Daily Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1865-1869, 1866-01-17
ORE pHlLApELpHIA LETTER.
The Need for Southern Trade-The Murder OF Miss
Wau-ConVersaiion with the Misunderstanding
-RaiIroad LeglSlation.
PuLApELPn1A, January IA, 1866.

As have predicted IN my iOIhie' Ie'VeIsi tue uay
papers here find it an actual necessity to gather the
southern trade under their wing, or see nothing in
the future but ruin the commercial interests of the
CITY. You viii recollect that upon three separate
occasions we have endeavored 10 establish line Of
European steamships and upon three separate occa-
sions we have ignominOusly failed. We have at last
discovered that the sine qua non of all our mercan-
tile success rests solely with the people of the South
lust "A YOU decide so shall our lots he cast Behold
the spectacle! In the halls Of Congress methinks
can See all your Representatives and Senators with
the olive branch of peace prominent upon Their per-
sons willing to bury the atchet ana 10 let all Things
! from now henceforth and forever be upon an ami
cable and equitable footing. Butwhhe they are thus
willing another class from the State OF Pennsylvania
! stand opposed to their admission ana are ready u
uroceed 10 the lirest and most ultra measure TO pre-
vent Won in the enjoyment of your rights and plvi
leqes under the government. Now, the constituents
! of these demagogues do not wish You to consider
! this an unkndness-nO, not at all. lou cannon
/ come in gentlemen" say they, but without your
Seinye must lose all our commercial prosperity and
become third-rate city," Here are two horns of the
| dilemma and would not aflront the intelligence OF
the people of the South by telling them which of the
| horns TO choose. The way is too plain. As this
steamship business must interest the thousands OF
your readers Icopy the leader from the Inquirer OF
| Friday last 50 that you can see exactly how ouI
city stands. The Inquirer says:
In proof OF the necessity of the proposed lines OF
steamships from Philadelphia to Southern ports, il
has been shown that they required as feeders to
our European commerce. There are facts which
! NAV make this palmer which have recently come TO
| our knowledge. The Liverpool line now running
from this city takes but part of It's cargo hence and
invariably stops at New York or Boston to complete
it, Grain for instance. Is offered here III large guam
| titles. but a portion only Is accepted.
All this is well known, but the reasons given by
the managers of the Liverpool line ought to be les
son to the business community. They cannot OBJ
tain here the feights that are most prolitab!e gram
| is too heavy to make 4 full cargo; ana cotton the
staple they most desire, is not to he had. These gen
| tlemen have expressed Their willingness 10 pay Ihe
freight on cotton from the South 10 ih'iadcIpnla, III
order TO transport il TO England but after all 1t IS
| ia New York that their steamers mus. go. We re-
na,t it-Philldelphia steamers must depend on New
York because this city has not the commerce to
tain them.
Merchants engaged in European commerce, and
having no direct interest in trade with the South
ern States NAV see from these facts and their sug-
gcstions that an indirect interest may sometimes he
Us important. Every man who has business rola-
tons with Europe will profit by the preservation
and increase of our trade with the South The LV-
crpool line 50 long desired and so advantageous TO
the city will fail sooner or later ii 1t Is not sus-
tanned bv commerce with the cotton growing States.
Many of our leading branches OF manufacture
export little or nothing 10 England, for the reason
that England makes the same articles rs chcaply
and as well. II we would maintain regular steam
communication with Liverpool, We must export
what Liverpool wants. We must have steam lines
to the principal Southern ports and no longer let
New York, Baltimore and Boston muaopoli2e The
cotton trade of the North.
This is but one argument of many TO show that
the lines now proposed by our leading merchants are
indispensable to Philadelphia. 1t is, however an H.
lu,ratiOn of the truth that branch OF business Is
exempt from injury Ey the want OF them; that none
will fail to profit by their establishment
Then the paper proceeds to show that the subscrp-
ton list has largely increased within the past week,
which means that live thousand dollars additional
have been added to the amount, which before had
capitalized TO the tune OF eighty thousand dollars or
in other words about enough to purchase one
tenth of a first class steamship. You need not be
alarmed fyour pretty seycu-hilled city Supasses in
ten years in population this city as it does now
| in its commercial prosperity. Your merchants and
Southern dealers generally, can purchase from five
to twenty per cent cheaper in New 1OrE than they
can here, no matter II u dozen steamship lines are
projected and successfully worked.
The recent murder of Miss Watt in the suburbs OF
tin is city, is still engrOSSing pulic attention. The
facts as they are ELECTED arc most !cartrond"s.
