Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1854-12-22
WASHINGTON NEWS AND GOSSIP.


took occasion to assure the members through
the Star, that there existed unprecedented
uaanimity among our fellow citizens for
radical and thorough change of the. District
judicial system, much of it now in existence
being the legacy of our Maryland progenitors
who fourished quite one hundred and fifty
years ago. When Mr.. May first reported the
bill (Which, by the BY; appeared very sure to
pass when the Heuss adjourned yesterday
we spread before the Stars readers COM
plete synopsis Of it, and - it has not, 90 far,
been materially changed, We do not conceive
it necessary to srepublish it at this time.
There are points in the bill which, doubtless
should be amended. On the whole, however,
it is thousand times better than the existing
system under which our feilow-citizens suffer,
and is 80 acknowledged to be. by all who do
not profit individually by the features in ths
present system which operate so oppressively
upon the community at large. For instance,
the bill contains a provision giving to the
United States the right to sue out writs of or.
ror in criminal cases, which strikes us a. an
entire new feature in at least American juris.
prudence, possibly involving danger to the
rights of the citizen. But that can be striksn
out in the Senate, and it doubtless will
be. 1t is so much better than the existing
system as to make its probable speedy enact.
ment into law, the subject of congratulation
among nearly all in the District of Columbia
The Reform 50 Greatly Needed. -aThe bill
now before the House of Representatives,
making the oonsuIs whom We send to foreign
countries salariSd officers, instead Of oblicinp
them to pickup living by q tax levied upon
American citizens who happen to travel through
the town where they are stationed, we hepe
will pass.
"Ihe question of dispensing with the beg.
gardly exacHons to- which we allude has or,
several occasions been brought before Congress,
from the time when it was first proposed by
Mr. Benton, seven Seen years since, down to
the present session Of Congress; but NO bill
framed for the purpose has had the good for
tune to pass The principal difficulty in the
way, we believe, ehas been that the members
have been too much occupied with eontrover-
sizes of mere party nature to give their at
tention to the subject. Most persons have been
willing to admit that IF we have occasion for
a commercial representative in foreign
country. our government should pay him for
his services-but with this admission the mat
ter has ended. ..
cit is not our intention to 60 oyer the argu-
ments tending to show that the practice of
making our consuls depend for their compen-
sation on the fees they can extract from fray
elers by endorsing their passports, is an I'M
just and unequal one. On that point we have
frequently spoken; and it is enough to say
here that the American traveller has in most
cases no real occasion for the services of the
consul. 1t is, in fact, fortunate when he finds
no consul of his own country in the port
through which he must pass, for then he is
saved the; trouble Of laying hfs passport be-
tore him, and has SO muoh the less to pay
Eoentns PoStsTo =. s>cIl..c = .95.I g.
FOREIGN APeeIsTMExIs-QABIsE GoNTIN-
GENc1Es:4' * recolIect once being
in Europe when, the United States Minister to
Prussia was dead drunk at Brussels-the Lon
don Consul enjoying himself at Parasitic
Charge to Belgium somewhere on the Rhine
the Minister: to Spain in London, and our
representative to Austria retu ming home at
his own pace through Italy. A position
abroad is not given with an eye to the welfare
of the country, but to satisfy the demands of
the hungry and bankrupt politicians.-Wash-
tSNgfQg 90 rrespo'pdsrcs of the Mobile Regss-
Ter, Dec. 10. ~. -. -.
There never was time when it was mo1u
necessary that the system of foreign inter.
course Of this Government should be reformed
ia essential paEtienlars-au the rest of the
world appear more or less engaged in war and
civil eoinmouon;a 1t is the duty of the Gov.
eminent to protect American citizens, svery-
where, from invasion of their rights of person
and property. 1T is ithroagh' ministers and
eonsuls that this protection is given, and yet
how i'll adapted must our present system be-,
when the agents under it can act as described
in the two extracts appended--ene from the
Erening Post in New York, and the other
from the Mobile Registsr at the Ssnth. 1t is
especially necessary in the present troubled
state OF foreign powers, that those who repre-.
sent this country abroad should learn not to
look upon their positions as conferred for par
tisan merit at home, but as imposing grave re-.
sponsibilities Why should not our consuls be
made to represent the interest Of their coun.
try, and not their own, in taxing every Ameri-
can they meet two dollars for only writing
their name upon his passport-thus causing
themselves to be Stunned, rather than sought
by their countrymsn abroad. Of our minis
tiers running about all oyer Europe for their
own pleasure, in times past, we have frequent
ly heard complaint like that in the Mobile
Register, and yet, from year to year, Congress
has left without reform the system which per-
mits such abuses. - There should be definite
salaries and ds7fnits duties to insure proper
representatives abroad.
80 [ BIS II - 60 J.fi
More Falsehoods Tho Washington CORES.
pondent Of the New York Commercial Advsr.
sissr has the following: La sE;In.i..7s /
"But this banking house (selden, Withers
d Coz held on upon some Government de.
posts. How much we would like to know It
is said that the Clerk of the House of Repre-
sentatives had about nine thousand dollars of
the contingent fund there, and he is also re-:
ported as debtor to the bank ~ l2. -
We are authorized to say that the Clerk of
the House never deposited dollar of public