Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-07-15

zens Out OF Hed-The "EaIlshRs-
Eee"-The IateFnsI Improvement
Fund-SchOoIst In FiOrIds-AnOther
Link NOrIhward
TALLAHlssEE. July 1s-EIit0r Morning
NeJrs: 1t never rains but it pours," is an old
proTerb that has OF late been literally verified
Day after day c0pious. drenching showers
have visited us. urtil the once thirsty cries
enough" ana the planter has begun to com
plain Of too much rain. It would seem as il
Nenuor's prediction of a wet and cool summer
was 70 be true, for have never experienced
lIor this ciimate) such a cool one before. Our
planters are not all in the best Of spirits about
the cotton crop. If il holds up now. they say,
they win make a fai- crop, but il such weather
as we have had for the past three or four
weeks continues, the prospect is anything but
encouraging.
On the night OF the 9Th we had an alarm of
fire, aud until the locality and the extent Of
the coofiagration was known, considerable
CONSERVATION prevailed In Tallahassee
everybody and his wife" goes to a fire and q
circus. Hence. on the night referred to.
when the alarm was given, the church bells
rung, and the lurid hlmes were seen mount
ing upwards. there was a general hurryiDg to
the spot , fortunately it was not a dwelling
house as was feared. but stable and appurten-
ancts which. with their contents, were soon
c1nsu ned and the further spre d of the con
dagTarion prevented The loss was about $500.
Whenever Tallahassee has been visited with
big Gre then her property holders would talk
seriously about having a hre engine. They
would meet pass resolutions, appoint com
mt ees and aCl urn over until after the next
big fire, when the same routine would be gone
through with again. But this was the Talla-
haSSee of a few years ago As, however, we
live in progressive age, as the spiriJ of pro
gress has reached our city. as is evidenced by
our new hotel and the several railroads pro-
iectpd, hope, at no very distant day. TO record
the fact that Tallahassee, too. has a fire engine.
On the morning of the llth Miss Maggie G..
I Williams, the accomplished young lacy Sc
lected ty Governor Bl khan, TO chri stem the
new teameF Tallahassee" Of the Ocean
steamship line, lef6 with her escort on
| eper ial train furnished by the courtesy of the
& managers Of the Savannah, rlorlua and II est
/ ero Railway. The naming of the new steamer
! afte- ou- Garden City is a compliment that
FIoridians will not fail 10 appreciate ana equaly
/ So IS tie honor of selecting a Tallahassee girl
Miss Will ms is native or this city. and the
Cove slCr could not have made a more f1r seleC-
Wilkins. was one Of our most substantial clt.-
zeus and FOR two or three terms was Speaker
Of ths House. The many friends who went TO
the depot 70 bid her adieu attested her popu-
laritr az q Gr representative of the Land of
Ffou ers Heucef0rth the Ocean Steamship
Line will be patronized more than ever by
FloIifians, aud the Tallahassee" will be their
favorite
al last the great incubus that has rested up-
on our internal Improvement fund has been
removed. With the control Of twelve millions
OF acres. aud debt Of about million of dol
Lars the fund was regarded as insOlvent The
sales Of land were not sufficient to meet the
interest and expenses incident TO litigation;
and the interest thus accumul6ting not being
l rarfA WAS interest q
/ the fund. weary OF the protracted litigation,
veere about to invoke the aid OF the court ask
ir- the appointment of q receiver. In
the meantime, the trustees, being thus
hsmpered. were powerless 10 aid the various
worms of internal improvement projected
throughout the state, even when legislative
| 4ractments made large grants to aid these
several works. The bonds and coupons guar
Auteed by the trustees OF the internal inn
movement fund were a lien on the twelve mil
it.us Of acres and NOT an acre could be donated
I 10 aid any railroad without the consent of the
n5udhOIders and the decree of the court The
...lebrated Vose claim was bar to any effort
E @ Ister works OF internal Improvement One
rr two COmplnIeS, after great effort,
I shredded in obtsining some concession
rom Nose's attorneys and obtaining an order
rom the Uuited states Court But there were
/ other chartered companies which could not
al obtain what a Legislature had granted
chem These difficulties are now all happily
removed. The N0se Claims, whether Just or
uniISt has been adi Indicated to be correct, aud
I is now being paid ia full as also the old P aed
3 a II r bonds and other accounts for which
Z he fund was responsible A veXadous and
c1stlv litigation of twelve years is now ended.
