Daily evening star. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1852-1854, 1854-05-25
DAILY EVENING STAR.
LOCAL INTELLIGENCE,


TEE AoUEDUcr.-Ye,terday the subject O
the proposed aqueduct for supplying Wash
ing,on with water from the Great Falls wa
again under consideration in the House Of Re
representatives., tie debate being in committe
Of the whole On the Senate Amendment TO tn
Deficiency bill, by which $500 900 are appro
priated for continuing the works for bringin.
water into the city of Washington. The Sc
nate amendment was not, however. passed
FROM the want OF quorum to vote upon it
We are sorry that this should be the case. fol
there is no doubt that the work-on as grand
scale as it is-would be of the most benei-
oisl utility. Water and gas are the two great
necessities OF modern large cities; and no city
in our times can be great without these essen
tial articles A book might be written upon
the subject, and still the theme not exhausted
New York and Philadelphia owe much to their
water works. The Croton agueiuct in the one
instance, and the Schuylkill water works in
the other, have done a great deal to make
those cities what they are. London, although
stuated on a river above the aow Of the tide,
gould not exist without being supplied with
water from purer source than its own muddy
Thames. and some dozen different water works
the objects Of private enterprise, as Joint stock
companies, show the need of pure water to the
Inhabitants OF the city, and return large an.
nual per centages to the stockholders This
same want u very much felt in Paris. and
although the city is we'll supplied with water
from the numerous fountains that adorn the
streets and squares, yet all this abundance
cannot atone for the deficiency of carrying the
water into the houses, 20 that tho inmates can
use al H6atHDaj and the necessity of this aid
to modern civilization is very much felt by
families in the discomfort that attends it We
have an instance, however, nearer home: the
sister city with New York BROOKLYN. which
is situated opposite to it, on Long Island. is
without the advantage of the Croton aoue-
duct, and the inhabitants have found the need
Of water works to supply the houses with
water, great drawback to their onward bro.
gress; and have been obliged to put their
shoulder to the wheel to remedy this want
lnnumerable examples could be given. show.
ing how much the furnishing of houses with a
good supply of water, ready at hand. is OF
paramount Importance; and If the proyerb be
true, that cleanliness is next to Goodness we
may say that the morals of people depend
upon its supply of water. Legislators may be
Startled at such an assumption, but it is a
pretty well acknowledged fact that crime and
filth are generally associates, and that half
the misery Of the poor is attributable to the
want of cleanliness. We do not think, for our
own private opinion, that the cost of bringing
water INTO w asiAngton ought to be put IN the
balance with the benefit that it would do.
RIsLEY S VARIETE.-The appearance Of Mr..
Josh Silshee, the inimitable deIipeator of
Yankee characters, who was lately all the
rage IN London, was complete triumph las;
night This Is his first appearance in Wash
ingtoD since his return from Europe. where he
has been keeping John Bull, who is not the
most amiable Of creatures, on the broad grin
with his representations of the younger branch
of the family, brother Jonathan. Mr. Josh
Silsbee Is the most perfect Yankee Ilimic that
has ever appeared on the boards of apy stare
in either hemisphere, and is in his peculiar
line OF comedy, gem of the first water We
have seen Dutchmen mimicked, Frenchmen
mlmicked, lrishmen mimicked, Mitor hp gfars
mimicked by the Partisan actor, and Monsieur
by the English actor but we never saw tn at
part of the " universal nation" termed the
Yankee, so well caricatured as by Josh Silsbee.
He played last night in two pieces, which he
has made bis own peTsonating the character
OF the Yankee Plous hboy," in the one. and
OF Nathan Tucker, in the other The roars
OF laughter that followed every word and ac-
ton, was the most complete triumph that the
actor could enjoy, and we would recommend
all our readers who did not attend last night,
not to fail paying him visit. His engage.
ment is a limited one and. therefore. the
sooner they go, the less likelihood of disap.
polntrnent As the poet says " Procrastina-
ton Is the thief of time" Tonight Mr.. Josh
ous6ee appears again Go early, and secure
good seats.
CIRCUIT COURT.-The following case of
SANDER was instituted yesterday, and was fur
ther argued to-day. VIM T. Dovo Us. John
II. M:Blair. The plaintiff, who is very re-
Specially connected, and was formerly an AL
dsrman for the First Ward, charges the de-
fendant with having used slanderous Language
about him on the 18th of May, 1852, stating
that he the plaintiff was negro; adding, as
stated in another count, that the plaintiff had
got the negro stripe down his back, as we'll as
that be was not clear white; and of having
iurthsr said to certain parties on the same
day, you have only to look at him. to see he
isa negro. Another count states the de-
fendant to have said, "he, the plaintiff is
only half white, and that he had got negro
blood in him" In consequence of these re-
marks the plaintiff alleges that he lost his re-
election, and Is otherwise injured in his bust
ness Transactions, and lays his damages at
$4,000. Mr.. Carlisle is counsel for the plain
tiff, and Mr.. Bradley for the defendant.
HE lR0N BRIDGEs.-In the debate yester
day, II the House, ON the Senate amendment
to the Appropriation BILL Mr. Stanton, of XIV,
commented severely upon the late accidents,
and Is reported TO have said, he understood
that the engineer Captain Thom) who had
Charge OF the bridge which recently fell down
at the Little Falls, had never before had any
experience In bridge building. Twenty three
thousand dollars of the thirty thousand dol
lars heretofore appropriated, was expended in
laying stone at a cost Of ten dollars a perch.
lie hal With him, in this hall, a fragment Of
that bridge There were holes in the iron as
big as his list, plugged up with lead and paint
cd over, to hide defects. The bridge over
Rock Greek which recently fell, was rotten
and badly cast at the same place and on the
same plan, by Mr.. Rider
The House of Representatives, Yesterday,
cOncurred in the Senate's amendment to the
deficiency bill, appropriating $4,000 for the
completion Of the bridge across the Potomac
riVer, at Little Falls, and painting thereof,
agreeably to the plan adopted, under The di
recton OF the President Of the United States.
with prOviso that that the work shall be per
formed under the direction of the Secretary of
The Interior, by competent civil engineer.
according to plan the cost of which shall not
exceed the sum low appropriated
DESERVED CoMRLIYENr.-Tbe follouing
which speaks for itself, has been handed us by
friend for publication:
WASHINGTON, May "A.
CdPf- jas. ". Btrch-SIR At q meeting
o. the committee of arrangements of the Sun
aay school Union Of this city, the following
resolution was unanimously adopted:
" Rtsoiusd, That the thanks of the SUNDAY
school UIion are hereby rendered to Capt
Jas n Birch for the very efficient aid rem
uered by him, and the men under his COM