The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1873-12-31

Osdensburg has formed an alliance with the
Eastern. 1t is rumored that the Oxford Gen.
trail road, which on account of ITS bad con-
dtlon has been enjoined from running trains
by the Supreme Court is to be leased by the
Maine Central and extended to Lewiston
from Mechanic Falls. It is reported, too,
that another rudimentary road, the st. Croix
and Penobscot. is to be extended to Grand
Lake Stream and thence to Bangor. The
Bangor and Piscataquis road is building an
extension from Guiford to Abbott on its
way to Moosehe ad Lake.
Judge Rice has resigned his position as
Preside mt Of the Maine Central road and
been succeeded by Hon. Arson P. Morrill,.
The Grand Trunk has changed It's gauge to
the American or narrow gauge over
part OF its line, and the change is to be
completed at some future time.
INDUSTRIAL.
The piece of peculiar good fortune to which
we referred in the beginning of this article
8 the sudden, complete and quite unexpect-
ed revival of Names ancient industry Of
ship-bulding. The grand total of 81, 900 tons
has probably been reached, which is an in
crease of abou. 125 per cent over last year,
and exceeds the maximum production be
fore the war. The drawback allowed by tue
LAST Congress on material used in construct
ing vessels for foreign commerce has given
the greater part of the new impetus which
has rehabiltated our shipyards.
The panic which began with the failure of
Jay Cooke & Co. in New York, last Septem-
Der, has not affected the industries of this
State SO seriously as was expected. Though
some of our manufacturing establishments
are running on short time, while Others have
made reduction in the wages of their OPP
eratives, both of these expedients are thought
to be temporary, and there has not been a
general suspension in any branch of bust
ness. The failure of the Spragues may in
the end prove somewhat disastrous to Au-
gusta, but the bad effects anticipated have
not yet been realized. At Watervie the
purchase of the magnificent water-power BY
company which has already begun the
work of actL al improvement has excited the
liveliest anticipations in regard to the future
grandeur of that town. The reduction OF
wages at Lewiston and other manufacturing
centres has been about 10 per cent.
The State commissioner appointed to col
lect industrial statistics estimates the number
of manufacturing establishments in the Stat.
at over 5000; operatives $4,000; annual pro-
duction $95, 100000.
SCIENTIFIC
The twenty-second annual meeting of the
American Asso ration for the advancement of
science, held in this city, aud the systematic
dredging along the Maine coast by Prof Baird
of the Smithsonian Institute with select
party, has excited an unusual degree of en-
thusiasm among our local sauans.
LITERATURE AND JOURNALISM
We doubt if the State has ever known a
year of so much literary activity. Certain Y
the number Of volumes published by Maine
authors is much greater than usual "The
Tourmaline Gen." by DR.. A. G. Hamlin of
Bangor; "Christmas Tree and Other Po-
ems" by Fabius M. Ray of Portland; "Plym-
outh Church ard Other Poems,'' by Moses
Owen of Portland; Technical Education
by C. B. Stetson of Lewiston; ''The Young
Peoples History Of Maine by Geo. ] Var
ney; ''The PROSTATE S;ate'' by James S.
Pike; The Burning of Falmouth" Ly VIM.
Goold of Windham, and ''Women in Amer
lean Society,"" by Abba Goold Wooson,
make up a list which is quite creditable for
the literary province of Maine,
In journalism we have to note the suspen-
of the Portland Enquirer, formerly the River
side Echo, which announces an intention of
resumption with the New Year, the union of
the State and Advertiser and the transfer of
the Sunday Star 1, new publishers. Once q
Week, started at Lewiston, and the Deuir 8
Gazette, issued at Augusta, have both sus-
pended. The Real Estate Register has been
established in this city. Rev. S. Il. Burrage
has become the editor and proprietor of Zion s
ADVOCATE, and HoL. Eff. Pillsbury has re-
sumed the edtorship of the Maine STANDARD.
POLITICAL,
The year 1873 has been peril APPS the dullest
political era in the history of the State. The
vote for Governor Was only 1906. the small
est since 1849, when the candidates were
Hubbard, Democrat, Elijah Hamln, Wing,
and Geo. F. Tab,t, Free Soil. Mr.. Dingley's
majority was 10,602, nevertheless, the De-
mocracy having substantially abandoned the
field. Two NV judges of the Supreme Court
have been appointed, Hon. John A. Peters
in place of Judge Kent, and Hon. W. W. Vir-
gin in place of Judge Tapley, Hon. E. B.
Smith of Saco assuming the duties of Report
er of Decisions in Judge Virgins place.
CRIMES AND CASUALTIES.
The year has been thought peculiarly
bloody one. But if we look merely at the
number of persons who have committed
homicide we shall find that the twelve months
just passed have not been remarkable in this
respect. A close analysis of the number of
homicides reported reduces those that are
clearly proved to six; viz: Louis Wagner at
the Isles of Shoals, March 6; John Warren,
Portland, April 25; James Cullen, Mapleton
Plantation, April 20; the murder of DR.. Baker
at Warren, May 16, the alleged perpetrator Of
Aeo UOOh oS4uht1Cus COuu IL 0OIuOus
Thorndike, June Is, and Ade.bert Dawes,
Madison. Besides these, there have been re-
ported the homicides at Saco by Hannah Lit
tlefield, who was acquitted, at Houlton by
Michael J. Kelley, also acquitted. In Graf
ton, December oath Moses Tenney, blind
pauper murdered his wife. The number of
victims slaughtered by Wagner, Cullen and
Gordon probably accounts for the impression
of no less parsonage than one of our lead
ing justices of the Supreme Court that more
murders haze been committed in the last t,Der-
ty months than IN, any previous t,venty gears
ofthe State historyr' How monstrous an
exaggerstion this is, may be inferred from the
fact that in the Advertisers excellent resume
of the events of the year 1870 it is reported
that during that year eight murders were
committed in this State. Now so far as these
recapitulations have any bearing on the ques-
ton of the increase or decrease of CT minality
the number of murderers and not the number
OF victims is the significant fact; for one idiot
or mailman might destroy hundred lives In
a community of ideal virtue and intelligence
And IL appears that there were actually more