New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1858-04-07
WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENCE.

n the House on the Sd OF March, tsoh 10 Iaclhta
" legislation upon the important subjects brought Il
d bis consideration the Secretary has embraced eacl
,e chapter Of the original in separate BILL said bill
IL numbering fourteen all Of which have been referred
4 to the Committee on Commerce, and ordered to b.
y printed making stout volume. The subjects treatet
I. Of are too numerous 10 permit specific mention in
4 letter Suffice it to say that the revenue laws hav
!. been codied In manner generally approved by thu
!. Committee on Commerce, from whom favorable re
\ port may be anticipated as the conclusion o
. the Kansas wrangle admits active and practica
/ legislation.
The beginning of this practical legislation appear
, to be not more than week of. The House yester
day decided to take the vote Lecompton on Thurs
day next. Stephens will call the previous question
and the great Issue will then and there be decided
one way or the other. At least. this is the under
standing with the Black Republicans, who will Of
course prove treacherous il they think anything to
be gained by it. The signs are more than ever favor
able for Lecompton. But what is Lecompton now,
with an amendment virtually Pugh's, bestridng 1t?
Having disposed Of Lecompton, the Senate got into
quarrel as to whether Minnesota was entitled to one
or three representatives and adjourned over till Mon
day to think about it. In the House, we are having
Kansas speeches at the rate Of dozen day. Yes
perfect tempest-fiEst by reading Wise out Of the
party and next by stating, upon the authority of an
Illinois member, that at the beginning OF the session
the Illinois delegation held caucus, and in that
caucus determined that Douglas must lose his seat in
the Senate, unless he opposed Lecompton. From
what have since heard, there can be no doubt of
the truth Of this statement, and beautiful develop
ment it is. Several verbal rows Of the most serious
character will yet grow out of it.
The rumor, mentioned in a former letter. with re-
gard to Calhoun's having been advised by Toombs,
Stephens, Cobb and other Southern men, to give the
certificates Of election to the Freesoiers in Kansas,
gains additional currency and authority from liver.
sons statement before the Senate some days ago.
He substantially asserted what have given you,
without calling names. have it from good author.
ity that the gentlemen above named will be terribly
handled before long. If they were instrumental in
deciding Calhoun, they deserve richly any punish.
ment that can be inflicted upon them. BY author
izing Calhoun 70 look into the question Of fraud,
they have undermined the ground upon which the
whole Southern argument was based In view Of
this trick Of Calhoun, aud Of the Green Pugh amend
ment to the Lecompton Constitution, / observe that
the Richmond Wing has risen in arms against the
Kansas bill, and advises the Wing and American
! still hold to the opinion, which truth compels me
to say is not shared by anybody else that Calhouns
Freesoil certificate letter will amount to nothing.
But, be that as it may, the odinm attaching to the
eminent Southern men who prompted him to write
the letter is in nothing essened 1t is said that the
motive actuating them and Calhoun was an under.
standing that Calhoun would thereby be returned to
the Senate. This is mere conjecture, however, and
the prospect adverse to the hopes and understand
ing of these gentlemen. Jim Lane and not Calhoun.
will be returned. The difference Is not material cou.
siderng the recent trick of the latter 1t is much to
be hoped that the mystery hanging over this matter
will be thoroughly dlssipated, and at an early day.
Toombs' bankrupt law Is altogether too palatabIe
to the of the North be relished and sustained
at the South. 1t carries the matter too far, embrac
ing all corporations and individuals within its benev-
olent proysi9ns besides sustaining the very question
able feature of voluntary bankruptcy. Caskie Of
Virginia. from the Judiciary Committee of the House
will, understand, introduced bill providing only for
banking corporations, compelling them to go into
liquidation within ten days after any failure to redeem
their specie obligations. | have no means of know
ing what will be the relative fate of these bills
The Deficiency bill. calling already for ten millions
and daily growing patiently awaits the termination
Of the Kansas debate. part of the Printing Def
cheney bill has been allowed and nothing more.
lverson is pressing Gen. Quitman's army bill in the
Senate but with little success Minnesota stands in
the way but its ultimate passage is confidently
looked for. The dsgruntled Administration swear
they will not avail themselves of the aid granted by
this bill they will have regular troops or none at
all and rather than not carry the day, they will
withdraw the troops from all the frontier and leave
the tens of thousands OF pioneers and emgrants with
their wives and children helpless prey to the saw
ages And all this because the Administration stands
in need OF the support to be derived from the be-
stowal of 1873 commissions.
After Kansas has received its quietns the South
will have enough to do to contend against the allied
forces Of the internal improvement system. mum
Der Of bills Of this description were carried some
weeks ago. OF the corruption praetioed in the name
of Internal improvement, time would fail me to tell
even the 1.-THE. have it in my power to give you a
few specimen items derived from statistical table
prepared for the Hon. Jno. fletcher at the Office of
Construction Of the Treasury Department, and pho.
tograph copies Of which have been freely distributed
by him among the members
At Ellsworth, Me-, the expenses Of collecting pest
age and customs exceeds the revenue derived from
both sources by 1852 A. Yet an appropriation of
SIS 500 has been made to build Custom House and
Post Office there. At Portsmouth, N. H., the ex-
penses exceed the revenue 1850 "a the appro.
priation for the Custom House is sll6 800. Az Os-
wego N. Y. the expenses are In excess Sc O20 10;
and the appropriation for Custom House SllS 500.
A still worse case is found at waldoboro, Me- The
customs there amount to 81 ,S6s OF to collect which
$7,547 IA are expended The postage amounts to
S5ss 81 the cost of its collection is siOs0 G9-the
excess Of expenses and above the revenue from
both sources being s607l AZ; and S73,Ols - have
been spent in building Custom-House Look also
at Sandusky, Ohio. Revenue s5sT 81 cost of col
lectng it Sls72 &C postage S. 722 81 cost of col
lection $3.50 20; excess Of expenditure over both
1852 AZ. For buildings constructed to contain the
accumulated waste, to carry it on, and keep it up,
s74,57O IS.
Then again we have an interesting series Of frauds
growing out of the system of building federal Court
Houses. For example:
AT Windsor, w. the postage amounts to sl,2l6.
Ga, the cost Of collecting which is S6s7 20. The
court sits there five days in year. Aid $4,000
have been expended In building Courthouse and
Post0nice. AT Rutland, VI. the postage is 1852.
81 collected at cost of sl0l7 81. Court sits four
~. DafFa. 49,