New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1858-04-12

Tie bill to increase the efficiency of the Engineers
Department by ing all power 10 the Stale En-
Oil eer was ordered to third reading.
In the course Of the debate Mr. LEWIS made weep
ing charges of corruption against the late State Eag-
neer certain resident Engineers and Others.
The bill to transfer the power OF making contracts
and the general powers of the Contracting Board %
the Canal Board was debatedtill the adjournment.
THE CASTLE GARDEN INVESTIGATION.
From Our own Correspondent
ALBANY, April 10, 1853.
The Castle Garden Investigating Committee
have not yet presented their report, but hope to do
so on Monday next The resolutions under which
they acted were sufficiently alarming TO attract
more attention on the part of the public than ls
generally bestowed upon such Investigations and
this attention was not diminished by the course
which the counsel to the Commissioners OF Emiera-
ton deemed it necessary to pursue in order to OBJ
tain full and fair investigation, and not sided
inquistiOn on the star.chamber principle, such as
he had good reason to expect from the ant,cedents
of the Chairman Ofthe Investigating Committee, VIZ:
his action in the Common Council OF New YORK,
his heading OF gang Of runners IN taking unlawful
possession of an engrant ship, and another gang III
tearing away the Castle Garden dock, for which he
had been declared trespasser The course adopted
to secure the Examination of Witnesses when
the Committee at first refused but finally assented
to- was considerably mlslnterpeted at the time,
and several ilnaured articles calculated to spread
wrong information and mislead the Judgment of the
public, found their way into The v. Y. Express aud
other papers.
| Mr.. Erastus Brooks, editor of The Express, was
| called as a witness, and testified that he knew
| nothing of any wrong III Castle Garden, and that
| the articles III bis paper were written on hearsay
| information. Mr.. Joseph Blunt the ~. b." Of
| TuE N Ha3 n ha hia inf
nation about Castle Garden from the newspapers
| and common rumor. Ludwig Semler, the supposed
| " l.. ,. OF TIE TRIBUNE, though he swore To tho
| utmost of his ability concerning the alleged abuses
in Castle Garden, confessed, on crOss-exaInlnatOn,
| that he knew nothing of bis own knowledge, aud
| testified only upon hearsay. Leopold LOrentz, tho
agent OF the Pennsylyan Central Railroad, sw0re
substantially that he was not allowed to make any
| money in Castle Garden. That is about all that
hos come out tending TO sustain the charges 10 the
resolutions OF invest gstioD. The investigation, how
| ever, carried much beyond tbe limits If these
resolutions, and, at the solicitation of the Commits
sioners Of Emigration, embraced the whole subject Of
the Organization If Castle Garden, and It's conduct as
an emlgrant landing depot II appears that the Conn
mssloDefs OF Emigration could not obtain the lee OF
Castle Garden without allow NJ the previous essee
COnklip, toreten certain ri yhtsnamely ~ let Offices
to railroads for the sale of tickets, under certain
stIctions imposed by the Commissioners. They were
unwilling thai Mr.. Conklin should reserve these rights
but were informed by his agent that, without such
reservation he would not consent to the use If Castle
Garden by them for any purpose whatever. They,
0eeniDg the benz fit ana protection which the posses
SION OF Castle Garden would enable them TO extend
TO the emigsDt, to be, as experience has proved,
great ard inently effective, ard believing that
Ger these trctlOns the rights which NJ. C)Ikln
insisted upon reserying could not in any degree n-
Juie the EN- %ants, reluctantly n nted t. low Mr..
COX In the res.rysd rights with, ut which they be-
came satisfied they could not Obt hn the depO, The
regulations which these restrictions enabea them 10
enforce II the depot have produced the anticipate
etultsi aud so Tar .om the reserved rights being &C
al prthable Lot person has nsde 4 cent out OF
Castle Garden; cntte contrary, the operation under
these reserved rights has been uDpfOducvc, ana the
road Which holes them an has me; the expenses of
The railroad business in the depot finds that these eI-
peIses exceed the commissions set apart TO defray
tn M by about $4,000. Mr.. TbuIow Weed, 20 whom
the whole matter was ntrusted by those Interested in
these Reserved rights, testified before the Committee
that he had arranged IN bis own mind the mode II
ustrioutlCn d anticipated advantages, and tnA ow-
Ing 10 the fact that the maximum commission reserved
ter The sale OF tickets unequal to meet the ordi
nary expenses OF operating the depot and that al the
| conflicting interests cOud not be hsr Ionz.d, the
| arrangement had never been commun cstsd 10 Al
| the parties and never perfected; that neither ne
Ior any other person, so far as he was aware, haf
ever realized farthiLg of profit from the concern-
In addition It appeared from his testlmonythat no as
sociaton organization under such reserved rights
| was ever formed. OF the COMMUNIST 0ners OF Emgra-
| tion, Meesrs. Guan {. VerpsDck, EuJsh +. Pardy,
| Ancr.w CarrigaD, John p. Cummings aud Willaln
Castle Garden and have shown their effect IN reduc-
ing the frauds formerly pracced on emigrs1s IN pro-
,ecliI them thus saving TIE fund Of the Commission
ard ena bling il TO work cut Of heavy deo,. Mr..
Kennedy the Sups rintsu dent and Mr. GaTSus, tho
late Chairman of the Castle arden Comm tee tesi-
fed TO the dets Of the business organization IN Cas'
| Garden, and showed how the experiment had oeen
| gradually developed under great difficulties, ana now
the expeence gained had been tur6ed 10 account Tor
the stl better protection of persons and properly.
The upsbot Of the whole investigation 4 Ihst 70
has reyesled an urususl Devotion on tls part
| OF the Commissioners Of migration To tneir
large trus and veIy doubtful olives on tae prl OIL
the originator aud leader in the investigation. Castle
Garden is shown TO be an extraordinarily oeDehcent
establishment afording perfect protection 10 the emil
grant Furnishing him comfortable temporary aeon"
modatioD e1teLdpg useful nfoi mstloD, and hatening
| him onward to bis no ne 10 the West Whatevef
wait Of harmony there msy have been Is reduced 10
small lis keripgs among railroads about conflicting IN
terests II is pretty generally believed that the In
ye.tcaiion would not have been asked for, had tbs
| Cbsiman of the investigating Committee dreamed
| that be could have been compelled TO nveslgate
fairly and fully Indeed, in the beginning he often de-
csrfd thst If counsel on behalf OF the Commissioners
of Enig sion allowed 10 be present aud cross
examine witnesses, he would ssk the House 70 dls-
charge the Committee.
understand that the Committee wlllreport suoan,
italy that the Commissioners OF Emigration 49, 80
entirely above suspicion OF wrong; that the act o ~
Legislature estab.i shing the present regaiSto
gard 10 emigrau ats q wise act, the 5stsm fes
Sc IN rho eyniyYgut sRd being lhspss'