Morning journal and courier., 1883-07-11
News by Telegraph FROM ALL QUARTERS. THg CROP PROSPBCTS. A Favorable Outlook From
 July Signs. THE IMPORT OF YELLOW FEVER. A Few More Cases In South
 ern Ports. LEc0UR'S CHALLENGE TO CHINA. A Scene In The Cha aanber Of
 Deputies.
LECOUR'S CHALLENGE TO CHINA
THE NATIONAL CAPITAL

The Crops-JuIy Report of the AgrIcuI. | tural Department-SeveraI More Cases of Yellow Fever Reported-The Efec, of the Lottery DecisIon-Various Mat ters More or Less Interestfns
 | WASHINGTON, July 10.-The July report of ] the department of agriculture indicates very general improvement in the condition of cot ton. Rains were general up to the 18th or 20th of June and local showers have been l frequent since. There had been an excess ot
 moisture, interfering with cultivation and
 promoting the growth of grass. Clean fields
 are found only in favored districts and on
 lands of prompt and pure cultivators Since
 June 20th growth has been rapid. In the grassy districts the plants are still small but
 healthy and making great progress with re.
 cent cultivation. The only complaint of
 drought comes from central and southwest ern Texas, from Colorado to the Guadaloupe
 few counties in South Carolina and Geor-
 gia report present need of rain. The on
 ly retrograde noted is in Arkansas where &
 loss of three points is reported A gain of
 ten points has been made in the northern
 zone, North Carolina and Tennessee, seven in
 Georgia, six in South Carolina, four in Texas,
 three iii Mississippi, tvs in Virginia and one
 in Florida. Alsoama and Louisiana stand as
 i'll Juno. The Jul State averages are as fol-
 lows: Virginia S3, North Carolina 91, South
 Carolina 91, Georgia 93, Florida 95, Alabama
 S7, Mississippi S7, Louisiana 91, Texas 93,
 Arkansas 84, Tennessee 8s. Worms have
 wrought little injury as yet. The caterpillar
 has appeared at few points from South
 Carolina to Texas. Picking will commence
 in southwestern Texas about the goth of
 July. There has been some improvement in
 winter wheat in Connecticut, New York, Vir-
 ginia, South Carolina, Texas, Ohio, Michi-
 gan, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas and
 California which advances the general aver
 age of condition from 75 to 79. The spring
 wheat has advanced from 98 to IOO The
 indications of July point to winter wheat
 crop of 300,00O, ,0O0 bushels and product of
 about 125,0OO,OO0 of spring wheat
 The area of corn crop has been increased about two and.a half million acres, making the aggregate sixty-eight million acres. There has been some extension of area in nearly every State The proportion of increase is large in the Northwest and in the Southwest. On the coast from Virginia to the Mississippi the advance has been small There has been too much rain in the great western maize districts and the failure of lands from planting poor seed, making the crop late and the growth small, but the i'm provement has of late been rapid. Taking all the States together the average for corn is S6, against 85 last July, 90 in 1881 and 100 in 1882. The prospect for oats is nearly as good as in July of last year, the average being 99 against 103. There has been an increase of about per cent. in the area planted in north ern potatoes. They are reported to be in high condition, averaging 1O1. The area of tobacco appears to have been diminished per cent, condition 95.
 No further action will be taken in regard to the lottery business until the return of Post master General Gresham from New York It is then probable that he will take up the query of Colonel Moulton and extend the order of Postmaster General Key so as to ap- ply to all postofices in the United States the postmaster at Memphis stating that the Louisiana Lottery company had an agent there and asking whether the recent decision applied to him. Chief Clerk Walker, in the absence of Postmaster General Gresham, re- piled that the decision applied in it's present form only to the agents of the company at New York and New Orleans.
 Acting upon information received from Havana Surgeon General Hamilton of the Marine hospital service today notified the quarantine commissioners at New York to look out for the City of Mexico, a vessel bound for that port. This ship left Havana on the 7th and it is suspected that she has yellow fever aboard. Sanitary Inspector Burgess of Havana cabled to that effect in order that the United States authorities might be warned in time. The Swedish bark Bernia, nine days out from Vera Cruz, put in | Sunday last at the Mississippi quarantine | station with three victims of the fever aboard. Dr. Jones, on duty at 1 New Orleans, informed Dr. Ham, l ilton of the arrival of the infected yes. sel and was promptly instructed to send her l to the Ship Island quarantine station. A 1 VlglIant corps of assistants to the sanitary | officers are stationed along the southern | coast and it will be difficult for 8 dangerous | craft to pass unchallenged. There was no Cabinet meeting to-day ow- ing to the absence from the city of Secre- | tarles Chandler, Frelinghuysen and Lincoln | and Postmaster General Gresham. The l Presldent did not arrive at the White House | until after l o'clock D. m
 delegation of Georgia Republicans head edby Colonel Birch, ch airman of the State committee, called on President Arthur to- day and demanded the removal of Marshal l Longstreet.
 The Hill investigation was devoid of inter- est to-day, the contracts of Bartlett SE Rob- bins in connection with the New York post office still being under discussion. Consid- srable time was given to the examination of 3 foreman of the above named firm as to whether work charged for was actually per formed.
 A statement furnished by Sivth Auditor Ella shows that the receipts for the first nine months of the fiscal year closed were $33, 646, ,356. 65, the expenditures for the same period $31, 346, ,914.45, leaving net surplus of $2, ,5O9, ,442.2O.
 It can be stated with almost certainty that he report in Collector Horton's case of Boston is adverse to him.
 J. J. Alley, clerk in the pension office, md J. c: Aellmet, of Virginia, were to-day Irrested by secret service detectives on the 'harge of being in conspiracy to defraud pensioners. Aellmet operated on the outside md Alley in the pension office. He is an old Jerk. The scheme has been successfully op- 'Eated for some time past Suspicion attaches O nkhar nlar Er, -oA in, onHs l