New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1857-03-25
FROM ALBANY.

From Our Special CorssDoadent
ALBANY, Monday. March p, 1857.
The Legislature has nearly consumed its session
of one hundred days, and has still an immense
amount of unfinished business" before it, much
of which, no doubt ought to remain in that inter
esting condition. With the great number OF bills
now before the Legislature and those yet to be in.
troduced, it would seem an imposslbility that all
should receive final action, but whether the go-oy
will be given to those which should properly go
over the dam remains to be SEEN The great una ~
of the members and the committees seem to be
hard at work, and so do the bOrers. The number
Of patriots who have come up here to do the State
some service, by inducing it to invest its surplus
funds in their various and splendid enterprises, IS
rs great as at former sessions; but from the
beat information have been able as yet to obtain,
this class of sefsacrifcng citizens is not as highly
appreciated by the present Legislature as they have
sometimes been by its predecessors. Among the
nice little Jobs before the Legislature, is one for the
extension of the Genesee Valley Canal from Clean to
Mill Grove Pond, a distance of about six miles.
There is considerable tract of pine timber in the
vicinity of this pond and large quantity OF lum-
Der is annually made there, which is now trans
ported to Olean at an expense Of about ~ per
LOCO feet, whence it is shipped to Rochester by
Canal or New-YOrk by the Erie Railroad. 1t
would no doubt be very agreeable to the owners of
these pineries TO have the canal built at the ex
pense Of the State Treasury it would very likely
mt so,ne hundreds of thousands per annum into
their pockets but it is than probable that the
tax PAYERS would hardly regard that as valid rea
son for investing in such an enterprise 800 900 OF
the pul lie funds. There could be no reasonable OBJ
lection to permitting these gentlemen to build the
contemplated canal themselves, but that would not
suit them as well as to have the State make an ap
propriation are then give them the job on which
| thew might realize handsome "spec" by doing
| their own work. bill authorizing this canal
| but without making any appropriation has
already passed the Senate. If they can
get it through the Assembly, the appropriation can
20 into the General Appropriation bill, which Is
expected to pass among the very last acts OF the
session, when every member has 30 macy things TO
atterd to that he cannot watch to see where the
money gOes.
A bill will probably be introduced into the As
| semby in few days, to prevent the use Of our
| jals and prisons as slave pens.
The prospects of the passage of an act for the
protection of the ballot box by registration OF the
names Of the legal voters Of the State, do not aP
pear to be remarkably brilliant just now; but why
| Republican Legislature should adjourn without
enactng a law so needful and so generally deman-
ded, is to your correspondent one OF tho hidden
mysteries.
Our new Governor is said to have granted one
pardon since be came into office, which bids fair to
turn out no pardon ut all. 1t seems that there is
| colOred man in the prison at Sing Sing who was
sent there for q long term some seven or eight
years ago, when only fourteen or hfteen
years Of age; aud that such representations had
been made to the Governor by the officers OF the
prison and other trustworthy parties cognizant OF
the facts in the case, as to induce the Executive
clemency. Governor King, as the story runs,
granted a pardon some weeks ago, which, by the
inadvertency of SONS one connected with the EX-
ecutive Department, was delivered 10 stranger
representing himself as the friend of the prisoner
and what is stranger stiff the pardon has not yet
been presented at Sing Sing, aud nothing has been
heard from it its pOssessor since Its delivery INTO
his hands. Meantime the colored gentleman
remains at bis old quarters in the State Prison,
where he ia said to conduct himself with the marked
prOpriety which characterizes the bearing OF hun.
ipgtOn, the distinguished representative from Wall
street. Who the stranger may be, and what strange
object he may possibly think to subserye BY his
strange conduct, is regarded by those IL the secret
very strange indeed though II has been suggested
that possibly after obtaining possession OF the par
don he had read Chief Justice Ianeye learned
opinion that negrOes have no rights that wnle i9iA'
bound to respect, and that therefore II woud DC
unconstitutional, and perhaps treasonaoie' ~ SCI
the negro at liberty. ,o--
ALBANY, Tuesday, March "a, 1917;
Mr.. George of Chautauque from the Assembly
Select Committee ON Capital Punishment, mas re-
ported bill, which has been read twice ana COM
mitted to tie Committee Of the Whole, providing
for the amendment Of the Revised Statutes on tnis
subject. The provisions are, that any person con,
victed of capital ofiense shall be sentenced 10 hard
labor in the State Prison until the day OF DIS exc
cution; and that no person shall be executed "thn
one year from the day OF his sentence nor
until the whole record Of his tri.i shau DE
certified by the Clerk of the Court to the Governor
DOR until the Executive shall issue bis warrant Oh
rected TO the Sheriff Of the County IN when tae
State Prison may be situated, commanding ths
Sheriff TO cause the sentence of death 10 De cacned
into execution The bill repeats all laws or parts OF
laws Inconsistent with the above ana taxes ellee,
Immediately TIE friends of this bill think !. VIII
become law, in which case it Will AZ least give
fair opportunity for scrutiny into cases whe1e 'uere
may be reasonable doubts to the gullt OF tue con-
Wet, or where disclosures subsequent 10 tiiai una!
develop, in some cases record, his eItire Inho
ceDce.
Whether anything useful will be accomplished 20 III
the way Of legislation on the subject OF the nun
Trsffc, it is hazardous TO guess just now. Escn
House has License bill and Prohotory Dill ne
fore it, and, with the conflicting opinions. winch
prevail among legislators, it is qate possible that
nothing viii be accomplished at thus session 70 slay