The south-western. [volume] (Shreveport, La.) 1852-1870, 1854-11-15
The Paris correspondent of the New York
Advertiser says that Mr. HODGE

rangement with the authorities of the city b.
which they will not demand, after the LIST 3
October, the U. S. consul wise upon the pass
J ports Of his countrymen. In return for thl
concession, the French authorities will insis
that the passports Of every American be on
granted directly from Washington, OF BY som
American minister IN Europe BY relinquish
ing the privilege of passport yises Mr.. Rodg
, renounces his principal source of revenue. y
the reasons for this course, the correspondent
says:
From private source / learn that his OBJ
II ject is to prevent the thousand and one sucl
little American consuls in Europe as are foreign
ers, from indulging any longer in that lucrative
business known in their particular slang, a!
manufacturing Americans
This business is carried on to a large extent
and indeed certain statistics that have been laie
before me on the subject, within the last few
! days, convince me that the whole thing is a Sc
cret even to the government at Washington
i There is fixed tariff for clubbing man ar
American, and the operations is performed
weekly upon persons who never crossed the
Atlantic, by all the Italians and Germans whom
the United States have not been ashamed toap
point their commercial agents abroad. The
price varies from fifteen to thirty dollars, in
central and southern Europe, it is less in Turkey,
and less still in Egypt, as would appear from
the remarks of an English officer not long ago
at dinner table in Malta: "Fifteen dollars for
manufacturing an American in Leghorn! Why,
that's very dear At Cairo it's only two and
sixpence!' Mr. Hodge hopes to cut up this bust
ness, BY rendering passports thus granted use
less to their owners, if they pass through Mar
seilles He hopes his example will be followed
by other American consuls in Europe, and he
has laid the whole matter, in extenso, before the
government at Washington, in the expectation
of obtaining some central aid from that quarter.
Mr.. Hodge has been for years at Marseilles,
and is in position to know the full enormity
of the practices to which his action in regard to
passports is designed to put an end
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There is growing disposition in New Y ork,
to call in question the conduct of captain Luce
If he had persisted with his ship, the world
would only have remembered his gallant devo
ton to his ship. But he had the fortune twas
it misfortune?) to escape, and the inquiry is now
made, to what useful end was this devotion di-
rected, and whom did it benefit? During the
five hours between the collision and the final
catastrophe, can any one name single act OF
captain Luce that promoted the safety of one
of the human beings under his care? These are
the questions asked, and they are not easy to
answer in his favor. He seems to have been a
faithful and high hearted man, as far as any
selfregard is concerned but he lacked the quail
ties of a leader in a moment of peril, he had
not, or did not show any ascendency over his
crew, or any power of giving order to the move
ments of the frightened mob Of passengers IfI
he was se]f-possessed, he possessed nothing else
of the qualities of master-spirit on the occa-
sion. tits doubtful whether the strange chance
that preserved his life, was not trial rather
than mercy. l=..
There is another party, which has, in the first
blush, been the object Of general sympathy,
concerning whom there will be correction of
opinion before long,-we mean the proprietors
of the steamer. There were attached to the
Arctic six boats, each capable of carrying
thirty persons, in all one hundred and eighty. I
There were on board the steamer more than
double this number. Itwas, therefore matter
of mere necessity that more than half of all
the human beings in the ship, should be left
without other means of safety than some chance
fragment Of the sinking wreck The mere fact
that such was the case, and that it could not but
be known to crew and passengers, affords am
pie explanation Of the selfish rush to get pos
session of the boats, If these had been sufi-
clent for the occasion, nothing would have been I
gained by being foremostin a rush. The whole !
could easily have been saved, if the proprie-
tors of the steamer had not rendered it impossi-
BILE to save more than half, and thus devoted
such provisions Of safety as they did make, to
the benefit of the few whose selfshness lent
them wings in the race for life.
~~-~~0~~0->o~~~0-~@-~
WINE EXPORTED FROM New ORLEAss.-The
shortness of the crop sometimes occasions the
most singular and anomalous commercial oper-
atoms The quantity Of Bordeaux wine i'm
ported into New Orleans annually is extreme
ly large, but who could imagine that the ar
tlcle would ever be exported back to France.
Such however, is actually the case. Eight or
ten days ago, several casks of fine claret, pur-
chased from one of our best houses at the rate
Of 800 per cask, were shipped on board
Havre packet, and consigned to Paris This
curious circumstance will not surprise those
who are well posted up in the wine trade
Most Of the large wine merchants in France
are engaged in aheavy foreign commerce, and
usually supply the foreign market, before pay
ing much attention to the wants of the domes-
tic one. AS the wine harvest this year is ex-
ceedingly poor, in consequence of the disease
of the grape vine, the better qualities are scarce
and command heavy prices Hence the de-
mand for wine is SO great as to justify ship
pers in sending good wines back to France,
where they undoubtedly realize a profit.
IL.
ENORMOUS BETTINe.-Two bets were made
recently in San Francisco at the Union, one of
which exceeds in amount anything of the kind
ever MAIDEN California. w. L. Chrysler, esq,
bet Joshua P. Haven, the whig nominee for
mayor, BOO that he could over check him. The
BET was accepted. Mr.. Chrysler drew his check
IN Page Bacon & Co., for 100000, and Mr..
iaven for $4,000. Both checks were imme-
lately honored by the cashier, who was pre-
ent, and Chryser won the bet. Mr.. Haven
hen proposed to bet Chrysler $50, 900 that he
would beat c. K. Garrison for the mavoraltv at
he ensuing election. The bet was promptly
aiken, and checks were drawn and honored byI