New-York tribune., 1871-04-24
4 WINTERS WORK.

ALBANY, Apnl 23.-Ihe Legislature WHICH
took Its leave Of Albany yesterday, while t has unis
takaby left Its mark the citizens and taxpayers Of
New York City, has passed not a solitary measure Of
general Importance 10 the people of the State. There
has been the usual nterminable series Of local and pri
vate bills OF every varety-gas company bills savings
bank bills, bridge Bills water bills cemetery bills, claim
Bills swingbridgc bills, and In short bills for every
conceivable petty purpose. But when search s made
for comprehensive measures, affecting the interests OF
the people of the State al large II except the annual
| appropriation bills, we find absolutely nothing.
Unsuccessful attempts have been made TO modify the
! usury laws; to exempt bonds and mortgages on real
estate from taxaton to authorize aliens to acquire hold
and dispose Of real and personal property the same as
native born raturazcd citizens to make 1t compul-
sorry with parents and guardians TO send their children
to school, TO restrict the extotons Of railroad corpora
TONS particularly In tho matter Of local freight charges,
and to regulate the sale OF patent medicines. But
nothing has resulted Most of the proposed measures
not debated at ALL and OF them received the
attention which their importance deserved.
Excluding the legislation relating TO NewYork City,
perhaps the most important law OF the session is that
aboshing the Office OF Superintendent OF Canal Repairs,
and giving increased powers to the Canal Commission
err. The Superintendent system has worked so badly
that any change seems to be for the better
A reward of $4,000 has been offered by the Legsa-
ture for soo improved OF towing canalboats, by
which greater speed than the present may be
obtained The difficulty OF getting up speed of even
three miles hour is said by practical men to be almost
nsuporable. The canal il too shallow and TOO narrow
! for the large boats used. The loats, which are
simply long boxes, when loaded within an inch or
two OF the bottom Of the canal and the friction andIe-
| eistance thereby created are enormous.
As 10 the financial condition OF the canals, exact fig
urcs cannot be sven but it is a well known fact that at
the present low rates Of tolls The receipts OF 1870 (caen-
dar year, barely sufficient to meet the States
expenditures for repairs and other purposes necessary
10 the operation OF the canals The fiscal year. for which
the accounts made in the annual reports, runs
from Oct J. 1862 TO sept co. 1870, and embraces period
Of high tolls from oct. 10 The close OF navigation In
1867 Even with this productive interval, profit Of only
| $500 eco can be figured out
Now the Constitution Of the State of NewYork (Art.
H., Sec. % expressly requires that $l50e0oo he set
apart in year from the Canal revenues as sinking
fund toward the extinction OF the Canal and General
Fund debts; and, further art VII, sec y, thlt M The
sinking funds either OF them provided In this article
shall prove Insufficient to enable the state on the credit
OF funds u procure the means 10 satisfy the claims
of the creditors OF the State they become payable the
Legsaturc shall 5y equitable tqres 80 Increase tho
revenues OF tho said funds as to make them respectively
sufficient perfectly to preserve the public faith
II the Controller should see lit not TO
violate the pain letter Of the Constitution, the
State tax this year viii bo the heaviest ever levied not
whstandng al assertions TO the contrary OF TaiGnany
politicians in the Legaature and ont Of it, As matter
of fact the Controller in hs report, his
disregard OF the above provisions Of the Constitution
The amount paid in o. surplus Canal revenues was only
s5C9o74 6l, which point the surplus was exhasted
hut Notwithstanding this deficiency OF contribution, no
frg viii necessary under Sections OF Article VII as
tie Sinking Fnnd IL ann pie % meet all demands cr SeceGt
geaTS; aud long before s exhaustion Is NeieNe' that
the contributions nom surplus revenues uGder section 2
will provide for both principal and INTEREST,"" te sue't
OF canal Management. IS too large one 10 be H. %HhSei
here Suffice 1t 10 say that t2259C0 Of canal debt as
iu Iy-q and In
the Sinking Fand contains but 2li96j; that the annual
interest payable ont OF the canal revenues s SG0 eur
renew; that the Sinking Fdnl Is less now than was
year ago. last years contribution being insufficient 90
pay interests that the oaras which earned In 1853 $685.
77s clear OF expCnses fell or owing to reduction OK
tolls and reckless extravaganza, to So9C5 IN 1876 and
viii ths wear c,car-nothtng When tie Controller who
ia well aware Of these melancholy facts, says that the
Sinking Fund is oHble 10 met al de't"ds IoF Ssrerdl
wears there IS for only opinion OF him. lie
ought TO be eupoyed in C0nnollys Office, whence Con
troller's reports are not iSsucd.
The most noteworthy achievements OF this Leg1slae
after the extensive operations Of Boss Tweed have been
the various successful and unsuccessful strikes (srlke
being the legislative synonym for an attempt W levy
black rndiD. Every moneyedn interest has been struck
or AZ least struck at" from the great railroads the ca
nal contractors savings banks and insurance compa
nes down to the patent medicine men apd aportlOhsts
The latter as well as the Erie Railroad robbers have
been severe sufferers. However, they succeeded In
smothering Senator Mike Norons bill as eiiecuaiy ASH
1t had been born in one OF their own dens'
and actually got n law passed IN thelr III
terest egalizng contracts for advertising IN inc
Sunday newspapers! The Railroad Committee, KING
of all striking committees the crocodile is supreme
along the muddy Nie set out ercely on an inyestga-
,ion of the New Haburgh disaster, but finished up with
report n which they said that they eoud not agree
and had nothing to present except Few items Ior tHe
supply bill amounting to 5000 or so, Tor maps Doard
hills &c The Railroad Committee opened the oysters
which fell TO their SHARE very skfully At all events,
nothing is left to public but shells The Assembly III
anrance Committee though decidedly on the striking
trail have Jared but poorly They have mflcted
no damages and received no encouragement ana tue
whole crowd are hungry and disgusted seVera prouuc
five strikes have been put up on MI Tweed hot"l
standing the well known and polite generosity Oh tnae
modern Cresus. Senator Graham isreported 70 Dee
successful It's reported that longer ago than last
wondov the honorable Assembyman from Greene
conn,v and two compatrots absened themselves from
tho Assembly and were not brought back into the la
MANY fold until they had received so'Vo per heau
"a AN acknowledgment OF theu hue"y. h'
Tweed refused to take MS iooe oh .no
sk Il Tammany unless he should be permi'Ieu 10 set
on tbs outlet of the whitehall and Plattspulsh h
norht,ess he made bad bargain. The horde oi po!'
,os, the Coptol in the hope OF finding some
- ., orrv off are a fit type OF the Democratic major
49, rharo are honest boys among them, Dul tney aie
exceedingly hard to find. II MI Iweed couiu p' pe
go ,e yrito his autobiography, America would have
nook to which the rest OF the world could no. ieau,
hrnsh parallel Until that time sV'' 'A ~
| Albany cannot be rightly appreeia'eu'
Further investigation in the office OF the secr''ny ar s Ts
state shows that the table OF bonds ,,,,s nm
70 be issued for Tammany purposes iais up
1.saI, million short OF the true amount. Some
"a.a n,s y had been increased by Mr. Tweeds com
OF .he a. o,ber cases bills appropriating moneys
ont Of the the taxes had been changed SO as
20 o,ain the sums needed by the sale OF ponds' Inca
| 10 OBTAIN lho '" itv for details Of