New-York tribune., 1878-10-15

tary influence on the British mind, especially
as the first Outburst of arrogance is past
| and reason is resuming Its sway.
! If the rule sought to be established in the
| Hamlton-EnO libel suit should prevail,
! criticism of public officers would be
! greatly abridged, and in many cases
| the public interests would undoubtedly
! suffer. Three fourths of the criticism now
habitually levelled at every corrupt Legisla-
ture would be effectually barred. To the
lay mind it is difficult to see wherein
Mr. Eno's letter contained the warrant
for a verdict against him for $4,000 dam
ares, and the action of the Supreme Court
General Term, upon the case will be watched
with interest. This is not a time when the public
are disposed to regard with much favor efforts
at restricting criticism upon public officers
within narrower limits than were permitted
half a century ago.
The complaint in another column about the
scarcity of water in West Fiity-seventh-st
might, with few changes, apply to the
| whole Murray Hill district. The water
| supply is greater now than it was
| three years ago, the service pipes are
| larger and more numerous, the management
of the CrotOn Board is supposed to be more
efficient, and the city demand has not materi-
ally increased. Nevertheless, houses which
three years ago had an abundant supply OF
water on the top floors, can now barely get 1t up
two stories-sometimes not even SO high as
| that. No sufficient excuse has ever been Of
fered for this progress backward. So long
as the people who pay the bulk
of the taxes are content to get the
poorest water supply, they probably Will get
! it. If twenty energetic men on Murray Hhi
would insist on being as well treated as they
were three years ago, or knowing the reason
why, there might be a change.
Surely our city law-givers have done their
best to confirm the rumOrs that have lately
been afloat as 10 "peculiar influences said to
have been brought to bear upon them. They
have passed over the veto of the Mayor an ordl-
| nance granting the right of way through Forty
second-st. to a hOrse-car company, which onereu
the city no reeompense for this most valuable
franchise beyond small tax upon the re-
CENTS of the road; they have done this, in
! spite of the protests of the residents along the
| hne of the proposed road, and In spite OF the
fact that another company has made
bona fide offer of $4,000 for this
! franchise, in addition to the tax on
receipts proposed by the first company Ill
spite even of the warnings of their own chair
man, who told them they were placing them
| selves in a strange position. But this was not
ALL They passed also wildcat scheme tor
laying steam-pipes in the streets, which Is
headed by q sidewalk politician, conspicuous
chiefly by the length of time he spends on street.
corners, and entirely without such qualIfca-
tions, either of character, position or wealth,
as would entitle the demand which has
been so hastily granted, even to considera.
tion. There is no telling what Job may lie
behind the SpinOla steam-pipe scheme. But
it is very easy to form an opinion as to the
means by which the Board of Aldermen was
led to authorize it, and, IN selling a city fran
chise, boldly to accept the lowest bid.
Eleven obstinate men have prevented the
conviction of Jesse Billings of the murder OF
his wife. For forty hours they withstOOd the
arguments of their colleague, and then, rather
than agree with him, announced to the court
that thew were unable to find a verdict. The
Juror who had such poor success in i'm
Dressing his views upon his companions
seems, however, to have public opinion
in that region upon bis side, and what Is
better indication of the probable truth
of the case-Judge LandOn's charge, which
certainly bore severely in many points upon
the accused man. The conduct Of the people
of that region is such as 10 lead to the suspi-
cion that Billings was allowed to escape this
time, 80 that BallstOn might have the pleasure
of a second trial. Indeed the delight Of the
vicinaee In this unusual and important pro-
ceeding has been sometimes too much
for its decorum, and a stranger might
have been puzzled to know whether
Billings was on trial for a capital offence or
was running for Congress. His friends have
had hotel " headquarters" just like those of
a candidate, and last night they had brass
band playing In bis honor, which was asked
to serenade the prisoner in his cell, but
actually declined. The juror who had tried
for forty hours to hang Billings, visited him
in jail and they had "a pleasant chat"
| evidently feeling that they had been
distinguished characters in an important
drama, and that meeting between them
was in the nature of an historical episode.
! There are many other signs that Ballston
! took q strong pride in this murder trial as
one of the finest of its kind, and would be
| glad to have the entertainment repeated to shed
renewed glory on the neighbOrhOOd.
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SOUTH CAROLINA