Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1875-02-05
OUR NEW YORK LETTER.
DlPhtheria-Bcecher-TntoD--T1,e
Price of Fame-BusIness-Am Amar5c,,,
Manufactures-Crue to ChiIdreD-
Liquors-the Weather.
DIPHTHERIA.


: in many of the Hudson River towns, par
4 ticularly in Albany. 1t claimed that
the disease has increased frightfully by
E the common practice of sailing the streets
in snowy weather. 1t appeared in Alba
ny early in the spring of 1858, and in that
half of the city which is situated north
of State street almost decimated the
children between two and seven years
, Over 1900 cases of the disease occurred
in the whole city during the first ten
months of its prevalence. And 179
dea tbs are recorded by 1t. Since that
day it has appeared as a local epidemic,
and has ragged with more or less viru-
lence in all the principal towns and cities
in the country. 1t is fearfully prevalent
now in New York and suburban cities
and villages, carrying off hundreds per
diem. The disease is so Virulent in its
nature that the physicians find it difficult
to treat it successfully.
BEECHER-TILToN.
Well, Frank Moulton is off the stand
after weeks of examination and cross
examination. He has surprised his
friends and his enemies The most
acute legal talent of the city has been
after him all these weary days, traps have
been set for him without number, and
from first to last he has held squarely to
the statements he originally made, and
has not deviated hairs breadth. He
has explained in the most frank and can
did manner his entire connection with
the matter, and has thrown floods of
strong light on all the dark places. He
has shown himself quite the equal of the
lawyers who had him in hand, and has
impressed everybody with the idea. that
he was telling the truth and nothing
less.
The trial will probably furnish author
tiles and precedents for all the divorce
cases to come in the country. Such ran
sacking ofjudicial decisions on difficult
points and so many of these points as
occur, make this a trial of special inter-
est in a legal point of view. Thus far
two pretty important side lessons have
been eloquently enforced by the history
of this case, namely, the folly of believing
in hearsay, and the uselessness of lying.
Much of the scandal that has broken
up households, when placed under the
searching ray of judicial examination,
melts away to impressions, to gossip, to
Imagination that he has made the worst
of things, and taken his own horrors for |
fact. And this bold and delicate system |
of lying, which even good men held jus |
tifiable to keep scandal from breaking |
| out, proves but an added trouble, that |
| darkQns the case for 10th sides.
| The struggle now is whether Tilton |
shall be allowed to testify in this case, |
and a vigorous fight is being made over |
1t can see no reason why he should |
not If he tells the truth, as well that |
is what the people want. If he lies he |
cannot so hide it but that the lynx |
| eyed lawyers for Beecher. will discover
it. 1t strikes me that Beecher is injuring
| himself by his perpetual obiecting and |
quibbling. If he is innocent he ought
to give every one who knows anything
about it a chance to tell what he knows. |
Keeping testimony out of court, may ac-
quit him in a court of law but it will not |
before the people.
BUSINESS.
The first of February, merchants faces |
grew a shade lighter, for the Spring trade /
opens, which, it is hoped, will revive bu-
siness from the depression of the last two
years. 1t is very well understood that |
inflated prices are things of the past, and /
to do business in future, a man must Of
fer the public something it wants, at the
lowest prices, for economy is growing
fashionable, and socially a grace is made
| of necessity. Merchants are marking
goods down unsparingly. A. T. Stewart
& Co., whose figures are the thermome-
| ter OF prices, began their spring cam
paign by offering the standard twilled |
wool dress fabrics, which sold last year
at 81 yard, for 30 cents--a difference
by which one can measure the tumble |
in the value of most fabrics. In cotton
goods the reduction is equally gratifying
to consumers Lonsdale muslin selling |
for I215 cts. and New York Mills, the fin
est American brands, for Is cts
And yet croakers fear that the spirit
of Republican institutions is losing its
force in this country. In what other one,
pray, is q round-threaded, full -bleached,
and soft-fnished, taking the needle free
", sort of "biled shirt" within reach |
of every voter who goes to the polls
AMERICAN SHOES AND SILKS.
Even those who go abroad-and there |
are not few who make light of winter |
voyage across the ocean-are beginning |
| to appreciate home manufactures, as they |
| deserve. was surprised to hear a fas- |
tidious lady, late from Europe, declare |
that the shoes made in this country were |
| better than she found either in London or
Paris The shape of American boots /
was more graceful than the English,
which were clumsy looking unnecessari-
ly broad and square, and short in the /
ankle, while French shoes, of good
make were little, if any, cheaper than in
New York,
American silks are steadily gaining a
national repute, like that of Irish pop
lin, always in style and favor for its
worth and intrinsic beauty. 1t is the
thing for ladies going abroad to take
dresses of American silk with them, part
" for the sake of home associations, as
the Scotchwoman takes her clan tartan,
or the Irishwoman her Limerick lace, but
more because no other fabric stands the
voyage as we'll or is as good hotel toll
ct, always sufficiently rich and subdu-
ed.
Now are these the only manufactures
which we have reason to esteem. The
late meeting of the American China pot
tery-makers to take measures for pro-
tecting and developing their industries
brought to light the fact that the finest
CLAWS and china earths were more abund-
ant in this country than in Europe. AL
ready more than half the china in COM
mon use is homemade, and vast i'm
provement we find, this semi-opaque por-
celain on the old fashioned stone china
and queensware. All the varieties of
ornamental ware are made here, such as
decorating tiles, majohca, and imitation
wedgewood. 1t ought to be the pride of
a good American to hunt out, and do
justice to the productions of home art,
Just as they come up to the desirable
standard, and which they are fast dong.
THE PRICE OF BEING ILLUSTRATED.
Would you like to know the price of
fame at last quotations? Young readers
who envy the fortunate musician or lit
erary man who is brought so far
into notice that the public demand to
know how he looks, and where he dimes,
when he was born, and what he has
done since he was ofage to speak, listen.
Whatever pious or useful work you do
for the world, short of taking a gun
boat feet, or reaching Wachters high G
as tenor, do not expect to find an artist
envoy at your bedroom door, beseech-
ing your picture for the illustrated pa
pers. Such was once the case, but the
pictorial newspapers have changed all
that. If you choose to furnish your
imperial photograph, and pay $3.50 in
addition, you may have the pleasure of
seeing your face in a full PACED portrait,
with the privilege of writing your own