The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1859-02-08
[FROM OUR OWN RREspONDENZ1

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WASHINGTON, Feb 7, 1859.
The revelations unfolding before the SHERMAN
Investigating Committee, in relation to the admins
tration of the New York and Philadelphia Navy
Yards, exhibit humiiating spectacle Of official
peculation and corruption. 1t seems to be very
clear that the Government has been shamefully
robbed In coal and manufacturing contracts,
benefit of political favorites that situations have
been bought and sold in the Navy Yards that pub
lie property has been stolen and carried away with
impunty, and that both labor and material have
been doubled and trebed in cost to the Govern
ment.
In one instance it appears that considerable guam
tty of expensive materials stolen from the NAVY
Yard, and used in painting the residence of present
member of Congress from New York-even the la
Dor also being supplied from the Yard The system
of public robbery through contract awards would
seem to have been very simple and effective, and,
perhaps, furnishes clue to singular transactions
of the same general class sometimes given by the
Executive Departments here. 1t seems that one of
the Tammany Hall sachems has been remarkably
successful in making world of money by bidding
for contracts to supply paints to the New York
ard at rates considerably lower than the most
extensive dealers in those articles could purchase
them for His modus operandi was follows =
He would offer to supply certain articles at
prices far below the cost of production or
importation; and on Others name price considera-
bly, above the usual rates, taking care that the
average of the whole however, should be lower
than that of any other bid. But when the contract
comes to be fulfilled, we find that the master pain
ter wants of the articles offered at the ridcu
lousy low rates bid, while for those which the con-
tractor had put at a high figure the demands of
the service enormous. Of course the bidders
success in such results entirely from corrupt
colluslon with the master painter, who advises him
in advance what be shall want, and what he shall
not want-so that he can offer at ruinous rates
what he will never be called upon to furnish, and
''pile on the agony" on those articles of which
much will be required
The tariff question now divides Congress into
three parties, headed respectively by the Pennsyl-
wanna delegation, HUNTER, and Mr.. PHELPS, of
Mobile, who represents the views of the SECRETARY
OF the TREASURY. The first of these insists upon
general revision, and specific duties upon from the
second is for no revision whatever, and for a re-
morseless cutting down of expenses regardless of
its effect upon the public services and the third
favors moderate revision of the tariff for revenue
purposes, without specifics. Upon what common
basis these several factions are to unite, it is
dfhcult to perceive. Certainly the Caucus
OF SATURDAY night contributed nothing towards the
solution of the difficulty. The HUNTER party-who
by the way, evidently intend to make their leader
the "Retrenchment" candidate at Charleston for
the Presidential nomination-seem to have had
control OF the late Caucus where it was proposed,
among other things, to reduce expenditures by
the reputation of contracts already entered into
under authority o. law. The Caucus failed to en-
dorse this extraordinary proposition; nor am pre-
pared to believe that Mr.. HUNTER will approve the
attempt to achieve the questionable honors of repu
daton. That would be fatal error for any politi-
clan, and destroy the soundest reputation of any
man for craftsmanship Such policy would dis
grace those who support it, provoke the severest
condemnation from the masses of the neonle-;n
whom after all, the innate sense of Justice is never
silent-and in the end involve the Government in
heavier cost than the execution of the contracts
themselves. "Retrenchment" and can't Tariff"
would be sure to suffer severely by the reaction of
such a proposition. If seriously entertained.
Inc RAMSEY CoRMICK will probably
come before the House again within few DAYS
upon the report of the Judiciary Committee This
will be remembered as the case in which-after Con-
gress had twice declared damages to be due for the
violation OF contract, and has ordered them to be
assessed and paida subordinate officer in the Urea
sury Department refused to obey the law, because
forsooth, he disagrees with Congress, and thinks
that no damages have accrued! The case comes up
now, not upon the merits of the original claim
these have already been adjudicated. The issue
now Is simply one between Congress and subord-
nate officer OF the Government. 1t is the question
whether officers, whose sole duty it is to execute
law, have any revising or dispensing power by ex-
ercse of which they may nullfy the law This is pre-
csey what has been attempted in this case. If the
PRESIDENT vetoes act of Congress- the latter NAV
still pass it his head if they choose; but Conn.,
troler MEDILL in his stupidity assumes to exercise
veto power from which Congress has no appeal
1t is to be hoped that this sort of ExEcUrIvE multi
hcation is destined now to receive such rebuke as
will forbid its repetition. The evil has gradually
crept into the Executive Departments of late years.
and Presidents have failed to exercise their duty
by checking and by seeing that the laws are execu-
ted" as the Constitution directs Congress must do
80, or legislation is of no avail.
The New York State prisons are full to overflow
ing. On this fact the Albany Evening Journal
says:
statistics show the encouraging fact that. al
though crime increases, it does not increase so fast
as population. The proportion of rogues tc honest
men is less than it was a hundred years ago. A
hundred years hence there will doubtless be more
convicts in our State prisons than there are now,
but it will be because the State itself viii have
doubled in population, and the community, as a
whole, will be Of higher moral character, and, in
the aggregate, freer from vice."
IMMENSE FoEcE OF OCEAN WAvEs-Mr. Stephen
son, the builder of Eddystone lighthouse, found by
actual experiments that the force of the breakers
at the Bell Rock lighthouse, on the Atlantic side,
was equal to three tons to the square foot boul-
der presenting square yard of resistance to the
wave, would have the force supplied to it after a
long storm, of twenty-seven tons! Who can won-
der that heavy rocks are frequently removed, even
upon an inclined plane, by the simple yet terrible
power Of disturbed waters a'f
SENsIBLE.-Mr. W. C. Jewett, of California, in
a communication to the New York Post, expresses
the opinion that California if true to herself will
dissolve all connection with the Union" because
the Pacific Railroad bill has been defeated. When
would the road be laid if California were out o. the