New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1872-01-30

mittee heard NJ. Hastings in a speech of an
hour and IL half. He stated that band of
public plunderers, infesting the States and
| Territories of the Pacific coast, had, aided
and controlled by the foreign office Of the
English government, seized upon the nOmi
mating power of both the political parties
and procured the offices, State and federal.
in California, to be filed by their creatures;
formed combinations by means of which
! they had acquired most Of the valuable
lands on the Pacific slope, and ne arly all of
the most valuable franchises, aud gold and
silver mines. and were shipping their pro-
ducts to Europe; plundered the public
treasury, deirauded the general government
out OF vast sums of money, and seized upon
the machinery of the criminal law in order
to prevent themselves from being indicted
and brought to punishment. He then read
atfidavits, court records and letters in sup
| port of the charges contained in his petition.
| The committee has appointed Friday morn
| ing next as the time for q further hearing.
SUPPLEMENTARY FUNDED LOAN ACT.
The proposed supplementary funded loan
| Means Committee, authorizes the Secretary
of the Treasury to sell $GOO,OO0,00O of four
and four and d half per cent bonds at less
| than their par value, the interest payable
| in London. Mr.. Boutwell, has had several
| consultations with the committee in refer
ence to the subject, and it is the desire to
| have the proposition become law at an
early day.
| STEAMBOAT AND OTHER DELEGATIONS.
| The lapse Of a few weeks having freed
| Congressman from the idling influences of
the holidays, their working season may be
said to have fairly commenced, and the
Senate and House present busy scenes.
The committee rooms are besieged by dele
| cations, especially the rooms OF the Ways
and Means and Commerce Committees
and they are 80 numerous that the hotels
are filled with them. The new bill intro
duced by Mr.. Negley, amending the steam
boat act OF February % last, is supported
by the entire steamboat convention, num-
bering, in all, about l20-a very respect
able lobby rs to numbers. Opposed to them
articles the steamboatmen are compelled to
use under the rules established by the
Board of Supervising Inspectors.
The patent men vie with the steamboaters
in number, and represent large amount
of capital, though the latter are disposed to
sneer at and look with contempt upon
them Each side is confident OF success,
and there is a good deal of bitter wrangling.
Those in favor of the bill claim that the
patentees have, by reason of the act of
February last, raised in the prices of their
appliances for saving life, which explains
| amendatory bill.
On the other side, it is charged that the
| steamboatmen are aiming at greater lati-
| tude; that the law, as it stands, is just, and
| well adapted to secure the lives of passen-
gers; that in relieving the prOprietors of
steam vessels from the requirements of the
law as to life-saving apparatus, the lives of
travellers by water are placed in jeopardy,
as experience proves that public carriers in
the main are regardless of human life where
their interests are concerned.
The steamboatmen's convention was
| summoned here by their committee, who
preceded them, and as they seem to think
it necessary TO engage their whole force
to fight the bill through, one naturally iD-
fers that their cause is not sufficiently meri-
torous to look out for itself, or at the least
to be susceptible of control by a committee
of two or three. Some say that they are
waging war against human existence, in
asmuch as they are attempting to remove
the barriers that wise Legislature has
erected for the protection of lite. This is
putting the case strongly, but perhaps not
too much so.
Among the many delegations may be
noticed representatives Of the mercantile
interest from the prominent cities Of the
Union who are here for the purpose OF
opposing the reduction of tax on leather.
RAD.