Wilmington daily commercial., 1875-04-24


The Second Annual report of the Centennial
Board OF Finance was made this week. Apart
from the Troasurera Report it has not much in
it that is new to the public. 1t details the
progress made on the various buildings, but the
newspapers do this with such fullneas from
time to time that people are kept fairly informed
| of the ttate of aifaire. In regard to the FL
nances the Board Expresses itse hopeful. The
entire receipts 20 far including stock subscrp-
| tions, public and private gifts, &c., amount to
81 437 ,105 ard the Board says SO, 500, 900 will be
required to complete the work and cover the
| whole expense TO the end. An energetic appeal
| is made to citizens generally to subscribe and a
| calculation is offered showing that the stock
will certainly be redeemed to the last dollar.
Against the amount of receipts above mentioned
| thero have been payments of 1886, ,59S, and
s630,5O7 remains on hand. Into this
| report does not enter the S50O,000 given
| by the Government for national
participation in tho Centennial, for that dona-
| ton ID not for general exposition expenses but
| for tho especial use of the Executive and the
| Smithsonian Institution. Neither do the full
subscriptions of Pennsylvania and Philadelphia
| appear. Those subscriptions are by legal enact
ment made payable in instaments, aud only
| such portions are receipted for as have been re-
| ceived in due course. A million perhaps re-
| main to be paid on these accounts, which will
make the sum required by fresh subscriptions
| about So, 800, 900. The report was not clear on
| this point and it caused some confusion.
Apart from the interest felt in wondering
where this 50, 500 900 il to come from, the great
| est concern taken IN the treasurers report re-
ates to Exposition expenses. There are two
main bodies OF figures under this head, one or
s5i2,7 III for buildings, grounds, and ihcldentals
thereto, and one Of S2l7 s32 for the Commits
sion and Board of Finance. There is no itemiz-
| ing or indication of any sort showing how these
| large sums have been expended. Relating to
| the building account this can be overlooked
| tIu tori ia falt "a no
be ON u heavy scale. but to be told that over two
| hundred thousand dollars have been spent for
clerk hire, stationery, printing, &c, IL to realize
that this is rather nonchalant way OF doing
business. The Board made the same mistake in
| its first report and there IL now an unmistakable
dissatisfaction felt. If people pay their money
they have clear right to know just what is
| done with it,
The geological Society has made a report
| which fairly astonishes everybody. 1t was
| known that the Zoo" had firmly established it.
self as a Philadelphia Institution, but we were
hardly prepared to hear that 1t Is the most sue
cessful establishment of the kind in the world,
| not even excepting those OF London, Paris and
Vienna The Society assures us that this is the
| fact that more people visited our garden from
| July lst of last year to the lst of last Marcia
period of eight months-than ever visited any of
| the great gardens OF Europe in whole year. ex-
| cept in London at the time of the last Worlds
| Fair. This seems to be quite conclusive,
| and as our Geological gentlemen doubtless have
1
| to local pride. There were 227, $50 visitors in
| the period named the receipts being over 49,
| 600. In tho same time there were subscriptions
| to the loan of the Society of S1OO,S75, apart
| from the special subscription oil Mr. Alfred
Cope of s25, 900, this being dependent on the
| society forbdding the sale of liquor or the CIV
| ing of animal exhibitions in tue Garden. Nu-
| merous valuable improvements have been made,
| including the erection of Il " Carnivora house
| costing 100000, Various additions have been
| made to the stock of animals aud birds, the total
| valuation of the Socetys treasures being placed
| at $i3,6 ,62O. From these facts you may gather
| that our 1900" is in the best of shape
A very lively quarrel is being waged among
the managers of the House OF Correction, and
one which promises to result i'll disclosures
freshly scandalizlng the administration or pub
lie aifairs'in this city. MIR. Thos. A. Barlow,
member OF the Board, charges his associates
with illegal and corrupt Use of the funds OF the
institution, one of the parties implicated beng
Mr.. A. H. Franciscus the President of the Board,
and prominent citizen. Barlow declares that
1900 900 nave been spent on the House OF Cor
rection within the past eighteen months, sum
out of proportion to its needs;-that con-
tracts have been awarded without adyer-
Using as by law demanded; and that man
ayers on the committee which voted the
supplies also served Oh another committee
which audited the bills. These charges are to
| be presented to Councils this afternoon, and
there is luttering among the dove-cotes. IL
can be seen that piclllugs under the plans ex-
posed could lie very readily indulged in and
there is It belief that there Is more truth than
| poetry in what Barlow alleges. 1t il affirmed
that hs course in the matter has been taken
through Spite he having been superseded as a
| manager and his term of office being just about
to close,-but if this is true what is to prevent
the other from being true, as well Inc scene
| at the meeting of the Board. yesterday was very
animated reminding the Public of the days OF
the "Buzzards," az the Guardians OF the Pooi
were used to be irreverently called Barlow was
| requested to resign by unanimous vote, Dut he
retired only to make his formal complaint 10
| Councils.
The Base Ball season has formally opened
| although the weather has been 30 cool that at
= tendance on the games must have been anything
| but a pleasure. But the professionals are
frightfully in earnest and are bent ON pushing
; things As the game stands now pleasure and
exercise are matters which do not enter INTO the
| calculation. 1t is business first and last. Con
r siderable money is risked in the clubs III saiar
ies travelling expenses rent of ground, &c., ant
:, tho Directors laying out their seasons to over
o balance these expenses work as Sharply, ahe
:, with as much system, as any contemporary SHOW
| man. The Athletic directors profess to Deheyt
o that they lost the championship las
4 season through delay in getting in theil
r games-the latter third of the
+. season being 10 hurried, in order that the
| necessary quota of games should be played, tina
the men became worn out and not up to tn
II work. The Boston club was better managed
l. commenced earlier, and had its programme NOR
T. evenly divided. This year the Athietic ha
|
| Centennial clubs are much Of the same mind
10 The Philadelphia is the Athletic local rival o
% last year, the Centennial being new organiza
}. ton. 1t is scarcely expected to conquer tn
others but it is strong enough to increase tn
s opportunities for exciting play. The openln
s. game of the season was played between TIL
10 Philadelphia and Centennial on Wednesday o
T. this week and was won by the former club by
il score of to 8. On Thursday the Athleti
Or and Philadelphia met the former winning by
l. to 3. So that the principal local rivals hay
each game to start with, and the rest OF tn
, country yet to hear from. People who followe
ID the game with interest in other seasons woul
OF hardly recognize these mines as they appeal
n Base ball is no respector of persons, and in th
le excessive rivalry of the time the once favorlt
T. player, no matter how pleasant companion c
10 how much he may have done for his club, mus
make way for fresh "talent," with more sprln
-, in its legs and more ygor in its biceps. or th
~ ~ Athletic of three four years ago Mcbride an
VI VI FISHER alone remain, and three-fourths OF th
s professionals of all the local clubs are recruite
" oe from distant parts of the country
. 's. The resignation by Gen. Provost OF the con
vi mand of 1st Division of the National Guard {
Pennsylvania occasions much talk among peopl
ho Interested in military matters, The resignato
@ @nr is alleged to have grown out OF Gen. Provo
ba being ignored in the movement of troops calle
e ne to preserve the peace in the coal regions Ge
oo natnr,, with the (fOyeruOr alOn