Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1866-12-14
SummannrY Of News.

A Washington dispatch says the Post
master General has agreed upon a treaty
with Great Britain, whereby hostages to and
from that country are to be reduced to II cts,
to be prepaid. The postage is to be collected
and.kept by the government where the letter
is mailed and each side is to keep what it'll gets.
The arrangement will probably not take eff
feet under year.
Some weeks since Judge Magruder ofthe
Circuit Court of Anne Arundel county,
Nd, refused to receive the evidence of a
colored woman, and declared the Civil
Rights bill unconstitutional. On Saturday
he was taken before n U. S. Commissioner
on the charge of violating the Civil Rights
BILL and gave bonds to await the action of
the U. S. Jury in December. 1t is intend
ed to make the case n test one and carry il
before the U. S. Supreme Court.
The Albany Argus says survey ordered
by the State of New York with reference
to ship canal from the Hudson River to
Lake Champlain has shown the project to
be entirely practicable. If the calculations
now INDUCED shall prove to be correct, the
importance of this enterprise can scarcely
ne ONeTTuleu. IL Will open
ton for large class of vessels between the
Hudson river, Lake Champlain, the river
st. Lawrence and the great lakes.
The New York Times editorially says that
after all the dolorous speculations concern
ing an extensive failure of the cotton crop
of the South, good authority shows that it
has been very partial one after all. The
actual result of the crop has been about
100000 bales. The result is considered as
favorable as we had any right to expect Sc
soon after emancipation; and when taken in
connection with the undoubtedly unfavora-
BILE season, it may well be pronounced q
victory for the cause of free labor, for the
freedmen in demonstrating their industry
and for the planters of the South in demon
strating their energy and adaptabillty tC
circumstances.
A st. Louis dispatch says contracts to tho
amount of some forty million of dollars arc
soon to be let for constructing the Unior
Pacific Railway from the Omaha branch, it:
present terminus, to Salt Lake City; ant
also, to build a railroad bridge across the
Missouri river between Omaha and Council
Bluff
The two British provinces in the north
west-Vancouver' Island and British Co
lumbia-have been united into one, the frs
named giving up its capital, Victoria, ant
its officials to the other. This will save one
set of very cumbersome and expensive ma
chinery, and so lessen the taxes, which are
the chief cause of grievance to business mel
in both provinces. 1t may thus temporarily
weaken, but it will not stamp out, the grow
ing cause of annexation to the United State
away up there.
Smuggling is greatly on the increase along
the border of New York and the New Eng
land States. 1t is alleged that combina
ton has been entered into by the leadin:
smugglers, which has at its command stron!
political influence, for the purpose of effect
ing the removal of such officers as hav
shown energy and ability in frustrating thei
schemes, and who were not to be bribed int
indifference, and of filling their places wit
smugglers or men interested in the bust
ness.
The community of Aurora, Illinois, is 40
itated over singular case of wholesal
whipping in one of the public schools of tn
town. AT recess the scholars violated
rule by stepping across an imaginary line i
the school-house grounds, to see passin
procession. The teachers witnessed the o.
Tense from the windows, and when the schoC
reassembled, the pupils, male and female, {
all ages, were all flogged, the assistants il
flicting the punishment under the superb
tendence of the principal.