Wilmington daily commercial., 1875-02-06
FIRST EDITION.
PHILADELPHIA.
o uR S SATuR DAY LETTER

| LICE MAGISTRATES AND THE UNION LEAGUE
| THE PHILADELPHIA SAVING FUSD-TuE NEW DE-
| PARTURE AT THE WALNUT ct. NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
MENTs GENERALLY, &c.
| Special Correspondence of the Commercial
PHILADELPHIA, Feb. 5.
The Centennial becomes gradually tho reign
ing topic, and from this time out the bject
will probably be in never ceasing discussion.
Libraries have been written about it already
and how many more will be devoted to it by way
of speculation and description it would tako a
worry imaginative person to predict. No enter
prize of equal magnitude was ever set on foot
through more depressing obstacles than.this, but
the way seems at last clear. 1t was hard work
to raise tho peope,-not here, but through the
country generally,-but now the popular eyehas
been opened, which was all that was needed to
insure success. New York has taken firm hold
aud all the rest follows. You remember the
early effort to interest New York, and its morti-
| flying failure. In its second appeal the commits
sion had better luck, and now Qor some
reasons not altogether clear although we will
lingly accept results) our local journals are
scarcely less enthusiastic in Exposition matters
than those of the Metropolis. Among the most
| important of late developments is the statement
of the committee headed by MIR. John l.. Shoe
maker relative to needed city improvements in
| view of tho opening of the Exposition. The
site chosen, the railway communications &c.
| are all nnexceptionable, but Mr.. Shoemaker
shows that number Of things remain to be
done by the city III order to make the EXPOSE
| ton popular success. Thus, certain streets
| leading to the Park must be graded and paved,
| and there is immediate necessity for the con-
| struction of sewer which shall empty into the
| Schnylkill below the dam and effectually drain
| the Exposition grounds Tho need of these i'm
| provements is recognized on all hands, and they
will doubtless be instituted Immediately. The
construction of new hotels and similar buildings
| for the accommodation of strangers is also dwelt
| upon by the committee. This is an important
| point but no considerable action has yet been
| taken on it. There is some fear that we shall
not be able to itingly take of all our guests
during the Centennial season, and yet the put
| ting up of mammoth hotels for u short term of
service does not appeal strongly to real estate
specnlators. Perhaps we shall be a city of
| boarding. house keepers.
The suit of ex- Treasurer kemble of Pennsyl-
vania, against tho N. y. Sun has of course come
| to nothing, having been tried in u court in an
| other state and among conditions unfayorable
i'll every way to the plaintiff. Tho libel upon
Mr., Kemble was one of the most shameful that
ever appeared i'll the Sum- and that is saying a
good deal, but if the exTreasurer dreamed that
he was going to do anything with Dana in a Sec
ton that is hide-bound and case-hardened i'll all
matters relating to reparation for such injury
| as that inflicted by the Sun he has more ere
dulity than his fellows, and more it may
be added than his political educa-
Kembe is not u politician of the highest
grade, but ho is fair sample of the party work
er who has more good points than bad in his
composition, and he s immeasureably in advance
of tho individual who finds his chief province in
libelling the public men of tho country indis
criminatcly, from the President downward. 1t
is thousand piies that the Jury in the Kemble-
Dana suit should have disagreed, but such q re-
suit was scarcely avoidabio.
| Another Ross rumor thia week-followed by
the stereoyped disappointment This time the
missing boy was said to have been certainly dis
covered on board of vessel ut Barn
cgat, and some one was hurriedly
aent for from Philadelphia to
| identify him 1t appears coaster put into Bar
negat disabled, and residents saw a boy on board
ing Charley Ross. Tho little fellow answered
the description in all respects, and the manner
of tho persons i'll charge, in denying access to
| tho child, was suspicious. The further fact OF
his being dressed in girls clothes convinced the
Barnegat people that thoy had at last, and with
| out doubt found tho kidnapped boy. But MIR.
Ross speedily settled tho case in the negative. Is
| it not strange to note the number OF these
| =" startling resemblancea? 2? Members of the
Ross Family have now been called to
| identify i'll q dozen or more cases. in all oil which
| they admit great resemblance to little Charley.
| Grown people could scarcely find 80 many 'coun-
| terfeit presentments" of themselves. Perhaps
tho uniformed condition of childhood has much
| to do with this point, but it is II singular one,
| nevertheless. Aud how sickenng these repeated
| disappointInents must be to tho people nearest
| concerned. Imagine Lli0
news rs that from Barnegat would be received by
| IL parent the anxious Journey the emotion and
the anguish of the crisis Such are the things
| that "crtlsl the life" not only from out young
| hearts" but from out old ones, too
| The approaching election of Police Magistrates
| occupies the whole attention of gentlemen in
terested in politics. The immediate matter OF
concern therein is the action OF the Union League
| Representative Committee, whose re-entrance
| in the conduct of ocaspolitics was noted some
| time since; The League takes the Republican
nominations for Magistrate and passes upon
| them in judicial manner giving citlZens lts
| Judgment as to which of the candidates are
worth voting for and which are not. 1t throws
two ambitious persons ignomniously over, and
| the opinion among unprejudced people is that IL
might have continued the wedding out process
| considerably further without injury to the TICK
ct. But the chances are that it will be voted
much the same, regardless of the Leagues in
| tervention. e
| The 55th annual report of the Philadelphia
Saving Fund is lust issued, and it offers some
| such astonishing figures that am led to dwell
briefly therein. This Saving Fund is the oldest
but one-that ono being located in Boston-ln
the county. 1t had deposits on hand Jan. ist
| to tho amount of $l3, ,S3289l. The interest
credited to depoHltors during tho past year
amounted to s453,S2 These immense assets
arc all invested in landed or other similar secur
ties, paying low interest but whose soundness IS
unassailable. In fact the fund is too rich. 1t
would rather not take in 30 much money, and
recently made an effort to restrict the amount OF
yearly deposits from any one person 10 Tooo
but there was found to be too strong an opposl-
ton to that measure.
There is queer complication at the Walnut
ST, Theatre. Habitues are surprised at tho an
nouncemont that Mr.. r. A. Hall who has been
for several years acting manager of the House
during Mr.. Carkes continued absence in Eu-
rope. was to retire at the close OF the present
season. to be succeeded by Mr.. G. X. Goodwin,
the present lesaee of the ''Chestnut." You have
been Informed that the latter theatre has been
made over for a heightened term to tho gentle
men who proposed to build the "Centre Square
Theatre" but who thought better OF 1t. All
falls ont well for Goodwin, who il taken Ill as
n partner at the "Walnut." 1t is the arrangement
AS relates to Hall which excites remarks. Ihis
gentlemen has the reputation of being one OF
the most capable persons in his line i'll the the
atrical business He was manager Ford mann
stay in Baltimore, for many years, ana the
Walnut" was never better managed IN all lts
history than it has been since he was put, IN
charge. His character in the profession is that
of A rather hard man but an emnently fmthful
one. He is ambitious of power and poaiIon
and it is possible the proprietor of tue " wal
nut may have found there was getting to DC
, loo much Hall and not enough Clarke III the adj
, ministraton. Still, when an owner leaves u
peculiar property, such as this, IN the hahas o. Oh
an agent for months together, it cannot put
,,,,,,osaJ t,at tba resident perS0na1ty Will