Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1871-12-13

Sun, says :-"Should the Pennsylvania Cen
| trail Company accept the charter ri the Rich
lnoud and Washington Railroad Company, it
will be bound to guarantee $l5,OU0 per mile
for the superstructure of the Piedmont aud
Potomac road, if the latter be constructed
within five years. But the Pennsylvania Cen
trail Company have not accepted the Richmond
and Washington charter That company has
railroad charter, and Is nov building its road
from Washington to Richmond under that
charter, which will enable them to reach Fred
cricksburg without lncurring additional oblira-
ton. Whether that company will incur tho
obligation TO aid the Piedmont road will de-
pend upon the issue of negotiations with the.
| Richmond Fredericksburg and Potomac Cou
pany, which owns the line from FrelerckS-
burg to Richmond Should this negotiation
result tavorably, the Pennsylvania company
will not need the Richmond and Washington
charter, and Of course will make guarantee
for the Piedmont road otherwise that com
pany will be compelled to accept that charter
iu order to get from Fredericksburg to Rich
mond, and in that case the superstructure of
'he Piedmont road ls assured if the road bed
be made within five years.
GRAND DUKE ALEXIS. PAT the banquet to
the Grand Duke Alexis at Boston, Mr. Win
throp, at the conclusion of some remarks Of
welcome. proposed as toast, THE health of
! His Hghness the Grand Duke Alexis. !"
When the toast had been drank and the cheer
ing subsidized the Duke rose. and addressed
the company as follows;
Gentlcn,c,t-l thank you for the very kind
manner in which you have drank my health. [
feel happy to be in the old city Of Boston, the
cradle of the American nation Applause.
The child or the infant which lay in the cradle
has very soon, in j very short time. become
the giant which all the nations are regarding.
and that every nation desires to have for It's
friend. Applause. The presence of these
iustrious men. whose words nal e the best
and most glorious pages of American litera
ture, shows that the mind of the giant is
here Gentlemeu,a long cheer for the prosper
ity Of Boston.
And the Duke lea off with naive cheer in
which the company again joined heartily.
Mrs MYRA CLARK GAINES is a lady whose
name has been identified for twenty years with
a series of important and intcrminable law suits
At various times these have been decided in
her favor. and it has latterly been supposed
by the public that she had fully established her
rights to immense property in New Orleans
which she claimed under supposed will OF her
father, Mr. Daniel Clark. But now comes a
Judge of Il Louisiana Court and decides that
Mrs Gaines is the illegtimate daughter of
Daniel Clark. and that hence the will which lie
was supposed to have made, but which no one
ever found, could not have left her anything.
Mrs. Gaines is therefore no longer the richest
woman in America, but is furnished with All
undesirable parcntage, instead Of a prnce!y pa
trmony. The uncertainty Of the law has never
j beer more fully illustrated than by this case.
aud it is entirely probable that it will yet lead
to still further unexpected and conflicting re-
suits. Whether Mrs Gaines ultmate Y gains
her fortune or loses her identity, it Is impo<S-
BILE to predict.
WASHINGTON ITEMS. SIN the Criminal Court
+ Yesterday, Norman Ward, charged with killing
John Allen, colored man, by knocking him
, from canal boat into the canal, where he Was
drowned, on the Goth of August last. was
brought up for trial. The prosecution failed to
prove the fact Of the homicide, and the jury
returne, verdict of acquittal without leaving
the box.
Seth Johnston, the dcfaulting treasury clerk,
was re-remanded to Jail in default of bail.
The commission appointed to receive and
audit claims against the old Corporations OF the
District have concluded their second session tor
the reception of such claims, and will now pro-
coed to the examination aud settlement Of the
same. Claims amounting to about one hun
. dred aud fifty thousand dollars have been re-
ceived in addition to those reported upon to
{ the Legislature by the commission two or three
weeks since.
DEATH FROM BLOWING DowN 4 LAMP
CHIMNEY. The Luzerne Union records anoth-
er terrible accident resulting from the too COM
mon practice of blowing down lamp chimney
to extinguish the light. The casualty occurred
in Cleveland, Pa, few nights since. Mrs.
Elizabeth Stark disrobcd to retire about ten
clock She attempted to extineulsh her coal
oil lamp, in very common manner by blowing
down the chimney The lamp exploded,
throwing over her the blazing liquid, and in
an instant she was enveloped in flames and was
terribly burned There seems to be no cnd to
accidents resulting from the careless use OF ker-
osene and people cannot be too careful how
they manage and handle their lighted lamps.
TIE GEORGIA LEGISLATURE. Another c0l-
fict has arisen between acting Governor Conlcy
and the Legislature of Georgia. The constltn-
tional limitation of the session to forty days Is
} the cause On Sunday night the time cxplr
ed but as the constitution gives the Leglsla-
ture the power to extend the session BY two
thirds vote, resolution was passed extending
it to Saturday evening next. Conley refused
10 approve the resolution, and ordered the trea-
surer not to pay the members. but the latter
have affirmed their right to continue the SEES
sion, and bid defiance to the Governor.
Proposed CoNsoLIDATIoN.-.An adjourned
meeting Of the York River railroad stockhol
ders was held in Richmond Va, on the lth
inst. A majority Of the stock was found 10 be
unreprcsented, and call was issued tor anoth-
er meeting On the third Thursday in January
next After the adjournment, a committee
was appointed to confer with the Chesapeake
and Ohio Railroad Company, and report at the
January meeting as to the expediency, and
practcability of consolidation with it OF the
York River Railroad Company.
A RIVAL TO THE G. & 0. r. R.-The Ken
lucky and Great Eastern is pushing forward
with great activity. 1t has recently come into