The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1860-07-17

| Last week eminently what is called "sensa
| ton week" in New ork. The hanging of Hicks
| the pirate the departure-not the hanging-of the
Rev. DR.. Cheever, and the arrival of Heenan: the
| visit of the Chicago Zouaves, and the continued
exhibition of the Great Eastern-all together fur
nished as much of novelty and variety as is com
monty added, in one week. to the chronic excite
ments of Manhattan. The weather. on the whole.
was admirably suited for "amusements, by land
and water, pleasant breeze blowing nearly all
the while, and the nights being especially fresh and
beautiful.
ltstrikes me, however, that New York is hardly
as attractive, out of doors, as usual The streets
seem to want paving very bady-some parts of
Broadway quite much as the less freauented
highways. Broadway itself is more than ordinarily
obstructed by the materials from houses which have
been torn down, to make place for new ones, and
every wnere, as one passes through the minor
thoroughfares, In omnibus or railway car there is
oliactory demonstration of a very FREEDOM inant
unceanness. The truth is, that the municipal au-
thorlties OF the great city have entirely too much
to do with the affairs of the nation, be able to
turn their attention to scayenging or paving
corporation which dsburses about ten millions of
dollars per annum, and whose Mayor has so larpe
part in the making of Presidents, and is called
ellis Exceency" by Prime Ministers, can hardly
be expected to cramp its genius over a flag-stone
or a mud hole.
There is another reason, too-abundantly salts
factory for the inattention of the municipal au-
thorltIes to such minor matters mere duty,
do not remember the precise number of years that
| are said to be necessary, for man who goes into
the common council shoulder hitter and a pau
per, to come out a gentleman and man of fortune
1t takes but little while, however, for the process
to be most satisfactorily and thoroughly performed
and such being the case, it is quite obvious that
not much time nor money can be wasted BY the
lucky repositories of public confidence upon any,
thing or any body but themselves. The recent
reception and entertainment of the Japanese Am
passadors here furnishes an excellent illustration
of the way things 90
thirty thousand dollars were appropriated by
the Councils to meet the expenses of the occasion.
large enough amount, one would suppose, to
supply the wants of all the nobility and gentry of
Japan, during the brief fortnight which the Am
bassadors passed at the Metropolitan And vet
learn, from source which | rely on, that bills to
more tnan treble the amount appropriated have
already made their appearance, and that still more
Will have to be provided for. The appropriation
Dy congress, you may remember, was only fifty
thousand dollars; and thus his Excellency, Mayor
stump speeches as his ExcelIency, Mr.. Buchanan
but to spend on the guests of the nation twice as
much money.
By the way, the minds of the respectable and
selt-respecting citizens of the Metropolis are at
this moment sorely exercised, as it appears, con-
corning the reception of the Prince OF Wales
| The vulgar and gross brutality of the Ball given
| the Japanese, seems to have made it the very
eliminating point of adermanic blackGuardism
and decent people shocked at the idea of dis
| paraging the country and themselves by trusting
| to the same hands the welcome of the Young Heir
| apparent. An Entertainment" under such ans
plces, would be nothing more or less than dirty
and gigantic job for the profit of low politicians
and municipal under-trappers and SPECTATORS
| The japanese Ball, l told, was perfect
saturnalia of DULLES, rowdies, rum-sellers, rum
| drinkers, councilmen and ''females" to suit The
| excuses committed were almost incredible in a
civilized community and nothing but a strong DO.
| lice escort protected the unhappy japanese from
gross personal indignity the floor of the ball
room. Still, the gentlemen who get up such orgies
and indulge in them the representatives of the
| people, and if they to appropriate the money
which is to pay for the young Princes reception
twlll be very hard work to keep their fingers out
OF the pie. Since the memorable feast at the City
Hall, where they entertained the Turkish Admiral
and his fellow Mahommedans with whiskey and ham
sandwiches, they have had pride in administering
the public hospitality and pleasure in enjoying it
themselves, which render them rather difficult to
manage, when anything is on hand that may be
converted to the purposes of eating, drinking or
| stealing.
You will ask-naturally enough--how these
things can be, and the intelligent mass of tax
payers and good citizens permit them to continue.
| The answer is simple one, which the experience
| OF Baltimore may very we'll supply. So long
decent people stay at home-or at their places of
business-dedcated, exclusively, to domestic en-
| Joyment or their private affairs, resiguing the
nomination and election of municipal officers to the
| frequenters of pot-houses and the kindred politi
| clans who alone pay attention to such matters
just so long may we expect the evils of municipal
corruption, and misgovernment to go on in degra-
cation and development. Public attention
everywhere throughout the country, is, day
by day, more closely drawn to the defects
OF our municipal systems in the larger
cities, and men are beginning to ask themselves
| with earnestness, whether it is not better for
them to fight the wolves at their own doors, thar
to waste their time with the far off bowling of what
| possibly, may be no wolves at all. Until they an
swer Sc plain question, as becomes sensible peo
so gross and palpable, and yet seem to have sort
OF chartered sanctity. For one, cannot help think
| ing that the log-rolling of our City Councils
| Is matter of more moment to us, at home, than
all the railsplitting of "honest Abe'-and that the
qualhcations of the gentleman who is to step into
the constitutional sphere of Mr. Swami, at
sovereignty in Kansas, or Congressional interven-
ton in Washington Territory. X