New-York tribune., 1874-12-14

sign Once, are now SAlO 10 nave nnu thciE Vfihin
in scheme for removing Secretary Bristow'
In order to have the latter transferred to the
Supreme Court, II would be necessary to have
vacancy on the Bench; this was to be pro-
yided by the retirement of Justice Swayhe'
But the scheme is blown into air by the assur-
ance that the Justice was never In Detter
health or in moro fit condition for his duties.
The responses to our call for dollar sub
scription in aid of the Nebraska and Kansas sur
ferers by the grasshopper plague continue 10
come in literally. 1t enters, we hope, into the
minds of many, who have yetdone nothing, that
the happy Christmas time should not pass with
out some effort to bring relief to these country
men of ours to whom it is q season OF Distress
if not of actual starvation. We hope this
Christmas offering may be still much swollen
and that the correspondents whose contrlDu-
tions are acknowledged on the fifth page
will find many within the next few days 10
initiate them.
The order of Mayor Vance to the Commits
sioners of Accounts. to examine the securities
of the Citys Sinking Fund does not imply any
| doubt of their character. There is no reflec-
ton on any public official contained In the
order: the Mayor believes in the prOpriety OF
an examination by others than those who In
vest in these securities for the city; and In
this he il clearly right. 1t is time this were
done. and time also that the other examlua-
tions which have been completed should be
made public. The publication, for instance,
of the examination of the books Of the Charity
Commissioners corrected several evils and in
stituted new and simple system of keeping
the accounts instead of Disgusting them as
heretofore.
King Kalakaua's reception at Washington is
described as rather wanting IN display
Doubtless, however, it was more agreeable to
the island potentate, wearied with the fatigues
of travel, than q more elaborate street show
would have been. To the participants in 1t, a
long procession, with its numerous delays. Is
ANYTHING but enjoyable. We wish that there
were some grounds for the hope that the re-
ception of King Kalakaua in this city might
be in as simple good taste as that at the
capital. But though the street reception at
Washington was somewhat inconspicuous, 1t
is to be supplemented by an official one that
| will be of an impressive character, aud the
remarkable attentions to be shOwered on the
King of the Sandwich Islands already awaken
conjecture A dim specter Of annexation seems
to be lowering about.
The examination of present officers of the
| Pacific Mail Steamship Company has devel-
| oped the important fact that nearly $4,000
| of the Company's money has been traced into
| the hands of the San Francisco agent, who
managed the subsidy scheme at Washington,
without any explanation whatever of the mode
of its expenditure. Nobody can doubt that
this money was furnished him by the officers
of the Company for the purpose OF cor
rupting Congress. Whether he so used it, and
to what extent can probably be determined
only by his own testimony. The Erening Post
calls attention to the fact, that if he were to
give this testimony, it might result in GRIM
mating himself. OF the two crimes, offering
| to brbe Congressman, and the acceptance
of bribes by Congressman, we take 1T that
| the punishment of the latter is at present the
much more important thing. In case OF this
magnitude, it is eminently desirable to get
the principal witness to make clean breast
of it; and it may well be considered whether
the end to be attained would not warrant i'm
munity to the witness himself.
The fruitless result OF the Croker trial only
confirms the view of the political murder in
the OBrien District which has been expressed
in THE TRIBUNE from the outset. In an
election brawl, led on one side by the anti
| Tammany and Administration candidate for
| Congress in the District, and on the other by
one of his old Democratic associates, person
not involved in the brawl was killed while
the two leaders were engaged in band to
| hand struggle. Thereupon one of these leaders
accused the other of the killing, and swore
that he saw him fire the fatal shot, The rest
of the testimony was contradictory. 1t was
evident from the beginning to all but the
blindest of partisans, that here was a case for
court and jury, and for nobody else. On
neither side was there any occasion for the
expression of sympathy. Of the two COM
batants the one accused of the murder was
the more respectable, and the unsupported
word of the other was certainly not conclusive
evidence in any case where his interests or
his passions were concerned. A fairly intelli-
gent jury has listened patiently to all the
evidence, and stands six for absolute acquittal
and six for murder in the second degree. We
may now, perhaps, hope that, in any further
consideration of the case, the miserable
attempt to make political capital on either
side out of the shameful affray will be aban-
| dOned.
COLORFD CONSERVATIVES.
L. H. O.. =