New-York daily tribune., 1858-11-10
FROM PHILADELPHIA.

POLITICAL syMPToMs-DECIsION OF THE ST.
pRrME COuRT-GIvING AWAY AN ESTATE
BUSINESS AND THE ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS TO
RoME-THE NAVY YARD.
From Our Own Correspondent.
PHILADELPHIA, Nov. g. lSos.
Congress and the Cabinet are only two thermom-
eters hung up in the Capitol, to show the tempera'
ture of the National morals. 1t must strike
straDrer-it ought to strike even us-as little
odd that we should have for President during five
sixths of the time, either STAKEHOLDER or the tool
of stakeholder. But have not nearly ali our pull
pits and our presses been in favor of Slavery, until
we were in danger Of becoming nation OF dough-
faces, The political hucksters who so debauched
ia have acted on a maxim invented by tbemselves-
to love your party better than your country, and
Yourself better than your party. Too many of the
men who love justice and do the right have been
lost in the mob of vulgar politicians and party edi
TORS whose type is the bar-room OF rum hole,
foul and offensive stained with tobacco, and full OF
drunken, noisy, quarrelsome rowdies, fresh IRON
milling match in Canada or Il nomination at Tam
many. A celebrated European dipomatist once
said that he always told lie when 1t would serve
his speca turn 1t is true the devil got him at last
but he seemed born for party politician In Amer
lea. He would have had large party here. AS
il is he made great many converts among us De
fore he died, and left a numerous Kindred ousy III
editing Democratic papers, writing addresses 10
the people and passing resolutions. Everybody
knows the character of the American Government
for some years past As the people have been, so
haye been the rulers. The former have been
fairly represented. But the people alter their
convictions, 80 will they change tteir rulers. The
brightest eyes are sometimes cOuded by dust, but
they become cleared in the end. The times are
symptomatic Of comprehensive regeneration.
The horrible defeat We suffered in lc56 has turned
out to be no victory for our opponents. They have
manifesty OvershOt the mark, and common pru..
dence on our part during the next two years, VIII
achieve for us an emancipation not hampered by
compromise of the smallest kind. The thermom-
eters which hang up in the Capitol already indicate
the mercury as rising from the moral zero to which
il has so long been sunk.
1t is now announced that the Supreme Court
have unanimously affirmed the cOnstitutionaty OF
the sale of the canals to the Sunbury and Erle kal
road Thus, the impudent attempt of the Democ-
racy to hold to this ample fund for electloneer-
ing purposes has been defeated The loss OF this
great engine of corruption Will tell heavily In all fu-
ture contests in this State 1t has been the agency
by which armies Of voters have been fed, MAN.
tanned and drilled iOr the perpetuation of Demo
cratic ascendancy. They have been marched To
the polls in large companies led on by ofhcehoders
and compelled to vote the oficehoders' ticket No
matter whether qualified AS voters or not the poll
inc of their ballots went on regularly. All these
executive trained bands viii now be broken up.
The loss Of this heavy support will be plainly per-
ceptible hereafter and the right will henceforth
prevail where the wrong only was doggedly promi-
nent. ,
This State exacts tax of per cent on all prop
erty bequeathed to or inherited by parties not IN
the direct line Of descent. Children or grandchlld-
rem inherit without being taxed, but all Others,
brothers, sisters, nephews, nleces, &c, are COM
PEELED TO pay the tax. This law was enacted many
| years ago, when the State WAS issuing mil
| lions of bonds to pay for her disastrous rail-
| roads and canals. Its object was to pro-
vide fund wherewith to pay the interest,
and it produces an average sum of 500, 600 per
annum. Numerous expedlents have been devised
| to eyade the payment of tax which all legatees
| consider EXTREMITY unjust The most common
mode of avoiding il is 10 give away your estate dur
ing your life time. This efectualy defeats the law,
and saves all charges for settling your estate. In
stances of this kind are constantly occurring Last
month childless widOwer, reputed TO be worth
| $500, ,OOO perceiving his end drawing nigh, dis
| tributed his whole estate as he believed among
his ucphews and nieces. This was done only two
days before his death; but SO much work was
crowded into the last moments of his life, that an
item of 81 900 was overlooked, to distribute which
| an administrator must be appointed. The argu-
ment against this collateral Inheritance tax is that
| if the State can lawfully exact ) per cent, it can
with equal justice demand 50. As the sum it
Yields to the treasury shows no increase proper
tional 70 the increase of population and wealth the
presumption is that other forms Of evasion are ex-
tensyely resorted to throughout the State. Odious
"a the tax notoriously is, there 10 no hope for its
,broustion until our mOnstrOus canal debt is paid
of, an event which no living man can hope to see.
A settled gloom depresses many branches of do
mestc industry in this great manufacturing center
The recent show of the Franklin Institute was not
so animated ss in former times. 1t was at no
time SO inconveniently crowded with visitors as
in better days, when the wholesome stimulus of
sctVe employment was present IN the workshops
and factories ol tho city. Though ihr sh'" oil