The prisoner who has fully confessed his crime Is a
man Of thirty years of age, and has no general trade
or business About two years since, he married a
Miss Annie Holden of the twentythird ward in this
city, who is very respectfully connected. 1t Is now
/ understood that the family of the lady prudently
and strenuously disapproved of the marriage; but
Berger had succeeded in running the girl, she was
| forced to marry him. On Tuesday last. with num-
! Der of gentlemen viewed the remains OF the muir
! lrrcd woman and also had an interview with the
prisoner. Miss Watt the victim was lady of sixty
! Years and her hair is largely sprinElcd with gray
/ The features CIlm though upon the lnding oil
the corpse, and before the muscles OF the face had
taken the form OF death. they were distorted anu
much disiigulcd. When saw her she lay upon the
cooling board with a thin, white mantle thrown
| over her from the lower portion OF which her ieei
urotruded. The throat was cut from ear to ear the
razor having first severed the jugular vein' and then
made CHASTITY incisIOn IN the wnd-pipe, WhIci
was severed, with the exception OF Il small, thread
| like substance that held it together. The general
appearance Of the deceased did not Indicate that she
] had struggled with the murderer; but from all ind
cations, the blow which she received upon the rSi
temple must have feed and rendered her insensiblc
| There were no other marks whatever upon the body
aud no indications that any other attempts had been
made upon her person.
The prisoner IS named Christopher Berger, (g soft
and give You the result OF a few moments CONVEX
SatiOn with him:
''What made You commit this act p
! q. do not know supposed she had 4 thousand
dollars or so in her wardrobe, and my. family were
suffering for bread, aud they must live.
! her down ~
~ did not cut her throat; was crazy after en-
| tered the house; remember knocking her down
| but nothing more; somebody else stabbed her.
| q" Where did you get the razorF
" At my fathers house
81 your wife wasIn destituton, why did you moi
have her taken care OF by the oycrseers OF the
| poorl'
Don't ask me, sir, for don't know
! Berger seems affected when he is spoken to upon
the subject and to spare his feelings desls!ed from
questioning him further. His poor young wife
| upon whose life this blow falls with crushing
| weight, will hardly live through the week, as she
has been delirous, with a few hours exception eve
since the affair occurred. Persons who are well nc
uuaintcd with the prisoner and his wife, say that h
was excessively cruel to her, and did not gve'her
any article OF wearing apparel in the entire two
! years of their marriage, with the exception oil twC
pairs of Shoes Berger will be tried at the present
term of the Quarter Sessions Court, and justice II
| his case will be very speedy.
It's estimated that there were forty thousand PEG
pie on skates Thursday aud Friday of last week, The
greatest delegation of steCled feet presented by
| Philadelphia to 4 glib pavement. The weather ha
moderated to such an extent that skating IS rulneC
for the present.
There will he an effort made during the present
Legislature of this state to compel all railroad com
panes TO pay fine OF one thousand dollars for ever!
limb lost by traveller, and ten thousand dollars To-
every life. do not think the projectors of this bill
will be able to carry it through both Houses and al
secure the signature Of Governor Curtin. The hi!
is believed 10 be fathcred by Senator Ridgway frOH
this city, who, twill be remembered by your reader
in Philadelphia, lost about twenty thousand dollar
in one hour by the depreciation of Reading railroad
stock. II is believed, therefore, that the provision
OF this bill, aud the general tenure, were ncubated
spite ana nallgnlty, ana VIII hardly meet lle view
of the more moderate men in our legislative halls -
There should be 4 law, without question: reguIath;
the matter of accidental injuries, which are ol ever
day occurrence in this State. More care would
| taken if q corporation lost one hundred thouSan'
| dollars every time car ran OIL the track To th
woundng and killing of = score of valuable lives
| Ii would be well, indeed if the NllrOad companies
as a whole could be under general law passed b.
the national Congress- that all State regulations
which ut best would he conflicting, would be en-
crossed in the general laws of the country. Obvi
ousv it is one which the several States could not eX
ecute even if they were not, as before stated, con
trolled by the railroad companies. These united b.
mutual arrangement for the purpose, form confirm
Gus lines, connecting together the most remote part
Of our extended domain. The management Of eac
bv the several States would be different. In some
might be judicOus, in Others ignorant and foolish
and in Others rs at present there might be, none Il
all The traveller. therefore. might be safe tO-da
and unsafe tomorrow, or safe in the morning m
unsafe in the afternoon. As the railroads constitut
4 great whole used by the whole people, uniton
good management is the thing needed-saiety every
where The railroad companies receive their char
ters from the States through which they pass. Hth
erto they have been governed if ut all, by the law
of those States Are they, therefore, State insttu
tons and local interests; or, taken as whole, d
they not form national INTEREST," If so, they com
! within the scope of national power. ,-
The selling of colorel people i'll lelaware for
| torn, Of wears punishment for crime, the Wi