fha dahts OF the fund are being paid and
The Board OF Trustees have now eight millions
of acres entirely unencumbered. This has
heen effected by the sale Of fOur millions Of
+ acres TO Hamilton Disston at Twenty-Five cents
rar acre and by the recent sale Of the two
roads with their branches between Jackson
L vile and the ChattshOOchee. The Reed syndi-
cate VINO made purchases OF a portion Of the
Hs7-f fI-.aHr d. F.rsrr
I ing made payment on lst or July OF the
amounts due as his contracts, the fund
is now free OF debt, and the hold
+ ers Of the bonis and coupons can
Z now have them cashed at par. And yet some
I ~ these same bonds in 1869 could have been
purchase at forty cents on the dollar With
4 our ia ucreasing prosperity our credit as state
progresses. A few years ago Florida had quite
z 4 H9afing indebtedness, and her Comptroller 3
( variants we're cashed at a heavy discount.
nr,,gv Sic has not a dollar OF floating indebted
{ ness. her warrants on her treasurer represent
+ their equivalent in money. and are caShed at
{ rar even in the city Of New York As late as
~ he.r ponds q 1869 and 1879 could be readily
purchased at 50 cents. now they are worth
4 n 2O-an increase Of 40 cents.
EducationallV, Florida is also progressive,
! Tie East and West Florida seminarieS, located
| resp sctively at Gainesville aud Tallahassee,
| are both doing good work IneSe institutions
/ being endowed from the prOcee Is Of the sale
[ of the Seminary Lands, are enabled 70 put
I the price OF tuition lower than that OF most
/ institutions Of learning. with good corps OF
I Instructors with astrono ulcal chemical
| and philosophical apparatus for the
| purpose Of Illustrating the truths Of science,
/ thev afford excellent opportunities for educat-
/ ing our youth at home. The Board OF Educa-
/ tion of the West Florida Seminary have re-
/ Gently elected as Principal for the coming schO-
Iasfic year Major +. r. Rive-s late Professor
l in the State Agricultural and Mining College.
| Auburn. Ala. Major Rivers is an educator Of
reputation and experience, ard under his man
agement it is hoped that the institution will re-
cefge a fresh impetus. One feature in the
! ffI~ricuium-amd neglected IN too many OF
! our schools and colleges-will be a course in
/ ri Il engineering This is a practical age. an
| ace OF railroads mining and steamboats,, and
while the classics are very desirable and a
necessary acquisition 20 the so-calied learned
/ rrofessi6us. vet in a curriculum Of study due
] REGARD should be had as 70 its utility to the
student in his future lie. classical course
may be better suited 70 one, sclentlnc course
/ 20 another and business course TO another.
/ Forty wears ago scientific or business course in
any Of our schools and colleges was unheard
/ OF. Even the present degrees OF Z. T.. ana 3. ).
I we're unkp0wn. but in this practical age there
| is much TO learn, and the student selects sueh
I A course OF study as will best NJ MN Tor tne
vocation in life which be may afterwards fol
The Tallahassee. ThomasviIle and Gulf Rail
road CompanV have now perfected thelr or
ganizatiOn and located p0rtlOn OF the route;
Mr.. Page Of Albany. n. Y. VINO sulleflulElueu
[ the preliminary surveys, IS now IN new AoFh'
/ and writes that he will return in week or two
and 20 on with the work so auspicuously
begun. Il is hoped that there may oe no uelAy,
| but the entire route located and hands put 70
I work. Our people are anxious and wlliing 20
assist the enterprise by donations of lana, and,
| as there IS considerable composition, IL Is
/ probable that the route viii be located thro lgh
/ that section where the most liberal donations
I are made. LEON.
-%%-o-e<-----
A merchant at Arlon, in Belgium, re-
/ Gently sent to the burgOmaster formal
announcement of his intention to com
nit suicide in certain hotel in Paris.
! The comDlacent burgomaster. instead Of
taking steps to prevent the execution OF