New-York tribune., 1873-01-30


than S3O0000 was last year expended on the
canals over and above the total receipts. In
other words, the money which should remain
in the State Treasury goes to keep up canals
which will never pay
The prospect of the abolition Of Slavery in
Porto Rico, and the consequent danger to
Slavery in Cuba, seem to have been strongly
impressed on the minds of Cuban shareholders.
few days ago q large meeting of slave
holders was held at Havana, when opinions
in favor of emancipation were generally ex-
pressed. 1t was apparently the prevailing
conviction that it was best to make the
most of bad case, and it was suggested
that large indemnities should be demanded,
although one person opposed all indemnity as
unjust to the poorer classes. An insidiOus
scheme however, was the one proposed for the
reduction of the slaves to the condition OF
the coolies. Such a cOnsummatiOn would only
be another form of Slavery. To-day most
civilized nations regard the treatment of those
unfortunate labOrers as one of glaring injustice
The cold snap of yesterday and night be-
fore last seems to havo extended due west,
but no further south than the southern
boundary of Tennessee. In most localities
from which we have reports the day is said to
be the codest of the season. AT Alex
andria, Ohio, for example, the ther-
mometer marked 30 below zero; at Fort
Wayne, Indiana, it was 80 below; at
Cory, Penn, it was SO below. and so
on. In New-England, where the mercury
was said to have sunk to $50 below zero dur
ing the last cold spell, there does not appear
to have been lately any such excessively Sc
we're weather In the Far West there has
been much snow. and trains on the Union
Pacific Railroad have been slightly delayed in
Utah. The storm seems to be travelling east
ward; and our own city discomforts may be
deepened by snow-stOrm of which the pres
ent rising temperature is a precursor
Somebody has been asking the Executive
Department some foolish questions about the
construction to be placed upon the late order
of the President forbidding Federal officials
from accepting State, county, township, or
municipal Offices The answer to these is
embodied in a new order, printed on another
page of THE TRIBUNE. The upshot of it all
is that the Head of each Department is to be
the Judge of the case which may arise in his
own Department Common sense will die
tate the manner in which the Presidents
order should be applied to local questions.
| But, for the relief of questlOners, 1T is good
humOredly intimated that it would not be
proper for q Federal officer to be Common
Councilman of city or town. The other ex-
ceptions fall naturally into their proper place,
the general rule being that a Federal office
holder must avoid local offices the duties of
which interfere with those of national ap-
p0intment
A telegram published this morning repre-
sents the troubles between Russia and Great
Britain as becoming more serious. The cause
of alarm mentioned in the dispatch, how
ever, instead of rendering the situation more
dangerous is, if dependence could be
placed upon the report, tolerably
sure guaranty of peace. A timely re-
monstrance from the British Government
alone ought to be sufficient to deter the Rus
slams from an undertaking which it is in
clined to regard with hostility. If all of the
five Governments mentioned in the dispatch
were inclined to support the pretensiOns of
Great Britain, which by the way is hardly
probable, it would be madness for the Car to
undertake to engage in a contest against such
odds. The chief reason to believe that the
policy of Cancellation toward England will be
fruitless, arises from the fact that some act of
hostility in Central Asia may so far cOmpro-
mise the Russians that they will be unable to
make further concessions.
Mr.. VIM. D. Kelley has suddenly changed
his mind When the Credit MObiier investi-
CATION began with closed doors) he said that
his only difficulty was that he did not have
more shares. In the little ad captandum
speech which he made, he left the impression
that owning Credit Mobilier shares was the
crowning virtue Of Congressman, and that
he was luckiest who owned the most.
Since the business has become odious he
has washed his hands Of the whole matter.
| He absolutely refused to take the GER
tificates of stock which Mr.. Oakes Ames,
| in open Committee, swore were his and for
mally proffered him. This dramatic scene was
Yesterday followed by another Mr.. Kelley
claims that $1,000 which he received from
Ames was an accommodating loan, and that
he yet owes $500 thereon. Mr.. Ames denies
this stoutly. Yesterday Mr.. Kelley sent the
disputed $500 to the Chairman of the Investi-
eating Committee, and so washed his hands
again. What has happened to Mr. Kelley that
his soul should so much abhOr in January that
which it craved in geeegserf
The views of the contending parties in the
coal contest are given On another page. Pres
ident Gowen, who is a type Of the IailgQad
autocrats and aspiring CAPITALISTS boldly de-