted from eight to fifteen feet in height.
Neutral Rights-Policy Of the Bellsgerents.
The Chamber of Commerce will doubtless
thank us for furnishing it, elsewhere, with the
means OF forming a sensible judgment on the
probable effects of the European war on our
commerce. The comments Of the London Jour-
nails on the Queens declaration diycst that
document Of whatever ambiguity it had hitherto
presented: and as each Of those from which we
quote may be regarded as speaking the senti-
ments of some influential set of politicians their
opinions are worthy of most careful considera-
ton.
All congratulate the British government on
the liberality it has shown in voluntarily re-
linquishing an arm of war, which the written
precept of international law and constant usage
for five centuries had uniformly required. Now
that the REIMBURSEMENT is made, it is hardly
worth while following our English cetempo-
raries in their inquiry into the reasons of the
act. 1t is obvious, however, that, in all human
probability, the maritime power of Russia will
be crushed at the outset of the war; and the
only injury which privateers could infict would
be on British and French vessels. In proscrib-
ing privateering therefore, the maritime pow
ers are in reality depriving themselves of no
weapon that could be of service to them; while
the adoption of similar policy by their antago-
mist would certainly relieve them from heavy
load of anxiety. STILL we have nothing to do
with the motives of Great Britain in this re-
spect.
mously approves of the doctrine that free ships
make free goods. There appears to be no doubt
that the feeling of the British people is decid-
edly adverse to the assertions Of the claims set
up by both Great Britain and France during the
last war, with respect to neutrals. In this re-
spect, civilization has made progress within the
last forty years and though the London Morn
ing Chronicle ominously alludes to 'crcum-
stances which may necessitate the withdrawal
of these concessions" there is nothing in any
Of the other papers. or in the language used by
the British Ministers in Parliament that could
warrant reasonable expectation of such an
event. Such claim of right" says q Lon
don Journal, once waived can never be reas-
serted -: and when it is borne in mind that in
all probability Russian merchant vessels will
very shortly be swept from the sea, and Rus
sian ports subjected to an effective blcsasde, it
is difficult to perceive what object England
could gain. in the present position of the war;
in curtaliug The rights of ncutrals. and throw
ing further obstacles in the way of trade. The
London Times interprets the words for the
present" in the Declaration as equivalent to
" during the present war;: and were this inter-
probation invested with anything like official
authority, it would be idle, or at least superfu-