Wilmington daily commercial., 1872-07-20
PHILADELPHIA.
OUR sATURDA LETTER.

We are in the midmost part of midsummer
and matters OF note reach the surface at long
| intervals. Men move slowly in this weather, aud
think slowly do everything SLOWLY except drink,
in which respect they are uncommouly active
We're it not the exceptional year in which an
altogether exceptional Presidential canvass is
| being urged, the time would be almost devoid of
incident. 1t is too hot, even for the politicians.
| Those individuals have been sometimes demon
mated "red hot, " but Old Sol quenohes even
their fiery dispositions. There have been no
meetings held and there are mono announced
/ What would be the use of holding them when
nobody would attend The managers are busy
| arranging plans to be carried out when the
| weather moderates somewhat, and in the meal
time everybody fights the great battle in private,
the principal held OF contest being doors cps and
/ backyards after tea. Of the weather itselfI
| don't know that | can say anything severer of ii
| than have said already IL is altogether un
| worthy Of a free country. Your young lady
| readers (whom, i am given to understand, are
| the only people who read poetry now-a-days) will
| remember the IIAureate's y verses of 'MarIauna,
| ia which the wretehed heroine graduates tho
| times that are most miserable to her She CON
cludes by saying that "most she loathes the
| hour'-of sunset, believe it is But therein
| Mary Ann and your correspondent differ. Most
he lOathes the hour of sunrise, for 1t IL then that
| the flies rise too Is there anything among
small troubles much more annoying than to be
| pestered by those animals in the early morn
Egl They couldn't have had tes where job
| lived or he would surely have mentioned the
fact
In another view this matter Of the heat will
not bear of light treatment. The suffering and
death caused by it surpass anything of late
years, and have only not created panic be-
cause it il plain there is no epidemic raging and
that the sun il alone answerable. Last week
the deaths numbered 800, as against 720 Of the
week before We are all afraid to calculate
What the result may be this week. but the total
can scarcely fall below the lowest of the
figures named although it is hoped that
it may. or course the greatest proportion of
this mortality Is among children, which brings
me to allude to the noble charity inaugurated ny
the New York Times | allude to the poor chill
drens excursions, recently successfully carried
into operation in the metropolis, and which
number OF benevolent gentlemen are endeavor-
ing TO initiate here. A public meeting has been
calied to consider the subject, and as there il
very general interest shown in the matter,
something practical will undoubtedly be done.
We have not the vast ground of misery to work
over which New York nnhappiiY possesses, but
there is more than enough. There is as real a
chance here to do genuine good AZ often hap
pens 1t is the most unpretentous, unaffected
charity that can be conceived, and makes
straight appeal to everyone who ever had a
child. What an altogether tine thing if this
movement could extend to all our cities II may
do 30, indeed. for whenever it is broached, it
seems to meet with instantaneous favor.
Aparl from all this suppose the event Of the
week might bo termed the opening OF the pro
posas for the new Public Buildings. These
included bids for the construction of the
buildings in sante and marble, with esti-
mates of the entire cost the cost of basement
alone, and cost of material at the quarry, in the
rough, dressed and ON the ground. The bids
were opened on Monday evening and there was
great deal of interest manifested. The lowest
Il L. = mt nd
| 50 766 900 for the entire structure These fig
ures were named by the powerful Comber "Al-
| llauce," consisting of several irlns and indivlG-
uals largely concerned in building. The highest
| bids ON this side were that of the Massachusetts
| Granite QuaITy-s5 l290 900 for the structure
| There were other granite bids, including the
| Bodwell Co., of Maine, whose estimate was ouly
| $4,000 less than the Massachusetts, Co. In mar
| bic, the lowest bid was received also from John
| Oomher Il Co the figures being n, ,0s5,000 ; and
| the highest from j. w Struthers. their esti-
| mate being S5 i37 900, The Conlher party evil
| IDENTIFY have the inside track and will doubtless
| win. There unchartabe poop,e who say
| that il was long ago determined that II Should
win, and that the Alliance includes number
| OF well-known gentlemen whose names nowhere
appear in connection with it, Whether we
build of marble or of granite, you will observe
| that the new City Hall will cost tidy sum OF
money. These figures have given are only for
| the stone work, probably not more than half the
| whole cost of the building.
Except for the looks OF the thing, the City
| Hall had better be built of brick than either
| Granite, Marble or Iron Tue reconstructed
| jayne Building on Dock street. s going up in
| brick, the Executors having had quite enough
| of Granite. But then they are not proud and
| are putting up a building entirely for use. 1t
| would be a shame, perhaps, to slight such a
| splendid chance for architectural display AZ the
| new City Hall offers, even if brick is the best
1 fire proof material. may make mere mention
/ here of several notably fine budiags now in
/ Of arartiOD the gtV thWfiults
/ Building as ii is termed, ID going up on the
| site of the old Petry property, on Walnut street
| above Third. 1t is designed for brokers, coal
| and nsuraI ce officer, and will supply wal
| long felt IN that neignbothood. New York has
| hundreds of such buildings, but there are very
few of them IN Philadelphia. The Provident
| Insurance Co is erecting on Fourth street be-
| low Chestnut, one of the most remarkable look
ing buildings to be seen in the city. 1t is of
| Iron, and it's peculiar massiveness arrests
the attention of the most careless pedes-
trian. The Northern Loring Fund ls building
a fine office at 9th and Spring Garden
streets. 1t will be the most pretentious
structure in that portion of the city, and may
have the effect of putting more enterprise into
tho people of the North end The old Spring
| Garden Insurance 20. at 9Th and Wood streets,
wants new building and this move of its
younger brother may have happy effect in that
direction.
some Of the foreign musicians imported for
Mr. GIlmores Jubilee have been heard
I
we are to have the divine Leutner, and in the
meantime the Emperor Williams "UOrnet Quar-
tette" has been giving concerts, and yesterday
the famous " KAISER Franz band played at the
: Scheutzen Park, and attracted great crowd of
people. The feeling, as l see 1t noted in the
. papers, and have heard it expressed by various
lovers of music, is not an entirely enthusiastic
one 1t is agreed that the band ls good but it
seems to have produced no thrilling effect. AT
the coliseum everything went with rush les
| pecially the guarantee money! and there was no
1 opportunity to analyze ones sensations 1t was,
besides huge merrymaklng, where everything
n | was in extremes-and it was the political quite
/ | as much as the musical effect that excited
the people. To hear the Germans and
| the Frenchmen playing each others national
aire, and then both together blowing
Yankee Doodle"-that was the secret of the
Jubilee triumph Very little Of this extraneous
i element supported the German Band here, ane
Q although it is admitted to be admirable or
# ganizatIon, superior to any similar body of oul
own, yet it did not electrify the audience. Ii
fact II a band be ever 30 good, it can only be q
band. 1t cannot produce the effects OF an or
| chestra, and people who expected the kind o
| pleasure that Theodore Thomas concerts gave
a them, were disappointed.
- Speaking of music, am reminded OF llttl'
social Tumpus that Mr.. Hassler has provoked al
, his concert garden, ON Eighth street. 1t IL
re-statement of the old troubles of the rights o
colored people in places Of amusement and pop
g ular resort 1t seems that certain ladies ant
q gentlemen have been refused admttance by thu
y fastidious Hasler to his concerts not from an.
o | nj nra nf hain gbar