Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1881-01-05
Notes and Notions.


COMPTROLLER CAMPBELL of New York
city has dismissed fifteen employees, saving
$4,000 in salaries annually. And he has
Just begun work at that.
HUNDREDS of people who write to Gar
field say that they "have no axes to grind"
and then they show the axes that they
would like to have him grind.
THE census Office has nearly completed
the first count of the population of the
United States, which shows that the aggre
gate will be about 100000.
WENDELL PHILLIPS says that no reform,
moral or intellectual, ever came down from
the upper classes of society. each and
all come up from the protest Of martyr and
victim"
JOHN RUsKIN is not believer in popular
in 1870, he said So far from wishing to
give votes to women, would fain take them
away from most men,
THE New York Graphic says "Lord
Beaconsfeld is just turned seventy-fve years
old. He is made of whalebone and old steel
pens, and will probably live to be premier
again and write another stuffy novel;"
THE Augusta, Maine, Journal intimates
that the marriage of General H. NJ. Plaisted
to beautiful young lady from eastern
Maine will follow his inauguration as gov
ernor of the state, should he attain that
honor.
SENATOR VEST of Missouri comes into
notoriety for little while as defamer of
John Brown, whom he refers to as /" that old
scoundrel." The muddy-water state pro-
duces some of the meanest men in this
country.
A RUMoR is prevalent in Washington
that President Hayes will sail for England
in May next, will remain abroad all sum-
mer, and will attend great meeting of
Wesleyan Methodists to be held in London
in September.
THERE is permanent rupture between
General Grant and Senator Blaine. Dur.
ing the latter's recent visit to New York he
declined to see Senator Blaine when he
called, and has since stated that he should
never speak TO the senator again.
The Louisville Courier-Journal makes
this cheering statement: "The election of
Garfield has done at least one excellent
thing. 1t has extinguished in the average
southern heart the expectancy the hope Of
office. 1t has turned the southern mind to
business"
HARPER's WEEKLY; "The daily news.
papers, as pictures of society, show nothing
which more distinguishes the life of to-day
from that of a hundred or hundred and
fifty years ago than the universal and intel
ligent public interest and activity in the re-
lief OF every form of suffering"
The Washington Republican gives Mr..
McPherson's estimate of the next bouse of
congress as follows republicans, 14s; reg
ular democrats, 1876; readjuster democrats,
two; greenbackers, eight; total, 293 on
the face one majority over quorum, and
three majority over all, for the republicans
GENERAL GARFIELD forgot to buckle the
lines to the bits in hitching pair of colts
to his wagon, after service at the Mentor
church last Sunday, and narrowly escaped
j runaway. An old farmer gravely re-
marked General, you will have to do
better than that when you take the reins of
government, or the political mules will get
away with you"
WILLIAM l.. ALDEN, whose humorous
writings in the New York Times have earned
for him a national reputation as the Sunny
man." of that journal, has entered the ser.
vice of Harper & Brothers. The various
publications Of that famous house will doubt
less show the presence of the bright wit and
keen satire that has made thousands laugh
over the columns Of the Times.
JOHN Q. ADAMS, in noting in his diary
the death of James Monroe for two terms
president Of the United States, wrote: "This
day occurred the death of James Monroe,
after six years Of penury and distress" 1t
is to be hoped that no such record will ever
be made of any living or future president
of the United States. That it should have
been possible in the case of James Monroe
is not creditable to the generation he served
GENERAL GRANT has dictated an article
for the North American RepieD on the sub
ject Of an inter-oceanic ship canal. The
general has made himself thoroughly &C.
quainted with the subject, and what he has
to say will probably be accepted az the pol.
icy of the government One thing is Ger,
tain, no inter-oceanic canal will ever be built
in whose management the United States
shall not have controlling voice.
THIS significant remark is made by the
London Echo; "While Italy is accumulat
ing deficit; while Austria is bending un
der deficit while Spain can scarcely make
both ends meet and while the alleged i'm
provement of the financial condition of Prus
STA has proved TO be illusory-to say nothing
of Russia-it is worthy Of notice that Swift
zerland, as she has done for ages, maintains
in government matters the even tenor of hel
way that France, under the republic, feel'
no financial strain and that the United
States, the greatest republic Of all, is coins
forward to prosperity by leaps and bounds